Heavy Weapon FAQ by Xdaamno V 1.1 Version History 1.0 Main Bulk of the guide 1.1 Added remaining boss names. Added Achievement descriptions Comfirmed defence orbs kill ballistic missiles Added a few minor changes Contents: I: Intro/Legal Stuff II: How To Play III: Weapons and Powerups IV: Achievements V: Game Modes VI: Enemies VII: Levels VIII: Bosses IX: Special Thanks ----- I: Intro/Legal Stuff ----- Hey! This is a general guide for Heavy Weapon, made by Popcap, for the Xbox 360. Heavy Weapon can be obtained as a free trial download for Xbox Live. The full version is sold for 800 gamer points. Where I live, in the UK, You can get 1000 gamer points for £8.50. It comes out as £6.80 of your money being spent on this game; well worth it IMO. If anybody wants to contact me, do so at: Droamda [AT] boltonsolutions [DOT] com And for the legal stuff: Copyright Daniel Martin 2007 This may be not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. Websites that have permission to host this guide: gamefaqs.com cheatcc.com neoseeker.com If anybody sees anybody else hosting this guide, please contact me and tell me so. If you are found to be hosting this guide without permission, I will kindly ask you to remove it. ----- II: How To Play ----- CONTROLS: Use the Left Analog Stick to move your ship. You can move on the x plane at the bottom of the screen. Use the Right Analog Stick to aim and fire your gun. The gun can be fired at any point above ground. Use the RT (Right Top) button to fire a nuke. This nuke does considerable damage to bosses, and destroys all enemy projectiles, planes and arsenal on the whole screen. You can carry up to three nukes at a time. The general aim of the game is to survive the level without dying, destroying as many enemy units as possible. You have 3 lives per level, so don't risk anything stupid. Your nukes and lives are displayed at the top, along with score, level progress and megalaser completion. ----- III: Weapons and Powerups ----- There are various weapons to unlock, throughout the game Cannon: This is the weapon you'll start the game on. It will hold your hand through the beginning levels, and can be upgraded in various ways. It is very effective and stopping enemy fire from reaching you, especially in later levels when it can pretty much obliterate all standard bombs with it's spread fire. At this time, it becomes less effective as an offensive weapon, due to the time it takes to reach the enemy and it's low damage, but when concentrated it can still take down a lot of enemies. The following weapons can be obtained after each level. You can add 1 more weapon per level. By level 19, you should have all weapons maxed. You can swap weapons around that you have already chosen. All of these weapons can be upgraded until a strength of 3. Defence Orbs: "These orbiting defensive spheres block all enemy ordinance, excluding laser weapons." This little blue guardian will orbit your ship. If it comes into contact with an enemy bomb or plasma shot, it will destroy it. For some reason, it also destroys the large ballistic missiles. Upgrading it gives you another orb, and slows down all of the orb's speed. Having 3 can stop at least half of the incoming bombs! One of the first things to max. Even though the decreasing speed through the levels may at first seem to have a negative effect, it doesn't seem to reduce its erformance. Plus, you don't see any 'laser weapons' until the last few bosses. Upgrade Rating: 8/10 Homing Missiles: "Zero in on evil with this deadly, aircraft-seeking weapon." When there are no opponents on the screen, the homing missile will shoot vertically. A sure-fire way to cause some damage, these guys are great at taking out the stuff you don't have time to deal with. Upgrading them increases their rate of fire. I foudn these really effective when you start to get the diagonal plasma planes later on. I could fire manually at one side, and be stood under the other side. These take them down in a single shot. Also good foor regular planes while you'r busy with ground troops. Overall, pretty good. Rating: 7/10 Laser: "Slice and dice your foes with flaming hot beams of destruction!" This weapon discharges a laser that immediatly fires in your pointed direction for about a second, then rests, then fires again. Having a quite moderate damage this can be reliable for destroying fast opponents. Upgrading increases it's power. Rating: 6/10 Rockets: Unsophisticated, indiscriminate, ugly, and these un-guided menaces always take it personally." One of my favourite weapons, these dumb missiles give you power exactly where you need it. Excellent for taking down enemy blimps, bosses, nukes or other large-health opponents. At first, it's hard to appreciate their power, but their strength is invaluable. It's disadvantages, however, include a slow speed making aim quite hard for fast or small opponents. Combine with homing missiles to take these down and make your tank look quite awesome. Upgrading adds anoother rocket. Rating: 7/10 Flak Cannon: "Pulverizes any aircraft and arsenal that dare to venture near your