Muscle Up: Your Guide to Athletics - Version 0.14 Preview 3 (4?)

Evenin' Snackpacks, gather round, let’s chew on some Athletics info together!

Athletics is your go-to skill for physical fitness and movement. Training it means hitting the gym regularly- but be warned: pushing yourself too hard, especially when trying new exercises, risks injury. Injuries aren’t just a setback; they reduce your athletics skill (temporarily) and force you to take a break from training.

To help boost your progress, there’s a protein shake, if consumed before or after exercise, increases your athletics gains. The taste leaves a bit to be desired, but Sable will choke it down in the name of gains.

In it's debut, athletics has a few practical uses:

• Wrestling with vending machines when they malfunction and short you out of your energy drink or protein shake. Did I mention vending machines now have a chance to malfunction? It's not all bad, sometimes you'll get two drinks for the price of one!

• Gaining access to a new location or two that require a certain level of athleticism. (Ever wanted to see what was behind the Kettle, or on the roof?)

• Unlocking the first batch of perks in the game.

  • Tied to different athletics levels, these perks are just the start- more will come with future updates. But for now, at different athletics breakpoints you'll get a boost to your maximum energy.

The skill’s utility is a bit light at the moment, but the foundation is there. Looking ahead, athletics will play a big role in melee combat, resolving physical checks during exploration, and opening shortcuts around the map.