Twisted Metal Black Guide

[Kid Game]

Ok I said there would be guides here on this site. The first guide will be for Twisted Metal Black for Playstation 2. Everyone has probably played this game already. Whoever has the game most likely has all the characters, levels, and movies unlocked already. But I want to put up a guide so here is the first guide on the site. I have the primas official strategy guide for the game and ill use some of the information that they have and put it here. Of course besides the strategies they have I will put up my own strategies as well.

The guide will be complete within a week probably. Ill post different items each day. The order of things will go by the way they are in primas strategy guide.

The first part of the book is the introduction.......

"Welcome to my Twisted Metal Tournament"

I have liberated you and a handful of your fellow psychotic inmates from he shackles of Blackfield Asylum. In exchange for your freedom, you have agreed to compete in the most chaotic and bloodthirsty battle the world has ever known. The prize you are competing for is simple: I will grant the winner any wish his or her heart desires. As for the losers, death shall be their only reward.
Consider this manual as my gift to you. It explains the basic ground rules of the tournament, describes the various battlegrounds I've selected for this year's contest, and details some of the strategies used by past victors. You'll also find patient profiles of the combatants, although I must confess that I have invited some mystery contestants of my own. Study it well, for once the battle has begun there will be no time to stop and thin. Your instinct will take over as you must kill or be killed.
CALYPSO


Next part of the guide- The main menu and the single and multiplayer game modes are described.

[Kid Game]

Single Player Game Modes-

Story Mode- "The games story mode is the heart of twisted metal black. After selecting a vehicle, you'll view a prologue and then battle through eight levels as the storyline unfolds. When you have defeated minion in the fourth level, your character's middle cinema will be unlocked. When you defeat warhawk in the final level, your characters epilogue will be unlocked."

My description- The main part of the game. Play through in order to unlock each characters movies. You can also unlock hidden characters and levels in each stage you battle in except the boss stages.


Challenge Mode- "This is the option to choose for a quick game of Twisted Metal Black. After selecting a vehicle, you'll be able to choose from any of the unlocked arenas. The battle will unfold in that single arena until you are victorious or you have run out of lives."

My Description- Basically a quick battle. Choose your car and level and your opponents and then fight for your life.


Endurance Mode- " This is a test of your skill. After selecting a vehicle and an arena, you'll be given a single life to defeat as many opponents as you can, one at a time. Several multiplayer arenas can be unlocked by destroying enough opponents in this mode, and your high score can be saved to a memory card."

My Description- A mode that can be quick or short. Choose a car and level. You will battle an endless amount of computer opponents until you die. If you play on certain levels anc kill a certain amount of people then you can unlock hidden multiplayer levels.


MULTIPLAYER GAME MODES-

Deathmatch- "Two players can battle each other continuously or as a best of 3, 5, or 7, game series. Three or four players can form teams or engage in a free-for-all battle."

My Description- An everyman for him/her self battle. The battle gos on until someone reaches the kill limit first. Teams can be formed at the options menu before starting the game.

Cooperative Story- "Two players each select a vehicle and then work together to progress through the various arenas as the story unfolds. The players share one set of three lives between themselves."

My Description- A story mode but now two players can team up and play. You still face the sam amount of computer opponents. Also the boss battles namely Minion, are harder as they have more health and more tougher to destroy shields.

Last Man Standing- "Two players select an identical list of cars, alternating their choices, and then select a single arena. When a player's vehicle is destroyed, he or she will take control of the next vehicle on the list. The first player to destroy all of the opponent's vehicles is the winner."

My Description- A two player battle where you choice a list of cars. Each player starts as the same vehicle. As you kill each other you respawn as the next car on the list that you have chosen. Once you kill all your opponents cars then you win.



NEXT PART OF THE GUIDE- The various options, Difficulty, the control lists, sound fx and music volume, brightness and saving settings.

[Kid Game]

OPTIONS

At the options menu, you can change the following twisted metal black settings.

