Zombie Revenge - Strategy Guide (Page 02)

Below are the cheat codes, hints and help for Zombie Revenge - Strategy Guide (Page 02).

4. Basic Combo Moves

Here's the Basic Combo moves for Stick, Linda and Rikiya:
NOTE: In order to do the basic combos, you'll need to press the
specified buttons fairly quickly, as the fighting system for combos is
slightly time-delayed, where you press the buttons "in advance."


Stick's Basic Combos:

1. Straight Flush -- Press P five times rapidly, or to eliminate the
guesswork, just hit P until the knockdown punch :)

Stick will execute four quick jabs, then a slight windup before
finishing up with a knockdown punch from the opposite hand for a 5-hit
combo. As the name of the move implies, Stick can really only advance in
a straight line while performing this move. It does appear possible to
refocus Stick on another opponent to finish the 5-hit chain IMMEDIATELY
after the first hit, but I haven't gotten it down...it's either very
hard to do or it's a random bug.

Straight Flush is a very powerful basic combo which does not take long
at all to execute as compared to Linda's and Rikiya's basic
combos...however, it also happens to be the combo I use least often.
Why? It's the slowest of Stick's two combos, and takes a bit longer to
finish up than the Heel Thrash combo does. There also seems to be a
longer recovery time after the knockdown punch. This wouldn't be so much
of a problem given the high damage of the combo if it weren't for the
fact that Stick covers a LOT of ground when doing the Straight Flush.
Depending on the situation, this either means you'll combo straight into
a group of enemies, or move too far away, or just generally move around
too much. You'll probably feel a lack of control since Stick will be
attacking in long segmented line patterns with this.

Straight Flush, despite those disadvantages, happens to be just perfect
for other uses. If you need damage quick, Straight Flush will do better
than a Heel Thrash or fancy combo. Also, should you be lucky enough to
run around to the backs of Bosses, you will not be able to keep them
stunned WITHOUT continually hitting them with the Straight Flush (as
many Bosses are pushed forward quite a bit when hit from the back).

2. Heel Thrash -- Press P, P, S fairly quickly.

Stick will throw two quick jabs followed by a two-hit axe kick which
knocks down, for four hits in total. While the combo counter will only
acknowledge hit combos 5 and over, this can easily be remedied by
_finishing up_ with the Heel Thrash, which only requires three button
presses for four hits (less effort, hehe). This combo is also a no-
worries combo as the axe kick will lock on to the enemy and will always
connect. This combo is in my opinion THE best basic combo that Stick
could use, with a few possible exceptions.

Here's an estimated time comparison of Straight Flush and Heel Thrash:

Straight Flush: Total combo time including recovery = 1.7-2.0 seconds
Heel Thrash: Total time including recovery = 1.2-1.5 seconds

In ZR, things can get really fast-paced in the heat of melee combat.
Having a quicker basic combo, even one that's a _little_ quicker, can
often times be critical to success!

Heel Thrash does a little less damage than Straight Flush, but it's
still plenty enough. I prefer using Heel Thrash as my basic combo as it
executes a bit more quickly, has a lower recovery time, and most
importantly, you more or less stand in place while the combo is
executed! Thus you can stay in one place and dispatch zombies with
precision.

There are no real disadvantages to using Heel Thrash, except when you
are in situations where covering ground with your attacks is important
(and such occasions will arise). For example, bosses being hit in the
back with Heel Thrash will likely recover as they are forced forward
while you stay in place, so they can turn around and before you know it,
you're in trouble again. Another problem with Heel Thrash is that you
must commit to the 2-hit axe kick when you press P, P, S -- while the
Straight Flush can be fully controlled and stopped simply by pressing P
less than 5 times (See Advanced Combos for more details). All in all
though, Heel Thrash is my preferred standby.



