Ultimate Guide For GCI Players

THIS IS A WORK IN PROGRESS!

I often get a lot of questions from newer players in the middle of games, which I don't mind answering, but sometimes you can't spend 5 minutes typing in chat to explain some things to users. Plus, I'm a pleeb and don't have a headset to voice chat.

So, this is my effort to combine a lot of the information I've gotten from other users and learned myself over the years that I've been playing that should help newbies and frequent players improve their GCI experience and maybe enjoy the game a bit more!

I'll be adding to this guide frequently. Adding videos / screenshots to show people where things are, pretty header graphics, possibly even adding screenshots for nice vantage points on each map. (If that's something people are interested in) So forgive me that it's not 100% complete.

If you want to see something added to this guide, corrected or to yell at me for being stupid, let me know! :D

Tips For Running the Game & Finding Matches

Tip #1 - Lower your Connection Settings

Help & Options > Settings > Game Settings



This does NOT impact your game at all, it merely tells the game who has the "best" internet when choosing who will host the game. You may have 100mbps+ but that doesn't necessarily mean you can adequately host games.
If everyone lowers their connection settings, it will be a more fair way of determining who is host. I suggest doing 1.5mbps or lower. All those laggy games you have? It's people putting the settings high so they can host, have a lag free game and screw everyone else playing. Don't be that guy (or girl)

Check the ping! If you're the only player with green bars and everyone else has orange (or red), then you're the host!

Tip #2 - Change your Graphics Settings

Help & Options > Settings > Video Settings

This ensures the game runs as smooth as possible, unless you're a stickler about pretty graphics, this should be one of the first things you do when running the game. Often times panning between menu screens can make even good rigs lag.

Tip #3 - Adjust your FoV & Sensitivity

Help & Options > Settings > Video Settings - FoV
Help & Options > Settings > Game Settings - Sensitivity

Enter one of the challenge modes and adjust your settings, play around with them and find what's comfortable for you. Some people like smaller FoV (field of view), others prefer as wide as possible so they can see more. (But it's more difficult to aim)

Adjust your aim sensitivity settings In-Game and on your mouse (if possible).

I, personally, suggest if you have a mouse capable of altering the DPI / Sensitivity (standalone program outside of the windows mouse options) to lower the in-game sesitivity settings to 0 and then adjusting the settings for your mouse.

Play around with different settings, go into the challenge modes and give it a try. Find what is most comfortable for you. Often times I play with between 400 and 800 DPI on my mouse while most gamers prefer much higher DPI settings.

Tip #4 - Turn OFF Windows Mouse Acceleration

This can really impact your aiming and not in a positive way. If you're using Windows 10, search Mouse > Additional Mouse Options > Pointer Options and UNCHECK Enhance pointer precision. (You can also adjust pointer speed here in conjunction with the sensitivity settings in-game to fine tune your aiming)

Tip #5 - Check your Steam Download Region

Majority of players in this game are from the US and EU. If you're outside of those areas, you're likely to not find very many (if any) matches. So, you'd be better off changing your download region so you can find matches. You can find this setting in Steam > Settings > Download > Download Region > US or EU.

US is typically New York or Chicago. EU is Germany or London.
If you do this, please please please change your Connection Settings to 1.5mbps so you won't be chosen to host a game, otherwise it will be a horrible experience for everyone else.

Tip #6 - Turn OFF Headbob

Help & Options > Game Settings

This is strictly individual preference but I have it turned off. It just add unnecessary movement when you're trying to run and aim. Again, you can enter one of the challenge modes and turn it on/off and see which you like better.

Tip #7 - CPU Priority

Increase the CPU priority for Engine.exe (GCI) to High.



For Windows 10 you'll need to click the Details tab to find Engine.exe, right-click > Priority > High (see screenshot below)

This is something I do and I'd only suggest it if your computer can do this / handle it and still run at a cool temperature. This basically dedicates more of your CPU to the game while it's running. For older versions of Windows, it will be the same but located under the Processes tab.

Tip #8 - Key Binding

Help & Options > Game Settings > Key Bindings

This is going to be personal preference and if you use a gaming mouse and/or keyboard, you likely will already do this. Even if you don't have a gaming mouse, your mouse might have additional buttons outside of left and right-click.