Difficulty- "There are three levels of difficulty: Easy, Medium, and Hard. On the higher levels of difficulty, the computer opponents become more aggressive and players are allowed fewer trips to the repair stations."

Controls- "Select from three differeny control schemes: Standard, Run 'n Gun, or Control Freak. You can change these settings independently for each of the four players."

In each scheme, the directional button or left analog stick is used to move the car forward, reverse, left, and right. The right analog stick is used for gas (push up), brake (push down), and turbo (click in). The action buttons differ as follows:

A. "Classic" control scheme

L1- cycle weapons left
L2- fire weapon
R1- cycle weapons right
R2- fire machine gun
Triangle- rear view
Circle- brake
Square- gas (hit twice for turbo)
X- tight turn

B. "Run 'n Gun" control scheme

L1- rear view
L2- right turn
R1- brake
R2- gas (hit twice for turbo)
Triangle- cycle weapons left
Circle- cycle weapons right
Square- fire machine gun
X- fire weapon

C. "Control Freak" control scheme

L1- cycle weapons left
L2- tight turn
R1- cycle weapons right
R2- brake
Triangle- rear view
Circle- fire weapon
Square- fire machine gun
X- gas (hit twice for turbo)

FX/ Music Volume- Increase of decreases the volume of the sound effects and the background music to your preferred level.

Brightness- If you are having difficulty seeing the level environments and other on-screen items, you can adjust the brightness level accordingly.

Save Settings to memory card (8MB) (for Playstation 2)- After changing the options, you'll want to save your preferred settings to a memory card. If you do not save your changes before turning off the playstation 2, the game will return to the default settings the next time you play it. You will be able to load these settings when you come back to the game after quitting.

Movies- From this theater, you may view the cinema sequences for each of the game's characters. At the start of the game, only the prologue movies for each of the default characters will be available for viewing. As you progress through the story mode, your characters middle and epilogue cinemas will eventually become unlocked. As you find and unlock extra characters, their movies also become available for viewing.

Load Game- This option allows you to continue any previous games that have been saved on a memory card.



NEXT PART OF THE GUIDE- Getting started. Screen explanation and the HUD (Heads Up Display). Also overheating the machine guns.

[Kid Game]

SCREEN EXPLANATION- "In the top left corner is your radar. Learn to take frequent glances at it to warn you of opponents coming from behind. Opponents are represented by flashing dots of various colors, and repair stations are indicated by a small grey cross.

Whenever an opponent is in range, the name of the vehicle will appear above the radar along with the opponent's life bar. The small counter to the left of the name lets you know how many enemies remain.

HEADS-UP DISPLAY (H.U.D.)

All the information you need to know is shown on a H.U.D. on the lower right of the screen. The large square shows you the weapon that is currently selected. A counter above the weapon icon indicates your supply of each particular weapon. Two smaller icons indicate the next weapon that becomes available bt scrolling forward or backward through the inventory (using the L1 or R1 buttons on the default control scheme).

You can switch between two different types of H.U.D.'s by pressing the select button and right on the directional button. The default H.U.D. displays the color icons to represent the weapons in your inventory, but only shows three weapons at a time. The alternative H.U.D. provides a text list of the weapons allowing you to view your entire inventory at once.

Two horizontal indicators, one orange and the other blue, indicate your remaining energy and turbo charge, respectively. Performing energy attacks depletes the energy meter, which will automatically refill itself over a period of time. Using the turbo boost depletes the turbo meter, which can only be refilled by collecting the green turbo pickups.

Your health status is represented by a vertical line to the right side of the secondary weapon icon. When it is full, it will be green. As it decreases, the color changes to yellow and finally to red. When the status bar is entirely empty, your vehicle will be destroyed. Health pick-ups will refill a small portion of your health. Using a recharge pad will refill your health completely.

The small counter at the top of the damage status bar indicates how many vehicles you have in reserve. You begin the game with three lives. When all of your lives have been exhausted, you will be given the opportunity to replay the game. However, all the weapons you collected will be lost and the environments will return to their original appearance.

