How to Play Into the Wind – A Complete Beginner’s Guide to Flying, Deliveries, and Island Exploration

Into the Wind is a cozy open-world adventure game that takes players to the beautiful islands of Santa Rosa. You take over your missing uncle Umberto’s delivery business and travel across the archipelago with Ermes, a unique motorcycle-plane companion that allows you to drive along roads and take to the skies.

The game combines delivery missions, vehicle upgrades, exploration, customization, and story-driven adventures. Every journey brings new challenges, from transporting delicate packages to navigating difficult terrain, managing fuel, and avoiding encounters with air pirates.

Beyond delivering packages, you can meet local residents, build friendships, decorate your home and crew base, and investigate the mysterious cloud connected to your uncle’s disappearance. Your progress depends on completing jobs, earning resources, and improving Ermes to handle increasingly challenging journeys.

This guide explains how to get started in Into the Wind, plan successful deliveries, learn the basics of driving and flying, upgrade your vehicle, explore Santa Rosa, and make the most of your adventure.

1. Start by Understanding the Basic Gameplay Loop

The first step in learning Into the Wind is understanding how deliveries, exploration, and vehicle progression work together.

You take on jobs across Santa Rosa, transport cargo to its destination, earn resources, and use those rewards to improve your vehicle and expand your delivery business.

The basic Into the Wind gameplay loop

A typical gameplay session can follow this routine:

• Explore Santa Rosa and discover available delivery opportunities.
• Choose a job that suits your current vehicle capabilities.
• Check the cargo requirements and destination.
• Plan a route using roads, shortcuts, or flight.
• Transport the package while managing fuel and vehicle handling.
• Deliver the cargo and earn rewards.
• Spend resources on upgrades and customization.
• Explore new locations and meet the island's residents.
• Take on more challenging deliveries as your capabilities improve.

Each activity supports the others. Completing deliveries helps you earn resources, while upgrades make future jobs and exploration more manageable.

Progress at your own pace

Into the Wind is designed to combine cozy exploration with more demanding driving and flying mechanics.

You do not need to master every vehicle ability immediately. Start with manageable deliveries and use each journey to learn how Ermes responds to different situations.

As you become more comfortable, you can experiment with shortcuts, aerial routes, and more challenging cargo.

2. Learn How to Drive and Fly With Ermes

Ermes is your main vehicle and companion throughout the adventure. Its unusual motorcycle-plane design allows you to travel across roads and fly through the skies.

Understanding its movement is essential because your driving decisions affect how quickly and safely you can complete deliveries.

Learn the basics of driving

The game's driving model is designed to feel approachable while still rewarding skill.

Begin by learning how Ermes responds to steering, acceleration, curves, and changes in terrain.

Pay attention to:

• How quickly the vehicle changes direction.
• How different surfaces affect handling.
• How slopes influence movement.
• How much space you need to navigate a turn.
• When to slow down before a difficult section.

The game also features different turning approaches, including normal steering and player-controlled sliding for handling curves.

Practice flying gradually

Flying opens up additional ways to travel around Santa Rosa, but it still requires control and judgment.

Take time to understand how Ermes handles in the air before relying on flight for every delivery.

Pay attention to your approach when landing and avoid assuming that reaching your destination is enough. A poor landing can damage your cargo or leave you in an inconvenient position.

Find a balance between speed and control

Fast movement can save time, but excessive speed can make it harder to react to obstacles and changes in terrain.

For beginners, consistency is more important than achieving the fastest possible run.

Once you understand how Ermes behaves, gradually experiment with faster routes and more advanced maneuvers.

3. Choose Deliveries Carefully

Deliveries are at the center of Into the Wind. They help you earn money and resources while introducing you to different parts of the world.

However, not every delivery presents the same challenge.

Some packages require careful handling, while others are heavy enough to influence how your vehicle behaves.

Check the cargo before accepting a job

Before starting a delivery, consider the type of package and what it means for your journey.

Ask yourself:

• Is the cargo delicate?
• Is the package heavy?
• Will the weight make hills more difficult?
• Is the destination accessible by road or air?
• Do you have enough fuel for the planned route?
• Can your current upgrades handle the job?

These questions help you decide whether a delivery is appropriate for your current progress.

Understand cargo weight and condition

Cargo is physically affected by your vehicle's movement. Packages can shift or fall off during difficult maneuvers, and damage can affect how satisfied the recipient is with the delivery.