crosshairs." Surprisingly, the flak cannon seems to be ineffective against small craft, despite it's real-life usage, due to the scattered fire. Blimps and other large enemies can be taken down quite quickly with this. Not one of my favourites, but can be useful nonetheless. Upgrading increases flak size and power. Rating: 5/10 Lightning: "Powerful bolts of lightning leap from your tank, seeking enemy craft to devour." This is quite a lazy weapon, auto-aiming at several enemies at once in the classic chain lightning effect. It's low damage, however, makes this only useful for relatively unskilled players who would miss otherwise. Tends to get less useful later on, too, due to it's inability to destroy larger ships itself. Upgrading increases power and duration of each bolt. 5/10 The following weapon can be obtained by collecting all 4 pieces of the megalaser. The enemies drop the pieces in order. When they hit the ground, they smash. On online play, the player who collects the last and final piece controls the weapon. When you collect pieces, they appear at the top right side of your screen. Megalaser: This weapon is the ultimate destruction tool. It can cut through all planes, arsenal, missiles, bombs, plasma, tanks, trucks, nukes, and whatever else you may encounter with no resistance. It has a limited duration, represented by the megalaser bar slowly depleting. Firing the laser makes it deplete faster, so conserve it when there are no enemies on the screen. The following are powerups obtainable in-game, dropped by friendly white planes. Nuke: Has a red nuclear symbol. Adds one nuke to your arsenal. Shield Upgrade: This adds another layer of shielding to your tank. Each layer can stop an enemy attack in it's tracks. You can carry up to three shields. Speed Up: Represented by a white arrow in an orb. This increases the speed of your tank. It seems the effects of this seriously weaken the more you get, and I'm not sure it even does anything after the first. Gun Power Up: Looks like a large green arrow pointing upwards. This increases the power of your normal cannon. Seems to have a similar effect to Speed Up, in not increasing much after the third. Rapid Fire: Two green arrows point upwards inside this powerup. It increases the rate of fire of your normal cannon. Seems to also have no effect after the first. Spread Shot: This powerup looks like two arrows pointing diagonally upwards. It increases the amount of bullets your cannon shoots by one. Quite rare. Weapon Orbs: Not available in regular play. Depicted by an upgradable weapon, this adds this weapon to your tank. ----- IV: Achievements ----- There are various achievements to unlock, totalling 200 gamerpoints, like all other Xbox Live arcade games. Big Red Button (10) Go Ballistic... Use your first Nuke! - Simple - Use a nuke in a game with the right back button Cannon Happy (20) Complete 11 missions without Nukes or reinforcements. - Without reinforcements means you can't die. At all. Champion of Freedom (25) Survive 12 minutes of the enemy's attack in any Survival game. - Easiest to get in online play Cockroad of Freedom (15) Withstand 8 minutes of the Red Star onslaught in any Survival game. You should get this in one of your first online survival games. ComSat Uplink (10) Play over Xbox Live with 3 other players for at least 1 minute. Join an online game an stay in for the small time of a minute to get this. Freedom's Last Stand (25) Defeat all 19 Red Star champions in Boss Blitz mode. Complete the game, then boss blitz to get this. Joint Command (10) Stand together with another player to complete one mission. Have another player press start while on mission mode to join in. Massive Destruction (20) Destroy 12 enemies with a single Nuke. Best done in survival, preferably online. Stockpile (15) Amass 5,000,000 points. You should get this about halfway through mission mode. Supaweapon! (10) Collect components to complete a Megalaser. One of your first achievements, obtainable on the first mission level. Ultimate Tanker (25) Dispel the enemies of liberty. Finish Mission mode. Finish mission mode to get this. World Tour (15) Take a tour of each Red Star country and trash the place! Complete the first 9 missions. Finish about half of mission mode to get this. ----- V: Game Modes ----- There are multiple modes of play: Mission Mode: In this mode you run through all 19 stages, and are accompanied by the storyline to overtake Red Star. A boss is faced after each level. You get to buy a weapon upgrade after each level too, and your stock of lives is replenished. While on the mission map, before the action starts, press the back buttons to switch levels. Survival Mode: Play by yourself or with friends in this mode. The aim is to survive as long as possible. There are two modes, War Party in which is as long as there is a player still alive in the game, play continues. There is also arms race, in which each player has 3 lives. Boss Blitz Mode: This mode is unlocked by completing all 19 stages. You will face the bosses one by one. A white friendly plane will fly over after each boss, awarding you a new weapon upgrade, and standard set of gun/speed powerups. You have 3 nukes to use, and cannot collect any more. Xbox Live Survival Mode: A game of survival on Xbox Live. War Party is far by the most popular mode. Players can join at the start of the game or when it is in progress. Tatics for Xbox Live: 1. ALWAYS aim at the enemy nukes when possible. They end the game immediately if they hit the ground of War Party. 