Linda's Basic Combos:

1. Sunrise Uppercut -- Keep the joystick neutral and hit P, P, P.

Linda will execute two punches and one uppercut. I'm pretty sure the
combo is for three hits and not four. This combo is slow, has some
recovery time, and does not do nearly as much damage as Stick's combos.
It also doesn't knock down. The damage caused is about one fully powered
handgun shot. There is possible combo potential since the zombie won't
fall..._but_ I don't think Linda was intended as a combo character.

2. Heartbreaking Hurricane -- Hold the joystick towards your opponent
and hit P, P, P.

This move will cause Linda to execute toward two punches, the
second hitting low, following up with a dragon punch-style rising
double-fist hammer type thing (sorry, but it's best way I can describe
it :P). I believe this combo does five hits in total. Again, not a very
damaging combo, and rather slow, but this one does knock down. Since the
zombie will fly kinda high after the hammer fist swing knockdown, you
will be able to hit the downed zombie not long after you recover.

3. Stepping Kick -- Press P, S, P, P fairly quickly.

Linda will perform a series of punches and kicks ending in a hop kick
for five hits total. This combo will knock down (I think). The timing of
the hits is a bit odd, but the combo is the fastest of Linda's moves.
Just note that it's a fully preset combo though, for only one zombie at
a time, and you have to wait for all five hits before you do anything
else. If you want extended combos, this is probably the best combo to
finish off with. The damage done is also somewhat higher than the above
two combos. Of course this move is still rather slow compared to
Stick's attacks.

I don't have much experience using Linda, but I imagine her slower
physical attacks don't fare as well against most Bosses. The solution
would be to attack from a distance whenever possible with the handgun.



Rikiya's Basic Combos:

1. Busujima Sonic Boom -- Press P four times quickly.

Rikiya will punch once with each fist and then execute two wide arcing
attacks with nifty accompanying swooshing sounds :) (oh yes, and those
battle cries). The trick with these last two attacks is that any normal
zombie caught in the attack radius will be hit and knocked down (given
they take both hits). If you finish off a normal zombie with the swoosh
attacks, they will neatly come apart at the waistline -- cool effect,
but this also means you can't do any more combos on them... Damage for
this move is very good, but as for being superior to Stick's Straight
Flush, I'm don't think it's much better if at all. Disadvantages with
this move are that it's kinda slow, with recovery time longer than
Stick's moves. Rikiya also covers a fair amount of ground with this move
(heck, even his regular jab moves him forward a bit). Also, I've seen
other players attempt to use the radius attack advantage against large
crowds and as a general rule, it doesn't work. My guess is the radius
attack (which isn't 360 degrees) wasn't intended for that purpose given
it's very short range.

2. Busujima Combo -- Press P, S, S, S fairly quickly.

Rikiya will begin a three hit punch combo (it's kinda slow and involves
turning backhands), start a long windup (yep, you won't get to extend
the 3-hit after this), and unleash a rather flashy purple flaming energy
backhand with energy trails that should connect for a 6-hit burst of a
combo. Thus, it's 9 hits in all, though the best combo you'll get is 6.
This combo does great damage, but it just so happens to be THE slowest
basic combo in the game...hence no practical applications. Of course, if
you want to show that near-gone last zombie who's boss, feel free to
whip this one out of your bag of tricks.



Stick, Linda and Rikiya also possess a variety of so-called "holding
moves." Very flashy, but usually not very useful. So generally, you
leave these moves for the very last zombie still in your way. All hold
moves are performed by pressing P to hit a zombie, then KEEPING P held
down for a short time after the hit connects. If you just tap P, it
registers as a standard hit.

You'll know it worked if the hit causes a rain of blue-white sparks, the
character crouches backward into a ready position amidst some shading
effects, and says "Take that!" or "Take this!" (or whatever funky yell
Rikiya cries out :)), and you see a red console button that seems to
demand you start button mashing right away. You can now start the
holding move of your choice. Even if you didn't want to do a holding
move, I suggest you pull one off quick -- you'll waste more time by not
doing so and waiting for your character to leave the ready position.