OVERHEATING THE MACHINE GUNS

Your machine guns will overheat if they are used for a prolonged period of time. The small green light to the left of your life counter will blink red to warn you when this is about to happen. If the light turns red, your machine guns will be temporarily unavailable until they have cooled down.


NEXT PART OF THE GUIDE- The weapon listing and strategies for using each one.

[Kid Game]

You begin each level with a small arsenal of Homing Missiles, Fire Missiles, and special attacks. The special attack is unique to each vehicle, and will recharge itself after a certain amoung of time has passed. Additionally, weapons and items can be earned by driving over the color icons throughout each of the levels. Use this list as your legend when referring to a level map.


HOMING MISSILES- As a trade off for its ability to track enemies, Homing Missiles inflict less damage than other missiles. They can be used on helicopters, airplanes, and any other flying vehicles-wether or not they are combatants.

My Description- One of the most common weapons found. They are pretty much everywheres. They have a great homing ability but because of this they do only a little damage. They are quite popular too.

FIRE MISSILES- Stronger than the homing missiles, fire missiles leave a bright trail and have a sealed-down homing ability.

My Description- They are found everywheres on all levels. They have weak homing power but do more damage when they hit their target.

POWER MISSILES- Power Missiles fire in a straight line without tracking enemies, so you'll have to aim them more carefully. They are the most powerful missiles in your arsenal and can easily destroy small buildings as well as inflict serious damage to vehicles.

My Description- Great weapons of destruction. They are somewhat rare. They have no homing power and go in a straight line. When they hit an enemy they do lots of damage. Best to freeze the enemy first and then hit them with a few of these.

RICOCHET- Unlike other weapons, which detonate upon hitting walls or structures, the ricochet projectiles will bounce off obstacles. It remains in motion for approximately five seconds or until it hits an opponent. Be careful when firing one, as the ricochet does not discriminate and will damage your vehicle as well. Skillfully banking your shots off walls will cause more damage then firing them at an opponent head-on.

My Description- Found in all levels in a couple locations. Not as powerful as most weapons. They fly in straight lines bouncing around for a few seconds and exploding when they hit an enemy. They do mild damage.

GAS CAN- Launches an explosive charge some distance ahead of your vehicle. Pressing the fire button again when the can is in the air will send it straight down to the ground, causing more damage if it hits an opponent directly. The target locator above an enemy will turn red when the gas can is overhead, promptly you to drop it. Not only is the gas can helpful against opponents, but it can also be used on many environmental structures. The gas can may also be used as a bomb. By quickly pressing down, up, down, on the directional button and then the fire button, you will drop the gas can directly behind your vehicle. Pressing the fire button again will detonate it. It will also detonate if a vehicle comes into contact with it. If it remains untouched, it will pick-up to a greater magnitude before exploding.

My Description- A great powerful explosive weapon. Press the fire button once to launch it from your car and twice to make it go to the ground and it will detonate. It does good amounts of damage to enemy vehicles. You can also use it as a bomb and detonate it at will or let it build up power and it will blow up by itself.

ENVIRONMENTAL- In many levels there are unique environmental features that may be triggered through the use of this pick-up. Although you can activate the pick-up anywhere in the level, you'll want to make sure that some opponents are near the environmental hazard. Keep in mind that an environmental attack can strike your vehicle as well.

My Description- An item that is found somewhat rarely. It appears only on certain levels. When activated in the level something starts shooting. It could be an automated rocket turret or a lightning cloud or something else. Each attack does a decent amount of damage to enemy vehicles. Be warned that the environmental attacks can hurt you as well.

TURBO- Refills your turbo power when depleted.

My Description- Found dotted around all the levels. It fills up your turbo meter instantly allowing you to escape from enemies quicker.

MACHINE GUN UPGRADE- Temporarily doubles the firing rate and damage capability of your machine guns.

