Big Hops rarely blocks you because a jump is too long. It blocks you because the next story state has not been created: a fruit was left behind, a lever changed the wrong route, an NPC conversation did not finish, or a moving object reached a junction before you changed it. The safest walkthrough is therefore not a list of coordinates. It is a chain of states you can verify.
This spoiler-heavy route follows Hop from Little Forest through the three Airship Parts and the final Void. It gives one reliable solution for the mandatory puzzles while preserving the game’s freedom to improvise. Optional Challenge Rooms, every Dark Drip, every bug, Cappler’s photography jobs, and a 100% trophy route are outside this article’s promise.
Read the route as four deliveries, not four open worlds
Copper’s workshop turns the broad story into a short dependency chain. You need the Cactalyzer from the desert story, the Bubblerator from the ocean story, and the Flux Cap from Shattered Mountain. Void passages connect those worlds, then the repaired Airship leads into the finale.
| Progress block | State that proves it is complete | What usually causes a false dead end |
|---|---|---|
| Little Forest and Forest Shrine | All three shrine totems are returned and the first Void opens | Trying to climb without the bracelet, mushroom, or acorn return route |
| Desert | The Sinkhole Machine is disabled and Copper receives the Cactalyzer | Entering Duster Bluffs from street level, leaving cactus fruit behind, or missing an evidence room |
| Ocean | Wett is defeated at the Helipad and Hop keeps the Bubblerator | Going to the Main Rig before the swim ring, three bubble collectors, or both rig restarts |
| Mountain | The Sonar Drill exposes the Flux Cap and the minecart escape ends | Entering the Mines without three teeth or treating the three mineshafts as one continuous rail puzzle |
| Final Void | All marked Light Drips are collected and the epilogue begins | Using normal platforming after the form change instead of collecting extra jumps |
Use the compass for the current story handoff, but do not confuse it with an exact climbing line. A red marker can identify the correct building while leaving several valid ways to reach its roof. When a route becomes messy, stop and ask which persistent state is missing: carried item, pressed button, opened shortcut, NPC conversation, photograph, generator, or boss phase.
Little Forest: leave with a movement kit, not a collectible sweep
The opening food, pull panels, flying apples, levers, and separated platforms are a controls test. The important sequence is jump, dive, then correct with a short climb. Diving supplies horizontal reach; climbing is a recovery tool because the initial stamina window is small. If Hop falls just below a ledge, do not repeat the entire jump immediately. Cling, move only the remaining distance, and save the next full stamina bar for the higher wall.
Follow Lily until she gives Hop the climbing bracelet. Inside the large tree, carry a mushroom to the marked or low landing area, bounce, finish the last section by climbing, and pull the lever at the top. That lever grows the next mushroom supply below. The puzzle is teaching you to move a traversal item before committing to the jump; the same backpack habit matters in every later world.
After returning to Lily, plant a mushroom near the tall wall. On the raised route, use another marked mushroom placement to continue toward the waterfalls. At the three-waterfall section, take a mushroom from the bush near the water and place it close enough to the wall and lever that one bounce plus a dive reaches the ledge. Pulling the lever drains the water and drops Hop into Forest Shrine. Optional bugs, flowers, coins, and the side caves can wait; none is required to open the shrine.
Forest Shrine: build the return before taking each totem
Acorns create climbable beanstalks and do not consume climbing stamina. The failure pattern here is easy to recognize: reaching a totem is straightforward, but returning with no acorn, mushroom, launcher angle, or open lever is not. Before picking up a totem, look back toward the shrine and identify the return device.
- Left branch: use the flying-apple chain and launcher to reach the remote platform. Carry or recover an acorn, plant it against the return cliff, then use the upper lever and launcher to get back.
- Right branch: activate the first stone launcher to clear the fence. Reposition the movable launcher toward the next landing, take the totem, drop from the plank, and pull the lever that creates the return platforms.
- Behind the shrine: plant a mushroom close to the fence, cross it, then throw an acorn onto the stone structure before using the launcher. The beanstalk is both the approach and the landmark for the return roll-and-dive.
The order of the three branches is flexible. Completion is not: all three orange totems must be back at the statue. Once the portal opens, enter the first Void instead of trying to clean every elevated collectible with the opening stamina supply.
Void 1: every purple fruit must solve a visible landing
Use a mushroom to reach the acorns, then grow a beanstalk toward Diss. Purple Void fruit creates geometry when thrown into the matching rift. Never throw the last fruit just because a rift is visible. First locate the platform it should create and the surface on which Hop will land.
The small planetoid is deliberately disorienting: walking over an edge changes your orientation rather than dropping you. Search its far side for another fruit and the rift ringed by pillars. At the tower, pull the tongue wheel fully, then climb the temporary platforms without stopping. The last mushroom-to-acorn handoff creates the exit route to Desert Plains.