Stick:

1. Chest Crusher

Theoretically, just keep the joystick neutral and press P, P, P. For
better results hit P until the move starts. For BEST results don't STOP
hitting P until the move is finished.

Pure and simple. Stick does three nifty low gut punches, the last of
which knocks down. It covers considerable ground and is fun to watch.
The punches look powerful, but I'd be surprised if they do one powered-
up handgun shot's worth of damage (so what the heck IS one powered-up
handgun shot's worth of damage? See Walkthrough Part I for the
"answer"). In short, a pretty weak holding move. However, it's also
Stick's fastest holding move. This is the only holding move I know that
can also be used to EXTEND/finish combos (requires quick timing), and
man you look good when you do it to tack on three flashy hits. (e.g. to
get from 17 to 20 hits in STYLE! :))

2. Boomerang Kick

Tapping S a few times is supposed to be enough. However, to ensure you
get all the hits, just tap S throughout the combo.

The windup is a bit long, so any combo you mighta been doing before is
done with, but the end result is 3 quick high kicks, brief pause,
3 more quick high kicks, and a 2-hit front and reverse roundhouse kick
that really SHOULD knock down after all that punishment. :) The end
result: 8 hit-combo, the best you can get from this type of move (but
trust me, if you like combos, flash and scoring, you can do MUCH
better!). This is one of my favorite holding moves to do. Does supreme
damage, the most of any preset-type combo, but sorta slow.

3. "Zombie Revenge" (OK, I made this name up ;))

Hold the joystick towards your opponent and hit P three times, but you
know what I'd do by now :P.

Stick gets MAD! Well, maybe not, you wouldn't actually see it, but it's
a VERY brutal move. Stick will initiate a so-so speed shoulder charge to
knock down the target zombie, and then, depending on if you keep
pressing the buttons, get up to 7 additional hits (or is it stomps?) on
the zombie. 8 hits total, you end up with a 7-hit combo. In case you
were wondering, the shoulder charge can continue your present combo for
one hit...on occasion, but the other 7 hits won't count. It's an
entertaining move for some, a total shocker for others...it'll
definitely get other people's attention if they happen to be watching
you. It'll get funny looks from other people for sure if you do this
move on every zombie :P. Does pretty good damage.

You know, it'd be really um interesting, if not controversial, if the
intro sequence for ZR was just Stick stomping and stomping away on a
fallen zombie. Maybe even funny... ("Disclaimer: Only undead 3D
fictional zombies were harmed in the making of this intro")


Linda:

1. High Pressure Bomb

Hold the joystick towards the opponent and hit P three times.

Linda will first knock the zombie over, get some air using the zombie as
a trampoline and...well, land on the zombie. No idea how much damage
this move does, but you WILL find Linda's holding moves are the
flashiest (and thus coolest, in my opinion) in the game.

2. Neck Drive

Hold the joystick towards the opponent and hit S three times.

Linda will again demonstrate the proper usage of zombies as a
trampoline, but unfortunately for the zombie this time, the zombie will
still be standing when it takes the punishment. This time, Linda will
execute two sets of two stomps on the zombie's FACE (OUCH!), all while
about 6 feet in the air, and end with a double foot knockdown blast as
she backflips a good distance away with a clean landing. This does a 5-
hit combo, and I think for decent damage.

One heck of a move to see up close, but man it has its problems. You
might think that this holding move would give you a tactical advantage
during combat, as you can pound on zombies with impunity while you're in
the air, way out of reach! This is true. You might also think that by
head-pounding the zombie right in front of you, you can finish off
backflipping right behind a host of formerly comin-right-at-cha zombies.
That's also true. Problem is that Linda, having finished the supreme
out-of-reach combo, will then proceed to wave at? taunt? (I'm not sure)
the zombies for about 1.5 seconds, making total recovery time about 2
seconds. Ouch. Even the zombies will be on to you by then. Thus, I
suggest you use this move with caution.

3. "Zombie Rag Doll Toss" (OK, I made this one up too ;))

Keep the joystick neutral and hit S three times.

