-- quick note: this guide is somewhat out of date, and since I don't have a functioning VR setup anymore, I will not be updating it for the foreseeable future, as I have no real way of getting reliable information on any new content. I dont believe any info here is wrong, but there may be missing info on things like new attachments, weapons, gamemodes, etc. --

Pavlov is not your average shooter game. For starters, its in VR, which by default makes it a completely different experience from a standard FPS game. In addition, it has fairly accurate gun simulations, which can be confusing to anyone not familiar with common firearms. Here's some basics on how to play the game, such as reloading, quickbelting, and movement.

1. movement.
although this seems like a pretty useless thing to go over in a guide, pavlov actually has some little gimmicks with its movement system that not everyone notices. first off is the origin of movement. this basically controls what part of your body controls which direction you go. under the settings panel (access this through left trigger+menu button), look around and adjust any settings you understand, such as graphics and audio stuff. once you've got all that set up, find the "Input Vector" setting. (all the reference images i could find were the old version, so it may be something more clear. however, if you're reading this you got VR set up, so i'm assuming you know how to find something like this.) If you set this to head, you'll always walk the direction you're looking. If you set this to hand, you'll walk where your hand is pointing. personally I feel that head is much better since you can aim one way and walk the other, but if it doesn't work for you, keep it on hand.

now that all this is set up, there are some gimmicks with pavlov movement that can be confusing to new players. you may notice that when you're holding a rifle/shotgun you move much slower, however this slow movement can be avoided by moving while holding the rifle down near your waist. the detection for this can be janky and weird, so keep adjusting your hand position until you start moving quickly again. this slow movement also applies while holding a pistol ready to fire, so if you just hold a pistol with one hand at your side you will move quickly again.

2. virtual stock.
virtual stock can be confusing and frustrating at first, especially if you don't understand what it does. the virtual stock basically angles a rifle as if you had the stock in your armpit at all times, which can help to steady your aim. this can make aiming easier, since it reduces it to just point and shoot, instead of line up both of your hands and your shoulder and also your eye, then shoot. this can feel frustrating to newer players, so play around with it and see if it helps you. the virtual stock setting is under the "input" tab in the settings menu.

3. reloading basics.
reloading in pavlov can be frustrating, but once you get used to it, you do it quickly while barely even noticing. a really important thing is the different magazine removal for different guns. some guns require you to manually grab the magazine, like the ak-47. others, like the m4, allow you to push a touchpad direction/controller button and have it drop out without any other actions. the actual button varies depending on your VR headset, but just pick up an M4 and mash buttons until the mag falls out. this really speeds up reloads on guns that allow it, as you can drop the magazine while also grabbing a new one out of your hip pouch with your left hand.

REMEMBER! guns in this game work like guns in real life! with some exceptions, chambered rounds will stay with the gun! for example, if you fully load a Desert Eagle pistol, and remove the magazine, one round will stay ready to fire, and you can shoot it! this also means that when you insert a new 7 round magazine, the weapon will have 8 rounds in it. HOWEVER, if you pull back the top slide again, the extra round will be ejected, and you'll be back down to 7. SO, in most cases, if you still have ammo left in the gun and want to reload it, DO NOT pull the charging handle/slide after reloading, you'll be wasting a valuable shot. if the gun is empty, you'll need to pull the charging handle to fire again, so if you're in a hurry just do it anyway, but if you have time to check to make sure if its empty or not, do so, or else the lack of that one bullet can and will kill you.

if your reloads frequently fail, you could be releasing the trigger too fast. pavlov uses an animation to insert most magazines, and if you release the trigger while this animation is still playing, the magazine insert fails and the magazine drops to the floor. all you have to do to get around this is hold the trigger down a bit longer, and keep your hand near the magazine insert point a little longer as well. for some rifles and all pistols this isn't an issue since the animation is so fast, but for shotguns and the Barrett .50 cal the animation is a lot longer, so its easier to screw up a reload.

other than following these tips, basically practice makes perfect. the longer you play the game the smoother your reloads will be.

4. quickbelting.
although Pavlov teaches you quickbelting in the tutorial, it may not be immediately apparent how this whole system works. basically, you have 3 different weapon slots on your body: one on your back and two on each hip. the one over your back can only hold large weapons, like rifles, shotguns, or RPGs, while the ones on your hips can only hold pistols and the UZI smg. to use these, just hold a weapon in your hand, hold your hand over your shoulder, and press the grip trigger to release. a sound effect should play, signaling that you've successfully holstered the weapon. however, if you already have a rifle in your hand and on your back and you do this, the rifles will switch. for example, if you have an AK-47 in your hand and an M4 on your back, and you try to put the AK in the quickbelt slot, you'll end up with an M4 in your hand and an AK on your back. this works even with two of the same gun, and also with the waist quickbelts.

there are also numerous utility quickbelt slots on your chest. you can put anything from grenades to weapon scopes in here, just hover your hand holding a grenade/utility item over your chest and release it. i'm not sure how many of these there are, maybe 6? i've never really needed to use more than 4.

