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It's finally here. After years of hype, Crysis has arrived on the PC amidst a flurry of nerds feverishly upgrading
their video cards to ensure that they can run this latest system killer with all the bells and whistles. Read our
review to see if the game is worth the cost of an 8800-class video card.
But if you're the sort that just wants to get right into the action, skip what even our critics have to say and read
on. The following game guide covers all of the Crysis essentials, including key information on how to get the most
out of your nanosuit, an overview of the enemies and weapons that you'll encounter, some general strategic tips,
and, of course, a complete walkthrough of the solo campaign. About the only aspect of the game that isn't
covered here is the multiplayer, and you should be able to pick up plenty of tips on that by checking out threads
in our forums.
The following pages serve up the inside skinny on the following Crysis features:
Nanosuit
Interested in getting the most out of your spiffy, high-tech nanosuit? Look here for the lowdown.
Weapons
Check this section for details on the instruments of death-dealing that Crysis has to offer.
Vehicles
Driving around on a sunny island in the south seas is a snap with the tips included in this section of the guide.
Enemies
North Koreans and aliens provide some tough opposition in Crysis. Get some essential information on how to gun
them down here.
General Strategies
In search of some quick advice? Read through this bullet-point list.
Walkthrough
When the North Koreans get you down, turn here for detailed advice on how to foil their nefarious plans.
All of the suit enhancements can be accessed with a click of the third mouse button and then selected by rotating
a radial menu. Or you can flip them on directly with hotkeys. You'll want to learn the latter, as the radial menu is
a bit clunky for quick access when you get into serious firefights.
Armor
Best used when in a big scrap with lots of enemies and no cover is readily available, maximum armor is a last
resort power that gives you the ability to withstand more damage than normal. You can fire it up by choice right
before attacking an enemy position head-on, though, as it enables you to absorb a lot of extra hurting before
going down for the count. It also clicks on by default whenever the power runs out when you have cloak
activated.
Cloak
Given the massive number of enemies in Crysis, this power is the one that you will use the most. By which we
Copyright ©1995-2007 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.
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mean all the freaking time. Cloak can be employed in all situations, although it is at its best when you want to pop
up in the midst of a gang of enemies and take them by surprise, or when you need to sneak past an enemy
patrol. It is also invaluable when approaching enemy positions like bases or machine-gun nests, as it gives you
the ability to run across open stretches without being seen (and shot into itty bitty pieces).
The only drawback with cloak is its power draw. It sucks your suit dry in moments, especially if you're running, so
you have to be careful that you don't run out of juice in mid-sneak and wind up turning visible in the middle of a
clearing. Power consumption is really cut down if you're crawling, though. So if you've got the patience, drop into
a prone position and creep forward. This will be rewarded with oodles more time to invisibly flank enemies.
While nanosuits may look an awful lot like high-tech fetishwear, you wouldn't want to take on the North Korean
army wearing anything else .
Speed
Another big-time power drain, maximum speed is best utilized when either attacking gangs of enemies or running
away from gangs of enemies after realizing that you've bitten off more than you can chew. It is also a plus when
you're trying to make good time running down roads. Doing this can sometimes cause you to race into trouble,
though. You move so fast that you can easily wind up in the middle of an enemy patrol before you know it, with
your suit running on empty.
Strength
Maximum strength is cooler in theory than it is in reality. Sure, it sounds awesome to be able to dial up super
strength and choke the life out of North Koreans. But in reality, you're generally taking on so many enemies in
Copyright ©1995-2007 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.
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firefights that getting up close and personal with one leaves a half-dozen or more with clear shots at your back.
The passive mode of maximum strength is more useful, as it allows you to make Jedi-like high jumps up walls,
punch open stuck doors, and the like. Of course, it's not nearly as nifty as snapping necks, so you won't hear as
much about it in the press releases.
Weapons
Despite the futuristic setting, most weapons in Crysis are standard military hardware similar to what can be found
in most other shooters. From the run-of-the-mill pistol to the de rigeur missile launcher, there aren't many
surprises here.
Pistol
Part of your default weapon load-out, this .45 lookalike is only noteworthy because you can duel-wield it, John
Woo-style, after picking up a second one from a convenient North Korean corpse.
SCAR Rifle
Another default weapon is the SCAR, a stock shooter submachine-gun that can be useful in close battles purely
due to its rapid fire rate. Its bullets don't do a lot of damage, however, and their impact barely seem to slow down
either aliens or North Koreans.
FY71
This generic automatic rifle is a jack-of-all-trades through most of Crysis, as it seems to be the main weapon of
the North Korean army. It can be switched over to single fire mode, scoped for use as a sniper rifle, quieted with
a silencer, and tricked out with a flashlight. Its only drawback is fairly wimpy shot power. You need to fire quite a
few rounds with the FY71 to take out the average KPA soldier, unless you skip right to the good stuff and shoot
him in the head.
Shotgun
Maybe the best weapon in the game due to its heavy damage and stopping power. Reload times are also
impressive, making it the perfect weapon for close-quarters combat with North Koreans and aliens. It can also be
modified with a flashlight and a laser sight (after you pick up the North Korean SMG, of course).
Gauss Rifle
Sort of a high-tech shotgun that fire electrical rounds, the gauss isn't all that useful in practice because of a slow
reload time. Swap it out for the shotgun whenever possible.
Precision Rifle
An unremarkable variant on the FY71. The two weapons seem to be interchangeable.
Missile Launcher
The weapon of choice when you need to take out a KPA helicopter or gunship. It also comes in handy towards the
end of the game when assaulting enemy fortifications, or when you need to take down flying aliens quickly.
Deeply satisfying to fire.
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Minigun
Surprisingly not as useful as you might expect. It takes a long time to spin up, and it doesn't do as much damage
as it should, especially against choppers and aliens. The minigun is still needed in scraps when you need to pile a
lot of hurt on opponents, although it is tough to use when battling at close range with numerous enemies. It also
weighs you down when running, which makes it a pain to deal with when fighting speedy alien fliers later in the
game.
Nothing ends an argument as fast as whirling up the good ol' minigun. It could use a little more oomph, but it's
still a blast to shoot.
Alien MOAC
For a supposed alien super-weapon, the MOAC is kind of gutless. The gun has nifty rapid-fire action and unlimited
ammo, but its icy projectiles don't carry much weight and plink off the armor of alien enemies. Overheating is
another problem. At any rate, you only get to use it in levels eight and nine before Prophet takes it away, so at
least you don't have much time to get annoyed with its poor performance.
TAC Cannon
Not really a weapon so much as the deus ex machina that lets you take on the boss at the end of the game, as it
can't be used in any other battles. Very powerful, with only a single drawback in that it takes an eternity to lock
Frag Grenades
Commonly found in the hands of the KPA throughout the game, frag grenades are really only useful when you're
attacking a fixed enemy location or when you want to scatter an enemy patrol. KPA soldiers are almost always
smart enough to scramble away from thrown grenades before they explode, and all of the aliens in the game are
far too speedy for grenades to have any appreciable effect.
Smoke Grenades
You only encounter these a few times in the game. They can be useful when assaulting a tough KPA position, but
they're pretty much a waste of time when you can turn invisible with the click of a button.
Vehicles
You can drive just about every vehicle you encounter in Crysis. Chances are good that you won't often want to get
behind the wheel, however, as smart enemies typically turn them into sitting ducks. Stay in a truck too long and
chances are awfully good that it'll be blown to bits along with your nanosuit-wearing self.
