BeastLink Gameplay Guide: PvP & PvE Kaiju Multiplayer Strategy

If you have ever looked at a multiplayer shooter and thought, “This would be much more fun if I could turn into a giant monster and flatten the entire map,” BeastLink might be exactly the kind of chaos you have been waiting for.

Grove Street Games is taking a pretty wild approach to multiplayer combat here. Instead of making everyone fight on roughly equal terms, BeastLink puts ordinary soldiers, military vehicles, and gigantic Kaiju into the same battlefield. The result is a game that can shift from a tactical firefight to a full-scale monster movie in a matter of minutes.

The game enters Steam Early Access on August 18, 2026, with PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S planned for the eventual 1.0 launch. After looking at how the systems fit together, what interests me most isn’t simply the idea of playing as a monster. It is the fact that the game appears to make becoming a Kaiju part of the actual strategy rather than treating it as a simple temporary power-up.

So, if you are jumping into BeastLink for the first time, here is how I would approach its PvP and PvE systems.

What Makes BeastLink Different?

At its heart, BeastLink is built around an unusual three-layer battlefield. You can fight as a human, operate military vehicles, or eventually become one of the creatures capable of tearing through entire sections of a city.

That creates a strange but potentially brilliant gameplay loop.

I particularly like this setup because your role isn’t necessarily permanent. A player can begin cautiously searching ruined streets for serum and eventually become the biggest threat on the map.

That means every match has the potential to tell a completely different story.

Start Small: The Importance of Human Infantry

The human phase might initially seem like the least exciting part of BeastLink. After all, nobody buys a Kaiju game because they are desperate to spend the entire evening hiding behind a wrecked car with a rifle.

But this part of the game is incredibly important.

Human players are fast, relatively difficult to track, and capable of moving through areas where larger units may struggle. Your main objective should be to collect serum without becoming an easy target.

Do not treat serum gathering like a race where you sprint toward every resource location you see. The battlefield is full of players doing exactly the same thing, and getting eliminated while carrying valuable resources can waste far more time than taking a slower route.

My preferred approach would be:

• Scout first and collect second.
• Use destroyed buildings and streets to stay unpredictable.
• Avoid unnecessary firefights when your main objective is serum.
• Keep track of nearby vehicles and potential Kaiju threats.
• Move with teammates whenever possible.

The key is understanding that surviving is often more valuable than getting another elimination.

Serum Is Your Most Valuable Resource

The serum system is arguably the most interesting part of BeastLink’s design.

Collect enough serum and you can activate the BeastLink transformation, turning your human character into a massive Kaiju. But there is an important catch: the stronger the Link becomes, the harder the creature is supposed to control.

That creates a decision I really like.

Do you push your Kaiju to its maximum power and try to destroy everything immediately, or do you keep the Link under control and preserve the transformation for a longer period?

There is no reason to assume that maximum power is automatically the correct answer.

Sometimes the better play will be to remain relatively controlled, destroy a strategic target, reposition, and wait for the enemy team to expose itself. Going completely berserk might feel fantastic, but if it leaves you vulnerable or burns through your advantage too quickly, the spectacle could cost you the match.

Think of serum as strategic ammunition, not just a transformation ticket.

Vehicles Are More Important Than They Look

Vehicles are the middle layer between fragile infantry and gigantic monsters, and I expect experienced teams to rely heavily on them.

The vehicle selection includes ground transport, armored tanks, helicopters, and aircraft. Each serves a different purpose, but the biggest advantage is simple: vehicles let a coordinated team control space.

For example, an infantry squad collecting serum can be protected by an armored vehicle while another player uses an aircraft to watch for enemy movement.

Tanks can also become especially valuable when an opposing Kaiju appears. You obviously cannot expect a tank to fight a monster on equal terms, but concentrated vehicle fire can create openings for your team.

I would avoid treating vehicles as disposable toys. They should be used to create opportunities for infantry rather than simply driving around looking for something to shoot.

Understanding SuperDestruction

This is the feature that could make BeastLink genuinely memorable.

The game’s SuperDestruction system is designed around physics-based destruction rather than simple scripted building animations. Buildings, debris, and other environmental objects can react dynamically to impacts.

That means the city itself becomes part of the combat system.

A building can provide excellent cover at one moment and become a pile of rubble seconds later. A collapsed structure can block a road, expose an enemy squad, or create a completely new route.

This changes how I would approach almost every fight.

Never assume that your favorite piece of cover will still exist in thirty seconds.

If a Kaiju is approaching, staying inside a building because it feels safe is probably a terrible idea. Likewise, destroying a structure without thinking can expose your own team.

The environment is effectively another weapon.

Use Buildings as Temporary Tools

Good players should constantly reconsider the terrain.

If an enemy squad is hiding inside a damaged building, you might not need to enter it. Destroying the structure could eliminate their cover and force them into the open.

The same principle works against Kaiju.

A giant monster might be incredibly powerful in open ground, but urban destruction can create obstacles, traps, and awkward movement paths. Use the city against creatures that are physically larger than the battlefield itself.

The Four Launch Kaiju

BeastLink begins Early Access with four playable monsters, and they appear designed around distinctly different combat philosophies.

The Horned Lizard

The Horned Lizard is the brute-force option.

