Outbound may start as a relaxing camper-van survival game, but going for 100% completion turns it into a surprisingly deep exploration grind. Between hidden gnomes, collectible paintings, bottle caps, campfires, crafting systems, and secret achievements, there is a lot more to track than most players expect during their first few hours.
The good thing is that Outbound keeps its achievement system very fair. Nothing is permanently missable, every biome remains explorable later, and you can clean up unfinished achievements after completing the story.
This guide covers every achievement in Outbound, the best roadmap for 100% completion, and the easiest way to avoid painful cleanup grinding later.
100% Outbound Achievement Guide – Vehicle Upgrades
Best Achievement Roadmap Order
The cleanest way to complete Outbound without excessive backtracking is:
Early Game
- Story progression
- Vehicle upgrades
- Farming crops
- Collecting litter
- Saving bottle caps
- Tracking campfires
Mid Game
- Collectible cleanup
- Research Centers
- Cooking recipes
- Blueprint hunting
- Paintings and cairns
Late Game
- Gnome cleanup
- Hidden achievements
- Final upgrades
- Festival activities
- Remaining collectibles
If you ignore collectibles early, the final cleanup becomes MUCH longer.
All Outbound Achievements
Main Completion Achievement
| Achievement | Description |
|---|---|
| Unlock all other trophies. | Unlock every other achievement |
This unlocks automatically after earning all remaining achievements.
Story Progression Achievements
These are unlocked naturally while advancing through the main world progression.
Story Achievement List
| Achievement | Description |
|---|---|
| Start Your Journey | Begin your outdoor journey |
| To the Coast | Reach the Coast biome |
| Into the Canyons | Reach the Canyons biome |
| Up the Mountains | Reach the Mountains biome |
| The Festival | Participate in the Festival |
You cannot permanently miss these achievements.
Simply following the main progression path unlocks all of them.
Vehicle Upgrade Achievements
Your van becomes increasingly important later in the game once longer exploration and collectible routes begin.
Vehicle Achievement List
| Achievement | Description |
|---|---|
| Don’t Break the Camel’s Back | Build maximum weight on your vehicle |
| Decked Out | Craft all vehicle upgrades |
| Up | Attach 10 Efficient Wind Turbines |
Important Upgrade Tip
Do not ignore smaller upgrades while progressing.
Many players save crafting until endgame and then realize they are missing several upgrade chains required for “Decked Out.”
Craft upgrades steadily as materials become available.
Clothing & Customization Achievements
These achievements are easy to forget because they seem cosmetic at first.
Clothing Achievement List
| Achievement | Description |
|---|---|
| Chromatic Confusion | Paint your vehicle 10 times |
| Top-Tier Threads | Craft the best clothing upgrades |
| Fashionista | Equip every clothing color |
Fashionista Tip
You must actually equip each clothing color manually.
Simply owning the colors is not enough for the achievement to trigger.
Collectible Achievements
These are the largest time investment in the game.
Collectible Achievement List
| Achievement | Description |
|---|---|
| Ring-a-Ding-Ding! | Collect 100 bottle caps |
| Recyclops | Recycle 100 litter pieces |
| Snapped ‘Em All | Collect all Cap ‘n Snap blueprints |
| Camper Van Gogh | Collect every painting |
| Gnome Sweet Gnome | Collect every gnome |
| Cairnivore | Stack every cairn |
| Shine Your Light On Me | Light all campfires |
Most Important Beginner Advice
Track collectibles from the beginning.
Especially:
- Campfires
- Paintings
- Gnomes
- Cairns
These become frustrating to revisit blindly later.
Best Bottle Cap Farming Method
Bottle caps are found through:
- Litter pickup
- Containers
- Campsites
- Trash bins
The achievement tracks:
- Highest amount collected
NOT:
- Current inventory
Once you reach 100 caps total, you can safely spend them afterward.
Campfire Warning
Campfires require:
- Redwood
Only Redwood works.
This causes problems for many players because they accidentally hoard other wood types instead.
Whenever you see Redwood:
- Gather extra immediately
- Store spare pieces in your van
This saves huge amounts of travel time later.
Exploration & Gameplay Achievements
These are tied to side systems and exploration activities.
Exploration Achievement List
| Achievement | Description |
|---|---|
| Master of Gear | Solve the gear puzzle |
| Green Thumb | Harvest 30 crops |
| Over-cooked! | Cook every food recipe |
| Two Forks Memories | Explore the Fire Lookout Tower |
| Up, up and away! | Ride the Hot Air Balloon |
| Fur-Ever Friend | Adopt a furry companion |
Green Thumb Farming Tip
Start farming early.
Players who ignore crops until late game usually end up grinding farming specifically for this achievement.
Plant crops consistently throughout progression instead.
Cooking Achievement Advice
Cook recipes whenever ingredients become available.
Otherwise you eventually end up hunting down obscure missing ingredients during final cleanup.
Secret Achievements
Outbound also contains several hidden achievements tied to exploration and easter eggs.
Secret Achievement List
| Achievement | Description |
|---|---|
| Round ‘n Round | Repair the windmill |
| Edison Approves | Repair the lighthouse |
| Ferry Poppins | Restore the ferry |
| Party Animal | Visit all festival sites |
| Certified Researcher | Deliver materials to all Research Centers |
| Can you Pet the Dog? | Pet the dog |
| Below Snakes, Apparently | Faint inside the Canyons biome |
| Meet the Devs! | Find developer gnomes |
Easiest Hidden Achievement
“Can you Pet the Dog?” is exactly what it sounds like.
Find a dog.
Pet the dog.
Achievement unlocked.
Honestly impossible to dislike this one.
Weirdest Hidden Achievement
“Below Snakes, Apparently” requires your character to faint inside the Canyons biome.
You can intentionally trigger this by:
- Ignoring survival needs
- Taking environmental damage
- Letting health drop naturally
The method itself does not matter.
Research Center Achievement
Each biome contains one Research Center.
Research Center Locations
| Biome | Research Center |
|---|---|
| Starting Area | Yes |
| Canyons | Yes |
| Pacific Coast | Yes |
| Mountains | Yes |
Deliver research materials to all four for:
- Certified Researcher
This achievement is commonly forgotten during normal progression.
Hardest Achievements In Outbound
Most players struggle most with:
- Gnome Sweet Gnome
- Camper Van Gogh
- Snapped ‘Em All
- Shine Your Light On Me
The difficulty comes entirely from exploration and tracking, not mechanics.
Best Tips For 100% Completion
Pick Up Every Piece Of Litter
This helps with:
- Bottle caps
- Recycling progress
- Blueprint currency
Save Redwood Constantly
Future campfire cleanup becomes much easier.
Explore Slowly
Rushing through biomes causes massive backtracking later.
Clear Areas Carefully
Especially important for:
- Gnomes
- Paintings
- Cairns
Use Co-Op If Possible
Co-op helps speed up:
- Exploration
- Resource farming
- Collectible searches
Nothing requires multiplayer, but it definitely saves time.
How Long Does 100% Completion Take?
Most players will need roughly:
- 20 to 40 hours
Completion time depends heavily on:
- Exploration habits
- Collectible tracking
- Farming efficiency
- Whether you use co-op
Players who ignore collectibles early usually end up spending several extra hours revisiting old regions.
Outbound handles achievements much better than most open-world survival games. Nothing is permanently missable, the world remains fully explorable, and progression rarely feels stressful.
The main thing that separates smooth 100% runs from frustrating cleanup sessions is simple:
Pay attention early.
If you casually collect litter, save Redwood, explore carefully, and track collectibles while progressing naturally, most achievements unlock without much grinding at all.