I find binding Melee or Gadgets to my Buttons 4 and 5 (on the side; often used for going backward and forward in browser windows) makes switching to knifing that jumping speedy above your head a lot easier than hitting the default keys. Prior to re-binding the keys, I would rarely ever melee anyone and you'd be amazed just how helpful that kinfe can be, especially in a crowded area or in a pinch with just a few bits of health left.

Mess around with them and find what's most comfortable for you.

Game Tips For Newbies

Tip #1

Probably one of the more important aspects of this game that I find a lot of newer players ignore...SOUND!

You'd be amazed how much you can hear when you listen in this game. Footsteps, gun shots, support items, gadgets. You can pretty much tell where people are, where they're headed, what they're doing and sometimes which way they're facing.

It can give you a great advantage if you hear that person running toward your position and you can come around the corner, knife them and they scream HAX! because there's no way you could have known they were there! ;)

Tip #2

Keep moving but never be afraid to retreat! A dead bat / joker is a useless bat / joker.

Sure, you could stay and keep pumping bullets into that tryhard burly with the jetpack spamming Thunder Dragon (TD) but all he needs is one more good blast and you'll be dead and waiting to respawn or you could run around some passages to get behind him and headshot his face out of the sky.

Tip #3

Learn which body type you're best with!

Of course, everyone can choose Burly or Mighty for a lot of health but they're quite slow and sometimes, slow just doesn't work out for you. Personally, I work a lot better with Speedy/Nimble/Tough because I'm better with fast paced movement. Toy around with and figure out which body type you like most. A lot of people pick Burly because of the health to speed ratio, it's a good bet for beginners.

Tip #4

Sure, you could use the OP weapons (Thunder Dragon, Witch Doctor, Persuader w/Pen Ammo, Buccaneer, Jackhammer) but sometimes if you can't seem to master those you should branch out and determine which weapons work best for your play style. For probably 800+ levels, I used Nimble, Gatekeeper, Persuader, Insoles; it really helped me learn to aim fairly well because it can reach pretty far across the map and jumping around keeps you out of the LoS of the enemy

Tip #5

Want to earn a lot of experience quickly and jump levels in a short amount of time? Switch weapons / gadgets / support items!

The more often you switch your weapons up and don't keep using the same ones, the more you will complete achievements which means more XP. Especially when you're still new and you have a ton of easy-ish achievements to obtain, you'll be amazed how many levels you can jump in a single match if you manage to use a few different weapons and get a few achievements for them all.

OP Loadout Suggestions

Well all love to hate these loadouts. They're OP (over powered) and can be annoying as hell sometimes but we've all been guilty of using them. ;)

OP Loadout #1

• Body Type: Burly
  
• Primary Weapon: Buccaneer
  
• Secondary Weapon: Jackhammer
  
• Support Item: Body Armor / Energy Drink
  
• Gadget: Glider
  
• Fun Fact 1: Horse Healthy
  
• Fun Fact 2: Kinda Bulletproof
  
• Rampage: Tough As Nails

Pros
This is probably one of the most common OP Loadouts. It provides a lot of health due to the body type, support item (Body Armor) or healing (Energy Drink) and with Horse Healthy. Using the Glider gives you a lot more movement than normal and provides with an extra mode of attack with the Dive Bomb. (A speedy's worst nightmare) Divebombing and spamming Jackhammer will almost take out anyone and everyone.

Cons
Being Burly means you're a slow mover. Even with the Glider, you'll be in a compromising position unless you stay against walls and are smart about your gliding movements. You have to be sure to stay out of sight of any snipers. They can one shot you out of the sky!
Witch Doctor will also likely be your enemy with this loadout because they can interrupt your gliding and bring you crashing to the ground. Depending on which Support Item you choose determines how you can approach people. If you choose Body Armor, keep track of your health and get out of there to a health station when it's low!


OP Loadout #2

• Body Type: Burly
  
• Primary Weapon: Thunder Dragon (Missles Mod)
  
• Secondary Weapon: Shredder
  
• Support Item: Body Armor / Energy Drink
  
• Gadget: Jetpack
  
• Fun Fact 1: Horse Healthy
  
• Fun Fact 2: Kinda Bulletproof
  
• Rampage: Tough As Nails

Pros
This is another common OP loadout, typically more common among newbie players but can be deadly in the right hands! It's great because you can reach advantageous vantage points, you can hop up in the air really quick and fire off some rockets, fall to the ground hidden and heal yourself.
Shredder is great for when enemies get close, are also using a jetpack or your rockets are out; lay into their faces with nails!

