Security clearance route: colors, sectors, and hacker limits

GATE doors use color-coded clearance. The number on a keypad is the access level, while the device in the player's hacking slot determines which levels can be bypassed. These are related systems, but they are not the same thing.

The current clearance reference runs from Blue at Level 1 through Black at Level 7. The upgrade path has the original Keypad Hacker, four numbered upgrades, and the Gatekey (Tier 6). Black access does not introduce a separate Tier 7 tool. The Black area described by the official reference uses the Gatekey (Tier 6).

This page is a route and door-checking guide. It does not claim that obtaining a hacker automatically completes the story objective behind every door.

Clearance route at a glance

The chart summarizes the current clearance reference. It shows access capability, not a speedrun timeline. Route length varies with exploration, co-op organization, combat, and optional areas, so this guide does not attach unsupported playtime estimates to the levels.

How the hacker tiers work

The original Keypad Hacker handles Clearance Level 1. Each numbered upgrade handles its own level and the lower levels. A Tier 4 device can therefore open Level 4, Level 3, Level 2, and Level 1 keypads. It cannot open Level 5.

The Keypad Hacker reference states that the first device is crafted and can be unlocked by speaking with Alice Mayfield or by collecting the required components. It occupies the Hacking Device gear slot. If the tool appears to be missing after moving it, check that equipment slot before crafting another one.

Do not use the table as a recipe list. Crafting ingredients can change between updates and are shown in the in-game recipe once the relevant idea has been learned. This page deliberately keeps the stable access relationship separate from version-sensitive material lists.

Level 1 Blue

Blue is primarily associated with the Office Sector. The official reference also notes some Level 1 doors outside Offices, including parts of Manufacturing West. This is why color and level are more useful than assuming every door in a later sector needs the sector's usual hacker tier.

The first device is named Keypad Hacker without a tier suffix. Equip it in the Hacking Device slot and interact with a Blue keypad. If it does not work, confirm that the keypad is actually Level 1 and that the tool is equipped rather than sitting in a normal inventory or hotbar slot.

Level 2 Orange

Orange is used mainly in Manufacturing West and requires Keypad Hacker (Tier 2). Keep the upgraded tool equipped after returning to earlier areas because it continues to handle Blue doors. There is no reason to carry both the original device and Tier 2 for access coverage.

When an Orange door blocks a side room, record the door location rather than assuming the main route is broken. Some locked rooms provide optional supplies or shortcuts, while progression may continue along another path.

Level 3 Violet

Violet is the research clearance used primarily in Cascade Laboratories and the attached Wildlife Pens. Keypad Hacker (Tier 3) is the matching bypass device.

Before a long Labs route, verify the tier at the base. The color can be harder to distinguish in dark or emergency-lit corridors, so read the level shown on the keypad instead of relying only on the light color.

Level 4 Red

Red is used primarily in the Security Sector and requires Keypad Hacker (Tier 4). Reaching the sector does not mean every Red door must be opened during the first visit. Separate the route objective from optional locked rooms, and mark doors that can be revisited after supplies and combat equipment are restored.

If the tool opens Violet doors but not a Red one, that behavior is consistent with carrying Tier 3. Check the full item name before diagnosing the door as a bug.

Level 5 Yellow

Yellow is associated primarily with the Hydroplant. The clearance reference also identifies a Level 5 keypad on the top level of the Containment Megalift. Keypad Hacker (Tier 5) handles Yellow and all lower keypad levels.

This corrects a common route mistake: Yellow is not the Reactors color. A player who sees Green or a Retinal Scanner in Reactors needs the Gatekey rather than trying the Tier 5 hacker repeatedly.

Level 6 Green

Green access is used for the Mist and Gale reactor areas in the Reactors sector. These locks are presented as Retinal Scanners and are bypassed with Gatekey (Tier 6), the final device in the hacking progression.

The name change matters. Searching storage only for another item named Keypad Hacker can make the final device look absent even after it has been obtained. Check the Hacking Device slot for the Gatekey.

Level 7 Black

The official clearance page describes Black as Gatekeeper-level access and identifies WG-INTRADOS as the known Black area. It contains the central Reactors area with a portal to Shadowgate. The same reference states that the Gatekey (Tier 6) bypasses this access.

Black is therefore a seventh clearance level, but not a seventh crafting tier. Do not wait for a nonexistent Tier 7 hacker. If the Gatekey does not open the route, verify the story state and the exact interaction point before assuming a missing device upgrade.

Door diagnosis checklist

The route is ready when the correct device is equipped, the displayed clearance level is within that device's range, and any separate story condition has been completed. This avoids wasting materials on duplicate hackers or treating every locked side room as a progression blocker.

Related guides

• Office Sector route
• Manufacturing West route
• Cascade Laboratories walkthrough
• Security Sector walkthrough
• Hydroplant walkthrough
• Reactors walkthrough