Again, another interesting move. Unsure of the damage done. Linda will
first grab the zombie by the neck, slam the zombie down, then heft the
zombie up, swing it about 60 or so degrees, and let it go the hard way
-- with a knee to the midsection. She'll then clap the dust off her
hands =). So much the worse for the zombie if a wall happens to be in
the way :). Oh, and I did I mention she only uses one hand?

I must note here that Linda is one heck of a strong lady (in character
as well as physical strength) -- in the gameplay demo you see her doing
this move on a 300-pounder of a zombie, and I repeat, with only one
hand!!! Thus she can lift practically any normal zombie. Another
interesting aspect of this move is the lifted zombie will also hit any
other nearby zombies in its path (for a little damage, I think) while
being helplessly swung around by Linda. At the very least, I guess this
move would temporarily halt a zombie advance from the front. Again,
though, not a very useful move.



Rikiya:

1. Busujima Throw

Keep the joystick neutral and hit P three times.

Probably the most useful holding move in the game! It's very quick,
although damage isn't great. Rikiya will grab the zombie by the arm,
tossing the zombie overhead with a 180 degree turn and giving it a nice
hard slam on the ground. So, whatcha get is a downed zombie and Rikiya
turned around 180 degrees. If a zombie's coming up from behind, or more
than one zombie, this throw will make for great repositioning since
recovery time from the throw is also very low (and all of your enemies
are now in front of you). Immediately after the throw you can also shoot
at the downed zombie...but watch out as the zombie might grab your foot,
leading to the zombie smothering you on the floor for a bit of damage.
You can shake free with button mashing and stomp the zombie some before
the zombie drags you down, but no matter the outcome, just button mash
for best results!

2. Busujima Hold

Keep the joystick neutral and hit S like crazy.

A very un-useful move, though interesting in its own right. Rikiya will
grab the zombie's leg, get down on the ground, pull on that leg, and
basically try to do as much damage as possible. This move is ultra-slow,
won't combo, and I'm not really sure about damage. Note the zombie can
also reverse the hold if you don't jam on S fast enough, and of course
that's bad news. Save it for the very last zombie.

3. Busujima Fireworks

Hold the joystick towards the zombie and hit S like crazy.

Rikiya will hold the zombie up with one hand and gather energy in that
hand (it'll be easy to see) in an attempt to explode the zombie. If
successful you'll see a nifty explosion, and watch the zombie go flying,
or get blown apart. The problem is that this move hardly finishes off
zombies with full life-bars (at least to my knowledge).


Maybe my minimum required button presses is too high, and maybe you only
need two or three P or S presses. But really, the best way to do these
holding moves is to keep button mashing until the move ends, because
otherwise you might not get all of the hits in, or the move will
backfire on you (possibly in Rikiya's case).

Trust me on this one, if you button mash (you don't have to press em too
fast or hard, other people are gonna play too!) until the holding move
is done, you're guaranteed all the hits even on a zombie with a string
bean's worth of life left. I don't believe button mashing will increase
damage, though.

Since I'm gonna keep playing Stick until I pass the game (DOH!!!), note
that the move descriptions for Linda and Rikiya may be inaccurate --
sorry, but I just don't play them much (and I certainly can't now :P).
I've either done their holding move once or I've seen what other players
do. But don't worry, the basic formula is very simple, so if the move
doesn't work, you either just press P or S a lot, or you hold the
joystick towards the zombie and press P or S a lot. Works every time :)



5. Advanced Combo Moves

There really isn't much to pulling out the big string combos, once you
get the hang of things. The key is timing of the button presses. The
cool part about the combo system is that many-hit combos can be
accomplished in any number of ways. However, the basic 10+ hit combo
will usually begin with physical attacks. It will also have to do
(usually) with NOT finishing your characters' basic combos.

