Achievement Guide - Call of Juarez: Gunslinger

A guide detailing the Steam achievements available in Call of Juarez: Gunslinger, their completion requirements, as well as instructions on how to best obtain them.

Preface

Call of Juarez: Gunslinger is the latest in the Call of Juarez franchise by developer Techland, a series of FPS games noted for its Old West theme. Gunslinger is largely unrelated to the rest of the series' games, aside for a few passing references - it instead focuses on Silas Greaves, the titular gunslinger and a famous bounty hunter in the game's universe.

Noted for its clever use of storytelling and enjoyable shooting mechanics, Gunslinger was a pleasant surprise on release - created on a limited budget and marketed at a lower price range than its contemporaries, it nonetheless managed to review well and sell adequately enough to prove that game releases don't need bloated budgets or long development cycles to be successful.

Achievement-wise, this game depends a lot on the player's reflexes and general ability with FPS games; while the Story mode is doable on all three difficulties without much hassle (owing its ease mostly to a very forgiving checkpoint system), both the Arcade and Duel modes depend on the player to maintain a consistent pace of kills and a good sense of timing, respectively.

This guide is organized by game mode; split into Story, Arcade/Duel and Miscellaneous categories, each achievement also notes the best level to attempt them in, as well as various tips to reduce their difficulty. The "Optimum Path" section details the most efficient way to complete all of the game's achievements, while also including general tips for Arcade and Duel modes.

Finally, a minor warning; while the game's plot is fairly basic, a few spoilers are necessary in order to describe certain achievements - therefore, read at your own discretion.

Optimum Path

The game requires a minimum of two playthroughs in order to earn all of the Story achievements, as well as a number of hours into Arcade and Duel mode levels.

First Playthrough - Normal or Hard Difficulty

Your first playthrough should focus on getting used to the controls; especially how combo chains work, how they can be extended by shooting at various objects (such as explosive barrels, pumpkins, destructible scenery and so on) and how to best use Concentration to locate enemies and objects.

On this playthrough, you should also decide on which playstyle best suits you - the Ranger Skill tree is best suited for long-range playstyles, while the Trapper and Gunslinger ones are more suited to close- and mid-range, respectively. Picking the Gunslinger: Concentrated and Trapper: Waste Not skills early on will help you accumulate XP faster (as they allow for longer combo chains and higher multipliers), while the Trapper: Crusader's Armor and Ranger: Eagle Eye skills allow for more survivability and versatility in combat, respectively.

If possible, collect as many Nuggets of Truth as you can in this playthrough, since on True West difficulty you'll need all the XP you can get in order to boost your survivability.

At the end of this playthrough, you should have reached at least level 28; at lower levels, you might want to replay a few missions in New Game Plus mode before starting on True West difficulty.

Note that it is best to choose the "Revenge" ending; the final duel is much more manageable on Normal/Hard than on True West difficulty.

Second Playthrough - True West DIfficulty

As soon as you feel ready to tackle True West difficulty, start a new game via the New Game Plus option (as it carries over your XP and unlocks from your current save file). On this playthrough, your main concern is to stay alive for long enough - the enemies hit harder, have more life and aim better than their Normal and Hard counterparts.

The biggest issue with True West, though, is the lack of most UI elements. Crosshairs, the "Sense of Death" and Concentration meters and ammo counters are all hidden on this difficulty, making it extremely hard to accurately gauge your supply levels. In this mode, akimbo combinations (six-shooters, quick-shooters, sawed-off shotguns and rangers) lose much of their value, as the player has to rely exclusively on ironsight aiming. Note that, during duels, the player's Concentration and Speed counters are not visible either.

This time you should choose the "Redemption" ending, so as to avoid the game's final duel sequence.

Wrapping Up - Assorted Achievements and Arcade/Duel Modes

Once you're done with True West, you should be fairly close (or even done) with the skill system - using New Game Plus, play a few more levels on Normal/Hard to reach 600,000 XP, wrapping up any of the miscellaneous achievements you might have missed while doing so.

If you're still missing Nuggets at this point, feel free to use Recollections mode to collect them; this mode disables XP gain, but provides a detailed listing of each level's collectibles for easier completion.

Arcade Mode

On this mode, large combo chains are key to achieving three star scores. Play each level a couple times, noting enemy placements as well as any destructible object that can be used to extend your combo chain - for the most part, the levels are fairly linear (with notable exceptions the "Gold Rush" and "Iron Springs" maps), so it's mostly a matter of timing your Concentration usage correctly (using it while dashing from one group of enemies to the next or while reloading) and having fast/accurate aim to keep the chain going.