Neither is much use for driving, unless you want to cut down on travel time. Each get blown up pretty easily by
enemy grenades and gunfire. It's best to just use these vehicles as gun turrets on wheels. Hop in them, go right
to the main gun, and use it to blast any nearby KPA goons. Then get out before the North Koreans turn it into
your coffin.
VTOL
Just like the tanks described above, an American VTOL can be flown in just a single mission, in this case the
penultimate Ascension. And thank heavens for that. These clunky aircraft are like the Yugos of the sky. They turn
painfully slowly, have pathetic top-end speed, aren't great with inclement weather, and don't stock much in the
way of missiles. Just like the KPA's trucks, you're best off not trying to move a VTOL very far. Use it as a floating
gun turret. Or better yet, just fly straight ahead as fast as you can and cross your fingers.
Enemies
If any aspect of Crysis feels skimpy, it's the rogues gallery of bad guys you get to shoot. The only foes in the
game are North Korean soldiers, North Korean assault choppers, and two different types of alien. Great artificial
KPA Soldier
Although they come in different uniforms and tote different weapons, the average Korean People's Army (KPA to
their friends) soldier remains the same throughout Crysis. Each seems to possess the same intelligence and desire
to kill the "American pig" invading his turf. Look for them to be outfitted for different situations accordingly. In
levels set deep in the jungle, expect KPA patrols to be decked out in full camo outfits, while bases are staffed with
grunts and officers in regular uniforms.
Generally, the KPA carry pistols, FY71s, shotguns, and SMGs. Some are scattered throughout the game with body
armor that makes them harder to kill (although all North Koreans can take a pretty crazy amount of punishment
before going down). And in select late-game levels, such as in the tank mission Onslaught, you run across KPA
goons tricked out with missile launchers.
Alien Ectomorph
Only encountered on the alien ship in level seven, Core, these presumably organic creatures are fast and deadly.
Some seem to shoot ice pellets at you, while others take the fight up close and personal and attack melee-style.
You can be killed instantly by these rushing attacks.
Thankfully, these aliens often ignore you. Give them a wide berth on their ship and they simply go about their
business for the most part. Only engage them when you absolutely have to, as you're at a serious disadvantage in
the weightless alien ship.
Alien Trooper
These man-size mechanical fliers with robotic tentacles and bug-like faces are the shock troops of the alien army.
They can shoot ice bullets at you from and do heavy damage with their tentacles. Most bullets plink off of their
metal carapaces, although they can be stopped in their tracks by shotgun rounds. Speed is their biggest weapon,
as they can leap on top of you and tear you to shreds before you have a chance to react.
Alien Hunter
Hunters, which look a lot like robotic octopi, are the toughest opponents in Crysis, with the exception of the few
boss monsters encountered at the end of the game. They look and move a lot like the drones that sliced up
Morpheus's ship in The Matrix. Their biggest characteristic is speed, as they slither through the air very quickly
and can fire both a freeze ray that can kill you in your tracks and a machine-gun-like barrage of ice. When these
mechanical menaces get close to you, they can rip you apart with their tentacles, Doc Ock-style. Swarms of them
can be found the later levels of the game, providing you with some extremely difficult battles.
Walkthrough
All of the below was written up based on a playthrough with Crysis set on Normal difficulty. So expect more
trouble with those pesky North Koreans and weird-looking alien gizmos if you bump things up to Hard or Delta,
although the basics should be similar across all four of the game's difficulty settings. The game design is also
pretty fluid when it comes to enemy positioning, so don't expect either the KPA or the aliens to always be in the
locations described below.
Also, the tips below generally cover just one way to kill the bad guys and reach all of the main and secondary
objectives. There are lots more, of course. Your nifty battle suit provides many options when it comes to
slaughtering everything that walks, runs, or slithers ominously through the air, and levels have been designed to
accommodate different approaches to reaching goals. Experiment and see what works best for your particular
playing style.
Enable the scope on your FY71 and shoot the KPA from afar. It's only fair, given how heavily they outnumber you.
● Attacking enemy bases requires some strategizing. Always try to whittle down KPA numbers from long
distances using the FY71 and its scope. After you notch a few victims, consider moving in under cloak and
mopping up the survivors with one-shot kills from the shotgun.
● Don't try to kill every enemy that you encounter. Some KPA patrols are so loaded for bear that it's better
to cloak and sneak past them. The same goes for aliens. Trying to kill all of the organic aliens during the
ship level, for instance, is dumb because most ignore your presence unless you open fire on them. And
trying to kill all of the flying octopi during the VTOL escape is flat-out impossible. The better part of valor
is a good idea in many levels. Don't bother playing Rambo.
It's a bit of a bumpy ride to terra firma, though, and only your suit saves you from death in the drink. You splash
down pretty close to the shore, so begin with a short swim to the nearby beach and wait for a moment for your
suit's power to come back online.
Test out the nanosuit cloak on the first KPA that you encounter. They can't spot you even when they practically
walk right over and shine a flashlight in your face.
Continue down the beach. Head into the brush, checking the map for your target location. Hey there, Jester.
Assist Aztec
Listen to Aztec's radio message. Follow Jester. He flips his flashlight on, so he's easy to track in the pre-dawn
gloom. Uh-oh, Aztec didn't make it. Prophet makes him go poof to keep the suit out of North Korean hands
(though seeing as they can't grow their own food, it's hard to imagine that they'd be able to do much with sci-fi
battle armor). Seems like something ripped the KPA goons apart, too, though. What the hell is going on here?
Unfortunately, this interlude is interrupted by KPA soldiers below you. Activate cloak and jump down. Go prone
and crawl to the right towards a KPA truck. Kill the soldier manning the gun turret first, then the driver. Hop into
the truck and turn the gun on the nearby guards.
Watch out for fire from patrolling gunboats, as they can kill you in a few seconds. Hit maximum speed. Run back
to the portable GPS thingie by the ramshackle beach base and use it to shut it down. Collect the FY71 and pistol
ammo from the shack before leaving the area.
Activate max speed. Race up the road until it opens on the beach again, then use the cloak to hop between the
big rocks. Stick to the right and stay under cover until you approach another KPA truck. Kill the soldiers here, hop
into the turret, and blast their buddies.
Wait for a second truck that may come up behind you if you've made enough racket. Take it out with the turret as
it approaches. If it doesn't drive up to you, activate stealth and creep around the bend in the road behind the first
truck. Get up close and kill everyone in sight.
Move along the beachside road again. Another truck awaits. Keep in the brush on the right side again, flank the
truck, and take it out. Hop in and use the turret gun to kill the KPA soldiers across the road. Be patient and wait
for them to reveal themselves, as sometimes they don't all attack immediately and you can get ka-boomed by a
grenade if you hop off the truck too quickly.
Continue up the road, either cloaked or driving, killing every soldier on the way. Stop to laugh at how they
announce their presence with goofy lines like "Die you American pig!" Drive up the hill to the command post. Stay
in the gun turret and wait for the KPA to all reveal themselves. Kill them all.
Exit the truck and run into the base. Access the laptop and swipe the North Korean tactical info. Hmm. Seems like
some top general named Kyong is running the show and is commanding some kick-ass special forces.
