Days Gone New Game Plus Guide And What Carries Over

Surviving the harsh, freaker-infested wilderness of Oregon is a monumental achievement for any player navigating Deacon St. John's lengthy journey. Fortunately, the post-apocalyptic adventure does not have to end permanently once the final credits roll. Entering the specialized endgame mode allows survivors to experience the narrative anew with a massive head start on their overall character progression.
How to Unlock and Start the Journey Anew
To initiate a fresh playthrough in this advanced mode, players must first complete the primary campaign storyline on any difficulty level. Once the final credits finish rolling, a notification will officially confirm that the upgraded sandbox feature is available. You can then access this option directly from the main menu by selecting your cleared endgame save file.
This feature allows you to test your tactical skills on higher difficulty settings, including Survival II, while retaining your previous hard-earned progress. Choosing a tougher world configuration creates a balanced challenge that pairs perfectly with your late-game arsenal. It offers a great reason to revisit the open world with a completely fresh tactical mindset.
Every Weapon and Customization Item That Carries Over
One of the most satisfying elements of restarting the campaign is knowing that your entire weapon wheel remains completely intact. All previously unlocked firearms, including special military-grade weapons and specialized crossbows, are available immediately at merchant lockers. This allows players to handle early-game freaker nests and aggressive ambush camps with unprecedented firepower from the very start.
Your customized drifting motorcycle also receives a substantial benefit during this narrative transition. While the physical bike must be retrieved early in the story, all of your purchased performance upgrades and visual modifications carry over directly. This ensures that your mechanical ride retains its top speed, fuel capacity, and specialized nitro boosters when you visit camp mechanics.
Retaining Character Attributes and Survival Skills
Your physical character progression remains fully preserved, meaning all unlocked survival skills across the combat, ranged, and survival trees are active instantly. Players do not need to choose between upgrading melee mastery or focus abilities during the opening chapters. This complete preservation lets you execute advanced combat maneuvers against early freaker hordes without restriction.
Furthermore, all permanent health, stamina, and focus upgrades acquired from hidden NERO checkpoints remain exactly where you left them. This massive boost to your core attributes guarantees that Deacon is far more resilient against aggressive wilderness threats. Surviving unexpected ambient ambushes becomes significantly easier when your statistics are already fully optimized.
Collectibles and World Pacing in the New Loop
While character equipment remains intact, the game properly resets individual camp trust levels and localized faction storylines to maintain narrative progression. Players will need to complete regional missions again to build reputation and earn local currency within specific survivor settlements. This structural choice ensures that the core gameplay loop remains engaging as you progress through the territories.
Historical collectibles, audio logs, and NERO intel reports will remain logged in your inventory database for completion tracking. This design choice makes it much simpler to hunt down any missing pieces of lore you might have bypassed during your initial run. It provides the ultimate opportunity to achieve total completion without restarting your collective tracking from scratch.