The Cactalyzer route: backpack, Town Hall, evidence, sinkhole
In the Desert Gorge, recover the backpack before treating the area as open. Climb by the short pillars, pull the lever, and cross the right-hand bridge to reach it. The opening pack holds four carried objects. Put a rock inside immediately: throwing that rock across the gap can hold the red button and create the platforms out of the pit.
Wall-run through the next button sequence until Copper’s Airship Workshop. The conversation establishes the entire story goal and supplies the compass. Copper needs three parts: Cactalyzer, Bubblerator, and Flux Cap. From here onward, a spare backpack slot is often more valuable than a random collectible because the next chilli, cactus, bubble fruit, or sticky fruit may replace an awkward jump with a controlled route.
Follow the red story marker toward Duster Bluffs. Chilli peppers burn dry bushes but hurt Hop when eaten, so carry one rather than consuming it. At the arch, burn the first barrier, open the nearby chest to activate the jumping platforms, burn the higher obstruction, and move while that path is usable. The lever and catapult at the top lead to the town.
Enter Town Hall from the roofs, then get untied
The guarded street entrance is not the route. Climb the building with the ladder, use the springy parasols and swinging poles, cross above the gate, and enter Town Hall from the elevated side. After Hop speaks at the microphone and is restrained, pull open the pipe, follow it around the cliff, and return to town.
Do not head straight for the canyon while still tied. Drop at the arrow and speak to the rope worker beside the fenced building. Once Hop is free, follow the compass through the canyon gate. Hold the first red pressure pad down with rocks; it is a stateful weight puzzle, not a timed sprint.
Cactus ropes point away from the fruit
Cactus fruit fires a rope in the opposite direction from the surface it hits. That rule explains both the long gap and the vertical canyon. Put several fruits in the backpack before leaving the plant. For a climb, do not aim at the highest X first. Place the lowest rope where Hop can jump onto it, then make the next rope reachable from that one. A rope that reaches the destination but cannot be boarded is not progress.
Use the complaint made by the rabbit when the speaker asks for a response. Continue through the rope shooters, buttons, pipes, and fence. At the tongue lock, trace every required node before touching the finish. Opening that door moves the story into the Sewers and toward Gulley HQ.
Sewers and Gulley HQ: separate traversal from evidence
The Sewers introduce fruit that spawns two bounce or grapple balls. Aim the pair at the two surfaces you actually need, then cross while their spacing is readable. When a sliding door blocks a jump, put the spawner where its next ball crosses the opening; hold or move the door only after the ball cycle is established. Pull the drain plugs until the next hatch becomes exposed.
Gulley HQ changes the task from platforming to stateful stealth. A guard spotting Hop usually costs a short reset, so preserve completed switches and photographs rather than chasing a flawless run. After the Masked Stranger gives you the camera, three evidence rooms must be photographed:
- Take the right route, pick the lock, climb the red rocks, cross from the overhead bar, open the lever door, and photograph the first room.
- In the lower locked route, pull all three switches to disable the wire. They stay completed after a capture, so verify the wire state, cross, and photograph the second room.
- Return toward the original stair route for the last locked door. Clear the rotating electrical hazard and camera, then take the third photograph.
Return to the stranger only after all three camera states have registered. Climb the fallen elevator cable to the penthouse, move through the vent, solve the ordered tongue lock, photograph the hidden room, then follow Jo Junior to the last required photo of Jolene.
The route then flushes Hop back through Sewers Part 2. Use the same bounce fruit around the rotating pillars, exit into the Landfill, and pull every route lever. The lowered trampolines create the exit chain; the final slingshot, pole, and rail return you to Desert Plains. Speak to the two rabbits at Duster Bluffs to advance the confrontation.
Sinkhole Machine: identify the traversal tool for each lever
After Hop and Jo Junior fall into the sinkhole, grow the Goo Ball plant, cross the wires, and burn the blocking brush with a chilli. The reservoir reveal leads directly to the first boss. Damage is not the objective; reaching three controls is.
- During the opening pattern, dodge projectiles and follow the appearing platforms to the first lever.
- After the next change, the machine provides ropes. Climb its body only far enough to catch the higher line and reach lever two.
- The final pattern adds Goo Balls while platforms appear in sequence. Treat each ball as the next movement anchor, not as an attack target, and reach the last lever.
Disabling the machine restores water to Duster Bluffs and awards the Cactalyzer. That is the desert completion state. Side quests and uncollected Dark Drips do not need to be finished before taking the Void route to the ocean.