Move further into the base up the stairs. Activate cloak. Run into the midst of the KPA soldiers at the lookout and
kill them all with extreme prejudice. Grab the nearby frag grenades. Watch out for fire from a gunboat patrolling
the waters below. Don't bother opening up on it with the gun turrets nearby, as it seems impossible to destroy
Head up the path. Three KPA approach. A grenade can take out all of them, or you can hit stealth and surprise
them with a hail of shotgun fire. Keep going till you reach the top. Creep close and throw a couple of grenades
into the checkpoint, then open fire on the survivors. An explosive barrel there can be detonated with a couple of
shots, although it doesn't seem to have as much killing power as the grenades.
Watch the cutscene where everybody argues about what's really going on. Be properly freaked out when some
strange metallic thing smashes through the boat and grabs Jester.
Discover Jester's remains. Say a prayer as Prophet vaporizes him just like he did Aztec.
02 — Recovery
Capture Communications Trailer
Not much to see here. Just move straight ahead and drop down, then Prophet will clear up your objective for you.
Begin by heading up the road. Hop in the nearby half-track and drive it a little ways forward. Go slow, as an
enemy truck will be joining you shortly. Jump into your turret when it approaches and blow away the gunner and
his buddies.
Exit the truck and proceed forward cautiously. Head up the first path you encounter on the right. KPA soldiers are
everywhere, so use your cloak and move quickly from one rock to the next, or drop and crawl forward. By now
you should know the drill.
Wait until the North Koreans get close, then start blasting with the shotgun if you've got the ammo. Whatever you
do, don't stop moving, as this crew is loaded with grenades and isn't shy about using them. Don't get cocky,
either. The KPA use the brush really well for camouflage in this battle, so be absolutely sure that you've killed all
of them before poking your head up. Nothing ruins Nomad's day faster than an unseen enemy with a shotgun.
Use your cloak to get close to the base. Hide behind the buildings on the left, then move further up and hunker
down behind the corrugated metal fence while your cloak regenerates. Crawl around the fence with your cloak
activated. Creep up the path slowly. A patrol will come around the corner. Blast them when you get into a good
shooting position.
Then proceed further and get close to the KPA in the station itself. Gun them down, too. Access the network just
as you did before. Click on speed for a change and run around to the front of the base. Shoot the troops here and
Incidentally, you can take the easy way out and lob a grenade into the base. Unfortunately, this both kills all the
KPA and blows up the tactical network hardware, causing you to fail the mission. So tread lightly unless you love
cool ka-booms.
Thanks to your cloaking system, this KPA goon never saw it coming.
Turn speed on when the way is clear and zip down the road and to the left toward the village. Cloak and clear out
the patrol here. Psycho now radios to say that he'll provide backup when you enter the village. The first in a long
line of unfulfilled promises.
Use cloak again to cross the bridge. Stay on the road, as there are mines to the left and right. Get ready for one
huge firefight with half the North Korean army. Specific strategies don't work in this section, as you wind up being
hunted by a dozen or so soldiers in this small shantytown of shacks, machine-gun nests, and a garage. Just be
very cautious and use cover and cloak constantly. You can also set up shop in the garage, ducking inside to
regenerate your cloak on a regular basis. Snipe as many enemies from long distance with the scope on the FY71
from this location, too.
Head upstairs. Listen carefully and you'll hear voices from a room down the hall to your right. Did somebody say
CIA? Move up to the closed door there for a brief tutorial in North Korean interrogation techniques. Huh, thought
it would be a lot more brutal than that.
Psycho appears. Gee, thanks for the assistance a few minutes ago, buddy. A cutscene depicts Psycho bursting into
the room and freeing a female research assistant who had been working with Professor Rosenthal. She's pretty
freaked out about how her team unearthed an ancient artifact. It first looked like a statue left behind by an
unknown civilization, but turned out to be some kind of beacon that they apparently "woke up." At any rate, she's
pretty sure that something on the island doesn't want people there, and flatly refuses to go back to the dig site.
Psycho hangs out with the babe while you take on a pair of tanks single-handedly. Nice work if you can get it.
Head up to the roof of the school, grab the frag grenades there. They're of little or no use against armor, though,
so follow up by leaving the building and heading towards the ocean. Use your cloak or max speed to make sure
you survive the trip.
Right beside a couple of KPA metal trailers near the shore is a shack stocked with loads of ammo and two missile
launchers. Grab one of the latter (you can only carry one at a time) and head back to the tank. Three rounds
should blow it to kingdom come. Then go back for the other one and use it to detonate the second tank when it
arrives.
After you've killed everyone, you receive another message from Prophet. This time you're to hook up in the cave
system farther up the path that you're currently on.
Keep moving up the path until Prophet radios with a warning about more KPA just across the stream. Run down
to the stream on your left before you get to the crossing. Don't reveal yourself here or you'll get blasted to bits by
the North Koreans hiding in the high ground above the water. Instead, switch on your cloak and crawl forward.
Cross the stream and move behind a huge rock to the right.
Wait for the KPA to reveal themselves and then start wasting them with the shotgun. The one-shot kills that the
shotgun provides are a necessity here, due to the sheer number of enemies that will rush you. Use cloak
whenever possible. Again, be cautious before moving out of cover. There are lots of North Korean soldiers here,
including a couple that like to hide themselves in the reeds downstream, and they can take you out quickly with
shotgun blasts of their own.
Once the carnage ends, take the path leading up and to the right. Head for the waterfall you glimpse through the
trees. You soon find Prophet, who admits that the "research assistant" just rescued was actually a CIA agent
keeping an eye on Professor Rosenthal. He doesn't seem to know what's actually going on here, though. The two
of you head into the caves and the level comes to a close.
03 — Relic
Disable North Korean GPS Jamming Station
Immediately after Prophet complains about another North Korean jammer messing with the team's GPS data, he
First things first, though. There's a GPS jammer to take out. Move straight ahead and you'll run into a North
Korean base almost immediately. It seems to have been set up in the middle of a farm, as the first thing you
notice is a range of strange-looking palm trees that sort of functions like a cornfield.
Making your way to another GPS jammer, one dead North Korean at a time.
Ignore the odd plants for the moment, though. A truck is right in front of you. Cloak and creep up to take out the
gunner and crew. Resist the temptation to hop into the truck and use the gun turret; all this will do is make you a
sitting duck for the hordes of KPA soldiers up ahead.
Instead, cloak and move into the "cornfield." Stalk the enemy troops here using cloak as needed. You can also
move quickly toward the buildings on your left and use them for cover, moving in and out when you need a few
moments to recharge your suit energy.
When it seems like most of the KPA have been cleared out, leave the building and head down the road. Cloak and
move forward to the truck idling at the edge of the property. Kill everyone in sight, then jump into the half-track's
gun turret and get ready to blast another incoming truck. You can make it go boom pretty impressively, which
should immolate all the North Koreans in the vicinity.
Backtrack to the building you just left and look towards the center of the field to spot the GPS trailer. Access its
controls just like you did with the GPS system in the first level to shut down the jamming and get your map back
Cloaked and crawling is the only sensible way to approach one machine-gun nest, let alone three of them.
Get back on the road again. Take the path to the left. Two KPA soldiers lie in wait a little ways ahead, so cloak
and get ready to introduce them to your shotgun.
Jump into the river and swim across to the base. Move uphill towards the enemy headquarters just as the setting
sun starts to make everything hazy. It would be romantic if there weren't hundreds of crazed North Koreans trying
to kill you. Lots of KPA line the road ahead and an assault helicopter soon joins the fun from above. Cloak early
and often. Even a brief breather to recharge allows the chopper time to focus its guns on you, so don't stop for
anything.