WHAAAT? You might ask. Don't worry, I'll give you the combos I use in
the walkthroughs as I use them, so you might understand the method in my
madness :P. But I'm serious. The groundwork of combos, melee ones
anyway, is not just doing the basic knockdown combos. For example:

*****Linda is the slowest character in terms of melee fighting and
throwing punches, but even she can rack up some decent combos.
Experiment with hitting P only twice before hitting P three times to
finish the P-based basic combos. If my memory serves me correctly, then:

You got yourself a zombie. Hit it twice by hitting P twice. After the
second punch in the combo is finished, wait a bit then do either the
neutral PPP combo or the flying hammer punch PPP combo. You will then
get 5 hits or 7 hits!

Now suppose you hit PP, wait a bit, hit PP again, and THEN do the flying
punch combo. Now you have 9 hits!

I believe the same logic also applies to the PSPP combo. After hitting
PP, you can tack on 5 hits with PSPP for a 7-hit combo! Keep
experimenting to see how you can create longer and more damaging combos!
*****



So why do advanced combos? Several reasons. If we're talking general
gameplay, you'll find that executing extended combos does more damage to
the zombie. More importantly, you can finish off a zombie before
knocking it down, and make sure that zombie won't get back up to haunt
you. Of course, as you go on to higher and more difficult levels you'll
find that the flashy combos won't do the trick as the zombies come too
fast and furious. But even then simpler advanced combos will still be
very important, in that you can tack on extra hits without the recovery
time of the basic combo's finishing moves. To illustrate:



*****Rikiya is also not the best character to use for making nice long
10+ hit combos. However it's not too hard to do. This is because
Rikiya's attacks are somewhat faster than Linda's. The bread-and-butter
of Rikiya's extended combos will derive from not finishing the PPPP
basic combo.

You're fighting a zombie. PPPP would normally do 4 hits and knock down.
You won't even get a cool ghostly floating "5 HIT" above your head. But
try one quick P jab first, THEN going into PPPP. That's 5 hits! You
won't get any more damage from the combo since the jab is so weak, but
you get the idea. Now try doing PPP (you get one swoosh only), then
PPPP. You'll get 7 hits for Rikiya and a ton more damage! Also notice
that recovery from the PPP alone is significantly faster. PPP, wait,
PPP, then PPPP does 10 hits and still more damage! If the damage is
enough to take a zombie out in one go, even better since you won't have
to deal with it anymore! If you keep doing PPP, wait a bit, PPP, etc.
you'll tack on major hits! In fact PPP, wait, PPP, wait-type combos are
Rikiya's best advanced combo tools before finishing up with PPPP (PSSS
won't extend the combo past the first three hits)
*****



In my humble opinion, advanced combos will improve the fighting ability
of even the weaker hand-to-hand fighters such as Linda. It will make
Stick, however, an _extremely_ dangerous zombie buster. Here's how:



*****Stick Breitling has no advantages when it comes to using his
handgun. Linda can fire hers faster and Rikiya's will deal more damage
per shot. However, he has the ultimate advantage in his very quick
hitting (I guess he musta been at the speed bag a whole lot :P). For
this reason it's not inconceivable for Stick to do 10-hit combos on
zombies at all. Even 20-hit combos. Even 30-hit combos with his fists
and feet alone. I've done 60+ hit combos with certain (lucky) chaining
and stringing techniques!

While Linda would need to use PP to start her bigger combos since the P
jab alone is just too slow, and Rikiya is best off with PPP only for
pretty much the same reason, Stick is able to jab with impunity! His
single P jab is very fast, and can net you huge combos given the timer
isn't ticking down to 0 and you've only got one zombie left to finish.
But P jabs alone are boring and do very little damage. Stick can derive
1, 2, 3, and even 4-hit strings (well maybe not PPPP strings, they lag
some afterward and if you're not careful, you end up with the 5-hit
basic combo) out of his Straight Flush, and use them again and again
with very little recovery time to pound at his foes while tacking on
mondo hits and also points. Just remember, it's all about timing.