There are lots of different weapons in Pavlov, but there are a few that are superior to others. this isnt really directed at competitive play, just a general list to stick to in more casual games like TDM.

For reference, players have 100 health unless they have body armor. If a mag count has a +1 at the end, one bullet can be stored in the chamber, giving them a magazine size of 30 but a max capacity of 31.

In no specific order...
1. the M4 rifle. 20 damage, 30+1 round magazine.
a solid pick, allows for any attachments. with a vertical grip it has easily controllable recoil.

2. AK-47. 25 damage, 30+1 round magazine.
more difficult to use than the M4, but more powerful. doesnt allow for any attachments other than a suppressor.

3. Barrett .50 caliber. infinite damage?, 1 round capacity.
Obviously the best long range rifle in the game as it one shots even on body shots. takes a while to get used to reloading after every shot, but its worth it.

4. m249 SAW. 20 damage, 100 round magazine.
a spray and pray LMG with plenty of rounds for slaughtering the whole enemy team, even in regular deathmatch. takes forever to reload, even with practice, but the massive magazine and high fire rate makes up for it.
how to reload, since its hard:
1. grab the top of the rail just in front of the stock and lift up and forward to open it.
2. grab the belt box/magazine and remove it
3. take a new belt box out of your ammo pouch and stick it under the gun.
4. grab the ammo chain from the belt box and drag it into the top of the gun.
5. close the top rail back onto the gun.
6. pull the charging handle on the right of the gun.

5. SPAS-12. 80 damage, 8+1 round magazine.
a powerful semi-auto shotgun that has the capacity to one shot headshots. 15 damage per pellet over 6 pellets gives you 80 damage on a direct body shot, which, combined with the fairly fast rate of fire, makes this shotgun a very fast killer.

6. MP5. 20 damage, 30+1 round magazine.
a easy to control SMG that still pumps out good damage, especially with its high rate of fire. also, it has the HK slap, which is always a big bonus.

7. DEagle. 40 damage, 7+1 round magazine.
a very large pistol with a ton of recoil, however it has a lot of damage. although difficult to control, it can be a reliable sidearm capable of dispatching enemies almost as quickly as some of the other weapons listed here. in most situations it's only useful as a backup, but with proper attachments it can be used as a longer ranged weapon.

8. UZI. 20 damage, 30+1 round magazine.
a somewhat easy to control pistol size SMG with a very high rate of fire. this SMG fits in your hip holsters, so you can carry 4 at once, two in each hip holster and two in each hand. this allows you to spray off 60 rounds, swap weapons, and immediately spray off another 60, totaling 120 rounds in less than 8 seconds. only good for close range spray, but very reliable at that range. if you're close enough and are dual wielding UZIs, its almost a guaranteed kill for you.

This is not an exclusive list, most of the weapons in the game can be powerful when used properly, but these are some of the best.

There are several different attachments in Pavlov, and while the more basic ones like the sights might seem more self explanatory, some attachments may have other benefits or drawbacks that aren't immediately apparent. i'll go over all the attachment types, and if necessary explain each individual attachment.

1. sights.

there are 4 different kinds of sights, each usable in different circumstances.

standard sights
these sights are usable on any rifle/pistol with a rail on top, including the m249, the Vector, and the DEagle. currently the only sights in this category are the red dot, the holographic, and the ACOG scope.

long range sights
this category only has one actual attachment, the sniper scope. the rest of the sights in this category are already attached onto some of the WWII rifles, and can't be removed. these sights can only be attached to rifles and shotguns. as far as i can tell the only difference is that they dont work on SMGs, the m249, and the DEagle.

pistol sights
again, there's only one attachment in this category, the actual pistol sight. pistol sights can be attached to most pistols, excluding the DEagle, the m1911, and the revolver.

secondary sights
this category also only has one attachment, but its an unusual one. the canted sight is a secondary sight that can be attached on top of another sight, usually a magnified scope, to allow for easier close range aiming. these sights can be attached onto most of the weapons that can use standard sights, excluding some SMGs and the DEagle. this sight is incredibly useful when partnered with M4 and an ACOG sight, since it allows the M4 to be used in single fire mode with the ACOG for long range, and in full auto with the canted sight for close range.

as far as I can tell none of the sights affect movement speed or other factors in gameplay.

2. grips.

there are only 2 grips in the game, however each has different benefits.

vertical grip
the vertical grip is the best grip for recoil control, since it reduces vertical recoil. this grip comes pre-attached to the AUG, and is usable with most other rifles. while some rifles may struggle more with horizontal recoil, most rifles have far more vertical recoil, which makes the vertical grip a strong choice.

angled grip
the angled grip reduces horizontal recoil, making it a strong choice for some weapons like the AK-12, which seems to have a lot of horizontal recoil compared to other guns, however the vertical grip is usually a better choice, unless you're really bad at controlling horizontal recoil.