The Bubblerator route: earn swimming before entering the rigs
Void 2 mostly repeats fruit-created platforms and gravity changes. Near its end, a generated path wraps around to what looks like an empty hole. Look through it for the island and pond below; that landing is the exit, not a hidden platform beside the rim.
At the ocean, Wedge points out the shipwreck. Find balloon fruit on the south side of the island, attach it to the boat, and ride into Junktown. The DrillCO plant is burning when you arrive. Pull the plugs from all three marked pipes before looking for the Buckos. Benni leads Hop to Wett, whose route eventually provides the swimming ring.
The nearby Sponge Fruit Challenge Room is optional. Its water is dangerous, unlike much of the surrounding ocean, so it should not be used as a test for story-water safety. Stay on the compass route, visit Bugsy’s Conservatory if you have been collecting bugs, then speak to Wett and confirm that the swimming ring has entered Hop’s equipment state.
Hydro Plant: three collectors before the theft
Dive into the Hydro Plant, use air bubbles, and pull the opening lever. Bubble fruit creates a bubble that carries Hop with momentum. Start all three bubble collectors; one is near Wett, one uses the southwest hatch and an ascent, and the northern room places its control above the entry floor. If a collector marker remains, do not continue toward the central prize. Recheck the vent lever in that branch.
Once all three collectors run, approach the Bubblerator. Wett steals it, converting an apparent reward room into a chase toward DrillCO’s Main Rig. This is why simply reaching the artifact is not the ocean completion state.
Main Rig: restart both sides, then lower the drill
Rig Alpha and Rig Bravo can be handled in either order. Treat them as different puzzle types:
- Rig Bravo: move each of the three pipes along its rail to the proper connection while avoiding projectiles. The branch is complete only when the rig restart registers.
- Rig Alpha: use the black oil globules as wall-bounce surfaces. Reach each blocked vat, use the local climbable surface or crane, clear all vats, and confirm the second restart.
Back at the central rig, pull the main lever to lower the drill and climb to Axton. Wett interrupts the scene at the Helipad. Four cannons are the boss tools. Wait for the craft to pause instead of firing during every pass, dodge the slow ordinary shots, and move early when the bright tracking projectiles appear. If frontal hits look inconsistent, line the shot up with the rear propeller area when the craft exposes it.
The defeated Wett yields the Bubblerator. Do not leave while an Alpha or Bravo restart marker remains; the boss appearance and the part reward are the reliable evidence that the ocean chain is finished.
The Flux Cap route: teeth first, generators second, Deep Mines last
Void 3 combines oil-bounce surfaces, gravity shifts, and pink stamina-restoring platforms. Follow the rifts rather than climbing every floating rock. When the route reaches a rotating crank, align the bridge, cross it, dive into the water, and descend to the lever that opens the last land segment.
Shattered Mountain introduces green sticky fruit. It creates a temporary wall hold, giving Hop time to inspect the next jump. Hanging leaf bundles are also safe climbing surfaces that do not drain normal stamina. Use a mushroom to reach the first bundle, then move the crane so another bundle spans the impossible gap. The objective path enters Calamity Haven.
When Henly asks for graffiti, free drawing does not complete the test. Follow the green circles beginning at the lower-right side of the wall until every node registers. The opened route leads to Remy and the Boneyard.
Boneyard: the three teeth are the mine key
Remy needs three skull teeth. Do not enter side tunnels expecting the Mines to open early.
- Past Remy on the right, use the cannon, wall-running, sticky fruit, balloons, and the next cannon to reach the high mountain tooth.
- Use the airborne cannon chain to land on the giant skeleton, cross its spine, and collect the tooth on the skull.
- In the graveyard, throw the spring-mounted bombs into the colored rock barriers. Continue through the timing obstacles and swinging pillars to the final tooth.
Return all three to Remy. The skull door opens into the main mine chamber, where three mineshafts must each restart a generator. The shafts are independent; finishing one does not mean its cart belongs in another.
Mineshaft A: move the tool cart through every obstruction
Spawn the cart, drag it right, and use the second red button to raise it. Swing across, clear rock piles with the available explosives, and summon an explosive cart when a barrier has no loose charge nearby. Farther in, sticky fruit provides the wall route.
Pull the railway sign to move its barricade. Before turning the central platform, place the working cart on it. Rotate until the rail lines up, drag the cart to the terminal position, and wait for the generator completion state. A beautifully aligned platform with no cart aboard accomplishes nothing.
Mineshaft C: ride the indicated rail, then realign the center
From the upper access, take the higher branch for C. Follow the wall arrows in the cart. At the swing point above the ladder, stay attached until the safe landing aligns; jumping immediately exposes Hop to the projectiles and often drops him back on the wrong side of the locked door.