When you reach the KPA encampment, look for a metal trailer just ahead and to the left of the main entrance.
Take cover from the chopper and the guards in there. Sneak in and out at will when cloaking to shotgun and
snipe troops on the ground. Make sure to take out the enemy snipers in the watchtowers right away.
After clearing most or all of the grunts, check out the big truck right in front of the trailer and its great big gun.
Copyright ©1995-2007 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Run out, hop into the cab, leap into the gun turret, and blast that irritating chopper until it flies away or goes
boom. As soon as the coast is clear, exit the truck and look for a trailer in the center of the base loaded with
computer equipment. Access the main PC there to grab the information requested by HQ.
Check your map and head out of the base. Cloak and move slowly, as you'll almost immediately encounter KPA
troops with new weapons—SMGs with laser sights—alongside a truck. Aside from the cool way that the red lasers
light up the gloom, though, the SMGs really aren't all that great. You can swap out an existing weapon for one,
and use the laser sight on other weapons now, but both the shotgun and the FY71 are most useful.
The jungle around the dig site is loaded with camouflaged KPA soldiers, so keep your cloak up and avoid getting
into a pitched firefight that you'll almost certainly lose.
After eliminating the North Koreans here, command recommends driving to the next objective. This is pretty much
suicide, however, as a pack of KPA soldiers are waiting right around the first bend. Getting into a gun turret with
that many enemies approaching is tantamount to painting a bullseye on your helmet. So skip getting behind the
wheel for running up to the first bend in the road. Flip on your scope and snipe a few KPA, then cloak and run at
them for some shotgun fun.
Continue down the road past the little farm, watching out for any KPA stragglers manning the machine-gun nest
tucked away near the chicken coop. Keep going until you reach a stream and hear the familiar thumping of a
A veritable regiment of North Koreans is patrolling the jungle here, forcing you to proceed cautiously. Keep your
cloak up as much as possible. Try to sneak by some enemies, as even your nanosuit isn't a match for five or six
troopers all blasting away at you at the same time. Slipping past unnoticed is easier here, too, as some of the KPA
spotlight their positions with laser-sighted SMGs and flashlights.
The excavation site itself is a large-scale version of the base infiltrated earlier, with even more watchtowers and
machine-gun nests. You'll first need to take care of a machine-gun nest on the left across a shallow ravine. Cloak,
get as close as you can, then use your scope to snipe the gunner in the head.
Storming the dig site requires some finesse and a lot of careful cloaking.
Hide in the brush until your suit-power regenerates, then cloak again and move to the main entrance of the dig
site. Snipe the guard on the watchtower directly ahead and then scramble for cover behind the large containers to
the left of the gateway. At this point you'll be into a huge scrap with a dozen or more KPA grunts. As usual, rely
on the cloak and take cover often. Use the shotgun as much as possible, as you need to take enemies down with
single shots to avoid getting swamped by their superior numbers.
Run into the dome, pausing briefly to shotgun the dimwitted KPA guard who runs directly at you out of the main
doorway. Grab the FY71, shotgun, and pistol ammo in the corridor on the way to the actual dig site. Open the
door and watch Professor Rosenthal arguing with a North Korean general via video uplink. Apparently the North
Koreans are holding Rosenthal's daughter hostage and are engaged in dangerous experiments with what seem to
be carbon-based machines that predate mankind by two million years.
After some ominous additional talk about these living fossils, everything goes haywire. An electrical surge of some
sort flash-freezes Rosenthal and ices up the entire room. Command tells you to get the hell out of the dig site and
get to a downriver extraction point marked on your map, and the brass apparently means it this time.
Professor Rosenthal finds out first hand what he's discovered beneath the mountain.
The first crew of North Korean cannon fodder can be found just outside the excavation pit to the left. Cloak and
blast them quickly with the shotgun. Stay cloaked and head back to the main entrance into the site encampment.
Proceed back down the jungle road. You can take the truck if you want to try a kamikaze run through the KPA
troops now lining the path, but you face so much firepower that your ride stands a good chance of getting blown
to bits. Staying on foot makes the most sense, as does trying to keep out of sight.
Cloak and crawl through the brush on the right of the road. Watch for laser sights and flashlights, and try to avoid
contact whenever possible. About two-thirds of the way back you can simply drop down to the shoreline and
make your way to the boat. Thankfully, there are no KPA in the boathouse.
Hop in the boat and head off toward the point marked on your map. You won't get far, though, as you have to
take the boat over a waterfall almost immediately. Even if you survive this without blowing up or getting jammed
on the rocks, you have to abandon ship just up-river as the North Koreans have set up a barricade.
At any rate, keep low and keep cloaked as soon as you lose your boat. That damned chopper is back, too, so you
need to stay down to avoid getting strafed or blown to kingdom come by a rocket. Climb onto the beach on the
right side and cloak to creep past the guards and the trucks by the bridge. Don't bother trying to engage anybody
here, as if the tons of KPA don't kill you, the chopper will.
Slip into the river on the other side of the bridge and run for your life. The chopper trails you all the way to the
extraction point, forcing you to keep moving all the time. Keep the cloak up as much as possible, being sure to go
prone and get under the cover of brush or long grass whenever you need a breather to regenerate suit power. At
least the swampy terrain provides a lot of scrub to hide beneath.
Keep plowing through this marshy terrain and you'll eventually reach a spooky cemetery. Interesting spot for a
pick-up.
Well, they could have been a threat. As it is, however, the idiots wearing the suits seem to have a fetish for
heights. So just sit back and wait for them to leap onto the big rocks outside the cemetery walls, then shotgun
them at your leisure. Blast a handful of these nanosuit-clad goons and the VTOL will come down to whisk you
away.
04 — Assault
Meet Lieutenant Bradley
Step out of the VTOL and into a war zone. Apparently your little covert operation against the North Koreans has
erupted into a full-blown war with troops running all over the place, fighter planes crashing into the ground, and
artillery blasting in the distance.
All hell is breaking loose with the North Koreans, so why not volunteer for a suicide mission to take out some AA
guns?
Backtrack to the paved road. Cloak and move into the brush on the left side of the road. Creep up to the KPA
truck and blow away the gunner. Then take his place and blast his comrades as they approach. Be sure to watch
your back, as three KPA can approach from the rear with SMGs at the ready.
Leave the truck and continue down the highway. Psycho radios something about being your eyes up above and
looking for sniper roosts, but he's as useless here as he's been all along, so don't count on him providing any help.
Cloak and get ready for the arrival of another truck. Shoot the crew as they drive past.
KPA patrols are all over the road ahead. Use the tall grass on the sides of the road for cover and cloak as often as
possible. Snipe from a prone position in the weeds to thin their numbers, then cloak to creep up close and
Crawl forward to the gas station. Use cloak to reach the metal fence near the speed-limit sign. Start killing the
KPA in front of you, but keep an eye out for a patrol emerging from the jungle across the road. If KPA numbers
are too heavy around the gas station, take a few shots at the pumps to blow up the entire place. Just make sure
you're at a good distance, as the ensuing fireball is huge. After the smoke clears, go around the back of the gas
station and load up on FY71 ammo.
Keep moving down the road until you reach a small town and a KPA checkpoint. There are lots of North Koreans
here, but also lots of cover, so you shouldn't have too much trouble taking them out. As always, be sure to
immediately kill anyone who tries to man the machine-gun nest.
Drag some explosive barrels over to the first AA gun and set them off with a couple of well-placed shots.
