This game needs a strategy guide

[CalUKGR]

First, I love the game - the whole idea is so leftfield it genuinely seems quite original.

As a newbie (and loving it) I'd appreciate a sort of 'Janitor's Manual' - a guide to how best to deal with each item, problem, etc. A general instruction book on correct cleaning protocol (how to deal with each type of waste, use each item, etc). There must be a most effective clean-up strategy to make the work fun and productive. Such a guide could also contain 'handy hints and tips' (for instance, when my bucket of water is dirty how do I dispose of it?, etc).

Any experienced player care to put a general guide together here (with regular additions/amendments from the community)?

Finally, I think a few 'Doom3' themed levels would be a great addition - DLC, perhaps..?

[Zorlond]

Well, I've got a process that I use that seems to work well enough. If you'd like, read further:

-Start level
- First task, find the equipment. Explore, try not to step in anything if you can. Locate the bucket and bin dispensers, the incinerator, and the misc machine.
- Cleaning begins closest to the incinerator, and goes towards the next closest machine, intending to clear everything between those four machines first.
- The floor is cleared first. Shelves, walls, and tables come after. Incinerate any bin that is full or bucket that is too bloody to clean your mop.
--- Gibs get picked up first and tosse in the bin. Mop only when you can't reach more without stepping in bllod. Mopping can also reveal gibs you didn't notice. Really large gibs go straight into the incinerator without using a bin.
--- Dark areas benefit from a Lantern, which you get from the Misc Machine. Just pick it up and it'll light up. Leave it somewhere dark so you can see what you're doing. They last forever and have infinite supply, so just get new ones to light more areas.
--- Once the floor is clean, get rid of any other wet gibs around. Mop as desire strikes.
--- Only really start to get the dry trash (casings, paper, takeout, etc) once the wet stuff is done.
--- Now restock the first aid kits (from the Misc Machine) and use the welder on the bullet holes. The welder is on the floor somewhere, have to use Hands (2 key) to grab it. Forced to put it down to use something else, which is why you should wait on patching the bullet holes. Be carefull, as firing it too long at any one time can cause a fire, which you'll have to clean up with a mop. Short, controlled bursts. Some holes are stubborn and regenerate if you don't seal them, so focus multiple bursts on them. Feathering the welder just right is a learning experience.
--- Body bags, medical waste boxes, and biohazard containers also go in the incinerator. For my personal preferece, I also burn medical equipment that's just lying around. Who knows what's on that dirty needle or bloody bone saw?
- Area around the machines clear? Good. Pick a room, go repeat the same thing there. Go one room at a time, repeating the above, until you're out of rooms to clear.
- Sometimes the machines spit out body parts. Don't bother cleaning them when they do, let the parts pile up until you've cleaned up the rest of the level.
- Give everything a once-over with the Sniffer (3 key). Left-click for biological, right-click for inorganic trash. You'll almost always find a few scraps of gib or lone shell casings you missed, sometimes a blood stain that wasn't quite washed out. The Sniffer will trigger for buckets and bins, by the way, so leave them outside the room while you're poking around.
- If you're really sure you've got everything, incinerate your last bucket and bin, make sure the incinerator door is shut, and any slippery spots are marked with signs, then go punch out at the wall machine.

[CalUKGR]

Originally posted by Zorlond:

Well, I've got a process that I use that seems to work well enough. If you'd like, read further:

Thanks! Very useful!

So the incinerators dispose of buckets full of dirty water and all large waste containers?

[Les White]

I clean towards the incinerator, honestly. Start in the furthest point, bring a bin and a bucket over, work your way towards it. This cuts down on tracking of gibs and blood from dirty areas to clean areas. Gibs first, trash 2nd, mop (mopping will sometimes push trash you missed around), pick that stuff up again, and then step backwards and repeat.

I end at the incinerator, if at all possible.

