The Controls
The quick menu
The key bindings can be found in the game settings. They are changeable (at least on PC) so you can customize them to your liking. Whenever I mention keys I always use the default.
Much of what you need in your inventory can be accessed on the quick menu. To access the quick menu, hold down the [space] key and select the category you want, then select the action you want to take. This is a much faster way to equip certain items or perform actions then going through the inventory menu. However, some things like eating or repairing items can only be performed on the inventory screen. You'll just have to explore the quick menu to see what it allows you to do.
Shortcut keys
Don't forget to use the shortcut keys (1-4) to perform the actions that are typically needed the most quickly.
- [1] - equip a light source - keep tapping to cycle through items
- [2] - equip a weapon - keep tapping to cycle through items
- [3] - drop a decoy (meat or guts from your inventory) to distract predators
- [4] - start a fire
Control Tips
- Pressing [H] is helpful to quickly put away whatever you have equipped
- There is no way to "jump" in The Long Dark, so might take some getting used to