Cons
Biggest con for this loadout is being out in the open, in the air and slow moving for anyone with a decent aim to take you out rather easily. Especially snipers! So be on the look out, constantly and keep an eye on your back.


Have some suggestions for loadouts I should put here? ;) Let me know!

Unicorn's Favorite Loadouts

Ms. Snipeity

• Body Type: Nimble
  
• Primary Weapon: Buccaneer
  
• Secondary Weapon: Persuader (Pen Ammo)
  
• Support Item: Body Armor
  
• Gadget: Inflatable Insoles
  
• Fun Fact 1: Wallflower
  
• Fun Fact 2: Kinda Bulletproof
  
• Rampage: Tough As Nails

Mr. Freeze

• Body Type: Tough
  
• Primary Weapon: Deep Freeze (B.O. Sniffer)
  
• Secondary Weapon: Persuader (Pen Ammo)
  
• Support Item: Shuriken
  
• Gadget: Inflatable Insoles
  
• Fun Fact 1: Horse Healthy
  
• Fun Fact 2: Kinda Bulletproof
  
• Rampage: Tough As Nails

Quick Draw

• Body Type: Speedy
  
• Primary Weapon: Bear Stalker (B.O. Sniffer)
  
• Secondary Weapon: Persuader (Pen Ammo)
  
• Support Item: Body Armor
  
• Gadget: Inflatable Insoles
  
• Fun Fact 1: Horse Healthy
  
• Fun Fact 2: Kinda Bulletproof
  
• Rampage: Kill Crazy

F.A.Qs

What's the best weapon?

There are a few OP weapons but the best really depends on what you're good with and the situation. Some weapons might be more powerful but depending on the map and play style of your opponents determines if they're effective.

Take the map 25th Floor. People like to camp the enclosed hallways a lot, so using Witch Doctor (reflective mod) can be incredibly effective in either keeping them out of the hallways or destroying their entire team. While, if you had Jackhammer, despite it being one of the more powerful weapons in the game, against an entire team camping those hallways, might not be near as destructive since you'll be slow moving and they can hide around corners.

Why do I always see people hacking?

Chances are, they aren't hacking. The most common form of "hacking" in GCI is to Speed Hack using a program to cause you to move, shoot, etc. A LOT faster than you should be. This became popular awhile back when certain high-level players were abusing this frequently and started showing others how to do it.

The second most common is using a spam trigger (controllers) or a macro (desktop) to allow rapid fire with the Huntsman rifle. You can easily spot when people are doing this because their entire clip empties in less than a second. You can also hear the rapid firing, which fires much faster than most people can click.

There have been others who have used cheating methods but they are very few and far between. More often than not, the issue is the bad host and isn't someone cheating or wall-hacking.

UPDATE 03/01/2018
It seems there have been a couple users spotted using a wall hack. One of the very few times I've legitimately seen people hacking outside of speed hacks/using cheat engine.

No matter what I do, I always die!

My suggestion is, if there's a high level player on your team or someone you notice doing really well, follow them around and watch what they're doing. That's what I did when I started out and I began finding neat hiding spots, vantage points, etc. I'd never seen before.

[Arkham99]

there is but One Loadout.... The Arkham99 Loadout...:-D

[Magical Unicorn of DEATH]

@Unit Circle
I believe you start with 2 by default that you can set, however after that you'll need the Kits (or find someone giving keys away, I do sometimes) they sold to get slots 3 4 and 5.

[Unit Circle]

How do I make multiple custom loadouts?

[Dr Mundo]

Sick guide.

[Zerroxx]

yolo

[Magical Unicorn of DEATH]

Not sure how that went unnoticed for so long Lol Fixed :P

[Zoryx]

Fun Fact 2: Burly does not exist.

[RagnarCock]

Great guide dude, nice playing with and against you.

[Irix]

Nice, I love this game's atmosphere! Great guide!

[ElFonzi]

Amazing guide!