Secure cargo when appropriate and avoid unnecessary risks, especially when transporting fragile items.

A smooth, controlled journey can be more valuable than reaching the destination quickly but delivering a damaged package.

Increase the challenge gradually

As you become more familiar with the controls, try deliveries that require more careful navigation or better vehicle performance.

Treat each new job as an opportunity to learn something about cargo handling, route planning, or vehicle control.

4. Plan Routes Across Santa Rosa

Santa Rosa is an island archipelago filled with villages, scenic roads, cafés, and locations to explore.

Getting from one destination to another is an important part of the gameplay, and the route you choose can influence the difficulty of a delivery.

Compare roads and shortcuts

The shortest route is not necessarily the easiest.

A direct road might contain steep slopes, while a longer route could provide more comfortable driving conditions. Flying may offer another option, depending on your vehicle capabilities and the demands of the job.

Before setting out, consider the terrain and the condition of your cargo.

Pay attention to fuel

Fuel matters during your journeys, so avoid treating every trip as if you can travel indefinitely.

Consider your route and vehicle requirements before leaving. As you gain experience, you will become better at judging which routes are practical for different deliveries.

Adapt to weather and wind

Environmental conditions are also part of the driving and flying experience.

Wind, weather, terrain, and landing conditions can affect how a journey unfolds.

Rather than committing to one route regardless of the circumstances, learn to adapt your approach to the situation.

The more attention you pay to the environment, the easier it becomes to make informed travel decisions.

5. Earn Money and Upgrade Your Vehicle

Completing deliveries helps you earn resources that can be invested in Ermes.

Upgrades are important because they allow you to improve vehicle performance and prepare for more demanding jobs and adventures.

Explore different upgrade options

Into the Wind features a range of upgrade possibilities, including vehicle parts, tuning improvements, and additional modules.

Depending on the upgrade, you may improve performance, alter handling, or gain new capabilities.

Examples of announced upgrade categories include:

• Wheels and other vehicle parts.
• Wings for flight-related capabilities.
• Boost modules.
• Weapons.
• Motor tuning improvements.
• Additional modules with specialized effects.

Different combinations can support different playstyles.

Match upgrades to your needs

Instead of upgrading everything immediately, consider which part of your gameplay needs improvement.

If you struggle with handling, prioritize options that help you control the vehicle. If you want to explore more demanding routes, look for upgrades that support the kind of driving or flying you plan to do.

The most useful setup depends on your current goals and the jobs you want to complete.

Experiment with different combinations

The game is designed to provide a variety of upgrade combinations rather than one universally perfect configuration.

As you unlock more options, experiment with different parts and modules to discover which combinations suit your preferred approach.

6. Explore the Islands and Meet Local Residents

Exploration is more than a way to reach your next delivery destination. Santa Rosa is home to small villages, scenic routes, cafés, and residents with their own stories.

Getting to know the world helps connect the delivery gameplay with the broader narrative.

Explore beyond your delivery route

When time and resources allow, take opportunities to discover places beyond your immediate destination.

You may encounter interesting locations, new characters, and additional opportunities to learn about the islands.

Exploration can also make familiar routes feel more meaningful as you gradually understand the geography of Santa Rosa.

Talk to the people you meet

Building friendships is part of the adventure.

Interact with local residents and pay attention to their stories. These relationships contribute to the world and help you understand the people who depend on the delivery service.

Do not treat every conversation as a distraction from your main objective. The characters and locations are an important part of the experience.

Connect exploration with your story goals

Your uncle Umberto disappeared while investigating a mysterious cloud.

As you complete deliveries and learn more about the islands, you can pursue clues connected to his disappearance.

This gives your exploration a broader purpose beyond simply discovering new scenery.

7. Prepare for Encounters With Air Pirates

Although Into the Wind has a cozy atmosphere, it also includes encounters with air pirates.

These enemies can threaten your cargo, creating a challenge for players who want to deliver packages safely.

Understand when pirates become a threat

According to the developers, pirates do not automatically attack in every situation. They are particularly interested in cargo they want to steal, and engaging them can also provoke a confrontation.

This means that choosing when to fight is an important part of your strategy.

Avoid unnecessary combat

You do not have to engage in every encounter.

The game allows you to flee or choose an alternative route when you want to avoid a fight.

