Darwin's Paradox! Trophy Guide: Platinum in Under 5 Hours

Darwin's Paradox! launched on PS5 on April 2, 2026, and the Platinum hunting community has already labeled it one of the easiest completions of the year. Published by Konami and developed by ZDT Studio, this ink-based puzzle-platformer puts you in the tentacles of a clever octopus navigating underwater labs, seagull chases, and stealth sections. The whole trophy list clocks in at 20 trophies, zero missable trophies that can't be recovered via Chapter Select, and a completion window of roughly 3 to 5 hours. If you want the PARADOX FIXER Platinum sitting on your profile by tonight, this guide has everything you need.

Full trophy list overview

What's the trophy breakdown in Darwin's Paradox!?

According to PSNProfiles data, the game carries 20 trophies total: 1 Platinum, 8 Gold, 6 Silver, and 5 Bronze, worth 1,275 points. The Platinum (PARADOX FIXER) sits at a 20.96% completion rate on PSNProfiles, which is unusually high for a game only days old. That number tells you everything about the accessibility of this list.

Here's the full breakdown by category:

Story trophies pop automatically during your first playthrough and cannot be missed:

• Can't Catch Me! (Silver) — Survive Steven The Seagull the first time
• DARWIN 2 / GULL 0 (Silver) — Survive Steven The Seagull a second time
• Free At Last (Gold) — Free your friend
• OOPS I Did It Again (Gold) — Destroy the base
• Fly Me To the Moon (Gold) — Reach the ending
• Inked Away! (Bronze) — Escape the morays
• Didn't Follow The Light (Silver) — Survive the lantern fish

How do you find all 20 Discoveries?

Discoveries are glowing collectibles scattered across chapters. They're the backbone of five stacking trophies, from Participation Award (1 found) up to the Gold Nothing Gets By You (all 20). According to community testing documented on the PSNProfiles forum by user Ben-Gun, a natural first playthrough will net you somewhere between 12 and 15 Discoveries without any deliberate hunting.

The fastest approach, as noted in both the Guides Database trophy guide and the md-eksperiment.org roadmap, is to play through the story naturally, then run a 25 to 40 minute Chapter Select cleanup using a 100% Discovery video for any you missed. Every Discovery is replayable through Chapter Select, so nothing is permanently locked out after the credits roll.

The tricky trophies: stealth and challenges

Seven trophies require deliberate effort beyond following the story. These are the ones that separate a casual playthrough from a clean Platinum run. Here's what each demands and exactly where to earn it, based on the Guides Database trophy guide.

Stealth trophies

Sneaky Star (Gold) requires completing the entire Courtyard section in Chapter Hide and Sneak without being spotted once. The trophy notification only appears when you reach the sewers at the end, so don't panic if nothing pops mid-chapter. If guards catch you, quit to the menu immediately and reload the chapter through Chapter Select rather than retrying from a checkpoint.

Employee Of The Month (Gold) works the same way but covers the Offices section across Chapters Kicking Cans 3 through 6. This one has the lowest PSNProfiles completion rate of any individual trophy at 4.7%, which makes it the de facto hardest trophy in the game. That said, "hardest" is relative here. According to the md-eksperiment.org guide, top players average around 48 seconds per stealth segment once they know the patrol patterns. A hidden mechanic worth knowing: you can use your ink to stun guards for 2 to 3 extra seconds, which isn't explained anywhere in the in-game tutorial but cuts the number of attempts significantly.

Challenge trophies

No Time To Lose (Gold) requires hitting the top score on the Obstacle Course Challenge in Chapter Training Away! - 1, which means finishing in under 3 minutes. The md-eksperiment.org guide notes that using ink-jumps across gaps makes this very forgiving, and most players clear it on their second attempt.

Inking Steven Seagull (Gold) tasks you with hitting the seagull that's chasing you with your ink during Chapter Getting to the Bottom of Things - 1. It's a reactionary trophy that's easy to miss on a first run if you're focused on escaping.

Can Do! (Gold) unlocks at the start of Chapter Kicking Cans - 2, where you'll see a shelf of cans. Shoot every single one down with your ink before moving on.

That Hurt (Bronze) is the most easily missed non-Discovery trophy. In Chapter Down in the Dumps - 7, when you reach the surface, go left instead of following the story path to the right. Keep walking until a piano falls from the sky.

Slow But Safe (Bronze) just requires holding camouflage for 10 continuous seconds. Your first chance is in Chapter Into the Unknown - 2, and it takes about ten seconds of standing still.

Two-session Platinum roadmap

This is the cleanest path to PARADOX FIXER based on the roadmap from the md-eksperiment.org guide and community data from PSNProfiles.

Session one: story playthrough (2 to 3 hours)

Play through the full game without rushing. You'll automatically collect all seven story trophies. Keep an eye out for Discoveries as you go. Also grab Slow But Safe in Chapter Into the Unknown - 2, Inking Steven Seagull in Chapter Getting to the Bottom of Things - 1, and Can Do! at the start of Chapter Kicking Cans - 2. Head left in Chapter Down in the Dumps - 7 for That Hurt. By the end you should have 12 to 15 Discoveries and most of the easy challenge trophies.

Session two: Chapter Select cleanup (25 to 40 minutes)

Load specific chapters in this order for maximum efficiency:

• Remaining Discoveries to reach 20 (unlocks Nothing Gets By You and all stacking trophies)
• Sneaky Star in Chapter Hide and Sneak
• Employee Of The Month in Chapters Kicking Cans 3 through 6
• No Time To Lose in Chapter Training Away! - 1
• Any missed challenge trophies

Once all 19 non-Platinum trophies are earned, PARADOX FIXER pops automatically.

PARADOX FIXER Platinum unlocked

Frequently asked questions

Are there any truly unmissable trophies? No. All 8 semi-missable trophies, including every challenge and Discovery-based trophy, are accessible through Chapter Select at any time, even after the credits. The Guides Database guide confirms this explicitly.

How long is the story without trophy hunting? Roughly 90 to 120 minutes for a straight playthrough, according to the md-eksperiment.org guide.

Is the obstacle course trophy actually difficult? No. The sub-3-minute target is generous, and the ink-jump technique across gaps makes it very achievable. Most players clear it on the second attempt.

What's the hardest trophy? On paper, Employee Of The Month at 4.7% completion on PSNProfiles. In practice, it's a matter of learning the patrol patterns and using ink stuns, not a test of precision platforming.

For a full video walkthrough covering all 20 Discoveries and every missable trophy in sequence, the Darwin's Paradox trophy guide with complete platinum roadmap is worth bookmarking alongside this text guide.

For more on every individual trophy with chapter-specific screenshots, the Darwin's Paradox! trophy guide on Guides Database has detailed visual references for each unlock condition.

If you're building out your PS5 Platinum collection and want more games at this difficulty tier, browse more guides on GAMES.GG for the latest trophy roadmaps across every genre.