2. Don't waste the nukes. The only times to use nukes are A: When there is one player left in the game, or, B: When an enemy nuke is about to hit the ground and there is no other way to stop it. 3. Don't waste the Megalaser; make sure you conserve it when there are no enemies on the screen. ----- VI: Enemies ----- R-44 Hominov prop plane: These guys carry no weapons and can be destroyed with one shot. RG-28 Bravski jet fighter: Same thing as above, but drops a single bomb. T-83 Spetznak bomber: Basically a Bravski with a little more armour. MG-24 Nikzov jet fighter: These jets drop (slightly-homing) bombs that do a little more damage than others in it's 'level range'. Modified pickup truck: This pickup truck carries a missle launcher that fires missiles in an arc. TS-31 Kriznek carpet bomber: Heavy aircraft that drops multiple bombs. No problem for the most part. KB-22 Czerk light helicopter: These guys are irritating with their plasma cannons. KB-31 Grakin assault helicopter: A high-armour helicopter that fires homind missiles. KB-72 Mokum assault helicopter: A even higher-armoured helicopter with a faster fire rate TD-52 Vorskat delta bomber: This drops a single yellow bomb, that explodes in a shower of plasma if it hits the ground. TD-21 Shiznik delta fighter: A tougher version of the carpet bomber with stronger bombs. IM-35 Tachrok ballistic missiles: These missiles travel vertically in the background, before landing on you in waves of 4 of more. Dodge them, or fire at the one above you. At later levels you can ignore these; defence orbs own them, due to their size, it's hard for them to miss. TA-21 Frinska heavy bomber: Another heavy bomber, with only slight modifications. TF-77 Havanski atomic bomber: These are the ultimate heavy bomber, in which they drop heavily armoured nukes that destroys everything on the playing field if it hits the ground. First priority to take these out. H-51 Barskov munitions blimp: They drop some weak missiles, but have high armour, move slowly and shower you in energy balls when destroyed. CS-148 Romanov attack satellite: These satellites hover for a while, then release a lethal laser underneath them. Second priority to take out. MG-17 Palinskat ground attack fighter: Irritating at first, these guys come in diagonally and fire off a plasma shot, then go horizontal and fire another. Dodge it by being underneath it and shooting upwards. T-63 Linstrad tank: These are pretty strong plasma ground-vehicles, with a good bit of health. Shovak bulldozer: These bulldozers are signalled with a sign usually reserved for bosses, and accelerate at you. Slow them down by firing at them, until you are pushing them back. If they touch you, it's an insta-kill. Third priority to take out. S-34 Reflex fighter: These guys have large purple energy shields that release plasma shots when attacked, but otherwise are general bombers. C-31 Fovraski cruise missile: These guys are the fastest plane, and attempt to dive bomb you. Simply shoot upwards constantly, and they'll fall into your path of fire and get destroyed. ----- VII: Levels ----- All the levels have humourusly named titles... especially geiger county! The way the levels are arranged is quite interesting. Each level has various patterns of enemies that come randomly, and last a short while. On the later levels these patterns become more obvious and quite co-ordinated. Level 1: Tundra Flats Primary Export: Snowcones "This sub-zero wasteland houses the enemy's early warning systems. Don't let us down, Atomic Tank!" Level 2: Concussion Coast Primary Export: Mail-order brides "The spectacular coast of Blastnya attracts both vacationers and enemy commanders. Take them out, Atomic Tank!" Level 3: Napalm Springs Primary Export: Petroleum, Oil, Gas "The rich oilfields of Petrovakia feed the thirsty war machine of the enemy. Don't let up now, Atomic Tank!" Level 4: Geiger County Primary Export: Plutonium Rods "The nuclear reactors of this region supply energy and weapons to countless foes of freedom." Level 5: Triassic Park Primary Export: Hambobolubia death-masks "The enemy's arsenal lies camouflaged within this steamy rainforest. Defoliate at will!" Level 6: Tanklvania Primary Export: Scary movies "Not even darkest night can conceal the enemy from the brilliant, searing light of atomic justice!" Level 7: Quake Acres Primary Export: Rubble "This war-torn nation has been invaded nearly 50 times in the last century. Don't get bogged down, Atomic Tank!" Level 8: The Badlands Primary Export: Tasteful rugs "This bleak desert country conceals subterranean command bunkers. Watch your temperature!" Level 9: Caliber City Primary Export: High-tech equipment "This vast