Cross the road to the first AA gun. Grenades are useless, so pick up the nearby red explosive barrels and move
them over to the base of the weapon. Then back off a little ways to clear the splash damage radius and detonate
them with a couple of shots. Scratch one AA gun.
On to AA gun number two, further up the same road. This one is a lot tougher. First of all, you're shadowed every
step of the way by another North Korean assault chopper. And second, there are gangs of KPA lining the road
ahead, along with a gunboat pacing you in the water.
Be patient with your approach. Crawl in the tall grass and snipe enemies whenever possible, especially around the
bridge. Try not to leave any KPA alive here, as they'll later hem you in after you blow up the second AA gun.
Speaking of that second AA gun, it can be found straight ahead up the dirt road, set into a trench guarded by a
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machine-gun emplacement. As always, go slow here and use your scope to make head shots as often as possible.
Just be ready to scramble right after you shoot, as the chopper locks in on your position almost instantaneously
and riddles you with bullets.
After clearing the opposition around the machine-gun, enter the trench and run past the AA gun. Take out the last
KPA goon with your shotgun and grab a missile launcher from the ammo pile on the right. Now blow up that
damned helicopter, which should feel really, really good. Take a moment to blast that irritating gunboat to hell,
too. Then turn your sights on the AA gun and make it go boom.
A huge KPA presence plus the arrival of yet another helicopter makes it best to cloak and sprint to the objective, a
laptop that can be found in a shack to the right. After you've downloaded the goods, lead the chopper back to the
trench where you destroyed the second AA gun. Grab another missile launcher from the ammo dump and
incinerate this whirlybird as well. Mmm, still feels good, doesn't it?
Head into the heavy brush on the left. Look for a break in the fence surrounding the yard. Cloak and sneak
through here, then blast the two KPA behind the containers to your left. Run into the big warehouse to your right.
A platoon of KPA will be on your heels, so take cover as soon as you get inside. Go prone to make your cloak last
longer and begin sniping North Koreans as they approach. Try for head shots, as their numbers mean you don't
have any time to mess around riddling enemies with bullets. Steadily retreat as they press you, and don't be
worried about moving out the back door onto the dock, as there is lots of cover there.
Climb to the rooftop of the office building in the shipping yard and you'll easily be able to take care of the AA gun
below.
When the coast is clear, leave the warehouse and run across the yard past the burning wreckage. Cloak and
check out the office building directly in front of you. Snipe the two gunners on the rooftop. Note the AA gun to the
right. Cloak again and move forward very cautiously, as KPA are all over the place here. Use cover smartly and
employ the shotgun for one-shot kills if you've got enough ammo to get away with this. Otherwise, try for scoped
head shots with the FY71.
Enter the office building slowly, making sure to blow away all opposition on the inside. Go up the landing, enter
the office, and head right into a virtual candy store of ammo. Just about everything is in here, including missile
launchers. Grab one and go up to the roof. Guards seem to spawn in up here, so even if you killed the two
gunners earlier, be ready to kill one or two more KPA grunts. After all opposition has been put down, walk to the
edge of the roof, take aim at the rotating radar dish on the AA unit, and turn it into rubble. If there's a gunboat
out on the water in the harbor, be sure to blast it, too.
Resist the temptation to just walk over there. It looks quiet, but a dozen or more KPA and a truck appear out of
nowhere as soon as you approach the ship. Jump down from the roof and move towards the vessel, but pull back
as soon as you encounter any resistance. Race back to the office building, grab another missile launcher, and
climb the stairs once more. Then blow up the truck and all adjacent North Koreans from the safety of this high
perch.
When the flames and screams of pain have died down, head back down and grab another missile launcher. Leave
from the main entrance and walk towards the ship. A truck will soon appear between a couple of storage
containers, but it's no match for the missile launcher.
Use maximum strength to jump on board the ship near the stern. Whip out your shotgun and make short work of
the KPA that can found just up the stairs inside the ship. Locate the GPS system and switch it off.
05 — Onslaught
Push Ahead to the Train Station
And now for something completely different. For this mission you get to cruise around in tanks. Unfortunately, this
isn't a Sunday drive; it's a blitz through heavy North Korean defenses comprised of armor and RPG-toting KPA
Start by rolling down the train tracks at full speed. Eliminate the enemy armor blocking the way. Go off road to
the right. Do not slow down for anything. Ignore the KPA tanks and troops, as pausing to fight them will only get
you pinned down by a murderous crossfire and blasted to scrap metal.
Before rolling into the train station, be sure to absolutely incinerate everything. Pay particular attention to the
ridge directly in front of you, which will soon host a veritable Shriner's convention of KPA goons with missile
launchers.
Roll forward with the pedal floored until you reach a small hill and some KPA armor on the right. Slow down here
and take out the tank, then keep firing until the entire vicinity is a ball of flame. Don't let up, as the RPG-armed
soldiers can destroy your ride in moments.
Push forward into the railway station dead ahead. Go slowly. Very slowly. RPG gunners are all over the place.
Look for them in the watchtower straight in front of you on the hill, on the hill to the far left, in and around the
boxcars, and to the right of the road. Basically, take your time and methodically blow up everything.
Even when things look to be clear, don't just rush into the station. Creep forward and get ready for more RPG
troops to appear in the jungle along the rise overlooking the yard. Open up on this location with everything you've
got, as the pesky little buggers have a habit of surviving precision shooting. Only when no more fire is coming
from this ridgeline is it safe to occupy the train station. The all-clear seems to be signaled by an allied soldier
running into the town ahead of your tank, so wait until you see this before rolling forward.
Move forward in your new ride up the dirt road towards the KPA tank depot and ammo dump now noted on your
map. A weird earthquake starts, causing huge chunks of rock to explode out of the side of the mountain straight
ahead.
AA guns are much softer targets when you're sitting behind the massive cannon of a tank.
Thankfully, this is a lot easier than the previous charge through the enemy lines. Start by heading west to the
train tracks, then follow them south-southeast. This tackles the AA guns in a slightly backwards fashion, although
going in this order lets you get a better handle on the terrain here, which is a bit confusing due to elevation
changes.
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Destroy the checkpoint set up on the tracks, being careful to kill all KPA soldiers quickly, as many carry RPGs. An
enemy chopper appears here as well, but you can make short work of it with your main cannon.
Once the opposition has been eliminated, keep moving forward up the tracks until you spot the AA gun, once
again distinguished by its rotating radar dish. Shoot it with your main gun. Turn around and go back the way you
came. Slide to the right and drop down as soon as you can. The first AA gun is straight ahead by the water. It's
guarded by a tank and a couple of KPA regulars, but a few long-distance shots from your cannon takes care of all
opposition and the AA gun itself.
The last one is a little trickier. Lots of KPA soldiers guard this region. So take it slow and do a lot of machine
gunning from long-range before moving in. The AA gun itself is situated behind a hill by the water, forcing you to
leave the road and roll close to the shoreline to get a clear firing position. Make sure you've eliminated all
opposition before sidling up to the AA gun, as this position you need to take to target it leaves you very vulnerable
to attack.
US jets make short work of this North Korean munitions dump. It was just a little bit tougher to target the site for
the flyboys, however.
Run down the road leading past the depot. American marines will be in the process of mopping up any remaining
KPA opposition. A roadblock up ahead causes some grief, but you can make short work of it by utilizing a missile
launcher scrounged from a dead KPA soldier near a trailer to the left of the road.
