Gears Tactics takes those beloved, chaingun-wielding COGs and sticks them into a totally new tactical genre, and while there’s plenty that players familiar with the series will recognise, there’s a whole host of new things to watch out for. We’ve put together a few tips so you can be the chain-er, not the chain-ee.
Don’t take it easy
If you’re used to the genre, maybe opt for the tougher difficulty settings. Gears Tactics isn’t easy, but if you’re used to thinking about where to place your units, how Overwatch works, or if you’ve played any of the XCOM titles, it’s worth plumping for the harder stuff, if only to keep the excellent tactics action going for a bit longer.
Reload!
A carefully timed reload is a core component of any Gears player’s arsenal, and though you won’t need super-fast reactions to achieve it, Gears Tactics still needs you to remember to refill your clip. Each of your units can only shoot so many times before they’ll run dry, and if you forget to reload you’ll be left high and dry, unable to finish off that Drone that’s coming for you, or incapable of entering Overwatch. Make sure you factor it in, or, if you’re the kind to forget, look out for upgrades that expand your unit’s clip size so you can spray and pray a bit more.
I’m always watching
If you’ve played any tactical game, the concept of Overwatch is nothing new, but in Gears Tactics it’s a key component to surviving any encounter with the Locust and you need to get it right if you want to get the most out of it. Selecting Overwatch will use your currently equipped weapon, so if you’re setting up a nearby perimeter make sure you’ve picked the right gun for the job. Bear in mind its range too; a shorter perimeter with a shotgun might result in an instant kill if you’re lucky, but if you stretch it to its furthest range it’s going to be much less effective. Of course, that means letting the enemy get closer, which isn’t always ideal.
Overwatch is also only effective if you’ve got ammunition in your weapon. If you stay in place and do nothing other than choose Overwatch, your unit will use all of their 3 action points when the enemy enters your perimeter. However, if you don’t have the ammo, you’re wasting actions, and running the risk of the enemy getting a chance to take you out.
Heal me!
Just as in the main games, if any of your units take too much damage they’ll be downed and they’ll need healing to get back in the fight. For one thing, if any of your Hero characters bleed out that could put a stop to the entire mission, and for another if you leave it too long the Locust will come along and stomp on your head. It’s worth using another character to revive them though, rather than the self-heal skill, as a revive will give the returning unit a full three action points, while a self heal only grants one. That’s two less opportunities to turn things into red mulch.
Find the Supply Crates
Start each level by scanning the landscape for Supply Crates. Supply Crates show up across the maps, even beyond your line of sight within the fog of war, so if you want to make sure you’re not missing them have a good search around at the start of every mission. They contain absolutely essential upgrades for your units, especially the Rare ones, so make certain to hoover them all up.
Got to recruit them all
Your mission involves recruiting as many Gears to your cause as possible, but your roster can only hold so many – and then you’ll likely be leaning more heavily on Hero units rather than the lowly Troops. Still, it’s well worth recruiting as many of them as possible, if only so you can strip them of all their decent gear.
While they might be a lower level than your regular squad mates, they nearly always have some decent gun or armour upgrades stowed away. Once your squad is full, just dismiss your least useful teammates, but make sure you’ve reduced all their gear to the standard default first. An easy way to tell is if any of their stats show in yellow, meaning they’ve still got something stan-enhancing equipped. You wouldn’t want to miss out on anything now would you?
Level up!
Levelling up doesn’t increase any of your unit’s base stats, that’s all handled by their gear, so you don’t have to worry too much if you find yourself having to bring in a lower-level character onto your squad. That said, with every level up you gain two Skill Points to spend on the Skill Tree, and these are life-changing, adding both passive and active skills to your unit’s loadout. As you advance, you do get higher level characters available to recruit, but it just tends to be their gear that’s better, not their abilities. It’s going to be worth sticking with some of your Gears from the start to get the most out of them.
