Into the Fire Controls

Starward has not published a final keyboard overlay for Early Access, and early playtesters called the scheme a little unorthodox. Open Playtest no.2 added full key remapping, so the first thing you should do in that build is open the rebind screen and make kick, drop, and tool-swap comfortable. This page still does not invent a fake WASD table. It documents the verbs. It documents the verbs you will be asked to perform, the resources those verbs spend, and how to set up a pad or mouse so the first expedition is not a stamina funeral. Rebind in the pause menu of whatever build you are on, then come back here for the why.

If you are brand new, pair this with Getting Started. If your deaths are “I had a person in my arms and could not climb,” skip to rescue.

Input the store actually promises

Steam currently lists full Xbox controller support and a single-player campaign. Mouse and keyboard are the expected PC default. There is no advertised local dual play. You will not be handing a second pad to a friend for a split expedition.

Expect a third-person action camera: move, look, sprint, interact, fire/spray the equipped tool, and a context button for carry, drop, and world actions like wells or camp pets. Playtest videos show a HUD with stamina, carried weight, and hazard warnings that Starward has been thickening after community feedback.

Verbs that eat stamina

Open-playtest notes are unusually specific here, which is a gift:

• Kick — used on debris, doors, and sometimes fire spirits. Stamina cost was reduced from 45 to 35 in one December pass because people were stranded with a broken flow. Still not free. The Kicker perk exists for a reason.
• Dodge roll — I-frames are not documented as a MMO roll. Use it to leave lava tongues and spirit lunges, not as a travel tech.
• Sprint and climb — Ruins vertical maps punish empty stamina at the top of a ladder while you are carrying someone.
• Axe swings and breach — interiors hide civilians. A few swings can kill the tool. Durable and Breacher perks, plus morning crafts in camp, are the real control scheme for this verb.
• Extinguisher spray — not a hitscan rifle. You are painting a corridor. See extinguishing weapons.

Later notes added four stamina-related perks and a stamina behaviour rework. If your playtest build feels heavier or lighter than a YouTube VOD from May, believe the build. This wiki will follow playtest notes.

Carry, drop, and why the camera fights you

Carrying a survivor changes your silhouette and your available buttons. Creators complain about snappy pickup animations; assume the pickup is a commit. Practice:

1. Approach, interact, wait the animation.
2. Reorient the camera before the plank.
3. Do not kick unless the body is blocking a door you must open.
4. Drop only when a bomb warning makes the animation cheaper than eating the hit.

If a rebind lets you put interact and drop on easily reached keys, do that before you enter Crimson Pass. The expedition planner cannot save a mis-clicked drop into lava.

Tools on the d-pad of your brain

You will swap among:

• Suppression pistol for precise jets
• Extinguishing shotgun for cones
• Fire-bomb launcher for area denial of fire (and sometimes of your own path if you are sloppy)
• Hose, blowers, scanners, sleds, ropes as the district demands

Put “next tool” on a comfortable bind. Into the Fire is a loadout puzzle more than a flick puzzle. Rank the kit on the weapons and gadgets pages, then bind to match the two items you actually brought.

Pad versus mouse

Xbox pads are supported. Aiming a suppression pistol on a stick is fine for fire, less fine for tiny interact prompts on rubble. If you play on pad, raise look sensitivity until spirit tracking is comfortable, then lower it until you can still hit a well crank in camp. Mouse users should do the opposite: you already have precision; spend the first minutes learning kick and roll timings rather than extra DPI.

Steam Deck compatibility is still listed as unknown. Do not assume the playtest FAQ’s 16 GB RAM minimum loves a handheld. Check system requirements.

Accessibility and sanity settings

We do not have a final list. What we do have: Starward keeps buffing hazard telegraphing because testers got blindsided. Turn every warning slider up. Subtitles should be on; English is the full-audio language, and radio callouts are part of the control scheme. If a future build adds colour-blind filters for fire overlays, use them — lava and ember UI already share a palette.

A 10-minute drill before you “play for real”

1. In camp, rebind kick, dodge, interact, drop, spray, and tool-swap.
2. Sprint a circle until you can see stamina recover.
3. Kick one destructible, then stop. Count the cost.
4. Pick up a crate or dummy weight if the build allows, and walk a plank.
5. Spray a burning doorway just enough to pass, not enough to empty the tank.
6. Only then queue the first city extract on Getting Started’s checklist.

Controls will move before 2026 Early Access. The verbs will not. If a patch notes file changes a number, trust the number. If a streamer swears the default interact key is sacred, ignore them and bind for your hands.