Move beyond the checkpoint, pausing only to load up on ammo and grenades from dead enemies piled in the
machine-gun nest to your right. The road is torn up from the earlier earthquake, however, so at this point
command tells you that you're on your own again. Big surprise.
06 — Awakening
Proceed to the Landing Zone Next to the Crusher
Now it's finally time to see what the big mystery is all about. Head up the road to the left. A fresh quake hits,
causing a sonic boom to blast past you. The mountain ahead seems to be coming apart, revealing a glowing blue-
and-white structure apparently buried beneath the rock.
Cloak and enter the mining compound. Restock on ammo in the first building on the right. Consider swapping out
the gauss rifle for the shotgun if you still have the gauss, as the former is far more effective in close quarters and
has a faster firing rate. Be sure to pick up a missile launcher here for use against the North Korean tank patrolling
the grounds. Grab another missile launcher once you use up the three shots of the first one on the enemy armor.
Proceed to run-and-gun through the rest of the KPA here. Duck into the buildings and behind cover when you
need to regenerate suit power needed for the cloak. North Korean intel can be found in a building to the right of
the main gate. Blast the KPA goons on the stairwell with your shotgun. Head upstairs into a big computer room
and use the laptop in the corner to download the required information for Major Strickland.
Begin by climbing up the hill right in front of you. Cloak and snipe some enemies. Try to kill at least one of the
nanosuit soldiers, who should be standing on the closest conveyor belt. Take your time here. Be patient and wait
for the KPA to reveal themselves, and snipe them from long distances as much as possible before engaging them
directly.
After things settle down a bit, leave the hill and move to the left, where a number of objects can be used for
Tackling the mining refinery is a challenging task. Stay cloaked and use this hill for cover as much as possible.
Cloak and hop from one object to the other, gradually making your way to the refinery. Snipe the guards manning
the machine-gun nests on the upper level of the building and the other soldier on the roof of the building to the
far left. Keep an eye out for the other nanosuit-wearing KPA. When you spot him, cloak and get as close as
possible, then hammer him with the shotgun until he drops. You can also sneak by everybody and climb the steps
to the machine-gun nests, which can of course be turned against the KPA on the ground below.
Yet another North Korean assault chopper joins the party at this point. Knock it out of the sky with a couple of
well-placed shots from the missile launcher. If you don't have a missile launcher, run to the far end of the crusher
building and climb the steps. At the very top is a minigun and enough ammo to blow the whirlybird apart.
Major Strickland now orders you to enter the mining complex proper. Check your map and make your way down a
dirt track. Keep cloaked as much as possible. Run up to the KPA that approach and kill them with your shotgun.
You soon enter a mining quarry where a North Korean tank is patrolling back and forth. Go to the far end of it,
then drop down to the pit floor where there are a lot of trailers and other objects that can be used for cover.
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Shotgun the two KPA troops by the truck directly in front of you, then creep forward to a stash of missile
launchers on a crate under a camo cover. Terminate the tank with extreme prejudice, then grab another missile
launcher.
Move on to another pit with features similar to the first. First, empty your new missile launcher on the North
Korean tank found to the left near a group of trailers. Then cloak and slaughter the KPA grunts in the vicinity. As
this will be close-range combat, feel free to fire up your shotgun. Scrounge ammo from the dead soldiers and a
trailer after the smoke clears. Be sure to grab a missile launcher from one of your victims before leaving the
scene.
Climb out of the quarry past the barbed-wire fence. Next up is a huge battle at the North Korean fortifications set
up at the mine entrance. There are a couple of machine-gun nests and at least two nanosuit soldiers with
miniguns here, all dug in behind concrete blocks and trenches. Thankfully, you can cloak and use these trenches
for cover to get into shotgun killing range. As before, try and engage the nanosuit-wearing KPA from close
distance with your shotgun. That way they won't even get the chance to spin up their miniguns.
Listen to voices up ahead. Sounds like the enigmatic General Kyong and his hostages. Watch a bit of the
argument between Kyong and a young woman who must be Rosenthal's daughter Helena. Enjoy being knocked
out and dragged to an audience with the general where he smacks you around. Hmm, he's a bit of a
megalomaniac, isn't he? Take in the not-so-shocking murder and a blinding light show.
General Kyong probably wasn't expecting power like this. At any rate, he won't have to deal with his
disappointment for very long.
Lots of weapons and ammo litter the floor of the chamber. Grab an SMG right in front of you, then move forward
to the darkened space behind Kyong. Stock up on ammo here, then kill the general with a steady stream of
gunfire. Being on a slightly elevated landing seems to prevent him from seeing you even when your cloak is off,
so you should be able to kill him almost instantly.
07 — Core
Find A Way Out of the Cave
Exit the elevator and dig through the rubble for as much ammo as you can find. There isn't a lot, but you'll need
every shell, so take a good look around. Ditch the sluggish minigun for the speedy SMG, as it will be much more
useful in the quick-paced battles to come.
When you've collected all of the ammo, climb the stairs to where General Kyong tried to play god. Leave the cave
through the disturbingly orifice-like portal. The terrain immediately changes to something icky and organic, like
you're in the throat of some monstrous beast. Radio contact with command soon disappears and the temperature
plummets so fast that your visor ices up. Gravity then vanishes, too, letting you're know that you're not in Kansas
anymore.
After getting a close-up look at how hideous the aliens are, you won't feel any compunctions about welcoming
them to Earth by shooting them in the face.
Anyhow, a portal is now open on the right side of this big chamber. Take it and follow the tunnel to a grill that is
broken open in front of you by the tentacles of some barely glimpsed creature. Go against the current that Nomad
mentions until you reach a point where it is too strong to fight any longer. Shoot one of the glowing machines in
front of you to clear the way forward.
Although the alien ship is at first spooky and majestic, it soon seems just bizarre and confusing. Everything is so
poorly lit and swampy that it can be hard to get your bearings.
Continue to follow the bluish lights and the yellow energy tube. Entering one portal kicks off a cutscene
highlighting the arrival of an icky alien that seems like some kind of ectoplasmic squid. Blast it with your SMG and
keep moving. You soon emerge in a huge room with a tunnel in its center. As before, though, the current
prevents you from exiting through this passage. Float around and blast the machines ringing the perimeter of the
room to ease off the current, taking care to avoid the aliens zipping around. They generally won't bother you too
much if you keep your distance, which is a good thing since ammunition is in short supply at this point.
Head down the tunnels until you come out in the largest room yet, a massive circular chamber dominated by a
machine that seems to be doing some sort of automated welding. Force fields go up and down as the big welder
moves along, so you need to time your movements to get across the cavernous facility. Keep up towards the top
of the room to avoid the aliens flitting around the bottom.
Eventually this surreal transit system dumps you in another huge room. Look out the windows to one side and
you'll see dozens of those machine things that killed Jester and Prophet. Is somebody manufacturing an army?
Check out the chamber and you'll see a couple of clouds of junk sucked up from the island floating around near
two bright lights. Venture into them and collect ammo for the SMG and shotgun.
Far out, man. Like Dark Side of the Moon, some parts of the alien vessel might be better appreciated with a few
tokes.
Move down the chamber to a huge doorway. It opens on a long cathedral-like hallway. Float down to the far end
of it to trigger the lights going out and the arrival of more alien squid creatures. Start blasting them. Try to keep
your back up against the side of the structure at all times, as the creatures will otherwise ambush you from all
sides. Just one or two smacks from these aliens can kill you, so you have to be careful when avoiding their
attacks. Use the shotgun here whenever possible, as a couple of blasts with it at close range can cause these
monsters to explode. Even the pistol can scare them off, by the way, so don't give up if you run out of ammo for
the better weapons.
