Dead Weight on PC targets keyboard and mouse players first. The interface blends grid-based tactical combat, world-map ship navigation, and RPG menus for skills, inventory, and crew management. Below is the standard layout observed in demo and playtest builds; exact bindings may shift in the options menu before the July 16, 2026 launch.
Combat favors deliberate clicks — select a unit, highlight a tile, confirm an attack — while the world map uses point-and-click routing between islands. Learning both layers early prevents fumbling during timed story fights or fuel-critical decisions.
Dead Weight supports English, Russian, German, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), and Simplified Chinese for interface and subtitles. Control descriptions here use universal mouse button names so they remain clear regardless of language pack.
If you are coming from CRPGs with free movement, adjust expectations: grid combat means discrete tiles, not analog walking. Every click is a commitment until you cancel with right-click or Esc. That constraint is the source of Dead Weight's tactical depth — plan before you click.
Grid Combat Controls
- Left click — select characters, move to tiles, target enemies.
- Right click / Esc — cancel actions or exit ability targeting mode.
- Number keys 1–4 — quick-select equipped skills (slot-dependent).
- Space — confirm turn or end round (phase-dependent).
- Mouse wheel / drag — pan larger battlefields when available.
World Map and Ship
- Left click on island — set destination and jump if fuel allows.
- M key — toggle regional map (if bound in settings).
- I / C — common defaults for inventory and character sheets — verify in the Controls menu.
Always confirm fuel cost before clicking travel — mis-clicks waste resources you cannot recover without port access.
Menus and Accessibility
Esc opens pause with graphics, audio, and control remapping. Rebind keys if WASD-adjacent layouts conflict with your hardware. Gamepad support is not required for demo completion; Klukva Games may expand controller profiles at launch.
Continue with combat basics, the combat system page, and getting started once bindings feel comfortable.
Ship navigation uses the same mouse-first philosophy: click an island, confirm travel, manage crew panels from the same UI family as inventory screens. Spend five minutes in port menus before your first jump — learning where fuel totals and crew fatigue meters live prevents panic mid-route. If a binding feels awkward, rebind it immediately during the tutorial rather than after muscle memory hardens across a full prologue session.
Hotkeys for skills become essential in later playtest battles where four units act per round. Even in the demo, binding Abyss Push to an accessible key reduces mis-clicks that waste the single action per turn. Treat control setup as part of build optimization, not an afterthought.