Getting Started

How to Play The Isle: Evrima

The Isle: Evrima is a gritty, multiplayer dinosaur survival game where you live a prehistoric food chain from the bottom up — you spawn as a vulnerable hatchling, hunt or forage to grow into your adult form, and try not to become someone else's meal along the way. There is no quest log and no hand-holding: hunger, thirst, predators, terrain, and other players are all trying to end your life, and learning the rhythm of survival is the whole game. This is the start-here hub for brand-new players — a first-hour walkthrough from the spawn screen to a confident, growing dinosaur.

1. 01
   Pick your game mode — Survival vs Sandbox

   Most servers run Survival: the full experience where you grow from a hatchling, manage hunger and thirst, and lose your progress when you die. Sandboxlets you spawn in at full size with no growth or survival pressure — great for learning a species' movement and abilities before you commit to a real life. If you want company while you learn, our featured community server is a friendly, well-moderated place to take your first steps.

2. 02
   Choose a starter species

   Your species decides everything: whether you eat plants or meat, how fast you grow, and how easily you die. New players do best on something small, quick, and forgiving rather than a slow apex that everyone wants to kill. Browse the full dinosaur roster with stats and diets before you lock in your first pick.

3. 03
   Your first goals

   In the opening minutes your only jobs are simple — find water, find food, and stay out of sight while your stats fill back up. Avoid open fields and shorelines where you are easy to spot, stick to cover, and do not wander toward distant calls or fights until you understand the map. Staying alive long enough to grow is the entire early game.

4. 04
   Use scent (Q) to find food and water

   Holding the scent key (Q by default) reveals nearby trails on the ground — herbivores can sniff out edible plants and water, while carnivores can track blood, carcasses, and the paths other animals left behind. This is your radar for surviving without exposing yourself, so use it constantly to plan a safe route before you move. Treat scent as your most important tool in the first hour.

5. 05
   Growth and diet basics

   You start as a hatchling and grow through stages by eating the right foods and keeping your needs topped up — better, more varied food grows you faster. Each species wants specific nutrients, and balancing them keeps you healthy and growing instead of stalling. Our growth guide breaks down the stages and the diet multiplier, and the diet guide covers the best nutrient combos.

6. 06
   Avoiding death — predators, drowning, fall damage

   Most early deaths are avoidable: predators ambush from cover, deep water will drown a small or tired dinosaur, and steep drops cause real fall damage. Keep to terrain you can climb back out of, never sprint blindly off a ledge, and break line of sight the moment you sense a larger animal nearby. When a fight is unavoidable, our combat guide explains bites, pounces, and grapples.

7. 07
   Finding others and playing with friends

   The Isle is far safer — and more fun — in a group: packs and herds spot danger sooner and can defend each other, so coordinating with friends or trusted players is a huge survival edge. Spawn on the same server (ideally near the same area) and use proximity calls to regroup if you get separated. Our community server is a good place to find people to grow alongside instead of running solo.

8. 08
   Nesting comes later

   Once you reach adulthood you can take part in nesting — courting a mate, laying eggs, and raising the next generation of hatchlings. It is an advanced, full-grown activity, so do not worry about it during your first hour; just know the loop exists once you survive long enough. When you are ready, our nesting guide covers the full process.