Comprehensive Guide to Bean Battles

The ultimate guide to Bean Battles!

About

While I'm obviously not all knowing, these are tips coming from someone who was topping most of the leaderboards in game! This guide is made to give insight to newer and fellow beans, looking to expand their knowledge on the games mechanics and playstyles! Basic beginner tips, such as that the Grid killing you with one hit or you can get more ammo by re-collecting the same weapon - won't be covered, but there are definitely pointers to beginner beans!

Updated with each in-game update, so don't forget to check back if we ever get another one!

Gunplay/Weaponry

Easy to learn, hard to master. In Bean Battles, there are two main things you need to know about weaponry: every weapon has a "bloom" mechanic, but most of the time it's quite easy to control by moving your mouse downwards as you fire. Second, close to- if not every weapon holds it's place in the game, you just need to find the ones that suit your playstyle. For simplicity sake, we'll focus on weapons found in the "Competitive" weapon preset, hence it's by far the most balanced/popular + preset used in tournaments.

Close range is specialized by SMG's (Uzi, TM-100) and Shotguns (Pump, Ranger-12).
The Uzi has the fastest firerate in the game but compensates for that by also having the lowest damage output. Compared to the TM-100 however, which features a 100 bullet magazine size, it's much easier to control and reloads a lot quicker, making it a good choice for players who have good tracking-aim and want to take on individual opponents, while TM-100 is better for larger parties.
Both shotguns are pellet based, with the Pump spreading out to 9x pellets and Ranger-12 to 4x. Spreads tighten up significantly when aiming, so it's best to ADS unless your opponents are close to kicking the bucket. When landing all pellets, the Pump Shotgun is by far one the most powerful weapons at close in the game, capable of crippling your enemies with a single well-placed shot! As the name implies, it's pump-action, unlike it's companion Ranger-12 which is automatic. Even though it's spread is more forgiving, it falls behind the Pump with it's average stats, but can still be deadly thanks to it's speed. However, even then it's a much more riskier pick due to the payoff being much more miniscule.

For medium and long range you have the AR's (AS VAL, M16, AK47, KAT) alongside the Revolver pistol and R70 rifle. While not specialized for it, every semi-/automatic rifle can still be viable in close range via hipfire.
The M16 is the only burst-rifle in the game and thanks to that it's also the most forgiving AR of the bunch. It's obvious downside is the delay between shots, making it unviable during close range situations, but a well-shot burst can outdo a sniper at any range. AS VAL is the 2nd in line for being easy to control, it has the smallest damage-per-shot out of the bunch, but is a perfect alternative to the KAT for those who don't have a fast trigger finger. The AK47 on the other hand is the perfect all-rounder, featuring the highest damage-per-shot and being a good choice for all ranges, but it also has the highest recoil.
The Revolver has the highest DPS available, while also being fully accurate at all times. It's accuracy drops heavily while hipfiring, but it has the ability to outplay every other weapon in the game. The R70 is your standard sniper rifle, having the highest single-shot-damage out of all weapons, but still taking 3 shots to kill a untouched bean.

We also can't fail to mention the Laser Bean which is the only one-shot weapon in the game. It compensates for it by having a long, loud and visible wound-up, but especially down range and while hiding the beam, it's the deadliest piece out of the bunch! The Glock that you start out with -while not all-too effective outside from a spawn-brawl- can be changed to Akimbo Glocks by just picking up another off the ground. At the cost of ADS, you get the fastest fire-rate and probably the most intimidating pair of guns in the game.. given you're good at butterfly clicking.

You should be wary of utilities, due to their damage output can exceed any weapon in the game. The Katana can slice and dash onto your fellow beans, chopping away 25/50 health depending on your action, but is outmatched by the Shank, which will 2-shot anyone you come across at point-plank range. Grenades have a incredibly large explosion area (that can be avoided by hiding behind- or inside a object) and Gas Grenades slowly increase in size til reaching their maximum radius, ticking off 3 damage per second from the beans inside - making it a effective item for controlling the map.

Scopes also aren't all about preference, higher-tier scopes reduce accuracy alongside zoom. But while the sniper scope, as an example, has the largest amount of zoom and accuracy out of the bunch, thanks to the game lacking an ADS slider, it can be quite difficult to use. The difference between iron-sights and scopes isn't humongous, however.