Regarding scores - always attempt one or more of the following conditions whenever possible, to ensure as high a score as possible:

* Headshot - Self-explanatory
* Runner - Killing an enemy who's running
* Pair - Killing two enemies with one shot (easiest to do with Rifle)
* Wanted - Killing Shotgunners, Shielded bandits or Dynamite throwers
* Boom! - Killing enemies with exploding barrels or thrown sticks of dynamite
* Accident - Killing enemies with environmental hazards (such as logs in the "Iron Springs" mission)
* Eyeblink - Killing an enemy shortly after they come within your field of vision
* Piercing - Killing an enemy with a bullet that penetrated their cover

Note that these conditions can also be stacked, thus increasing your score even further.

Duel Mode

In this mode the player must fight a series of 15 duels, most of which appear in the Story mode as well, while having a limited amount of retries (six in total) in order to complete them all. Note that only one achievement is exclusively dependent on Duel mode ("Honor Intact"), which requires that all duels are fought "honorably" - waiting until your opponent reaches for his gun before drawing your own.

Make sure your Speed and Concentration reach 80% and above as soon as possible; anything lower and you run the risk of not being able to draw or aim on time and failing the duel. See the "Honor Intact" achievement entry for more info on this mode.

Story Mode Achievements

You can unlock these achievements by playing the game's Story Mode on the various difficulty settings (see Optimum Path for the most efficient way to earn them). Story-based achievements are listed in the order they are unlocked.

This Time for Real
Give it to them straight about your meeting with Pat Garrett.


Level: Once Upon a Time in Stinking Springs
Story-based, can't be missed. You should get this achievement as soon as the game's first duel concludes.


There's More to It
Find and kill Johnny Ringo.


Level: Gunfight at the Sawmill
Story-based, can't be missed. Once the boss fight versus Curly Bill concludes, you should be having a duel with Johnny Ringo - winning the duel will unlock this achievement.


Staying Afloat
Discover a shipwreck in the Missouri swamps.


Level: Bounty Hunter Is Still My Name
Story-based, can't be missed. Awarded for discovering the derelict steamer at the end of the level.


Righteous
Find and kill Jim Reed.


Level: Without Forgiveness
Story-based, can't be missed. At the end of the massive shootout in the caves, Jim Reed will appear and challenge Silas to a duel - again, winning the duel will unlock this achievement.


Into the Sunset
Forgive your lifetime nemesis.


At the end of the final level, "The Good, The Bad and The Dead", you'll be given a choice between "Revenge" and "Redemption" - choosing the "Redemption" ending will net you this achievement.


Violence Begets Violence
Kill your lifetime nemesis honorably in a duel.


At the end of the final level, "The Good, The Bad and The Dead", you'll be given a choice between "Revenge" and "Redemption" - choosing the "Revenge" ending and winning the subsequent duel against Roscoe "Bob" Bryant will award this achievement.


That's How it Was
Complete the Story on any difficulty.


Story-based, can't be missed. Awarded for completing the game on either Normal or Hard difficulty. Also allows the game to be played in True West difficulty and unlocks the New Game Plus function.


Grows In The Telling
Complete the Story on hard difficulty.


Awarded for completing the entire Story mode on Hard difficulty. Also unlocks "That's How it Was", if the player hasn't earned it yet.


Last Man Standing
Complete the Story on True West difficulty.


Awarded for completing the game on the hardest difficulty setting, True West; requires that the player has completed the game at least once to unlock said difficulty.


Keep At It
Unlock a skill.


Unlocked when purchasing your first skill upgrade at character level 2. Should become available at some point during the first mission.


Perseverance
Unlock both exclusive weapons in a single category of skills in Story Mode.


Awarded for spending enough skill points on a single Skill tree in Story mode to unlock both "upgraded" versions of that tree's signature weapons. The earliest this can be done is at character level 7, as you need six skill points to reach the "end" of any given tree.

Note that you only need to spend three points on each of the two parts of the skill tree to unlock both weapons.


For a Few Skills More
Unlock all skills in Story Mode.


Awarded for unlocking all 36 skill upgrades - requires a grand total of 600,000 XP at level 37 and in most cases should take two or more playthroughs to accumulate. See section "Optimum Path" for more information on how to earn XP efficiently.


True Story
Find all Nuggets of Truth in a single mission.


While this is doable on any level, the first is by far the best to do this achievement. See "Unvarnished Truth" achievement for more info on how to best find collectibles.


Unvarnished Truth
Collect all Nuggets of Truth.


There is a grand total of 54 Nuggets, spread between Story mode's 14 missions. If you're having trouble finding Nuggets, you can invest points in the Ranger Skill "Truth Seeking" (earliest available at character level 3), which displays a notification and plays a short tune when you are near a collectible.

