Deathmatch at the airport?

I wonder why so many deathmatches take place at the airport.

Is it the easy access to helicopters that is so attractive to game leaders? Yet they're hard to fly, and without a lot of skill you'll probably just be blasted from the sky with a rocket or even an assault or sniper rifle.

I've played so many deathmatches there I think it's becoming a cliche.

Recently I was on the arm of the main building with the assault rifle and sniper. This guy tried to take me down time after time using rockets, helicopters, and stealth. He kept failing. So he got more and more frustrated - which you could see in his play - and tries to kick me. Afterwards he sent me a message saying "you never move. It's not fair play".

Maybe. But if he had the skill he could have knocked me off my perch - as many players have before.

When someone wants to kick you, be careful if there are only a few players left - if enough people agree you're out of the game. One strategy is to target only the kicker. That way the other players won't have cause to copy him.

GTA IV deathmatch hints and tips

The following is a guide for novice and learning players.


Strategy

Being brought up on the Hitman games, I prefer a stealthy kind of play. I get satisfaction from being in the top three kills and the bottom three deaths. I see many players who always run into the centre of the action trying to kill as many people as quickly as possible. The ones with the fastest fingers go to the top of the results board but pay the price of a considerable number of deaths.


Vehicles

When auto-aim is enabled don’t attempt drive-bys. It is much, much easier for a pedestrian gunman to kill a driver than the other way around. If you need to use a car to reach your target, park it around a corner and get out.


Cover

Using cover is an integral part of stealth strategy.

Don’t use GTA 4’s auto-cover system. It’s fine for dealing with AIs in the single-player game but is much too awkward for multiplayer. Instead, position yourself behind a wall, pillar, tree or other projection between you and your target. Crouch and move close to the side. Move the camera around so you can see them coming. If auto-aim is on, try to lock on as soon as possible and it will track their movements. You can then quickly move out and fire before they’ve had a chance to aim at you.

Whatever you do, don’t just run down the middle of streets hoping you’ll pass by unnoticed. You won’t.


Better weapons

There are two types of sniper rifle, assault rifle, shotgun, SMG and pistol – one weaker and one stronger. One type of weapon will have a greater range, impact, or re-load speed than the other.

It is worth seeking out the stronger version of a particular weapon. You usually respawn with the weaker version (except when weapons are set to Strong). If you take the time to find the better one you’ll have another advantage over those who just keep dying and jumping into the action.

Learn to recognise the stronger version of each type: the reloading combat sniper rifle has a different telescopic sight and a more pronounced hand grip; the more powerful carbine assault rifle has a short, straight magazine (not a longer, curved one); the SMG is stronger than the T-shaped micro-SMG; and the (considerably) better combat pistol has a longer barrel. Shotguns are hard to tell apart, but the combat type allows for more rapid shooting.

In a game set to All Weapons you start off with a relatively weak pistol. It is worth taking the time to find a good assault rifle, since its range and power are far better.


Armour

Armour is good, but it won’t protect you from headshots. It’s worth taking a small detour for but long treks looking for armour can become tiresome and time-consuming, and there’s a demoralising effect when a headshot negates all your effort.


Exploit the terrain

Good players utilise the landscape. They play in three dimensions, not two, using height when appropriate. Ledges, fire escapes, side passages, rocks, grit-boxes, walls, stairways, and other features will help you to surprise an opponent once you have learned to use them effectively. Don’t overuse this idea, however, and don’t get a false sense of invulnerability from being higher than your opponent. The advantage of height in GTA 4 is small, and depends considerably on the novelty and surprise value of your position.


Learn from others

When you first start playing deathmatches you’ll be killed time after time. You’ll swear some players are cheating. Some are, but very few. What’s actually happening is that they’ve learned to play the game, to use cover, to maximise auto-aim effectiveness, to use the right kind of weapon, and so on.

Players often leave a game early because they feel outmatched or they get fed up of being killed. They’re missing out on vital learning experience. Watch the better players and copy their tricks. Don’t worry about being killed so often. With patience you will gradually turn it around.


Find the sweet spot

In many locations there’s a sweet spot; a place you can stay in relative safety and pick off targets. This is most often on ground level near (but not right next to) a respawning point. It becomes all the sweeter if there is armour or a health pack nearby. It will work until the other players get wise and come for you. Don’t spend time hunting for the perfect place – rather, look out for the opportunity to arise while in the course of your normal play.


Watch out for snipers

If a player’s blip shows that they’re at a higher elevation and they stop moving they have probably taken a sniper rifle. There is an exquisite pleasure in quietly waiting atop a rooftop, scanning the scene through a sniper scope, and lightning-bolting the unwary. However, there’s an equal pleasure in demolishing sniper positions. At ground level you usually have the advantage of cover, which you can use to stealthily reach the sniper’s position. Take your time. He’s invested time and effort getting where he is. You should do the same in taking him down. Losing his position will probably be demoralising for him, and often he will move on to a different strategy.


Watch out for cheaters

It’s well known that there are several cheats based on getting into closed buildings or under ground level. They can shoot out but no one can shoot in. I am absolutely opposed to cheating in deathmatches. It’s fine for Free Mode, but it appears cowardly and crude here.

If you know the cheat yourself you can attempt to get in and deal with the cheater, but it’s often just better for the other gamers to avoid him and leave him hanging around uselessly in his little fox-hole.