As stated before, in the right hands there really isn't a wrong option here. There are also lots of "hidden" strategies you can perform to increase the effectiveness on a number of the guns listed, which will be discussed in detail under Tactics!

You can find a more detailed spreadsheet including all weapon-stats here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1mIMDGmcm-HJKy9HFEhG-cCTnB77uwkPsceBA3n_IqVI
(Sidenote: for whatever reason Steam blocks the link, you can just open it from a separate browser)
- Credit: Poida

Movement

Due to the way the game is programmed and how hitboxes work in combination with player input and items, Bean Battles is an extremely exploitative game, thus arguably more important than knowing how to use guns, is to know how to move properly!

I'm leaving aside everything you get a grip of from your first few minutes with the game -like using your slow decent from jumping to dodge building while strafing mid-air or parkouring between buildings- and instead focusing on the less obvious.:

Something used almost unanimously is silent jumping/running. Pretty self explanatory, makes takes away audio from you creeping up on others, with an added bonus of making you harder to hit. Just comes down to timing your jumps and spamming shift respectively, the latter is better for elevating surfaces that you can't exactly jump on without sacrificing your sneakiness.

Practically every semi-flat surface in the game can be climbed or spidered, such as buildings and containers, you just need face towards a wall and and alternate between pressing "space" and "W", whilst holding "shift"). Stay there, move around, reach the top - all up to you.

While prohibited in tournament play and usually looked down upon when seen in-game, you can squish or wallglitch through almost all solids that either have a gap or another prop/wall close by (creating a corner), like fences, smaller buildings or walls inside bigger ones and you can even get half-way underground like the school bus in Beantown or completely in between containers in Shipment. The thinner the surface and the larger your own hitbox (elevated by your choice of clothing), the easier it gets.

You can also use items for movement, with a whole dedicated item for it being the Katana! When having it fully charged (hold "Q") it makes you dash forward, making it perfect for switching locations fast or jumping to a highround, it can also help with squishing through objects that require a bit of extra movement. It's downside it the loud "hee-yaah" sound effect your character makes while dashing, alerting others of your presence. But while it's the only "official" item for movement, it's far from the only one. Nade Boosting is a powerful combo of positioning, timing and even ping that can shoot you forward like a rocket! That's right, for this one you can't host, with the best ping being around 80ms or above to execute. Position yourself on a ledge or be mid-air, chuck the grenade forward on a slight angle and twist -refer to the gif- as you want to essentially ride on it (that's where ping comes to play) and reap the results.

Just like items, you can use objects to shoot yourself into the air. Car-, Bush- and Tree Boosting are all popular variants of this but it can work just as well with just about anything, like a fridge. The baseline for launching yourself upwards boils down to finding a surface that can you can squish yourself half-way into (but not through), jumping and then running into it -once again, refer to the gif- and for the ones boosting you forward, you want to do the same with the only difference of you facing the direction you're headed towards.

Tactics

Bean Battles ain't your typical BR as it plays more like an arcade shooter with focus is more on racking up kills than being the last one alive. As such, the Grid doesn't really oppose a threat which is why -outside of team games where positioning and spawns are everything- it shouldn't be prioritized until the very end. Even your loadout shouldn't get that much attention as all weapons are viable and available everywhere, instead focus on taking out everyone early, as things get more tense and infinitely more difficult as the play-area shrinks. If we're talking positions, with the help of the Gas Nade almost anyone can be driven out from anywhere, so your safest spot is to constantly be on the move.

General gamesense and map-knowledge & everything in between are sadly things that cannot be taught and just something you'll learn as your hours shoot up, but to make things easier a general rule of thumb is to turn on "bullet impact locations" and turn off "toggle ADS", be unpredictable and think of yourself from an opponents perspective. That out of the way, let's get to some cool stuff you can do with guns!

Wouldn't it be cool if you could could hipfire with ADS accuracy? - probably one of the easiest yet most effective things you can do in combination with movement is the "Yellow secret strat" which quite literally allows you to move around at full speed and shoot with pin-point accuracy. Aim in and shoot at the same time, then quickly stop aiming and keep shooting. This can only be done with automatic weapons however, but it's impossible to deny how incredibly strong it is.

The Laser Bean can also be made infinitely more useful by making it silent! Similarly to the former, start the wound-up, quickly let go and restart it. While you still need to hide the beam until the last second to truly catch others off-guard, removing the very audible sound helps. Just be wary that others can still predict the shot as you do make a noise on the initial wound-up for a second.