[blitzthedragon]

I have found, as of the latest build, that reusing biohazard bins is a fairly effective strategy. Because bin dispenser jams are bigger and messier than slosh-o-matic jams, it is recommended that you conserve bins, and thus should only incinerate them if you absolutely have to. As of Alpha 0.30, I reserve the use of bins for medium-sized viscera (limbs, big chunks of gore, heads, and partial torsos). Once it's full, I carry the bin to the incinerator and manually pull out the chunks and throw them in. Emptying the bin goes quicker than you'd think, provided the chunks are medium-sized. Once the bin is empty, it's back to the killzone to refill it.

Only take large viscera (intact halves of bodies, alien torsos) if you have room and there is no other medium-sized viscera in the vicinity, AND it is at a point furthest away from the furnace. Otherwise, save the intact corpses for last, as it's usually easy to mop around them without sending them flying. Then, once you're ready, you can just carry them by themselves to the furnace.

Now then, what is to be done about the small stuff? Once you've dirtied a bucket, you can fill it with bullet casings, rubbish, and small viscera (intestines and skull fragments). Provided you don't overfill it, the pieces will usually stay still (still might want to walk). If you're worried about spilling, you can dump out the bucket in the furnace before using it to hold small bits. Once your spent bucket is full, just throw the whole thing into the furnace and get a fresh bucket.

You need not worry about conserving buckets, as dealing with bucket jams is usually easy. With practice, you can catch the emerging gore before it drops and take it straight to the furnace.

[JAM]

It's not exactly what you're looking for, but this guide is simply amazing and helps you with almost everything. I read over it the first time I started playing and leanred a bunch. Here's a link: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=246471661

[Smidge204]

+1 to using saturated buckets to carry small stuff.

To help prevent bins from "coming to life," do not mix small, light items (especially paper trash, crisp packets, etc) with heavier gibs, especially skeletal gibs like arms/legs. For some reason these items interact in strange ways which cause physics glitches. If a bin starts to make noises all on its own, get rid of it IMMEDIATELY.

You can upright overturned bins without flinging their contents everywhere by holding a medium sized object and using it to lift the edge of the bin, gently tipping it upright.

Throwing is a good skill to master. It can save you quite a lot of walking.

I keep a clean bucket next to the Slosh-O-Matic. Whenever I return for a clean nucket, I use it to clean the mop... that way I'm always heading back with a clean bucket AND a clean mop, which is one extra mop's worth of saturation. If the Slosh-O-Matic jams, the bucket is a handy place to drop the gib (with skill you can catch the gib before it leaves a stain)

Try to not waste movements - always have something in your hands. Thanks to the new stacking mechanics, you can grab a barrel or crate on your way back from the incinerator so you don't have to walk around gathering them later.

Take your time with the sniffer. Walk slowly (shift by default) and in a zig-zag pattern, as the sniffer takes time to react to nearby mess and it's all too easy to run past something small without detecting it.

[EldaBerry]

Recently they put painted squares on the floor of some of the levels that are important. Green squares are for med-crates and green med waste boxes, yellow is for generic crates and boxes, and light blue for nitrogen crates. For places with the yellow and green squares, place the appropriate items in those squares for bonus points. The only place with the blue squares that I'm aware of is Cryogenesis and that level requires you put those nitrogen cannisters away. Not for bonus. The blue squares seem to not be working properly yet but they are working on it. Until it works right you'll have to burn the nitrogen in Cryogenesis.

The welder isn't just for bullet holes. Use the welder to make big, awkward chunks of bodies smaller and easier to pop in the bin. You can also use it to disolve glass shards or melt things.

[Snorkel]

Originally posted by Chef Vortivask:

It's not exactly what you're looking for, but this guide is simply amazing and helps you with almost everything. I read over it the first time I started playing and leanred a bunch. Here's a link: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=246471661

The guide above tells you a lot of the "how" stuff.

I also have this guide http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=247924363 for the "what" questions :)

[Snorkel]

As for strategy, I like to start by cleaning a path between the bucket dispenser and the furnace. I like to clean body parts up before picking up clean things (like drink cans). I know some people like to pick up all the things and then mop all the things, but personally I think it's more efficient to do a bit of one and then a bit of the other. Try not to walk on blood and gore and clean up what you can reach, then mop up what you can, then pick up more parts...etc.