My Description- Uncommon. Found in almost each level either as a pickup or brought in by a supply copter. Your bullets are bigger and they do more damage and have a higher rate of fire until you run out of the special bullets. Once out your machine gun bullets return to normal.

SKILL BASED PICKUPS- The constantly color-changing icon will give you one of three skill-based weapons. You can only hold one in your inventory at a time. The icon will not re-appear in the level until you use the weapon. If there are several multi-colored icons in the same level, picking up another one will override the skill-based weapon already in your inventory.

My Description- Found in all levels. You will get one of three different weapons each doing good amounts of damage. You can only hold one at a time. The three weapons you could get will be listed later.

HEALTH- Refills a portion of your health meter.

My Description- Common items found in each level. There are always a couple in each stage usually easy to find with a few hidden ones. They give you a small health boost but a little bit is better then nothing. You need these to survive especially if you cant use the repair stations anymore. Be sure to pick these up when your health meter has been damaged.

BLACK CUBE- These well-hidden cubes unlock secret battlegrounds.

My Description- Found only in story mode and only on certain levels. When you get one of these you will unlock a secret level for all multiplayer modes or for some single player modes.

REPAIR STATION- Restores your vehicle's health, but can only be used a limited number of times. It is represented by a + on the radar.

My Description- Usable only in single player modes. When you drive onto one our vehicle is repaired to the maximum health limit. Dont waste these as you can only use them a limited amount of times depending on the difficulty level. Try to use them when you are really damaged and health is in the red.

ZOOMY- Is a barrage of 10 rapid fire missiles that home-in on the enemy. Move your vehicle while firing them to strafe a group of opponents. If you score a hit with all ten, you will be rewarder with a damage bonus.

My Description- One of the skill based pickup weapons. It fires 10 rapid fire missiles that home in on enemy vehicles really quickly. They do lots of damage but if all ten hit the enemy then a damage bonus is awarded.

SATELLITE- Activates a targeting reticle on the ground directly in front of your vehicle. A barrage of missiles is sent into the air, during which time the reticle turns from green to yellow to red. When it reaches red, the missiles will rain down upon the targer. You can bring the missiles down quicker by pressing the fire button again, but the longer they remain in the air, the more damage they will cause.

My Description- A powerful weapon. Press the fire button one to send a bunch of missiles in the air. Press fire again to make the missiles rain down to earth. If you dont press the button again then the missiles automatically come down and do a lot of damage to any vehicle in the targeting reticle.

RETICLE- Displays a large box when selected. Press the fire button to activate it and start the five-second timer counting down. You'll need to keep an opponent within the targeting box as long as possible. It changes color from green to yellow to red, indicating how many missiles will be fired. You must press the fire button to shoot the missiles before the timer reaches zero, or the attack will be lost.

My Description- A powerful or weak weapon. It depends on how long you wait. Pressing fire once to activate the timer. As it counts down to zero press the fire button again at any time during the five second time to launch a bunch of missiles at your opponent. The more there are the more damage done. These can do lots of damage to the enemy cars.



NEXT PART OF THE GUIDE- The energy attacks. How to activate them and what they do. When they are useful and when they aren't.

[Kid Game]

Each vehicle can perform several different "Energy attacks" via a sequence of movements using the direction button. These attacks deplete the car's energy reserve, represented by an orange gauge, and should therefore be used sparingly.


Jump- Cycle weapons left + cycle weapons right (simultaneously) [Default=L1+R1] Causes your vehicle to jump. Used to gain height off ramps and hills, jump over mines, debris, and other low-flying projectiles.

My Description- It lets you jump. Your vehicle only jumps a foot or so and isn't that high. Off of ramps and hills you can get a little extra height to reach those hard to get weapons and powerups. Usint Jump is is rather hard to jump over incoming weapons and mines. It uses up about 25% of the energy gauge with each use.