A good low-level advanced combo to use for Stick is PPP, quick wait,
followed by PPS or PPPPP. You'll get 7 or 8 hits and do much more
damage! PPP, PPP, then PPS will do 10 hits, and so on. PPP by itself
will do almost one full-power handgun shot's worth of damage, and you
can perform the PPP again almost immediately after the third punch hits.
Given Stick's speed in hitting, you will find that using extended combos
dispatch zombies much faster than doing just one basic combo and waiting
for the zombie to get back up... And by all means, don't just use PPP to
extend combos all the time. Mix-n-match with P and PP as well! Given the
interesting nature of the fighting engine, you'll get combos that are
impressive and even "to the beat!" Try this one out for Stick, for
example: PPP, PPP, P, P, PPP, P, P, P, P, PPPPP. Remind you of any
floor-pad dancing games? :)
*****

I have to note that with extended combos does come less damage per
successive hit for all characters. PPP may be pretty powerful to start,
but PPP strings after the combo meter hits, say, 10 or 15, won't do as
much damage. But it'll still hurt quite a bit!



6. Advanced Fighting Techniques

Here's just a few pointers to use your characters more effectively in
ZR:

1. Dashing is great. But Dash Attacks are essential for knocking down
zombies and getting more space to fight and less zombies to concentrate
on. Use it often. Good use of the Dash Attack can keep practically all
normal zombies on the floor.

2. Don't underestimate the value of the charged-up handgun shot. It's
slow to warm up, but it can knock down 3 or more zombies at once with
decent damage. It will help you dispatch zombies from a distance and
give you more time to deal with them.

3. Don't think you have to knock zombies down with basic combos alone.
With Rikiya and Stick, you might want to consider quick hits combined
with Dash Attacks to keep from getting hit.

4. Advanced combos are also useful in that they end when you choose for
them to end. For example, if Stick is concentrating on one zombie with
PPP, PPP, and is up to 6 hits while other zombies are closing in, he's
not in the same pinch as if he had just finished a Straight Flush, or
had to reload his gun, both of which take recovery time. Stick can stop
the combo, run, back attack, roll, attack another zombie, dash attack,
clear out...you get more options!

5. Guarding is extremely important in reducing damage from zombie
attacks, and really should be used at least once against _almost_ all
bosses. It will save you from many a big hurt.

6. When moving around, you should try to be Dashing as much as possible,
with certain exceptions. You're just faster that way. With practice
Dashing around will become second nature.

7. If you're in the mood for big bad 15+ hit combos, don't think that
you have to get all the hits in on one zombie otherwise the combo meter
resets! You can chain together a massive combo on multiple zombies with
quick reflexes and closing in fast. When doing this, you also don't have
to use knockdown moves either if it's faster (though I usually do to
keep my rhythm and control)

8. Timing is everything! Especially for the combos. As you go along,
you'll eventually establish a "rhythm" with your character, very much so
in terms of button presses.

9. Always, always experiment. Often times you'll find your own unique
and effective way to make it past the various areas with the highest
scores and least damage taken. You'll find certain items to be useful
and other less so. You'll even find additional uses for some of the
items you come across.



7. Higher Scores Through Cool Combos

OK, so advanced combos are useful for tacking on more damage. But so
what if I have a 15-hit combo compared to, oh, a 9-hit one? An
attractive incentive for high scorers: MORE POINTS.
And I mean it.

Here's a quick point breakdown.

Single Handgun Shot - 50 pts.
Single Punch - 50 pts.
Every punch/shot up to 5-hit combo - 50 pts. each.
Every punch/shot from 5-9 hit combos - 50 pts. + 20 pt. bonus = 70 pts.
each.
10-hit combo - 50 pt. bonus on the 10th hit
11-hit combo - 60 pt. bonus on the 11th hit
12-hit combo - 80 pt. bonus on the 12th hit...
13-hit combo - 100 pt. bonus
14-hit combo - 150 pt. bonus
15-hit combo - 200 pt. bonus
16-hit combo - 250 pt. bonus
17-hit combo - 300 pt. bonus
18-hit combo - 350 pt. bonus
19-hit combo - 400 pt. bonus
20-hit combo - 500 pt. bonus
Each additional hit: 500 pt. bonus

It really adds up!