Use the central rotating platform to reach the northern rail. Lower the bridge at the far lever, return to the center, realign it with that bridge, and ride the final track. Confirm the C generator before leaving.
Mineshaft B: change the flux before the cart reaches it
B uses an automatically moving cart. At the first gap, swim through the blue flux, climb out, use sticky fruit to reach the high winding path, and pull the switch that raises the flux. The cart can now cross.
In the rotating-platform room, prepare the mushroom return before starting the timing sequence. Move the horizontal flux cube left. Open the doors as the platform turns into the cart’s path, cross the room, and take control of the cube lever. Move the flux right while the cart is inside it, then return it toward center for the next loop.
In the following chamber, go upward first and lower the central flux. Trying to solve the bridge while it remains high creates a convincing but incomplete route. Once lowered, switch the bridge as the cart approaches its far end so it flips onto the opposite rail. The next doors lead to B’s generator.
Prison and Deep Mines: keep a Flux Fruit reserve
After the three shafts, Hop is imprisoned. Open the hatch under the bed, crawl to the lever that releases Remy, and leave through the vent in her ceiling. Back in the Mines, take the northern gate and the blue-lit door, then descend with Remy.
Flux Fruit produces a zero-gravity volume. Keep spare fruit rather than spending every one on the first vertical surface. In the multi-level rail room, go through the far entrance first, use fruit to cross and climb, then swim through the wall opening. Bring the cannon cart into the main chamber and destroy the three rock piles. Rotate and raise the cannon only after it is on the correct platform, then fire through the upper obstruction.
Deeper minecarts can jump even though the route does not explain it clearly. Use the loop to align with the track marked by yellow warning signs, jump across, take the successive right-side rails, then watch for the left route just after a speed boost. The following cannon and explosives clear the way to Remy.
Find Bunk in the pit off the side passage and lower his ladder. He repairs the Sonar Drill. Activation requires one lever, three buttons on top, and the pulley at the rear. Check all five interaction states if the drill remains idle. When it operates, it opens the way and breaks apart, revealing the Flux Cap.
The escape is a reaction sequence rather than a new puzzle. Leave carts only where swing points clearly replace the rail, jump between tracks at the marked openings, and use the armored cart when it appears. When a cart lands on scaffolding, press the jump controls but remain inside; dismounting there leaves Hop behind. Reuniting with Remy and Bunk, surviving the final volley, and returning to town close the mountain story.
The final Void changes what a jump means
Return to the beginning of Shattered Mountain, let Diss take Hop back to Copper, and use the completed Airship when ready. This is the natural cleanup decision point: the March quality-of-life update put a Completionist Tablet on the Airship, so current players can inspect remaining collection work before committing to the final story sequence.
In Void 4, climb the floating stones, use the purple anti-gravity paths, and reach the central shrine. After the story exchange, Hop changes form and the old veggie logic stops being the primary answer. Each spiked floating pickup grants another jump. Collect those jump charges before trying to cross the large gaps.
The first cluster teaches that rule; the later Light Drips appear across altered versions of the three world hubs. Their objective markers are reliable, but the height calculation is yours. Build a jump reserve on the lower pickups, move toward the marked Drip, and avoid spending every jump on horizontal corrections. When all Light Drips register, the final conversation and epilogue begin.
If progress stops, inspect the missing state
| Observed problem | Unfinished condition | Targeted fix |
|---|---|---|
| A marker is above you with no obvious path | The route begins from a roof, crane, fruit bush, water hatch, or previous room | Circle the objective once at ground level and find the traversal source before attempting a long jump |
| A fruit-made route reaches too high to board | The final placement was built before the first landing | Rebuild from Hop outward, keeping every rope, vine, bubble, or sticky hold within the next jump |
| A door remains powered or locked | A switch, photograph, generator, or collector did not register | Recheck the objective sub-markers; do not repeat already persistent states |
| A cart reaches a dead end | The rail sign, bridge, central platform, flux height, or door timing is wrong | Trace the cart’s next junction only and change that state before restarting the whole room |
| The finale feels impossible with normal movement | Hop has changed forms and has too few stored jumps | Collect the nearby spiked pickups first, then spend the extra jumps toward the marked Light Drip |
Cappler’s Conspiracy is a separate photography activity added after the launch walkthroughs and is not part of this route. Challenge Rooms, collectible totals, speedrun routing, and trophy conflicts also need their own verified evidence. For the story, the reliable endpoint is simpler: three Airship Parts, the repaired ship, the Light Drips, and the epilogue.
Sources & credits
Game identity, current features, updates, and media were checked against the official Steam page and the official Big Hops website. Story routing was synthesized from verified walkthrough references and browser-recovered chapter pages. Screenshots are original Luckshot Games assets distributed through Steam.