metropolis is the heart of the enemy empire. Don't fail us now, Atomic Tank!" At this point in the game you'll be informaed that levels 1-9 were just a diversion. There's an army 10 times the size in reserve! (Aren't diversions supposed to happen at the same time as the real invasion?) Level 10: Tundra Flats Revisited (A revisited version of the original level, with new enemies) Level 11: Concussion Coast Revisited (A revisited version of the original level, with new enemies) Level 12: Napalm Springs Revisited (A revisited version of the original level, with new enemies) Level 13: Geiger County Revisited (A revisited version of the original level, with new enemies) Level 14: Triassic Park Revisited (A revisited version of the original level, with new enemies) Level 15: Tanklvania Revisited (A revisited version of the original level, with new enemies) Level 16: Quake Acres Revisited (A revisited version of the original level, with new enemies) Level 17: The Badlands Revisited (A revisited version of the original level, with new enemies) Level 18: Caliber City Revisited (A revisited version of the original level, with new enemies) Level 19: Red Star HQ "Through your heroism, the brave efforts of the allied forces, and not a few rubber hoses, we have discovered the location of Red Star's secret headquarters! Let's finish this once and for all!" ----- VIII: Bosses ----- Bosses are met after each level, in order. Boss 1: Twinblade Difficulty: 1/10 Appearence: A large duel-winged plane. Not much else to say about it, really. Weapons: Two homing rocket launchers, positioned in the middle of each 'wing'. Destructible Parts: It's two rocket launchers can both be destroyed, leaving it unable to attack. Strategy: Overall, fairly easy. Stay the furthest distance away possible, and shoot each missile as it comes. If you need to destroy one of the launchers, do so. In this case, it may be a good idea to position yourself directly underneath the other, so you can immediately destroy each missile as it appears, or soon after. This also makes taking out the other launcher particularly easy. Boss 2: Battleship Difficulty: 3/10 Appearance: A larger battle frigate equipped with various weapons and a main 'building' in the center. Weapons: Two plasma cannons on each side of the ship fire two plasma shots, but only one side is visible at first. Also, the middle of the ship fires a homing missile. Destructible Parts: The plasma cannons can be destroyed. When the first two are destroyed, the ship moves across and reveals another two for you to defeat. Strategy: The main problem here is the plasma cannons, which can deal considerable damage. You should be able to defeat it simply by attacking the middle, but, if necessary, take out one of the plasma cannons. Defeating both will just add another two, and you could of defeated the thing itself before you dealt with all these. Aim your fire at your target, and strafe underneath it, according to the plasma shots. Shoot the missiles when possible. Boss 3: War Blimp Difficulty: 3/10 Appearance: A large bomber blimp, with a logo on the front Weapons: Two stages, which it switches between. The first has the blimp firing tough roto-mines, which are hard to defeat with your primitive weapons. The second fires a ray upwards that makes small meteors rain on your head. Destructible Parts: None. Strategy: Since the blimp is so big, this is all about strafing. All you need is constant fire and good dodging skills. For the roto-mines, don't bother shooting them; dodging is a better idea. Try to strafe underneath it since the roto-mines vertically arc towards you. Being in a corner can get you blocked in. The meteors are relativly easy to dodge, and require no real skill other than that. Boss 4: War Wrecker Difficulty: 3/10, 6/10 if you don't know what you're doing. Appearence: Looks like a crane base with a moving tower. A wrecking ball is attached to the top. Weapons: Remember the very first boss from Sonic? Almost an exact copy. A large wrecking ball that is mounted on a tower sways from side to side. Destructable Parts: None. Strategy: Constant fire makes this a game of survival. As the wrecking ball swings down from one side, it has a blind spot just below it. Follow in the 'tail' of the wrecking ball so that it never swings towards you, but instead in front of you or over your head. Once you get the gist of it, it becomes pretty easy. Boss 5: Gorillazilla Difficulty: 5/10 Appearence: Looks like an army version of Donkey Kong, really. Humourusly brutish. Weapons: Fires large missiles over his head, that explode. They fire 6 plasma shots in a hexagonal pattern. He then proceeds to jump the other side of the field, before jumping back/firing more. Destructable Parts: None Strategy: Keep your fire trained on him. While he shoots the missiles, keep your gun on him as you can't stop them exploding. Pay attention to the plasma shots and dodge appropriately. Keep your distance. When he starts jumping, look for a gap in-between his jumps and stroll through to the other side. Boss 6: Eyebot Difficulty: 6/10 Appearence: A large central