Every item and weapon -including cars- can be duplicated if wanted, all though just like wall-glitching it's prohibited in official tournaments. It's simple really, just just need a fellow bean to grab the same item as you are at the same time, after which you'll both get it if done successfully. Weirdly enough, sometimes it gives you random items, like a Medkit when duping Gas Grenades. You can also dupe ammo by just spamming a weapon on the ground while having a separate one equipped.

Update (1.15/1.16)

The 3 main additions to the 1.15 Update gameplay wise were: the KAT Semi-Automatic Assault Rifle, a Buff to the M16 and a Nerf to the AK-47.

The KAT, to put it simply, is a new Assault-Rifle that in theory, awards a fast trigger-finger and precision, but sadly is non-viable AR currently and that's for a multiple reasons. First and foremost it has the lowest damage output out of all the AR's which goes completely against what a semi-auto is by nature, add the fact that it has a pretty high recoil compared to other weapons in it's class such as the AS VAL and most AR's in the game already don't have a fire-rate cap, so you're basically sacrificing the ability to spray for no reason. The whole feel of the weapon is similar to the Glock in most ways. Not good..

On the other end of the spectrum, the M16 - an already great rifle, got a damage increase from 12 -> 13 per shot, meaning it went from 36 -> 39 damage per burst. That makes the M16 one of the best weapons and the best AR in the game easily. Burst-rifles are typically low damage and compensate for it with the ability to hit multiple shots in high speeds, so I don't really understand this change. But as of now, It's more than viable and highly recommended to pick up instead of any other AR available.

The AK-47 also got a slight damage decrease from 16 -> 15 - giving more power towards the M16! As it currently stands, it's still a viable weapon and more recommended for single tapping than the KAT.

Additionally, Competitive weapon preset (ex-BBCL) got changed up. Stuff like the silencers got added, while the availability of the TM-100 as an example got reduced, but the most controversial addition is the Rocket Boots. Personally, I don't see that as a good addition counting that it's a casual item and put into a preset most likely used in the future Tournaments - which also got added with the update!

Update 1.15/1.16(.1)

On September 6th 2019, a small patch got released that removed Rocket Boots from Competitive and increased the damage of the KAT from 12 -> 13. This was done in preparation for the first Solo Saturdays tournament taking place on Sept. 7.

This does make the KAT a somewhat viable weapon now, but not by much. It's low damage doesn't excuse the removal of another fire-mode, but at least now it's something I'd consider picking up. Removal of the Rocket Boots from Competitive is great; ready for the tournament!

Update (1.17)

The main point of this update was to introduce some holiday spirit into the game with new festive cosmetics, (Including "Pug in a Tub's Pug", the prize for the Solo Saturday's Tournament winner) alongside with bug fixes and tweaks with the Rocket Launcher!

The Rocket Launcher got slightly nerfed, namely it's speed was reduced from 30 -> 25. This should give players more time to move away from rockets, in case that was a problem before! I don't see this as a huge setback to the Rocket Launcher however, especially in close quarters combat. The Christmas Tree cosmetic has actually created a new problem - namely clipping through thin walls, like containers in Shipment. I'm assuming this is caused due to it's larger size or, in other words, hitbox. It's similar to how you can squish yourself into the haystack in Campout to enter the barn, except now you are carrying the haystack with yourself.

Hopefully with the start of 2020, this will be patched out in a coming update and we'll get the long-awaited Bow introduced alongside it!

Update (2.00)

The biggest update the game has got to date, which delivered us the infamous Beantown map, Riot Shield, replaced the smoke grenade with the Gas as well as added the ability to drop weapons, ping, made scopes actually have a higher accuracy value than iron sights, reworked the car as well as crush bugs add many QoL changes, like fixing the Christmas tree from the last update.. the hype around this was big, as before a group of loyal players were invited to playtest the update (myself included) we hadn't heard anything since the holidays. There was even a trailer released for it.

I remember the scope-accuracy change was controversial, as it changed them from being just straight-up preference. Funny enough it made the sniper scope viable, players like RespectMidgets straight up made themselves known for using it cross-map on a TM100. The Riot Shield was also initially added to the Competitive Preset, but it wouldn't stay there for long as future patches would remove it soon after.