While Nuggets can also be collected in Recollections mode (essentialy a level select tool), it is not recommended to do so, as the game only awards XP for these collectibles in Story mode. There is a plethora of guides available to finding all Nuggets online; one of these is a very useful http://www.ign.com/wikis/call-of-juarez-gunslinger/Nuggets_of_Truth, containing video guides for each of the game's Story levels with locations and commentary for each Nugget.

Arcade And Duel Mode Achievements

These achievements can be earned in the game's Arcade and Duel modes.

Arcade mode consists of a series of short levels (taken from the various locations in Story mode) in which the player must manage time and combo chains as efficiently as possible, earning stars based on the score at the end of each level.

Duel mode is an endurance event, in which the player must win 15 duels back-to-back with only a limited amount of retries allowed.


The Tally
Complete all Arcade missions.


Requires that the player reaches the end of each of the ten Arcade missions, regardless of score. As each mission unlocks when the previous is completed, this achievement should pop up on completing the final Arcade mission, "Guadalupe Canyon".


Magnificent Three
Score the maximum of 3 stars in any Arcade mission.


Depends greatly on the player's ability to manage Concentration, combo chains and ammunition. The easiest one is possibly the very last mission, "Guadalupe Canyon", as it mainly requires good accuracy and Concentration management to complete. See "Optimum Path" for useful tips on achieving three star ratings in Arcade mode.


Legend Among Legends
Get all Arcade Mode stars.


Awarded for earning all 30 stars across Arcade mode's 10 missions. Again, this depends greatly on the player's ability to manage Concentration, combo chains and ammunition - managing to complete the entire mission in one chain guarantees a three star rating. See section "Optimum Path" for useful tips on achieving three star ratings in Arcade Mode.


Honor Intact
Complete the duel challenge, winning all duels honorably.


To earn this achievement, the player must go through all 15 of the Duel mode's bosses while earning the "Honorable Kill" stamp at the end of each. To get a honorable kill, you need to wait until your opponent reaches for his gun before drawing your own and shooting.

For best results, make sure your Speed (gained while you keep Silas' hand directly above his holster) and Concentration (gained while your targeting reticule is over your opponent's body) are in the 80% and above regions. Specifically:

Speed - Increases as long as Silas' hand is directly above his holster and firearm. You should see his hand lowering towards the gun's handle when you have positioned it correctly; otherwise, it will stray away, reducing your Speed.

Concentration - Increases while the targeting reticule is centered over your opponent's body and you are not moving it manually; the reticule will animate (rotating. focusing inwards) and turn yellow for as long as your Concentration increases, while turning white and growing outwards when you're losing Concentration.

Finally, a good tip is to go for body shots whenever possible - while the game awards extra points for headshots. these require more time to aim and often run the risk of the player missing, making them inefficient in earning the achievement.

Miscellaneous Achievements

These achievements can be earned in any mode; where appropriate, the recommended mode to attempt them in will be noted.

Death From Above
Kill 5 enemies when falling down through the air.


Recommended: Story Mode
Awarded for killing five enemies in a row while falling. In effect, can only be done on two occasions in Story mode:

Once Upon A Time in Stinking Sands - On the game's first level, there is a sequence near the end where you fall out of a barn window. Concentration mode should automatically activate, allowing you to auto-aim at a group of enemies as you fall; managing to kill all five enemies before landing should award this achievement.

The Magnificent One - On the game's fifth level, when you successfully navigate the mines the first time around, you should find yourself falling towards a water hole; Concentration mode should once again activate automatically, allowing you to gun down bandits as you fall past them.


For Massive Damage
Shoot through a hole to kill an enemy that hides behind a shield.


Recommended: Story Mode
The "Shielded" variety of enemies should start appearing as early as mission two, "A Fistful of Hot Lead" - during your escape from jail, you will come across bandits carrying large wooden doors - using them as cover while they shoot at you.

The easiest way to score a hit through the hole is to equip a Rifle and snipe them from afar, using Concentration mode to help you aim. Note that killing these enemies in any other way (including a headshot that didn't pass through the door's hole) will not award this achievement.


Turkey Shoot
Reach combo level of 20.


Recommended: Either Story or Arcade modes.
This achievement is easy to do in either mode; in Arcade mode you'll need to reach multipliers in the 50+ ballpark just to earn a three star rating, while in Story mode there are a few setpieces that allow the player to use a Gatling Gun to mow down waves of enemies.

For the Gatling Gun method, a great level is "Bounty Hunter Is Still My Name" - at the end when you escape from the burning steamer, you'll come across a Gatling Gun, which Silas automatically uses. From there it's simply a matter of holding down the shoot button and aiming at anything that moves.

