There are plenty of characters to choose from in Risk of Rain Returns, but not all of them will be available at the start. Players need to put in some effort if they want to unlock the entire roster, and some characters will require more effort than others.
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This guide covers all the unlockable Risk of Rain Returns characters, including tips on the easiest way to unlock them. Some might need multiple runs to unlock, so strap in and prepare for multiple long fights.
Enforcer
The first character on the list is the Enforcer, and players will need to kill the Wandering Vagrant, Colossus, and Magma Worm bosses to unlock him. It doesn't have to be in one playthrough, which means players will be able to unlock this character eventually as they play. Focus on getting out of each stage alive and hope that the right boss spawns in the next teleporter event.
Bandit
Bandit is likely the first character players will unlock. To get him, they simply need to beat the third stage during any run. For the purpose of unlocking characters, it's best to start a run on Drizzle difficulty with the Damage Dealt slider under the Rules menu cranked up all the way to 200%.
HAN-D
The robot janitor HAN-D is hidden inside a grey, dilapidated storage container in the final level of the game. The container can be found either on the second or third floor of the first half of the ship (before the long corridor leading to the bridge), and players will know they're in the right area if the ship's hull in the background is destroyed.
Look for the container indicated above and interact with it. If the cargo area is on the third floor, HAN-D's container will be on top of a hanging container in the upper-left corner of the room.
Engineer
To unlock the Engineer, players must purchase a total of 40 drones across all of their runs. Just keep playing the game and purchase every drone that appears. Eventually, the Engineer will be unlocked once players hit the 40-drone mark.
Miner
The Miner is located in the lower-right corner of one of the Magma Barracks' map variations. Players will know they're in the right place if the bottom-right edge of the map contains a magma-filled pool with a tunnel leading further to the right. Defeat the elder Lemurian on the elevated platform, and the Miner class will become available.
Sniper
The Sniper is rewarded to the player after beating the final boss for the first time. Nothing complicated here — run through each level, fight through the crashed ship at the end, and beat Providence in a duel on the ship's bridge.
Acrid
Acrid is found on the upper-right edge of the Sunken Tomb. Players may find a crate resting on that corner of the map — open it to unleash Acrid. Unlike HAN-D, players will need to beat Acrid to unlock him as a playable character.
Mercenary
The Mercenary is one of the original characters that unlocked by beating the game five times. Again, there's nothing complicated here. Players who just want to unlock the character can skip much of the suffering by tweaking the damage values under the Rules window. To make things even easier, activate the Artifact of Glass to multiply all outgoing damage by 500%.
Loader
Loader can be unlocked by collecting 30 different items in a single run. Getting the required number of items is fairly easy on a normal run, so players shouldn't worry too much about it. The final level is chock-full of chests too, so just focus on getting money and surviving.
Chef
Unlocking Chef involves collecting a very specific set of items, namely Bustling Fungus, Meat Nugget, Sprouting Egg, Foreign Fruit, and Bitter Root. All items must be collected in a single run, so unless players have insane luck, they should find and use the Artifact of Command in order to unlock this character.
Pilot
Pilot can be unlocked by collecting 15 Monster Logs. This doesn't have to be done in a single run, but it can be done if players decide to loop back to previous levels instead of fighting Providence. Monster Logs have a random chance of dropping, so it may be best if players attempt this challenge with modified game rules.
Artificer
The Artificer regresses from Risk of Rain 2 and makes her debut as a 2D character. To unlock her, players need to finish each map in the game at least once. There are six stages in every run, and there are two maps for the first five stages. The game randomly decides which map players get during a run. Again, just keep playing, and the Artificer will be unlocked eventually.
Drifter
Unlocking the Drifter involves a great deal of luck. To get him, players need to find six drones and throw them all into a Drone Recycler, all in a single run. The best way to do this is to use Artifact of Command to get the Drone Repair Kit equipment, which summons a special drone that can be recycled. Spawn and recycle the drone six times to unlock the Drifter.
Robomando
Robomando is a secret survivor who requires a lot more work compared to the others. Unlocking this character involves a plethora of specific steps, and it's possible for players to mess the entire process up, forcing them to redo everything from the start.
Risk of Rain Returns is available now on PC and Nintendo Switch.