There are also cheats involving pressing the PS button and so on (players will appear to flicker, change position instantaneously, etc). None of these are particularly effective as cheats.


Keep an eye on the blips

When you’re hunting down a target, keep an eye on the blips coming up behind you. Many times I see two players in a tense stand-off only to be picked off by a sneaking opportunist. It’s obvious that you should try to be that opportunist!

With practice you will learn how to correlate the 2D map with the 3D view of your surroundings so you’ll know which side road or passageway your opponents are coming from.


Is it working?

Most of your learning will happen subconsciously. You’ll start to feel ‘luckier’ in matches. Things will start going your way. What’s actually happening is that you’re developing the skills you need to gain advantage. You’re becoming the kind of player you used to fear.


And finally ... the auto-aim tilt and the offset sniper

Okay, everyone probably already knows that with auto-aim, tilting the angle of firing upwards slightly gets a headshot.

They probably also know that when you’re sniping a moving target you should aim in front of the movement because of the bullet travel time. If you miss, look out for the flash of the bullet hitting the ground and you can gauge the offset needed.

Next

I'll post more tactics and tips - when I learn them. I'm currently on the cusp of level 8 and I'm still learning. I think it's being on the learning curve that keeps me interested. I'd like to hear any good tips that you may have too, so feel free to share them.

Multiplayer glitches and annoyances

1. A game's just finished and you're waiting for the little ticks to appear in the boxes but one player doesn't press ready. Who knows when he'll be back? The only way out of this screen is to leave multiplayer altogether so you have to wait for loading twice to get back to another game.

2. You jump into a GTA 4 race but it's already started and all you can do is 'spectate'. Not much fun, especially when the players show no intention of racing and it turns into an endless deathmatch!

Other glitches I've encountered: all players have ticked ready and the game doesn't start, or the countdown sticks at 1. And why on earth don't players realise when a game leader just isn't there? He gets a couple of kicks but there's no response. The player table fills up and it looks like it would have been a good game, but then people lose patience and leave.

I was getting a lot of disconnections recently and it was getting worse. Last night every game I started immediately threw me off, and even connecting back to the game provider was 'slow'. The game advised me to check my connection, so I did (PS3, wireless broadband). The problem could be my modem / router thingy. I tried "turning it off and on again". This did the trick and connection has been great since.

Cheating in GTA 4 deathmatches

When I started playing deathmatches certain other players would obliterate me with bullets no matter how stealthily I tried to approach. I'd sneak around buildings, boxes and barricades but they'd be there, perfectly aimed to decapitate me as soon as I broke cover.

I thought they were cheating somehow, probably on a PC. I played on in the hope that such shenanigans weren't too widespread and I've progressed to level 6. Learning how to use auto-aim is a big part of achieving success. Furthermore, I think there might be some sort of duelling equation which decides who's going to win a shoot out, with player ranking factored heavily in the formula. This means a high-ranked player will always tend to beat a lower-ranked player.

The moral of this is clear - persevere; build your rank and you'll start winning. Only problem is people will think you're cheating.

Ingredients of a good Deathmatch

I find the best deathmatches have between 5 and 10 players. Too many and the chances of someone respawning next to your clever hiding place become too great.

Auto-aim or not? I like auto-aim. I'm good at using it to my advantage. I understand that it diminishes the skill factor and I respect those who refuse to play with it. Without doubt it changes the entire character of the game. When it's off I play differently - searching for sniper rifles and high places. Cars and bikes are safer too.

Respawn distance is the key to stopping the game descending into farce. I recently learned this when I set a game in the airport with Near respawning and a 1 second respawn time. Players were appearing, killing, and being killed constantly. After 10 minutes of this our scores were high but I'm sure everyone was getting as bored as I was. Embarrassing, as I had been thinking about what makes a good match and had been critical of others' choices.

The odd off-the-wall game, for example with only 'projectile' weapons (which include Molotov cocktails and grenades?!), can be fun. If you try setting this up you'll be kicked a bit - some players can't cope with anything other than guns. I recently had such a game at the airport that made me laugh out loud as players drove chaotically around the runway trying to mow down the pedestrians who were lobbing firebombs at them, with helicopters divebombing everybody.

Revenge requires patience

You know those players who hang around GTA Race respawn checkpoints and kill you, time after time? Generally speaking they aren't very good racers; nor are they particularly good shooters. They like easy, unarmed targets.

Two of them were working together on a Round The Block race and I got caught. I must have died 30 times, but I hung in there until the race finished. Everyone else left the group as soon as it finished so I was left with these two. They started another race on the same track, and, inevitably, I saw their blips stop on the map, waiting for me to come around again.

This time I was prepared, so I got out of the car a little way before them and waited behind a wall.

Now, they say auto-aim isn't for real men but everyone has the same advantage - as long as they know how to use it. The knack is seeing your opponent before they see you. Hide behind a wall and move the camera so you can see above it or around it. As soon as you spot your opponent, lock on the aim and it will follow them even though they're now blocked by the wall. As soon as they come around be fast on the trigger and you'll blast them (with the requisite slight upward tilt of the joystick to get a headshot, of course).

So this is how I got my revenge. After a couple of kills they gave up and started shooting each other, leaving me to win the race, and a cool $1200.