Tag: Game guide »

[Trying to decide if you want to subject yourself to the horror? Have a look at our Five Nights at Freddy’s review.]

So you’ve gone and found yourself trapped in a nightmare from which there is no waking. Fantastic. You still have a chance, though. You can still make it out (sort of). We’ve put together a collection of basic tips and tricks to help you out if you’re still having a tough time with it. We’ve tried to keep spoilers to a minimum but there are a few in the “Misc. tips” section. Oh, and sweet dreams.

[Trying to decide if Implosion is worth buying? Check out our review.]

Fighting your way through Implosion’s many, many levels isn’t difficult to figure out - by which I mean it won’t take long to learn the ropes - but the Ark System it uses to manage your upgrades never really gets a proper explanation. So rather than trying to feel your way around, how about you let us show you the ropes?

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The Basics

The Ark System is split into four sections where you can equip different systems you find or purchase - Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Lambda. All systems can affect your power or endurance, along with other systems unique to their category.

• Alpha - 2 slots. Tends to focus on passive attack bonuses like critical rates and ballistics damage. Some upgrades also affect your shield power and can increase item drop rates.
  
  
• Beta - 2 slots. More defense-oriented with upgrades that increase amor, agility, and shield repair.
  
  
• Gamma - 2 slots. Emphasizes things like HP recovery, “Rage,” and restorative powers. Some upgrades can also include the Hack ability, which will be necessary to access certain locked rooms in various levels.
  
  
• Lambda - 1 slot. These upgrades grant entirely new special abilities, such as creating a temporary shield or triggering an area-effect attack.

Sid Meier's Starships is a pretty great game in its own right, but it doesn't do a very good job of helping new players get acclimated to its systems - or its star systems (bah-dum-TSHHH). That's why we've taken it upon ourselves to cover some of the basics, a few of the things you won't learn about in-game unless you dig through the menus, and some strategies that will hopefully keep your fleet mobile and allow you to dominate the galaxy.

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Getting Started

• Keep it simple - For your first time out, don’t bother messing around with things like map size, difficulty, or victory conditions. There’s no shame in reducing the number of opponents, either.
• The Purity Faction is the most beginner friendly - None are necessarily the best, of course, but Purity’s ability to earn double rewards will really come in handy for newbies.
• Choose Bolivar or Fielding as your leader - There might be six other leaders to choose from, but these two are the most straightforward and will make the most sense to beginners.
• Make liberal use of the Advice button - The little “info” button to the far left of the row of icons at the bottom of the screen will be your only friend in learning how to play Starships - aside from this guide, that is. Try to tap it every time you’re ready to take a new action as its suggestions should point you in the right direction.
• Go out and explore - You won’t have much of a chance at any sort of victory if you don’t leave your home planet. So find those navigation lines that point to new planets, and get to visiting!

Have you just downloaded Top Eleven 2015 - Be a Soccer Manager and you're not quite sure where to begin? Don’t worry, we’ll guide you through the basics so that you’ve got some idea when it comes to what to do next.

The Basics

• It should be obvious, but sign in via Facebook. Besides being able to play alongside friends, you’re also safe in the knowledge that none of your progress is going to be lost. And Top Eleven 2015 is a lot more fun when competing with friends.

• Learn what everything in the menu does. Top Eleven 2015 doesn’t have the easiest of tutorials to follow.

• Squad is there for setting up formations and tactics, as well as moving players around. Examine each player’s abilities as it highlights where they’re strongest and weakest. Contemplate whether you want to be a more defensive or offensive team, and plan accordingly.

• Training is where you’ll spend a lot of time. You can pick different training regimes for each of your players and even focus on one in particular (for a price). There’s a choice of three different training methods: match practice is best for honing tactics and boosting team play, cardio is great for general fitness boosts, and stretching reduces the chance of your players picking up injuries.

• The game’s pretty dependent on time, with Fixtures telling you when your next match is. You get bonuses for being around to watch a match so try to do that whenever possible.

• Transfers can be reliant on time too, with live auctions running out all the time. This is more something to focus on when you’ve got money spare, though. Early on, just focus on the players you have.