For a beginner carrying valuable or delicate cargo, avoiding a dangerous encounter may be more sensible than risking the package.

Prepare when combat is necessary

If you decide to engage air pirates, consider whether your vehicle upgrades are appropriate for the situation.

Learn how your available abilities work before entering a difficult encounter, and avoid taking unnecessary risks with important deliveries.

The choice between fighting and avoiding danger is part of the freedom the game offers.

8. Customize Your Vehicle and Decorate Your Home

Into the Wind allows you to personalize both Ermes and your living space.

Customization provides a creative break from deliveries and lets you make your growing operation feel more personal.

Make Ermes your own

The announced customization options include different color schemes, paint jobs, stickers, and visual variations associated with vehicle parts.

Experiment with the available options to create a look that matches your style.

Your vehicle is a constant companion throughout the journey, so personalizing it can make each delivery feel more distinctive.

Improve your home and crew base

Between deliveries, you can decorate and furnish your home and the base shared by your crew.

These spaces provide another way to express your preferences beyond vehicle customization.

Consider how you want each area to look, then work toward obtaining the decorations and furniture needed to achieve that style.

Earn decorations through exploration and deliveries

Decorative items are not simply unlimited free additions. The game ties obtaining and transporting decorations to your progression.

What you bring back and where you place it can also provide bonuses that support further development.

This creates a connection between your delivery work and the spaces you build.

9. Investigate the Mystery of Your Uncle's Disappearance

The story of Into the Wind centers on your missing uncle, Umberto, who disappeared while investigating a mysterious cloud above Santa Rosa.

Taking over his delivery business gives you a way to build a new life while gradually learning more about what happened.

Use deliveries to discover the world

Completing jobs introduces you to different residents and locations.

These interactions help you become more familiar with Santa Rosa and can contribute to your understanding of the wider story.

Rather than focusing only on the rewards, take time to notice the people and events connected to your journeys.

Build relationships along the way

Friendships are an important part of the narrative.

As you get to know your crew and the people living across the islands, you can develop a stronger understanding of the world around you.

This makes the story feel connected to your everyday activities rather than separated from the delivery gameplay.

Balance story progress with exploration

You do not need to rush through the mystery.

Continue completing deliveries, exploring the islands, and learning about the residents at a comfortable pace.

The journey itself is an important part of the experience, and each new discovery helps develop your understanding of Santa Rosa.

10. Build an Efficient Into the Wind Strategy

Once you understand the main mechanics, you can develop a routine that balances delivery work, upgrades, exploration, and story progression.

The goal is to make steady progress without taking unnecessary risks.

Create a repeatable delivery routine

A useful routine can look like this:

• Review the available delivery.
• Check the cargo's weight and handling requirements.
• Consider fuel and route conditions.
• Choose a suitable road or flight path.
• Drive or fly carefully through difficult sections.
• Protect cargo from unnecessary damage.
• Avoid or prepare for pirate encounters.
• Complete the delivery and collect your rewards.
• Invest resources in useful upgrades.
• Explore new locations and continue the story.

This structure helps you make decisions before a journey instead of reacting to every problem at the last moment.

Learn from difficult deliveries

If a package arrives damaged or you struggle with a route, think about what caused the problem.

Perhaps the cargo was too heavy for the route, the vehicle needed a different upgrade, or the landing was too aggressive.

Use these experiences to adjust your next attempt.

Balance progress with enjoyment

Into the Wind combines delivery challenges with a cozy world full of characters, scenery, and customization options.

You do not have to focus exclusively on earning resources or completing the main story.

Spend time exploring, decorating your home, or improving Ermes whenever you want a change of pace.

Conclusion

Learning how to play Into the Wind is about balancing careful deliveries, vehicle control, exploration, and progression. Ermes gives you the freedom to travel by road and air, while the cargo system, fuel management, environmental conditions, and air pirate encounters make each journey a different challenge.

For beginners, the best approach is to start with manageable deliveries, learn how Ermes handles, and invest in upgrades that support your preferred playstyle. As you become more confident, explore new routes, build relationships with the island's residents, and follow the mystery surrounding your uncle's disappearance.

Most importantly, plan your journeys, protect your cargo, upgrade thoughtfully, and enjoy exploring Santa Rosa. In Into the Wind, every delivery is an opportunity to discover something new and build your own story among the islands.