The special moves are also good for increased points!
For example:

Dash Attack: 50 pts. base for each hit
Roll: 100 pts. base per hit
Clear-Out: 100 or 150 pts. base per hit
Charge-Up Shot: 150 pts. per hit

Don't forget that the handgun can also be used to extend combos as well!
Experiment!



8. A Note on Being Poisoned

Lone zombies aren't too hard to handle. But add additional zombies to
the mix and things get interesting, with hits harder to avoid. Whenever
you are hit by a zombie or projectile, you will notice that you will get
about double of a purple mist over your lifebar for the damage that you
take. This mist, as it fills up if you take more damage, will eventually
slow you down to a dangerous extent if you're hit too much. You'll
literally turn purple and start limping, and the poison takes time to
wear off. However, your attacks will become more powerful to compensate.
Hopefully you'll never get into such a situation, but the following
super combos will be available if the poison meter (purple mist) takes
up over half of your lifebar. I'll leave it to you to see what they do.

Stick: P repeatedly; or P, P, S, and then S repeatedly
Linda: P repeatedly while holding the joystick towards your opponent
Rikiya: P repeatedly; or, P, S, S, S (you might want to keep hitting S
afterwards)

Do note that there may be other high-poison meter super combos or
special moves I haven't uncovered yet, especially for Linda. Experiment!
Also note that you also seem to temporarily improve in other departments
when the poison meter is high. If you're knocked down, you seem to get
up quicker if you use a rising attack, and the rising attack may hit
more than just one nearby zombie on the way up...

9. A Note on Two-Player Games

I don't usually play two-player games, but if you do or are thinking
about it, here's some very general tips. See BLui's FAQ also for more
details.

1. Your attacks and weapons will do less damage (all of em, even mass
destruction special weapons), because you'll be fighting the same
number of enemies, but with two players. This applies ESPECIALLY to
holding moves, which do dramatically less damage. This is good for
combos but bad for getting the job done quickly. Plan accordingly. Also,
while a red-sight lock is also less powerful, consider having both
players focus red-sight locks on the same zombie. It's very effective.

2. Don't get in each other's way. Some attacks will affect the other
player; while no damage will be done, it'll stun your partner and
possibly cause big trouble. Don't be on opposite ends of the screen if
you can help it as the other player can't progress in the level, and you
do have a time limit to deal with.

3. Try to plan ahead which zombies to target first, etc. While it sounds
somewhat scripted, and the zombies you run across are the same each
game, it'll help you get farther along. Trust me, the game won't play
the same every time ;)

4. Try to cooperate during boss fights. For example, one character can
attract the boss's attention while the other gets behind the boss and
hammers away, so that the other player can now join in or wait around to
cover in case things get ugly. A stronger character might also want to
act as the tank while waiting until a life up comes along.

If the other player is defeated and quits, the damage will return to the
one-player setting (just watch out for your former partner, who is now a
green zombie ;)).

5. Be mindful of the bonuses around. You might want to leave a certain
weapon for the other player if he/she's better at using it, or let the
other player pick up spare handgun clips, or more importantly let a
beat-up player have the life-up. I've seen good and cooperating two-
player teams get quite far on one play.



V. Items and Weapons

Here's a list of the items and weapons you'll come across in ZR and what
they do. There's a whole lot of em.

1. Pickups

These first four items are obtained simply by walking over them.

Bullets - The most common item in the game, and important for keeping
your handgun ammo supply up. Every zombie you defeat will drop one of
these, so if you're careful about using your ammo you'll never run out.
Gives you one clip of 10 bullets, and you can hold 5 spare clips max at
a time.

Point incentive: You'll find you get a 200 pt. bonus after picking up 3
clips so long as you haven't used up your present clip (had to reload).
You'll continue getting the 200 pt. bonus for picking up the extra clips
so long as you don't reload. It pays to spare ammo! (Sometimes...)