In general the big content dump mixed with the community starting a first of many unofficial tournament leagues "RBBL" shortly before -which would end up running for multiple seasons- truly started the games resurgence and gave it new life for players old and new, which would only grow in the following months.

Updates (2.01-2.06)

The headline for this timeline is Bean Battles Championship Series or BCS - the third ever official tournament held for the game -and second to ever conclude- with a price pool of a whopping $1500 alongside titles and bragging rights. The tournament was once again hyped up via a trailer and streamed & casted by "Bunsacks". It was split up to three separate events:

The BCS Summer Opener which was won by "Spongeboiz" consisting of gucciman, lascur, baxtor and garfband

The BCS Freedom Classic won by "YELLOW" consisting of chimi, Pug in a Tub, flarfo and d3Nk (me lol)

..and BCS Summer Finals - the big one - which we also brought home, crowning team "YELLOW" as BCS SUMMER CHAMPIONS!

Besides hotfixes, in preparation participants and players were introduced to tags up to 4 letters in size, "Tournament Matches" which were completely hidden from the match listings and only accessible via code, which also had special perms like remembering a disconnected players stats and the ability to pause matches, relocating grids that.. well.. reallocate after a certain amount of time once it's reached it's final form as well as the Akimbo Glocks right in time for Freedom Classic!

What a time it was to play the game, this was the peak of Bean Battles. By far the most action the game has ever gotten, majority of the exploits and strats used today as well as tons of icons who formed and resurged came from that time. The excitement from the weeks leading up to it, the practice sessions and scrims, communicating with everyone in the community and getting much closer with one-another cause of it and of course the tournament itself.. some of the fondest memories one can have. Coming back twice and winning 3-1 both times during finals was thrilling to say the least.

Update (2.08? - Community Efforts)

Sadly enough, while all that was previously mentioned took took place during the summer of 2020, it was the last the public got to hear of anything new in the game. Due to some "inside drama" in development, WIPs of an "Area 51" map as well as some cosmetic items and weapons are known to exist but will likely never surface.

In August there was a now-unplayable Playtester Build of the 2.08 Patch which would've added two new gamemodes - Deathmatch and CTF - into the roster. This was controversial, as it almost completely transforms Bean Battles into something completely different and would've likely mixed up a lot on the leaderboards.. all though much can't really be said about it now, as they're better left unchecked nowadays anyway. On top of that the patch was very early into development, so we never really got to try a more polished version of these gamemodes.

In the meantime the community has taken over, with most notably flarfo's implementation of "big/small beans", first-person-mode and especially custom maps - which for you can find his tutorials here. With these, us -the players- have the freedom to not only mess around with and create new content that's not officially in the game but to experience it in an entirely different way. These tools have single-handedly given control of the game over to the public and one can't appreciate his work enough.

We can't also fail to mention the countless tournaments which have taken place ever since, like the numerous ones hosted by CBTL, as well as a number of one-offs like the "Spooktober Grand Slam" and various others hosted by content creators. While players are still keeping the game alive on YouTube and other platforms, we're now left waiting for anything official for over 600 days. Hopefully we'll finally get that Bow once time comes for Duck to return!

Update 2.08!!!!

After over two and a half years on hiatus, we've received a "hotfix" that promises more to come! Reading the patch notes and reminiscing of the old times fills you with determination.. and hope for a bright future.

Additionally

Thank you for going through my guide, hope you found any of this insight helpful. Also, make sure to use the d3Nkmess Community Hoodie while playing and rate the guide!

Join up on the Official Bean Battles Discord Server below:
https://discord.gg/cK2rCdw

[baxtor]

this games gotta make a comeback

[likeabossman1023]

ah

[Corey From TacToys]

how do you respawn quicker when everyone dies?

[raposaschmidt]

I buyed the game an few days earlier and now im playing it, thanks for the guide, i was wanting to know more about the exploits after i saw an youtube video mentioning those.

[xXFent_Dealer447Xx]

I LOVE YOU D3NK!!!!

[d3Nk]

"2"

[Babylon]

how do you switch to your secondary gun?

[immersel.]

also to date i am currently the best and most feared player, i can turn any team into a pro team just by my presence. tw is a shitter

[d3Nk]

I finally did it. It's up-to-date. I can rest now.

[Mason Troy Adams]

gogo