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Wanted: Deadhas you assume the role of Stone, a member of the Elite Police Unit known as the Zombie Squad, set in a cyberpunk version of Hong Kong. Stone wields everything from a Katana to an Assault Rifle and has access to a Sidearm and a variety of other secondary weapons, ranging from a Shotgun to an SMG.
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While you have a lot to work with at your disposal, there will be moments when you will need to rely on some aspects of the combat system rather than others, which can make for hectic moments. Overall, having a solid strategy in place for specific encounters will make you emerge victorious on the other side.
Party Members
As part of theZombie Unit,you will haveother members of the team join in on Missionswith you throughout the story, allowing you to use their expertise to your advantage. However, youcannot choose who will tag alongside you,which is unfortunate as some of them have excellent abilities that are incredibly useful in combat. Sometimes you will have all three additional members, and other times, you will only have one, so it’s crucial to understand what all three are capable of.
Fortunately, this doesn’t entirely end here, as youcan upgrade your teammate’s Buddy Skillsvia theUtility Skill Treewith accumulatedSkill Points(SP). You can find what all of them can do in the table below!
Description
Cortez: Sleeper Hold
When Cortez grabs hold of an enemy, you can perform a Finishing Strike on them.
Herzog: Headshot
Herzog will now land headshots with his Sniper Rifle, leading to enormous damage.
Doc: Revive Overdrive
When revived by Doc, you will gain full Adrenaline and receive an additional Stim Pack.
Selective Fire
In addition to Stone’s Katana, herRifleis one of the most crucial aspects of the combat system, allowing you to tear through certain enemies with the right Attachments and build. However, one thing you may not know about the weapons in Wanted: Dead is thatmost automatic weapons have selective fire,allowing you totoggle between fully automatic and single fire.
This means you cantake complete advantage of builds with a high Accuracy Stat,as the overall recoil will be lessened and more manageable. It will also allow you todispatch targets at a greater distance much more effectivelyand preserve ammunition that will be crucial in the later portions of a Mission.
Toswitch the firing typeof your weapon, press’Up' on the D-Pador’B' on the Keyboard.For more information on Weapon Builds in Wanted: Dead, follow this link to see some of the best!
Secondary Weapons Are Crucial
Speaking of the importance of weapons in Wanted: Dead, aside from your Katana, Primary Rifle, and Taker Sidearm, you will also be able to pick up aSecondary Weapon,which can be any from anLMGto anSMGto aShotgun.While all can be handy in their own right, you should note that some thrive in most situations more than others.
Additionally, uponkilling enemies,you will likely seeglowing weaponson the ground beneath them. Some will glow Yellow, while others will glow Green. This indicates the ammo you will receive when passing over it.Yellowis for yourPrimary Weapon,andGreenis for yourSecondary Weapon.This is crucial as it allows you to quickly discern if you need it, allowing you to weigh the risk of running out of cover to snag it.
Use The Chainsaw Wisely
Remaining on the topic of additional weapons, you will encounter several “Beavertooth"Chainsawsthroughout your playthrough. While it may be tempting to pick it up instantly and cut through the standard mobs of enemies, you shouldleave it alone until the area’s Mini-Boss joins the fightbecause nine times out of ten, you will encounter aNinjaorHeavily Armoredenemy and can use it to eliminate them swiftly.
TheChainsawwillone-hit Ninjasand theHeavily Armored units with the chaingun,making it the best way to deal with them. However, if you use the Chainsaw on other enemies, there’s a good chance you can get overwhelmed and killed. And, if Doc is on the field, it will disappear whenever you’re revived, making it too risky to use until the Mini-Boss shows up. So, as a general rule of thumb, if you see a Chainsaw, it’s off-limits until the big guns - or swords - show up!
Parrying, Countering, And Evading
One of the most crucial options at your disposal in Wanted: Dead is part of theDefense Skill Tree,as it enables you to take full advantage of theParry, Counter, and Evadesystems in the game. While many Skills in every Skill Tree are worth obtaining,expanding your Parry and Evade windowswill significantly help you, especially as you get closer to the late game.
Mostof yourboss encounters toward the endof the game aremelee-based and are more or less immune to bullets,meaning you will have toget up close and personalwith them and use yourKatanato best them. As a result, yourDefensive Skillswill need to be touched up and used to their fullest to give yourself a fighting chance.you may learn more about Defense Skills, which ones to obtain, and why they’re so crucial by following this link!
Combos And When To Do Them
Lastly, let’s cover thetwo types of Combosin Wanted: Dead and when you should perform them. Realistically, you want to do theStandard Combo(X > X > XXbox Controller) any chance you get, but only when you cannot get interrupted by other enemies or if the enemy you are facing is a Boss or Mini-Boss. For these enemies, you will need to wait for the best opportunity to strike and carry out your Combo. This can either be done by Parrying their attack, Countering their attacks, or waiting for them to whiff a large attack with a long recovery.
With theHandgun Combo(Y>X>X>XXbox Controller), however, you should only use this on enemies that can get briefly stunned by the initial shot, as you are guaranteed to land the whole Combo. But, if you have a Taker Handgun build with high Armor Piercing, you can use this Combo pretty effectively on Heavily Armored enemies as well, but we wouldn’t recommend doing it without the proper build.
Finally, with theOffense Skill Tree,you canextend both the Standard and Handgun Combos,allowing you to deal even more damage with your Combos, making them much more useful than before. Additionally, for theStandard Combo,we recommendkicking it offwith aSliding or Dashing Strike,as you will deal significant damage even before you begin your Combo. Both of those actions place most enemies in a brief stun window.you may find out the best Offense Skills by following this link to our guide on Skills!