Antidote - The second most common item in the game, found on many but
not all zombies, the antidote herb will completely remove any poison
from your lifebar. As you get better at avoiding attacks, though, you'll
also be rewarded with point incentives. If you pick up 2-3 antidotes
without getting hit, you'll start getting 300 pt. bonuses for each
antidote you pick up thereafter (usually, anyway).

Life-up - Probably the most crucial item in the game. Appears in various
locations, and almost always in hidden locations or boxes. Depending on
the life-up you get, you will receive anywhere from 10-100% of your life
back. The life recovery for each specific life-up box does vary from
game to game as well. You'll also get point incentives from life-up
boxes. If your lifebar is presently full, you'll get a really nice 2000
bonus pts. for every life-up box you pick up. This can mean racking up
really high scores in certain situations.

Elixir - The rarest item in the entire game, there's only one of em.
(okokok, so there's only one Drill and one Cannon Shot in the game that
I know of too, but hey, I'm making a value-based judgment here -- see
below for why I think the Cannon Shot and Drill don't even compare ;).
The magical elixir essentially acts as a free continue, as you will be
automatically brought back to full health once if your lifebar runs out.
It's even better though because your score won't reset :) I don't
remember if you get a point bonus for picking this up.

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2. Special Weapons

All of the following items are picked up by pressing P (or S?) while
over the item (the square around the item will glow as you step over
it).

Be very careful when using these weapons! If you are hit even once by
anything, you will drop the weapon and have to pick it up again. On the
other hand, with the exception of the hatchet, you can't let go of the
weapon unless you get hit or use it up! Shot-based weapons cannot be
reloaded with fresh ammo -- you'll need to pick a new one up.

You will still be able to Dash and Dash Attack with many of these
weapons in hand. You will also be able to block while carrying many of
these weapons, but not all. If you absolutely need to, you can still use
a Clear Out Attack while holding many of these weapons, but the range
and effect will remain the same.


Pipe - Found in Area 1 and Area 2.
Slowdown Factor: Low. You can still dash and dash attack.
Rating: Good

Press P to swing.

This pipe is essentially a ranged melee weapon you can use for a certain
number of hits (about 16-20 swings). Pressing PPP will execute three
relatively quick hits (not as fast compared to Stick, but it's much
faster than Rikiya and Linda's attacks) for very good damage. Note that
the pipe hits will not knock down, though this means you can keep
swinging away until a zombie goes down. Another advantage is that your
character will swing the pipe in very wide arcs, hitting zombies to the
side of you and even right behind you. The pipe can also be used for
fairly nice combos, using P swings, PP swings (more difficult), or just
plain PPP. After a number of hits your player will lean back some and
toss away the pipe, so be careful. I still find it quite useful when you
can find it. You will be unable to punch while you have the pipe, but
you will be able to fully use your handgun.



Axe - Found in Area 3 and 5.
Slowdown Factor: Moderate. Dashing/Dash Attacking still possible?
Rating: Very Poor

Press P to swing.

This very big and heavy axe can be used once for one big swing at a
zombie. Should it connect it'll lodge in the zombie's skull and it's
bye-bye for the zombie no matter what. If it misses you can keep
swinging until it connects. You can also fully use your handgun since
the axe is used by one hand. However, this axe slows you down quite a
bit. In any case, the axe has a very long wind-up, and if you whiff it
can be bad news. The zombie must also be standing for you to hit with
the axe (if it's too short, below you or crawling, no go). I just
wouldn't use it.



Hatchet - Found in Area 5 and Area 8.
Slowdown Factor: Very Low. Dashing/dash attacks still possible.
Rating: Very Poor

Press P to throw.

You'll find hatchets on the highly annoying and dangerous hatchet-
zombies later on. You can still use your handgun, but you can't use your
fists. The hatchet, while a throwing weapon, does very little damage to
anything it hits, so I don't recommend you pick one up.