eye with 6 extendeing tentacles. Weapons: A plasma turret that comes from his 'eye'. When he's finished with this, his outstretching tentacles/stalks will light up randomly, and fire a lethal laser underneath. Destructable Parts: His tentacles can all be destroyed, leaving him with a plasma cannon. Strategy: Make sure to dodge all his plasma fire, and keep your weapons trained on the eye. When he is shooting lasers, pay careful attention to the stalks. If you are underneath a glowing stalk, move, fast. When he is in this mode the eye cannot be damaged. Boss 7: Herd Zeppelin Difficulty: 6/10 Appearence: A massive floating bust of the leader who installed communism in Russia. Weapons: Shoots armoured and unarmoured homing missiles. Can use a bombsweep, flying overhead, constantly dropping bombs. Destructable Parts: None Strategy: When he is using homing missiles, keep as large a distance as possible. Any that your spread shot do not destroy, deal with yourself. Your defence orbs might deal with a few, but don't rely on them too much. When he does his bomb sweep, keep moving towards the other side, through his bombs, firing your gun forwards but slightly in the air, to destroy any bombs above you. Then proceed to mow him down with whatever weapons you have. Boss 8: Mechworm Difficulty: 9/10 Appearence: A hugh mechanical worm-bug with a 3-part segmented tail and a viscious-looking head. Weapons: A headbutt attack when he digs underground and blasts upwards.Boulders fly out when he blasts from the ground. There are several redsections on his body, which produce homing missiles. Can leap outfrom underneath you after a third of his health is gone. Destructable Parts: Body sections that produce homing missiles can be destroyed. Strategy: Pay attention to the ghround rumbling; he will come out of that spot, so move away quickly. When he is above ground, aim for the head. When the head drips below ground, start to shoot the lastmost segment. This will destroy him as fast as possible. Basic dodging skills are also needed Boss 9: H-Bot Difficulty: 8/10 Appearence: A huge robot on a... pogostick? Weapons: Homing missiles and laser eyes. He can alsol and on you and destroy you. Destructable Parts: His arms and missile launchers can be destroyed. When his arms are destroyed, his eyes active and starting shooting lasers. Strategy: This guys is actually pretty easy. Move under him when he jumps upwards. Constantly fire at his head, and the incoming projectiles. The laser eyes are dangerous, though. Stay as close to him as possible so to reduce the y trajectory of the laser, making it ultimately less deadly since it covers less ground. The following bosses are reincarnations of the ones you previously fought, but upgraded. Boss 10: Twinblade Difficulty: 3/10 Extra Changes: A twin-plasma cannon that fires methodically from the center to the edges and back. Boss 11: Battleship Difficulty: 6/10 Extra Changes: The plasma cannons are made even more dangerous, with twice the fire rate. Boss 12: War Blimp Difficulty: 5/10 Extra Changes: Increased duration of the meteor shower, along with a larger number of roto-mines. Boss 13: War Wrecker Difficulty: 7/10 Extra Changes: The wrecking ball, after gaining momentum, now sprays debris when colliding with the ground, too. Boss 14: Gorillazilla Difficulty: 6/10 Extra Changes: He takes two jumps instead of three, giving you one less opportunity to pass under him. Boss 15: Eyebot Difficulty: 7/10 Extra Changes: The laser cannons that shoot from his stalks now fire at double the rate. Boss 16: Herd Zeppelin Difficulty: 7/10 Extra Changes: He now fires two homing missiles instead of one, at a time. Boss 17: Mechworm Difficulty: 10/10 Extra Changes: He now creates more debris, and has a longer tail to shoot missiles with. Boss 18: H-Bot Difficulty: 9/10 Extra Changes: He now fires his laser eyes at twice the rate. Boss 19: 'Secret Weapon' Difficulty: 10/10 Appearence: A large pod coated in steel. Weapons: There are three stages that he switches to upon health damage. 1st: He will fire lasers either straight down, diagonally or in a helix shape. 2nd: You will be bombarded with plasma shots, and the occasional nuke. 3rd: A shower of homing missiles will constantly attack you. Destructable Parts: Well, itself. You can break it's shell off to reveal a new form. Strategy: 1st stage: If you can keep your distance, it's difficult for him to attack you. Try staying at the very edge of the screen, where you rarely get hit. The lasers will eat your entire shield and orbs up in one shot, so make sure you aren't hit. 2nd stage: Make sure to pay attention to the plasma shots and keep your weapons trained on him. You should be positioned directly underneath him, firing upwards, so any nukes he releases you are immediately destroying. 3rd stage: Pretty standard tactics, dodge and destroy the homing missiles, while doing your best to wear his health down. ----- IX: Special Thanks ----- Thanks to Popcap for making the game, Xbox Live for hosting it, and the awesome forumers at Gamefaqs for being there. Oh, and gamefaqs for hosting it ;)