• You can upgrade your Stadium through the option of the same name. That can lead to more fans, which also means more money. Plus you can upgrade the pitch to reduce the chance of injuries, as well as boost team morale.

So you've just downloaded Raids of Glory and are in need of some assistance as to what to do first? We’ve got you covered with some handy beginners’ tips and tricks to help ease you into the process.

The currencies

As anyone used to Clash of Clans style games knows, understanding the currencies involved is important to success. Raids of Glory offers a few different types.

• Gold - Gold buys stuff, predictably. All new buildings are dependent upon it rather than any need for special resources. The prices steadily rise though, so expect to always be short on gold.

• Rum - Rum buys you the love of a pirate. OK, not the love, but the loyalty. Those pirates can then be sent out to attack enemy outposts, so you want to have enough rum to hire more at any time.

• Skulls - Skulls are the premium currency and are primarily used to speed things along. Try to resist using them for the little things and plan accordingly. Fortunately, more skulls aren’t too hard to come by.

• In the case of gold and rum, you can hold your finger down to their respective bars and you’ll be told what your hourly output is. It’s a handy guide to seeing how well you’re progressing.

Building planes in real life is complicated, so it only makes sense that constructing your own flying machines in SimplePlanes is complicated, too. The game does a lot to explain its depth to would-be engineers, but it can still get a little overwhelming. So are here are some simple tips for building better simple planes.

Plane English

Easily the most daunting aspect of creating your first airplane is just figuring out all the vocabulary words. So here’s a little cheat sheet to help you keep them all straight.

SimCity BuildIt is a city-building game from EA. Your job as mayor is to build houses for people to live in, industry and utilities to serve them, and to try and make sure the good people of your city don't get mixed up in their own sewage.

SimCity BuildIt is straightforward for the most part, but that doesn't mean running a city is always smooth sailing. Here are a few tips to keep your city happy and well-oiled.

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Basic Building

• More citizens means more taxes - When all is said and done, your goal in SimCity BuildIt is to attract new citizens and keep them happy so they don't move out. More citizens means more tax money for beautification projects.

• You're not charged for paving streets or moving buildings, so go nuts - Moving stuff around in SimCity BuildIt doesn't cost you anything, nor does laying down roads. You can organize and re-organize your city without fear of going broke, so go for it.

• Visit neighbors' trading posts for cheap goods - Make friends with other players, then visit their cities once a day to access their trading posts. It's a great way to get materials quickly and cheaply. Every player is assigned to a fully-developed neighboring city, so don't worry if you lack friends.

Reckless Racing 3 is down and dirty racing that prides itself on crazy drifts, breakneck straights, and fantastic in-game physics. Here are few tips to help you to take those corners like a pro.

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Start Your Engines

• Use the straight sections to steal a glance at the mini map towards the top of the screen and check for any fast-approaching sharp turns.

• It's only on those severe turns that braking becomes necessary. Usually releasing the acceleration while turning into the bend, then hitting the gas and turning out of it will suffice. When using the default button layout, tapping to turn out of a drift is a much better technique than holding down on the directional arrow, ensuring maximum control rather than veering into another drift accidentally. Just be aware that terrain can sometimes dictate otherwise.

• While the green guideline might be a great tool for rough navigation, deviating slightly wide and then taking corners as close as possible without crashing is a surefire way to overtake and undercut other racers.

• The reset button isn't as damning as you'd think. In fact, in any situation that requires a reversal maneuver the reset button is actually preferential as it only incurs a minimal time penalty, can serve as an obstruction to opponents, and sometimes players won't even lose their position.

• Larger, heavier vehicles can use their weight to their advantage by smashing other cars off-course. This is best achieved by hitting the back of an opponent's car during a turn, forcing them into a tailspin. Be sure to judge how this will effect the speed and trajectory of your own car, though.

• In the settings menu, turn on the Chase Camera to have a clearer view of the road ahead, putting you behind your racer rather than at a fixed bird's eye view. While this new angle may bring on a bit of motion sickness for the weak-stomached (if you had a problem with iOS' home screen animations then you might want to play Zen Garden instead) it grants a better perspective for upcoming turns. For Gymkhana Mode however, the sheer amount of donuts and spins makes the Chase Camera a dizzying nightmare, so it's better to have it saved for Races and Drift events.

