Beginner's Guide: Survive Your First Workday
Everything we wish someone had told us on day one.
CLOCK OUT is easy to start and surprisingly deep. This guide covers controls, how a run works, how to build a strong loadout and how to beat the 5 PM boss.
1. Controls
- Move: WASD or arrow keys, a gamepad's left stick, or drag anywhere on a touch screen.
- Attack: nothing to press. Every weapon fires on its own.
- Combat Roll: Space or Shift (the roll button on phones) rolls you through danger with a moment of invulnerability, once every 20 seconds. Your car decides how the roll ends; see cars and roll styles.
- Special: R during a shift (the Special button on phones) fires your home's signature move. See Home Specials.
- Level-ups: click a card or press 1–4. R rethinks (rerolls) the offer, X skips.
- Pause: Esc or P. Boss Key: B.
2. How a run works
A run is one workday. The clock starts at 9:00 AM and every in-game hour lasts sixty real seconds. New kinds of Workaholics arrive throughout the day, scripted events like all-hands meetings and stampedes surround you, and bosses appear at 12:00 PM, 3:00 PM and 5:00 PM. Defeat the Regional Manager at 5 PM to Clock Out.
Defeated Workaholics drop Gold Stars. Collect them to fill the experience bar at the top of the screen. Every level-up opens a Performance Review where you choose one of three (sometimes four) cards: a new weapon, a level for a weapon you own, or a passive perk.
3. Your first build
Your work bag starts with room for 3 weapons and 3 perks and grows with your home, up to 5 weapons and 6 perks from the Mansion on. Early on, add a second and third weapon quickly: more weapons means more coverage. After that, focus on leveling the weapons you have rather than adding new ones.
- Combine one weapon that clears what's around you (Hot Coffee, Swivel Chairs, Keyboard Smash) with one that hits far away (Stapler, Paper Planes, Laser Pointer).
- Energy Drink and Headphones improve every weapon and are always solid picks.
- Pick perks that evolve your weapons. The level-up card tells you when a perk matches a weapon you own.
4. Movement is your defense
Workaholics are slow, but they come from every direction. Move in wide loops rather than back and forth: the horde gathers behind you and your weapons thin it out from the edges. Avoid getting pinned against desks, because furniture blocks you as well as them.
Smash vending machines, water coolers and copiers for donuts, coffee, coins and Gold Stars. The coffee gives a burst of speed, which is perfect for escaping a tight spot.
5. Elites, crates and evolutions
Middle Managers glow and carry a Supply Crate. Always take them down. Crates level up your gear, and if a weapon is at level 8 and you own its matching perk, the crate evolves it into something spectacular. Max two partner weapons (like the Water Cooler and the Mop) and the crate merges them, freeing a slot.
Watch the floor. A red circle filling under a Brute or Middle Manager means a ground slam: step out. A red laser line means a Spam Bot is about to fire. Brown puddles slow you down, and a cable with a flashing yellow ring is about to zap everything standing on it, including the horde.
6. Beating the bosses
Bosses mark every big attack on the floor before it lands: a red outline shows where, a red fill growing inside it shows when, and green shows the way out. Every one can be dodged on foot. Their attacks hurt the crowd too, so lure them into it, and some backfire: the HR Rep can get tangled in her own tape, and the Consultant can charge straight into a desk. Ring attacks fire in straight lines from the boss, so circle around it instead of running straight away. See the guides to the HR Rep, the Synergy Consultant and the Regional Manager.
7. Between shifts
Every run pays, even if you burn out. Spend your pay on your home: a better bed, a coffee machine and a piggy bank are the best first buys, and every move to a bigger place unlocks stronger furniture. Complete Performance Goals to unlock new weapons, employees and the Crunch Week difficulty.
Your career saves on your device and, after your first shift, in Cloud Save. Settings → Cloud Save shows a private code you can use to keep playing on your phone or another computer.
8. Play the Daily Shift
Once you're comfortable, try the Daily Shift. It's the same run for everyone that day, so it's the fairest way to compare scores with friends or coworkers.