SPRAWL zero Demo Walkthrough
The Graveyard and Buried, including stealth routes and the Gravity Shield pickup.
The SPRAWL zero demo is two campaign levels: The Graveyard and Buried. It debuted during Steam Next Fest on June 9, 2026 and has stayed up as a preview of the September 8 launch. This walkthrough is a route guide, not a shot-by-shot script. SPRAWL zero is built so every fight has more than one solution. Use it with Getting Started and combat.
Most players finish both levels in 30 to 45 minutes on Formidable. Martyr stretches that. Unstoppable is the right call if you want to explore every balcony on the first pass.
The Graveyard — opening compound
Laida drops you on a suspected rebel compound. Find a way inside, kill the marked targets, and reach extraction. The first lesson is the gravity punch: empty hands, committed swing, soldier through scenery. The second lesson is the first gun. Fire it dry, throw it, pull another.
Almost immediately the level offers a stealthier line that rewards a sniper. If you hug interiors and high windows instead of walking the street, you can delete a captain before his squad knows you exist. Captains are worth the extra thirty seconds — when they die, remaining squad members light up through walls. That knowledge is the difference between a clean push and a grenade at your feet. More on that on the enemies page.
Health crates sit next to environmental toys: toxic barrels, throwable debris, medkits that double as impact weapons. Fill health and adrenaline together. Spend Bullet-Time on the first dense courtyard instead of saving it for a boss that is not in this level. Kills during the slow-down drop stims, so the meter can pay for itself. The abilities page explains the sprint-cancel trap.
When you are out of ammo in a bad hallway, do not hunt an identical pistol. Look up. Gravity Gloves reach weapons on catwalks and in alcoves. A one-shot pipe gun is still a pipe gun; throw it at the next face if the chamber is empty.
Extraction is a destination waypoint, not a yellow paint trail. Scan if you lose the thread, then read the architecture. Walls that look like doors often are doors after you shoot them.
Buried — streets, Shield, and faction guns
Buried is the demo’s real pitch. You are in the city proper, IMAGO-DEI density goes up, and the experimental augment Laida mentioned becomes Gravity Shield. Catch incoming fire and throw it back. Full squad dumping into your chest is no longer an automatic reset if you time the catch.
Junta-marked weapons start to matter here. They are visually distinct and they are the right answer against Amalgams — the organic-mechanical hybrids that shrug off the wrong faction’s junk. Color tiers on guns are not cosmetics. If a special is glowing a rank above the pistol in your hand, swap. The weapon tier list is the post-demo homework; during Buried just stop being loyal to a grey pipe.
A stealth line still exists. High routes and side lots let you skip the loudest street chokepoints. The loud line is valid too: Rushdown is not in every player’s demo kit at the same moment depending on pickup order, but Gravity Shield plus a fire shotgun turns a van alley into a furnace. Flaming shotguns and a chain-lightning special show up as set-piece toys. Use them, empty them, throw them. Do not carry a spent lightning gun into the next block because it looked rare.
The bridge escape at the end of typical demo recordings is a resource check. If you arrive with no adrenaline and a dry pistol, you will eat covering fire. Grab anything on the floor, pop Shield for the first volley, then Bullet-Time the captain you can actually see.
Optional objectives and replay value
Handcrafted levels are the point. Second plays should change path, not just difficulty. Try a no-gun stretch that is all gloves and thrown barrels. Try a sniper-only Graveyard. Try Buried as a Shield-only defence drill. The builds page turns those experiments into habits for launch.
Relics, mastery paths, and later chapters (Domination, Adusta Terra, God’s Light, Maeth, Eden, Acrophobia) sit outside this demo. Do not expect a secret ending here. The demo is a combat thesis.
If you get stuck
- No prompt on a door: breach it. See controls.
- Endless respawn pressure: you missed a captain. Sweep with Shield up.
- Adrenaline empty: you sprinted through Bullet-Time or ignored stim crates. Slow down.
- Demo performance: system requirements and settings.
When both levels are clean, read story if you care why FIVE works for the Junta, then park a reminder on the release date page. Demo-specific patch notes live under demo notes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers for FIVE's first hours in the Sprawl.
How long is the SPRAWL zero demo?
Most players clear The Graveyard and Buried in 30 to 45 minutes. Exploring every alternate path adds time; Martyr difficulty adds more.
Where do I unlock Gravity Shield?
In Buried, the second demo level. The Graveyard focuses on punch, disposable guns, and Bullet-Time.
Is there a sniper in the demo?
Yes. A stealthier route in The Graveyard rewards a sniper. You can still finish the level loud if you skip it.
Does the demo include Rushdown?
The full kit is Bullet-Time, Gravity Shield, then Rushdown. The demo lets you experiment with the arsenal and augments; pickup timing can vary with exploration.