Have you downloaded Agents of Storm, been bowled over by the graphics, and aren't quite sure what to do next? Never fear, for we’re here with some handy tips and tricks to help any beginner get started!

Diamonds Are Your Best Friend

• Diamonds don’t come easily in this game, which is a shame because they’re very useful. For that reason, don’t use them early on. Encouraging you to do exactly that is a common thing with games like this, but resist. There’s just no point using them up to save you a minute of time, when later on they’ll be far more useful.
• To boost your diamond supply, work towards the achievements that Agents of Storm likes you to complete. You’ll earn a few diamonds here and there for completing some fairly straightforward tasks.
• You can watch videos for free diamonds, too. It’s a bit tedious, but it's handy when trying to earn more. You could always leave the video playing while doing something else away from your phone for those few seconds!

• Put those diamonds towards the many enhancements in the shop. These can make all the difference. The Build Module reduces the cool down time between buildings, while Pagoda gives you experience just for being there. Waterfall gives you more gold from every attack you complete.
• Focus on upgrading your resource gathering buildings for that very reason. Gold is particularly useful as it’s needed for attacking islands. As island attacks are your main source of progressing anywhere in the game, you want to focus on this.

The Nightmare Cooperative is a distinctive and challenging puzzler that drops players right in the thick of things and forces them to adapt. We've prepared a few tips and hints to prepare you for the countless trips you'll be taking through the dungeons.

Top of the Class

Utilizing and familiarizing yourself with the perks of the class system is an extremely important part of The Nightmare Cooperative, as it can dictate who is worth saving and who is worth leaving behind. Below is a list by order of personal preference, starting with the most valued member of my team.

• The Ninja uses his stealth to slip past enemies unnoticed, covering a great distance in one bound. Being able to traverse the entire board can mean the Ninja has often been the only one in my team to escape a level unscathed, making him my greatest asset. Pick him up.

• The Priest has the power to fully heal the closest member of his team, so the selfless sap can sacrifice his own well-being in the hope that a teammate will live on, which when having to fight your way out is often a lifesaver (literally).

• The Warrior is the most prolific fighter, as you would hope, and can dish out a double-dose of pain per attack - which is particularly useful when being stalked by an enemy or backed into a corner. However, it does mean having to get close to an enemy and risk taking a hit, so try to draw them closer beforehand.

• The Archer is particularly useful for dispatching enemies at range (though not over over walls), as long as they are directly in-line with her. Particularly useful when wanting to clear a path from a safe position.

• The Astral Walker has the ability to walk through walls (though not through enemies). However, use up his last move before passing all of the way through one and suffer instant death. Not a good way to go.

• The Barbarian knocks enemies flying in the opposite direction with his special attack. Think of him like a human battering ram, but with awesome mutton chops.

• The Mage can also attack at range, though only diagonally, which is a slightly more difficult attacking position to take up.

Survival Tips

• Don't open chests if possible, since it multiplies the amount of enemies on the map. Collect scattered gold or go for the chest with the lowest number on top, representing the amount of enemies it spawns.

• If you are a bit of a hoarder, try sending the last member back before they exit the level, if the path is safe enough. Get the others through first and leave the one remaining lonesome soul to pilfer gold, potions and health vats for the team.

• When an enemy shell appears - whether it's due to the opening of a chest or reaching the step counter limit - use allies with long-range attacks to take them out in one hit.

• Most enemies can only attack on their second move (i.e. if you move alongside them, they cannot attack straight away), so move away from them once they are in striking distance. For enemies that like to follow you around, attacking is the best way out, so hit them from a safe distance with the Archer/Mage and lure them into striking range where you can get the first strike. Either way, always be careful not to put the others in jeopardy in the process, since when one team member moves, all members move. And no one wants a quick dip in the acid pit.

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In the end, The Nightmare Cooperative is a game of sacrifices. Sacrificing a heart, gold, or even a teammate's life for the chance to escape is often a necessity. There's no "I" in team, but there's one in "winner". Think about that.