This is the Kaiju I would choose when I simply want to smash through defensive positions and create absolute destruction. Its durability and close-range power make it particularly suited to direct engagements.

It should be strongest when fighting around narrow streets and fortified positions where enemies have limited room to escape.

The Bull Shark

The Bull Shark is much more aggressive.

This creature focuses on powerful melee attacks and fast predatory movement. Rather than slowly pushing through an area, the Bull Shark seems better suited to identifying isolated targets and destroying them before they can regroup.

Against vehicles and other monsters, its offensive pressure could make it one of the most dangerous choices in experienced hands.

The Vampire Bat

The Vampire Bat completely changes the rules by bringing aerial mobility into the equation.

Flight gives it access to angles that ground-based players simply cannot match. It can scout, attack from above, disengage quickly, and potentially force enemies to constantly watch the sky.

If you enjoy mobility over brute strength, this would probably be my first Kaiju to experiment with.

The Mandrill

The Mandrill appears to be the speed-focused option.

Its ability to leap between buildings and move vertically makes it especially interesting in heavily urban maps. Rather than trying to overpower heavier Kaiju, the Mandrill can potentially attack from unexpected angles and disappear before the enemy can respond.

This is the creature I would expect to have the highest skill ceiling.

BeastLink PvP Strategy: Play as a Team

The biggest mistake in 32-player PvP will probably be treating BeastLink like a standard deathmatch.

It isn’t.

A successful team needs players performing different jobs.

Some should prioritize serum. Others should operate vehicles. Some should scout enemy positions. Once a teammate activates BeastLink, the entire squad should adjust around that player’s new role.

A Kaiju shouldn’t be left alone to fight the entire enemy team.

Infantry can identify targets, attack vulnerable positions, and disrupt enemy vehicles. Vehicles can provide heavy fire support. Meanwhile, the Kaiju creates pressure that forces opponents to move.

That combination is much stronger than everyone simply chasing kills.

How to Fight an Enemy Kaiju

When another monster appears, resist the temptation to panic and unload everything into it immediately.

Instead, control the battlefield.

Try to separate the Kaiju from its support. Destroy nearby vehicles, eliminate infantry carrying important resources, and use environmental destruction to restrict movement.

If the opposing monster is stronger in close combat, do not give it the fight it wants.

If it is an aerial Kaiju, prioritize positioning and ranged options. If it is a slow brute, force it to move through unfavorable terrain.

The goal isn’t always to kill the Kaiju as quickly as possible. Sometimes forcing it away from an objective is enough.

BeastLink PvE: Cooperation Matters Even More

PvE should feel very different from PvP.

Modes such as Hazard Pay focus on objectives, resource collection, extraction, and surviving increasingly dangerous encounters. You are not simply fighting another team that wants to ruin your evening. You are dealing with AI-controlled forces and aggressive creatures while trying to complete objectives.

That makes communication much more important.

One player should not run ahead just because they spotted something interesting. Your team needs to consider extraction routes, defensive positions, ammunition, vehicles, and serum.

The destruction system also becomes a potential problem.

Destroying every building around you might look cool, but if that building was your only reliable cover during the next enemy wave, you may regret it very quickly.

PvE Survival Tips

For cooperative matches, I would prioritize these habits:

1. Keep an extraction route available.
2. Do not waste vehicles unnecessarily.
3. Save serum for major threats instead of using it immediately.
4. Avoid destroying useful defensive structures without a reason.
5. Stay close enough to revive or support teammates.

The final point sounds obvious, but multiplayer PvE games constantly punish players who believe they are the main character.

In BeastLink, especially, one isolated player can go from confident survivor to flattened pavement remarkably quickly.

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Should You Rush Into Kaiju Transformation?

Not necessarily.

This is probably the biggest strategic question I would ask during a match.

Becoming a Kaiju is incredibly powerful, but the transformation also makes you a massive, obvious target. Everyone knows where the giant monster is. Everyone knows what it is doing. Every enemy player suddenly has a reason to look in your direction.

Sometimes staying human is the smarter decision.

A coordinated infantry squad collecting resources and controlling vehicles can be incredibly dangerous without ever becoming a monster. Then, when the right moment arrives, one player can activate BeastLink and completely change the battle.

Timing your transformation may be more important than achieving it quickly.

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Final Thoughts

BeastLink has a concept that immediately caught my attention because it isn’t simply trying to make another multiplayer shooter.

The interesting part is the interaction between its systems. Human infantry, military vehicles, serum collection, Kaiju transformations, destructible environments, and 32-player multiplayer all feed into one another.

The real test will be whether those systems remain fun once players understand them and start exploiting every possible advantage. Early Access should answer a lot of those questions, especially when it comes to networking, destruction performance, balance, and the long-term variety of the Kaiju roster.

Personally, the SuperDestruction system is the feature I will be watching most closely. A multiplayer city that genuinely changes during a match has enormous potential. If the destruction is as useful strategically as it is visually impressive, BeastLink could produce some wonderfully unpredictable battles.

And honestly, there is something deeply satisfying about the idea of spending ten minutes carefully collecting resources, coordinating with a squad, and then deciding that the polite approach is over.

Sometimes the correct tactical decision is simply to become a giant monster and turn the enemy’s entire neighborhood into rubble.

BeastLink Quick Reference

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