3. suppressors.
these are mostly self explanatory. there are two suppressors, the rifle suppressor and the pistol suppressor. all these do is make the gun somewhat quieter, and remove muzzle flash. although the DEagle is technically a pistol, it uses the rifle suppressor. also, the Barrett .50 caliber sniper can use a rifle suppressor, although this just makes a long gun even longer, and doesn't really give much benefit, since if you miss one shot you're already dead.

4. lasers and lights.
these attachments provide some other benefit to your weapon, whether it's easier aiming or better visibility.

rifle laser
the rifle laser is a laser that works with some rifles, and usually attaches near the end of the front rails. it can be turned on and off by holding the grip with your off hand and pulling the trigger. this sight, although it can be useful, generally hurts you more than it helps, since rifles are generally fairly easy to aim anyway, and it gives away your location by shining a bright laser beam wherever you're aiming.

pistol laser
the pistol laser is almost identical to the rifle laser, but it works with pistols instead. again, the DEagle uses the rifle laser instead of the pistol laser. only a few pistols actually work with this laser, mainly the G18c and the Five-seveN. this one can be turned on and off by holding the pistol grip with your off hand and pulling the trigger, similar to the rifle laser. this laser is much more helpful since all of the pistol sights are fairly difficult to aim through, even with a sight attachment, and frequently when you need to use a pistol you're already in a lot of trouble and need some easy shots, and giving your location away doesn't matter anymore.

rifle flashlight
a flashlight that can be attached to most rifles and SMGs. the flashlight is really weak, and doesn't really give any benefit at all to you. you're better off using a rifle laser, which at least can give you an advantage.

There are lots of different gamemodes in Pavlov, and most of them dont have a very clear goal, so i'll just go over all of the main gamemodes briefly.

Deathmatch (DM)
Your average all v all gamemode. shoot everyone you see. objective is to have the most kills by the time the round is over. uses the modern set of weapons. Buying is enabled, and players get infinite ammo.

Team Deathmatch (TDM)
Two usually evenly balanced teams fight each other. if someone has a nametag, they're on your team, kill everyone else. objective is to help your team get the most kills by the end of the match. uses the modern set of weapons. Buying is enabled, and players get infinite ammo.

Tank Team Deathmatch (TANK TDM)
Team Deathmatch, except using the WWII set of weapons, and tanks spawn near each player's spawnpoint. Buying is disabled, and every player starts with random weapons and limited ammo.

Gun Game (GUN)
an all v all gamemode where every player has to get one kill with every weapon in the game. objective is to get 26 kills before any other player does. uses the modern set of weapons. Buying is disabled, and players get infinite ammo.

WWII Gun Game (WWII GUN)
the same as gun game, except with the WWII set of weapons. almost half of these weapons are bolt action, which can really slow the gameplay down. Buying is disabled, and players get infinite ammo.

Trouble in Terrorist Town (TTT)
a very different, much more casual gamemode similar to Mafia. Everyone is assigned roles at the start of each round. Innocent players must survive for the duration of the round, or eliminate all Traitors. Traitors must eliminate all Innocents and have special equipment to do so. Traitors can see which players are other traitors. The Detective must either survive for the duration of the round or eliminate all Traitors, and has special equipment to do so. The Detective is the only role revealed to all players. Mercenaries have the same objective as Innocents, but get the same equipment as Traitors. Survivalists have the same objective as Innocents, but get the same equipment as the Detective. Uses whatever set of weapons the map supports. Buying is disabled, but players can find weapons laying around the map, and, depending on the server, can spawn with a primary and secondary weapons. Ammo is either limited or unlimited, depending on the server.

One In The Chamber (OITC)
A more fast paced Deathmatch style gamemode where every player is only equipped with a Golden Gun, a DEagle variant with 1 round magazines and infinite damage. Each player can only fire one shot out of their Golden Gun before running completely out of ammo, but if they kill another player they regain one round. Everyone spawns with a knife as a backup. Buying is disabled, players have limited ammo.

The Hidden (HIDDEN)
A horror themed gamemode where a squad of "Infinitum Soldiers" must kill 1-3 "Hiddens". The Hiddens are almost completely invisible, but only have a melee attack. However, the Hidden can also leap long distances and climb walls, as well as see the soldiers through walls temporarily. Buying is disabled, ammo is limited.

Search and Destroy (SND)
By far the most competitive gamemode. One team is assigned to Attack, the other to Defense. Attack must plant a C4 on a certain location, or kill the entire opposing team. Defense must prevent Attack from planting C4 for the duration of the round, or kill the entire opposing team. Respawning is disabled, buying is enabled, and players have infinite ammo.

King of the Hill (KOTH)
Both teams try to capture a single objective and hold it for the longest. Whichever team has the most players inside the objective earns points. Whoever gets to a set point value wins. This gamemode is fairly uncommon, very few servers run it.

There is a Zombies gamemode, but it is far too complex for this tutorial, and not very common.

That's pretty much it! Remember, if you suck at this game, practice will always make you better. These have just been a few tips to help you on your way to becoming a Pavlov god. Thanks for reading my guide, I spent way too long on this, and only like 4 people are gonna read it.

i think a few more than 4 people might have read this guide. i blame you guys for making this section inaccurate.