After a few minutes of this, the machines in the room really start doing, uh, something, and generating a lot of
electricity and smoke. You get a garbled communication from command that seems to indicate you're near an
exit, and soon enough you find a tunnel that leads you back outside. Gee, that was, um, fun?
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08 — Paradise Lost
Find the Missing Marines
Ah, it's good to be back in the sunny South Pacific. Or not. A blast of frigid air is expelled from the alien structure
as Nomad crawls out, knocking his rescue VTOL out of the sky and turning this tropical paradise into instant
Eskimo Pie. Major Strickland radios you asking for a situation report and to inform you that an evacuation order
has been given. Man, about freaking time.
Of course, instead of just getting the hell off of Arctic Isle, you have to look for some missing marines. To begin
this rescue mission, head down the mountain via the path on the right. Take a moment to enjoy this sudden
winter wonderland. Just a moment, though, as you're being tracked by robotic bug-like creatures with flat, almost
Kabuki-mask faces and the ability to shoot what seems to be some sort of ice daggers. Don't stand and fight
them; you don't have the weapons or the ammo to take them on at this point. (If you do decide on a scrap, take
note that all alien machines self-destruct after you've shot them down. Keep clear of their carcasses or you might
get blown up with them.)
Nobody's going to be able to convince these marines about the reality of global warming.
Instead, race down the mountain using max speed as often as possible. Take a second to observe how the flying
robotic octopi (you'll now get a better look at these guys for the first time, and immediately recognize them from
the snatch-and-grab moments from the beginning of the game) occasionally throw some of the smaller bug
mechanisms into your path. Stop near the burning car and snag the shotgun ammo. It's still not enough to let you
Defend Prophet
Drop into a clearing at the bottom to discover that the missing marines have been turned into tastee pops. Just as
a cutscene starts revealing how you're going to join them in the frozen treat aisle, Prophet jumps in out of
nowhere and saves your ass with an alien weapon called a MOAC. He doesn't have time for long-winded
explanations about how he survived his alien abduction, so you need to get to work right away blasting a few
waves of robot bugs.
To survive this onslaught, duck into the nearby trailer for shotgun and SCAR ammo. Then move outside, keeping
your back against the trailer doorway so you can't be easily flanked. Open up on the alien mechanisms. Prophet
goes down with a suit malfunction before the battle ends, though, so he gives you the alien rifle during a brief
respite. You now have to take out the last waves of aliens mostly by yourself, and do it quickly so that Prophet
doesn't freeze to death in the cold weather. It's not wildly difficult with the MOAC, although this energy weapon
doesn't pack much of a punch in comparison with the minigun or shotgun.
Robot octopi regularly swoop down from above, which can cause some trouble during this escort mission. At least
you can leave Prophet in front of a cozy burning truck while you take cover elsewhere and destroy the aliens with
the MOAC. The only iffy moment occurs when you're attacked by a trio of robot bugs in a narrow gully, but
flaming helicopter wreckage is still close enough that you can get your pal warmed up in a hurry.
After destroying the spiders, cross into the small valley and you’re your way under the ruined bridge. Climb the hill
on the left side and pause to let Prophet warm up again. Proceed to the top and watch in amazement as the alien
ship that was apparently buried under that mountain for millions of years shakes off the last of its rocky covering
and flies slowly away. Cross over the bridge to end the level.
09 — Exodus
Meet With Major Strickland's Recon Team
Follow Prophet over the bridge to a small house occupied by a squad of marines. He talks briefly with the soldier
outside, who directs the two of you inside to Sergeant Keegan. This triggers a minor secondary objective of simply
speaking to the sergeant. He gives you a pretty depressing lowdown on what's going on, which is naturally
interrupted by another alien blitzkrieg.
After an onslaught lasting about 10 minutes, the aliens stop coming and Prophet orders everybody into a evac
convoy of LTV trucks.
Blast the robot octopi as they swoop down on the two surviving LTVs and pray that Prophet's horrible driving
doesn't get you jammed against a tree and force you to reload a save. Also, be careful not to blast octopi when
they're directly over the road ahead of you. They have a tendency to fall right in front of your convoy, causing the
idiotic driving AI to simply stop and wait for the alien self-destruct function to blow you to kingdom come.
As you head down, look to your left to see your old buddy Vulture 26 in a lot of trouble. Robot octopi force his
VTOL down, causing a crash and a mayday from his passenger, your former hostage buddy Helena Rosenthal.
Naturally, you get to man the AA gun and battle the alien hordes while Prophet spends quality time with Ms.
Rosenthal.
As usual, you have to carry the heavy load. Robot octopi swarm in on you from all directions. A nearby North
Korean AA gun is some help when battling this aerial assault, but the aliens hone in on it so quickly that you can
generally only shoot down two or three of them before they blow it out from under you. Expect to die a good
many times here, as there isn't a great deal of cover, your marine allies are totally useless, and the enemy
numbers are out of this world.
After a good 20 minutes of non-stop fun with ET, you clear the airspace and Major Strickland sends in a rescue
VTOL. Not for you, of course, but for Prophet and his new girlfriend. You're left to hump it out on foot to the
position currently being held by the marine major and his boys.
Get to Strickland as soon as you can. He's straight up the road at the top of a little rise. Only a few robot bugs
stand in your way, and the MOAC can make short work of them.
Even though you can't destroy the alien exosuit at this point of the game, it's still a lot of fun to give it the good
old college try.
Things are a little tougher for the major. His position is about to be overrun by a combination of the giant spider
and a squadron of flying octopi. An abandoned North Korean AA gun is of some help here as well, but again, it
gets hammered quickly by alien fire. Keep an eye on the AA's damage meter and jump out once it moves above
95% or so.
After the skies have been cleared, Major Strickland orders you into the last evac VTOL. Marines are still blasting
away at the giant spider, but the damn thing just can't be destroyed. So resist the temptation of diving into the
nearby stash of missile launchers and opening up on the monstrosity.
Just get into the VTOL post-haste to trigger the closing cutscene of the level, a cheesy yet surprisingly emotional
(the guy has been giving you radio orders for most of the game, after all) moment where Strickland sacrifices
himself to give the ship time to take off.
Expect a little turbulence. Begin by forming up to fly behind a few other VTOLs also evacuating troops from the
island. Head off into the mist to the left. You need to follow this river valley all the way to the ocean and then out
to the Constitution, waiting a couple of klicks offshore. Stay as low as you can most of the way, but keep an eye
on the altitude meter on the left side of your scope and watch against going a little too low. Winds howl through
the valley constantly, and can easily smash you right into the jungle floor if you're not careful.
Try to keep the flying aliens in front of your VTOL. Let them get behind you and you won't be able to turn fast
enough to target them again.
Here, fly forward just far enough to trigger the request from the other VTOL pilot. Then freeze in place at the
entrance to the area and start blasting at the two octopi when they appear. Resist the temptation to fly in, as that
will only get you a quick trip to Flaming Wreckage Town. (By the way, be sure that you do fly far enough into the
clearing and receive the help request before shooting down any ETs. There seems to be a bug here that prevents
you from completing the objective if you take down the enemies too early.)
As satisfying as it is to blow these annoying metal octopi out of the sky, resist the temptation to get into all-out
dogfights. You'll lose.
