Welcome to the world of punching, Kicking and throwing things at every degenerate in the city. This is the world of Midnight Fight Express and it is a doozy…yes I said doozy, no I am not fifty. However, if you are a newly awoken sleeper agent or an old veteran, and you want to see how the game plays and how to get the best out of your experience then we here at Robot Republic are here to help. So welcome to our beginner's guide and get ready for a hell of a ride.
Before we run down how to play this game, we need to describe what Midnight Fight Express actually is. The game was developed by Humble Games and is, essentially, a beat 'em up. Players will need to complete several missions to find out who they are and destroy the crime lords of the city. To help you we are going to run through the basics and then look at some of the more detailed aspects to watch out for.
Dip, Duck, Dodge and Punch
Midnight Fight Express’ gameplay is very focused on the movement of the player and how they can fight. The first thing to know is that there are two aspects to focus on when moving and fighting. The player can control the main character, Baby-face, but the attacks that the player makes will be directed towards the main cursor.
This is an important aspect to keep track of because it can be easy to move in one direction but attack in a completely different direction. However, this doesn’t affect blocking, more on that in a minute. The main thing to remember when it comes to movement is that its main use is to get in range of opponents and avoid being surrounded.
Combat is a simple two-button system focused on one button for attack and another for blocking. When it comes to attacking there are fast attacks and heavy attacks. Initially, the attacks won’t link together but it is possible to chain them together after buying the skill. The basic attack is great for dealing with the average goon but stronger ones will block and require a power attack to break them. Outside of the enemies simply blocking certain enemies have a guard meter. To damage these opponents you will need to hit them over and over again until you break the yellow bar above their heads.
Combat in Midnight Fight Express is fast-paced and requires keeping an eye on a few different factors. The main thing to keep an eye on is dodging and blocking attacks and striking when necessary. Keep an eye on the outline of the opponent as this will inform you of when to block and when to dodge. If the outline is red dodge and if it is any other colour you can block it. This is especially important on higher difficulties where your health can be dropped after only a few hits.
Guns, Hammers and Chairs
Your fists are not the only weapon available to you, there are several weapons and they really shouldn’t be ignored. Essentially there are three types of weapons. The first is basic close combat weapons ranging from batons, knives and anything else you can grab. These weapons give more power to your strikes and also have the benefit of ignoring blocks. These weapons are especially good at dealing with the stronger enemy variations. However, the weapons degrade quickly and will break. It should also be mentioned that the enemies also have weapons and you can’t block them.
The second type of weapon is the throwable weapons dotted around the map. You can’t keep a hold of these weapons but you can quickly grab them and throw them at an opponent. The basic throwing weapons knock opponents off their feet and do a small amount of damage. There are also explosive throwables that knock over a group of enemies and do way more damage but they can hurt you if you’re not careful.
Finally, there are guns, which are arguably the best weapons in the game. Essentially guns act exactly as you would expect. When you pick up a gun you have a small number of bullets to use against the enemies. The guns are great for clearing a room and taking out most of the heavy enemies. They also function as normal weapons in close combat as well. It is tempting to be conservative with ammunition but in reality, use them when you have them. We all know people have a tendency to horde ammo thinking about a bigger fight that may never come, don’t do that. Also, enemies can have guns as well and they can seriously damage you if you don’t dodge. Keep an eye on the enemies with a gun and dodge when they take up a firing position.
Skills for days + General tips
Midnight Fight Express gives players access to various skills that will slowly affect gameplay. After completing each mission players will get several skill points they can use to unlock new skills. These techniques give you access to new grappling techniques, finishers and new combos. There’s no major guide to unlocking the skills, but getting the combo skill is arguably the most useful initial skill to unlock.
Two other skill trees are locked until the actual weapons are unlocked in the story. None of the skills has a major effect on most enemies, but they can be used to take out opponents faster and help to keep you alive in bigger fights. For instance, the long-range skill allows you to move through the map faster and keep the pace of the fight in your favour. The least useful from a gameplay perspective is the finishers unless you are aiming to get the highest score.
Now, one of the most important tips has to do with the shields that some of the opponents can carry. The shields can block most attacks but the most important point has to do with guns. As I said before, the guns only have a few bullets and the shields will take some of those impacts. This means it is very easy to waste them, the best thing is to hit the shield until it breaks with close combat and then shoot.
Another important point is that there are no healing items in the game, like none at all. The health is segmented into several sections, each of which can regenerate but won’t as soon as the segment is depleted. However, the game is designed with the player dying in mind so it isn’t such a huge issue.
Gold teeth are important as they are one of the things that help to unlock new cosmetic items. However, getting them can be a bit of a challenge as they are random drops. There are ten to unlock in each level and will appear occasionally when some enemies are knocked out. There is a skill that raises the chances of them appearing, but it doesn’t seem to make a difference. Thankfully you don’t need to collect them all in one sitting and can go back to each level to find them all.
Midnight Fight Express offers a lot to players, it's funny and exciting to play. However, as with any game, there’s a lot to see and do and sometimes it's easy to miss something said in a tutorial. Hopefully, this beginner's guide has given you everything you need to know. So gear up and go punch people…in the game…IN THE GAME!
If you liked this article then please check out some of our other reviews and guides. For instance, these tips and tricks relating to Yakuza: Like a Dragon
Or you can check out this review of Digimon Survive
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