Upon discovering the existence of Bugsnax, disgraced explorer Elizabert "Lizbert" Megafig leads an expedition team to the island to study them, establishing the makeshift town of Snaxburg as a base of operations, but disappears under mysterious circumstances.
The game is set on Snaktooth Island, a mysterious island inhabited solely by creatures called Bugsnax who are "half bug and half snack." The ruins of an ancient Grumpus civilization can be found around the island, along with their skeletal remains. Plot Setting and characters īugsnax takes place in a world populated by furry muppet-like humanoids called Grumpuses. New hut decorations can be obtained by completing missions sent by the Grumpuses to the player's mailbox, such as finding a lost item or feeding a Grumpus a specific combination of Bugsnax there are over 100 missions that can be completed.
The update also added the ability to fast travel between areas, 25 hats that can be collected and placed on Bugsnax the player has captured, and a hut for the player character in Snaxburg, which can be customized with furniture and decorations received from the other Grumpuses. The new area is accessed during the main story as part of a larger side quest. The Bugsnax in this area are larger than normal and must be temporarily shrunken using special "Shrink Spice" before they can be captured.
Ī free update to the game in April 2022 added a new area to explore and 12 additional Bugsnax to collect for a total of 112. A "Snaktivator" device unlocked during the game allows the player to more heavily customize each Grumpus's appearance, such as selecting specific body parts to transform. These side quests typically involve the player capturing specific Bugsnax and feeding them to the Grumpuses, which transforms parts of their bodies based on the properties of whatever Bugsnak they eat. When a Grumpus has returned to Snaxburg, they will begin asking the player for favors, which take the form of side quests, and reveal more of their personal history and motivations as each one is completed. The player must convince each of the Grumpuses to return to Snaxburg to advance the story. During the story, the player will encounter several Grumpuses, the residents of Snaxburg who have scattered themselves around the island. The town of Snaxburg acts as the game's central hub from which all other areas can be reached. Some Bugsnax require more advanced techniques to capture them, such as using multiple tools in combination or baiting one Bugsnak into attacking another. The player can also obtain several tools to assist in capturing the Bugsnax, including a slingshot that can shoot different sauces such as ketchup and chocolate to lure Bugsnax a tripwire that can be used to stun Bugsnax and a Strabby, a strawberry-like Bugsnak in a plastic ball that can be guided using a laser pointer.
The player is equipped with a "SnaxScope" that can be used to scan each Bugsnak, which displays its movement patterns, tastes, and clues as to how to capture it. There are 100 Bugsnak species available for capture, each of which can be found in one of eight biomes during different times of day. The core gameplay revolves around finding and capturing different species of Bugsnax, the half-bug-half-snack creatures that inhabit the island. Bugsnax is a first-person adventure game, in which players traverse the mysterious Snaktooth Island to find clues regarding the disappearance of a missing explorer.