What a first session actually contains
Survive a Million Monkeys starts on an island tutorial and then sends you to a lobby. Dmitri points at the class options there. The official description is the whole pitch: endless monkeys, a class, guns, friends, and a survivor leaderboard. The leaderboard scoring formula is not published, so a longer run is the visible goal, not a hidden point trick.
Two currencies split the loop.
- Cash is earned by killing monkeys during a run. It buys the next weapon tier, the next health tier, and class skills that list a Cash cost.
- Gems are the permanent hub currency. They unlock classes and specific guns, and they upgrade those kits afterward. Finishing a run is the stated way to earn them. Codes and the purple gift box are separate claims.
Controls the PC guides agree on
These inputs are the published keyboard and mouse set. Other devices are mentioned, but their button names are not.
| Action | Input |
|---|---|
| Move | W, A, S, D |
| Jump | Spacebar |
| Aim | Mouse |
| Shoot | Left mouse button |
| Upgrade weapon tier | V |
| Upgrade health | C |
| Class skill | G |
| Class skill | X |
| Ultimate | Q |
G, X, and Q change with the class. On Survivor they are Grenade, Barricade, and Airstrike. Do not assume every class still throws a grenade on G.
One combat guide says the Ultimate charges from kills and is ready after every 100 monkeys. It does not cost Cash. Hold it for a crest rather than the first thin wave. That charge count is a published rule, not a per-class table.
Finish the tutorial before the lobby buttons
- Launch the official experience and follow the island tutorial until it returns you to the lobby.
- Let the tutorial introduce the opening gun of each weapon tier. The free guns named for those tiers are Pistol, Shotgun, Burst Rifle, and Minigun. Pow Pow is an extra tutorial unlock in Tier 1.
- Open Codes in the upper-right only after that tutorial. The steps and the three published strings are on the codes page.
- On the same account, like the experience, enable its notifications, and join the gorilla warfare. group. Then use the purple gift box in the lobby and confirm the green tick. The reported reward is an SMG plus 1,000 Gems. That box is not a text code.
- Equip Survivor, or any class you already own, and a gun you can already use. Read the live Gem price before buying anything.
What to do in the first waves
Press V when you have Cash and the next weapon tier is the problem. Press C when chip damage is the problem. Survivor Grenade and Barricade each cost 50 Cash and are not upgraded by the V or C keys. Guides say you can often reach Tier 4 around wave 20 if the monkeys you meet drop enough Cash. That is a pace report, not a guarantee.
Leave a firing spot before monkeys close every exit. A better gun does not reopen a surrounded tile. After a wipe, name the failure: slow kills, low health, a closed exit, or a skill used on one monkey. The next Gem purchase should match that failure. The price check is in Gems and unlock order.
What the first Gem pile cannot buy
If 1MVISITS, SURVIVE, MONKEYS, and the gift box all pay, the published total is 13,000 Gems. Medic is 15,000 Gems. Engineer is 30,000, Juggernaut is 75,000, and Bomber is 120,000. The opening code pile does not unlock those classes. It also should not be spent on Bayonet, Shorty, or Revolver: each of those Tier 1 guns has a lower listed DPS than the free tutorial gun Pow Pow.
Save the extra 2,000 Gems for Medic at 15,000, or for El Scorpio at 15,000 if you specifically want the Tier 2 gun. Class pages list the skills. Weapon pages list every published DPS and price.