Freeze- Up, Down, Up.
Shoots a homing freeze burst at an enemy immediately ahead. While frozen, a vehicle is unable to move or launch weapons and is an easier target. The freeze will eventually thaw, but you can break it by rapidly pressing any controller button. Freezing an enemy that is already frozen is a cheap shot, and will result in your own vehicle being frozen instead.

My Description- This is pretty useful. When fired a homing freeze missile is launched ahead. The homing ability is poor and isn't as good as a homing or fire missile so make sure your target is straight ahead in order to hit the target. They are frozen for around 10 seconds or so but sooner if you jump around and press buttons. Don't freeze someone who is already frozen- your vehicle becomes frozen instead. It uses up around 50% of your energy gauge each time.

Invisibility- Left, Left, Down, Down.
Temporarily renders your vehicle nearly invisible, allowing you to escape from an enemy. You can still be hit by weapons fire while invisible, and the effect wears off after a few seconds.

My Description- Somewhat useful. It makes your vehicle invisible to radar and also makes you harder to see. You'll still make some tire tracks so you aren't totally invisible and if you fire any weapons the effect wears off instantly. The same thing happens if you get hit with weapons- you become visible again. It uses around 30% or so energy each use.

Shield- Right, Right, Down, Down.
Temporarily renders your vehicle invincible, preventing damage from enemy weapons. It will not protect you from falling off the sides of buildings (such as the skyscrapers battleground) and cliffs (Snowy Roads battleground), however, and the effect wears off after a few seconds.

My Description- Very Very useful. Probably the most useful skill available. When activated your vehicle glows blue pretty much and you can't take damage for the next 6 or 7 seconds or something like that. Whenever you are low on health or are being ganged up on by other cars always use this if you can. It stops all damage and hopefully gives you time to run off in search of more weapons and health. Uses around 50% energy each use.

Mine- Right, Left, Down.
Drops a blue land mine from the rear of the vehicle. The mine will explode upon impact, and will also detonate after a period of time if no one has come into contact with it.

My Description- A little useful. It drops a small land mine behind you and anyone who runs over it (including you) will take damage. After a minute or so of not being touched they detonate harmlessly. They don't do that much damage but try to set a trap in well traveled areas. Uses around 5% energy with each mine. (Not sure but its either 5 or 10%).

Charge-Up Mine- Right, Left, Down (held for 1 second)
Drops a red land mine from the read of the vehicle. The mine will explode upon impact, causing more damage han the standard mine, and will also detonate after a period of time if it has not been activated first.

My Description- Basically an upgraded land mine that is capable of inflicting more damage then the standard land mine. It also detonates when ran over no matter who drives over it. This too uses up 5% energy (or 10% im not really sure).

Rear-fire weapon- Left, Right, Down + fire. This move does not use up energy.
Fires the selected secondary weapon from the rear of your vehicle. Not all weapons may be discharged in this manner.

My Description- Useful for when you are being chased by other vehicles. Using this fires your current selected weapon backwards. Not every weapon can be fired backwards. Some specials can while others can't.


Next part of the guide- The camera angles and the Rear-View mirror.

[Kid Game]

Camera angles- The camera view van be changed during the game by pressing select and then down on the directional button. There are four different camera positions: immediatly behind the vehicle, further behind the vehicle (default), above and behind the vehicle, and further above the vehicle. In the 3 or 4 player game, only the default camera angle is available.

Rear-View Mirror- In any one-player game, pressing the Triangle button brings up a rear-view mirror. The screen will be split horizontally with the camera on the top half directed behind you, and the camera on the bottom half directed ahead of you. You can also choose a smaller read-view mirror that stays in the top right-hand corner of the screen. To change between the two types of rear-view mirroers, pause the game, and select "Adjust read view" from the pause menu. To remove the rear-view window, press the triangle button a second time.

My Description- Sometimes it's a good idea to look at the rear view mirror. If anyone is following you you'll see them and you can take appropriate action by rear firing at them or turning and fighting or just running away and trying to throw off your pursuers.


Next part of the guide- General strategies. Some general tips and tricks for playing the game.