The biggest problem can be just getting to the VTOLs that you need to protect. Winds are just crazy here. You get
buffeted by all sorts of windy nastiness as soon as you round the bend in the river heading left, so keep the
spacebar held down to maximize lift and steadily pound on your afterburner as well. Even then, you'll still likely
crash into the jungle and get blown around until you go kaboom a dozen times before making it through to the
objective.
Lots of aliens are flying the unfriendly skies between you and the carrier. Don't bother trying to battle any of them
unless you're a masochist. They're just too fast and chances are you're out of missiles by this point. Stay low and
use your afterburner as much as possible, only firing on the aliens that are directly in front of you. Turn around to
tackle any enemies in your rear and you'll get blasted to pieces.
As soon as you get around the last village where the river empties into the ocean, hit that afterburner and run for
your life.
There are two really tricky challenges in this run to the carrier. The first is another section of high winds as you
round another bend in the river to the left. Cross your fingers and keep the spacebar held down. Eventually you'll
make it, although expect a few crashes here as well. Whether or not the wind blows hard enough to take you
down seems almost (if not entirely) random.
The second tough spot is at an opening into a clearing above a small town. Lots of octopi hit you head on here,
and their blasts in combination with those of the aliens no doubt right on your six are enough to blow you to bits.
To avoid this grisly fate, cut hard right as soon as you can and stay close to the jungle wall. Skirt around the bowl
and then out over the river leading to the sea. You'll still take damage, but probably not enough to kill you.
Keep flying straight ahead. The aliens drop back and you soon get a radio message from Psycho that you're
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almost at the Constitution.
11 — Reckoning
Proceed to the CDC
Looks like the gang's all here. Land on the carrier and greet Psycho and Helena Rosenthal, who has some
interesting ideas on the aliens. She thinks that they feed off available energy sources, a theory almost
immediately proven when a captured machine suddenly sucks power out of the carrier conning tower and briefly
comes back to life.
You're then summoned to the CDC for a meeting with Admiral Morrison. He tells you that the joint chiefs and
president have authorized the use of a nuke on the island. Helena argues against this, but Morrison is having
none of it. The two also discuss what the creatures could be. Helena notes that the island itself might be some
kind of living creature, while the admiral says that it has been sending some sort of transmission to galaxy M33.
Admiral Morrison may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer. Firing a nuke probably isn't the best way to deal
with aliens who suck back energy like Happy Meals.
Be sure to pay attention to the blatant plot point handed out when the scientist mentions a new TAC cannon that
can fire mini-nukes. He says you can't try it out, but of course you soon can.
Things have changed a little bit since you were last here. Waves of robot octopi can be seen overhead in the
This battle is awfully random and annoying. Your allies regularly shoot alien machines from the sky, so expect to
be killed by junk falling out of the sky and exploding every so often even if you're taking care of business. All you
can do is keep watching the skies and try to keep the ship wall directly behind you so you don't get caught in an
ET crossfire. Don't take cover beside planes and vehicles. Aliens often blast them, causing a rollover that kills you
instantly or an explosion that does the same trick.
When you find the engineer, you discover that the nuclear reactor is about to blow. You've got to take it offline.
As usual with these sorts of things, you can't just hit a button.
Go to the main computer panel below the window overlooking the radiation room and hit the (what else?) big red
button. Unsurprisingly, the radioactive control rods jam while retracting. Aliens then swarm into the room sucking
energy from the reactor, but Helena shuts them down using that overload command she talked about earlier.
Hang back before entering the first flooded room with the elevator you need to go upstairs, as two robot bugs will
rush you out of the shaft. If you've got a missile launcher, make short work of these wannabe Micronauts by firing
a couple of rounds into the elevator shaft as soon as they appear. One more will be in the lift itself when it comes
down; blast it with your shotgun.
Your destination is loaded with more of these insectoid machines. Move ahead slowly. Try to take them down with
the shotgun, as it remains the most effective weapon at close quarters. Keep an eye on the rafters, as the aliens
here like to cling to the ceilings and drop down on top of you. The next room features a similar complement of
aliens, but also a couple of sailor allies on a small riser to the right stocked with shotgun and SCAR ammo.
Pause on the external landing right outside the last room to see a destroyer getting torpedoed and sunk. Doesn't
seem like this battle is going very well for the good guys. Grab the ammo off the table before leaving the area.
As you move back inside and up the stairs, an alien bug bursts through the wall in front of you. Make short work
of it with the shotgun or SCAR. Right at this point the order comes through to abandon ship, along with a radio
call from the admiral who's refusing to let anyone leave the carrier. Nice guy. Helena tells you to get to the flight
deck right away.
Go to the Armory
Just as you're about to get back topside, Nomad has a brainstorm about the TAC cannon he glimpsed earlier. He
tells Morrison that he's making a pit stop to grab the weapon before going to the flight deck.
Only a handful of ET bugs stand between you and the TAC cannon. Race through them, letting your shotgun clear
a path. Take the gun out of the cabinet where the tech placed it before, which is now conveniently hanging open.
Back then it wasn't killable, but this time it is. Three cheers for video-game logic! Actually, the robot beastie is
weak now because Helena is flying around in a VTOL with Psycho, hammering the thing with that energy overload
signal she's devised to help lower alien defenses.
Grab all the minigun ammo you can find and open up on the exosuit as it advances across the flight deck. Missile
launchers are also handy. A few minutes of steady blasting will take the thing down with a giant crash. Keep back
a good distance to avoid getting killed when it self-destructs, and watch out for pieces of the thing falling from the
sky.
Take cover behind the wrecked VTOL on your left. Focus on the cannons with your minigun and blast away till
they explode. Dart in and out of cover to do so, hunkering down whenever the cannons start to fire at you. You
can also make good use of the missile launchers still located near the door to the flight deck…but as it takes one
launcher to take out each cannon, it's not worth the risk running over to pick them up. Even a couple of these
trips will expose you to the alien ship's devastating beam weapon and freeze ray.
After the cannons have been destroyed, Helena and Psycho fly in and begin to use her program to take down the
ship's shields. Robot octopi then arrive and start blasting away at you. Avoid both their rat-a-tat-tat salvoes and
the big ship's beam weapon and freeze ray. It's hard to say exactly how to do this, as there are too many aliens in
the sky to make any specific strategies worthwhile. Cover is a waste of time as the octopi simply fly around behind
it. Just keep running and cloaking.
When the shields go down, Helena tells you to use the TAC cannon to target the arms on either side of the alien
ship. Be aware that a bug sometimes kicks in here making your shots useless. If you don't see an immediate
explosion when the TAC cannon shells hit the alien vessel, reload a save and try again. If things work properly,
one shot to each side of the ship will trigger the end sequence.
At this point, the alien ship comes closer to the aircraft carrier. Grab a rocket launcher and fire a few rounds at
the big circular hatch directly above you. It should pop right open. When it does, shoulder the TAC cannon again,
give it a few seconds to lock on, and then fire a single round inside the vessel. A huge explosion takes place
almost immediately.
Both Helena and Psycho now tell you that the alien vessel is about to crash right into the Constitution. Run down
the deck to your right and jump into the open hatch of the hovering VTOL. Watch the closing cutscene of the
alien ship and the carrier getting sucked down into the ocean, and then listen to the good news that Prophet is
still alive on the island. Nomad says that they've got to join him and continue the fight right away, but just as the
VTOL heads toward the island the credits come up. Now begins the wait for the inevitable expansion pack.