If you're having trouble with keeping a high multiplier, remember that using Concentration mode slows down the combo timer (affording you a few more seconds to find your next target) and that shooting various objects (such as explosive barrels, lanterns, bottles and so on) will reset (but not increase) the timer to 4 seconds, allowing you to keep it up for longer.


Full Blast
Kill a shotgunner with a close-range shotgun blast.


Recommended: Either Story or Arcade modes.
Requires that the player kills a shotgunner using either the Shotgun or Sawed-Off Shotgun. Shotgunners come in two variants, plain Shotgunner and Armored Shotgunner, both of which can award this achievement.

Note that you only need to deliver the killing blow with a shotgun; if you're having trouble staying alive long enough at close range, you can lower their health from longer range before delivering the killing blow with a shotgun.


Quality Time
Fight in Concentration for 15 minutes.


Recommended: Either Story or Arcade modes.
Awarded for activating Concentration mode for a total of 15 minutes. This should come naturally as you're collecting the other achievements, as the requirements are tracked across all game modes.

For "farming" this achievement, you can replay the final Arcade mission, "Guadalupe Canyon", as much as necessary; the large, mostly immobile waves of enemies and relatively uncomplicated level geometry should allow you to spend and replenish Concentration in a very short amount of time.


Ungrateful
Shoot a flying stick of dynamite and the one who threw it on a single Concentration.


Recommended: Story mode.
Easily done on the first mission where dynamite-throwing enemies appear, "The Magnificent One". As soon as you navigate the first area of the mission, you should see a series of wooden palisades, with a few bandits hiding behind them - assuming that you have at least half of your Concentration available, you can easily shoot both the dynamite and its thrower in one activation.

If you are having trouble with this achievement, it is recommended that you invest points in the Trapper Skill tree - the final "Sixth Sense" skill makes your aiming reticule snap to nearby targets, allowing you to aim faster at both the dynamite and its thrower.


Swift Justice
Win a duel honorably in under 0,6s.


Recommended: Any mode, works fastest in Duel mode.
Requires that the player draws his gun within 0,6 seconds of the enemy duelist doing the same, then killing them within this time limit. Not particularly hard, as with good Speed management (80% and above), draw time can easily be as fast as 0,2 seconds.

If you are having trouble with this achievement, note that in Duel mode all bosses have very specific timers on their draw animations - allowing the player to memorize the number of heartbeats elapsing before they need to draw their weapon.


Trick Shot
Kill a bird during a winning duel.


Recommended: Duel mode.
Awarded for shooting a bird during a duel, then winning said duel. The best place to attempt it is in Duel Mode's very first fight, against Pat Garrett. Make sure to have a high Concentration/Speed (in the 80%+ area) and try to keep the targeting reticule near his abdomen - when you can draw, sharply aim downwards where a chicken should be partially visible, shoot it then aim sharply upwards to shoot Garrett.

Remember that you can also dodge bullets with a high enough Concentration score - this should give you enough time to move the crosshair from the bird to your opponent.

Thanks

Techland - Developers of the Call of Juarez series, for delivering a (moslty) great series, themed in one of the least represented settings in PC gaming.
IGN - For maintaining a great video archive on several games, on this occasion the Nuggets of Truth videos.
Steam user BemaniAK - For a correction regarding the Swift Justice achievement.

[Ricardo_Franchez]

good

[Holy Hell]

god thank you for telling me you can count the heartbeats in duel mode

[Ladanyix]

Very useful guide man! Just to know cause I finished today my first playthrough in Hard difficulty, does the nuggets reset playing New Game +? I have 43/54.

[Ruffus Jubei]

definitely kill the bird in the 3rd duel!

[Rozzy]

Man, i finished the game in hard first then i opened new game + normal to get my dp higher. I opened all of them after that i closed this gamemode and opened a true west via new game + but it counted the xp's that is in my first playthrough. Why did you wasted my 3 hours :(

[notPoland]

Found new trick for arcade related to concentration.

Use it to aim the head, turn it off, then shoot so it will recharge again, repeat and keep spamming it. Got 3 stars easily since i got infinite concentration. :D

[Axenamed]

Great comprehensive guide! However, Trick Shot achiev is easier in the 3rd duel on duel mode, as said previously by Superkumi. Much easier, I have to add.

[BLABLABLA]

nvm i grabbed a nugget of truth after staring a new game and i got it

[BLABLABLA]

uhhhh... I completed the game and got ng+ and true west but i dont have the that's how it was achievement

[Sujiro Kimimame]

tnks bro! you're legend!!!