How to defeat helicopters in TBOGT Free Mode

I've been waging a free mode war against Heli Whores, Buzzard Benders, whatever you want to call them. The people who think hopping in a chopper makes them the man.

In my previous blog entries I criticised The Ballad of Gay Tony for the unbalanced weaponry and, in particular, the excessive power of the Buzzard helicopters. However, I stuck with the game and now I can spend several happy hours blasting those birds out of the sky.

There are many free mode games run with friendly fire OFF. In these games helicopters can be made about as troublesome as a gnat. You just need a few high buildings and an explosive shotgun.

The explosive shotgun is the king of weapons in TBOGT. The explosive sniper rifle is good when your target is very distant but only a minority of shots seem to hit, even when one's aiming seems to be right. The shotgun has a shorter range but it's quick-firing and you can crunch the tail off a Buzzard with just a few well-aimed shots.

There are two shotguns in TBOGT and they're very hard to tell apart. You need the one that gives you 10 rounds to begin with. The 20 round version doesn't have the power needed. Whenever you can, pick up one of these babies. If possible, hang around the respawn point until you have at least 50 rounds.

Put on body armour. Keep your health and armour topped up even when you've only lost a fraction. Fractions add up to whole numbers!

Ideally, find a place which is covered on three sides with high buildings. In Algonquin this is easy; there are hundreds of good locations. The heli is forced to fly low and come within your window of fire. Most noobs think they're immortal in a chopper, so they'll take the bait. Practice aiming and following the chopper. Aim just below the rotor blades. If the copter is side on or you have an underside view all the better; you'll have a big target and the shots will do real damage.

If you can, goad your opponent into firing rockets while the chopper is too close to the ground or a building and he'll blow himself up, surely a most humiliating experience for him. If you gauge the pilot's skill is not great, venture out of your hiding place. It will enrage him even more when he can't get you in open view.

After a few failed helicopter assaults most of these poor wretches will just leave the game.

If friendly fire is ON things are tougher. Practice, thinking, and more practice are needed. I took down a Buzzard at the airport yesterday with a pistol. The little prick went after me as soon as I spawned so I had no chance to get a good weapon. My solution was to run under one of the moving planes on the runway for cover, varying my position under the aircraft. My opponent made the mistake of getting too low and I unloaded a magazine in his skull. The bonus: you get the helicopter and the associated rocket launcher.

If strict adherence to the laws of physics or gaming ettiquete aren't required there is a peach of a glitch at the airport. The glass building which contains the stairway to the railway station is almost invulnerable to helicopter attack - but YOU CAN SHOOT OUT THROUGH THE GLASS! I couldn't believe it when I discovered this. If auto aim is ON select the assault rifle and if the pilot gets too close you can shoot him through the windows. ANYTHING will go through those windows: rockets, sticky bombs, sniper shots. Once you get used to looking through the darkened glass you'll wreck those whirlybirds.

I am looking for rooftops that can be used as vantage points for attacking helicopters. The requirements are thus: Higher buildings on at least one side - behind you. Sloping roof in front of you. This forms a protective ledge, shielding you from rockets. You run up and take a shot, then duck back down.

In summary, you should use psychology against Heli Whores... use their overconfidence to bring them close enough to attack and to force them into making mistakes. This will demoralise them.

I'm hoping that if enough of us learn how to repel these idiots that the phenomenon of the Heli Whore will diminish, if not disappear.

Helicopter Bores or Buzzard Benders?

The Ballad of Gay Tony: good storyline and single player game, lousy multiplayer experience.

One problem is that the weapons are not balanced as they were in GTA 4 or TLATD. Some weapons are too powerful, others are not powerful enough.

The biggest problem is the helicopters. They're too powerful, and they allow nasty little cretins to fly around blowing the shit out of people on the ground. It's hard, very hard, to defend against the helicopter bores.

Should we call them Buzzard Benders? Chopper cretins? Whirlybird wankers? Do you have any better suggestions?

For Buzzard Benders, Liberty City is Francis International Airport. They like people on the ground to have ineffectual weapons so they can fly around, blowing them up. This is all they do. Put them in a deathmatch with weapons and they'd crap their Y-fronts. Sit them in a two-seater rocket-equipped flying machine and they're as happy as a pervert in a rubber factory.

What's the solution? There are certain places that even these souped-up choppers can't reach. Example: the stairway to the train station at the airport. They'll try and try but they won't get through those amazing bulletproof glass walls. In their desperation they may get too close and make a mistake, and you can empty a magazine into their faces while they try to regain control.

An alternative is the airport multistorey car park. You need a sniper rifle. The only way they can shoot in is to fly at the level you're at, and then they're vulnerable. Your safety level here depends on the skill of the pilot. Good flyers can still shoot you, so be careful. If they fly away run to the next level up or down (but not the top, obviously). The other day a guy tried to get me by flying under the ground but, predicting this, I'd run up to level 2 while he was glitching.

If you're in Algonquin there are many high buildings with alleys that helicopters will struggle to reach. You can score the odd potshot as they come into view. Hit them enough and they'll burn like the scum they are.

So TBOGT multiplayer ... it's good for sharpening up your defence skills against helicopters. I do not like the cramped indoor deathmatches. There seems to be no skill involved, just the luck of where you respawn. Still, I'm finding it oddly addictive as I work out strategies against the Buzzard Benders.

A Long and Drawn out Death

The other night I foolishly entered a $10000 deathmatch. Even more foolishly, it was on Happiness Island, that dullest of venues. As usually happens with the prospect of 100 kills for a win, most of the players soon left the game. I was leading so I decided to stay.

Eventually there was just me and one other player. I decided to try to wear him down but he was annoyingly good at first and he caught me out a couple of times with the rocket launcher. With his success, however, came predictability; he was going for the rocket every time. I found places that would confound a rocket (around the buildings on the south of the island) and the scoreboard started going my way. I was $1500 in the lead. When this increased to about $2000 my opponent appeared to stop trying to kill me and started hiding instead.

I expected him to leave the game but he didn't. He swam off the island onto the Algonquin mainland. I had no intention of chasing him so I stayed on Happiness just exploring and looking for effective cover. Of course I was keeping my eye on the map and saw him edging towards the helicopters at the south east of Algonquin.

I waited for him just outside the entrance to the Statue of Liberty - sorry, Happiness. He flew over. Auto aim was on so I easily killed him through the window of his helicopter when he tilted it to fire at me. He respawned some way away and was off the island again. This time he swam to some distant rocks. Through my sniper sight I could see he'd glitched it: his body was repeatedly falling in the same place. It took about 8 shots of the sniper to get him.

Next, he took a boat and came back with another helicopter. I went back to the statue entrance. He took the copter out of sight above the statue walls and I crept out. He'd become very predictable to me and I knew what he was going to do - rev the helicopter to make me think he was flying jump out and shoot me over the wall. Guess what he did. I blew his head off before he could take aim.

Slowly, the gap between our scores increased. Then came a period when we kept respawning next to each other. This brought me quickly up to $9800 but then the battery went in my PS3 controller. He got me while I was plugging in and the respawning suddenly became distant again. The thought of a quick ending was gone.

Three hours had passed since I'd started the game. It was nearly 4:30am (real time). I had to get up for work at 6:45am. I was determined not to let him drag it out any further so I chased him down before he could get off the island and the game was over.

Who was the idiot? Him, for prolonging the game or me for going along with it? The urge to teach him a lesson was too strong, and I'm a known compulsive/obsessive. The $10K was also guaranteed to take me within $200000 of level 9.

But I know that, unless I have several hours to spare, I'll never play another $10000 deathmatch and will stick to timed games instead.

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.