Yes this game is hard but the mindset between playing solo and with a group are entirely different. And yes Solo is like the hardcore mode, which is why I play it almost exclusively. Its liken to being a rabbit in a forest full of wolves. While multiplayer is liken to playing a pack of wolves in a forest of wolves.
When playing solo I play entirely differently in so much that I focus on solely on surviving and not shooting the machines. I only engage the machines directly when I deduce that I might have a chance of living through it and they are standing in the way of a goal I have at the moment. Needless to say, I get into alot of combat situations due to just bad luck.
While I agree the game can be frustratingly hard at times, Its mostly due to the current bugs and not so much the design. Hunters phasing through buildings, melee attacks through walls and clipping problems. If those could be resolved, then that would fix a huge majority of my frustration.
The very low drop rate of adrenaline is insane at the moment. What they should have done was change the stack size from 20 down to 5 and leave the drop rate the same. You would have to dedicate 4 slots to equal what takes up one slot now. Nobody will be carrying 20 shots around if they reduce stack size unless they really needed to.
Not trying to be condescending but here are some tips I try to live up to in the game.
- When in doubt, run away.
If I accidentally get the attention of a machine I was trying to avoid or I get into a fight I miscalculated, I run away.
- Do not fight any machine from within a single room Barn. aka the Thunder Dome.
Due to the terrible phasing issues the game has right now, fighting machines inside a barn will soon turn into fighting machines from inside a barn into fighting machines inside a closet. There is not much room in a barn after a tank has phased through it. (Hopefully that goes away.)
- Never directly engage a tank/harvester on the ground.
I never directly engage a big boi unless I am in a 3 or more story building. Mostly churches. If I ever do have to kill one on purpose, I use 3 gas tanks and a radio. Or I use land mines and a radio. I only ever try to lure them into traps.
- Never engage a Hunter on open ground.
Be in a dense forest area or preferably inside a 2 story building for close range. A slug shotgun is your best friend against hunters in close. For long range shots take out the large sensor on right soldier and start working on the 2 weak points next to its head. Once both are cracked, start shooting its left gun hand until it pops.
for medium range, flare and firework then shoot large canisters on its back.
5.Use IR binoculars before engaging any machine. Check to see if they have buddies and how many.
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Inside large indoor areas, sub machine gun with AP rounds and Shot Gun are best.
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Outside ARs and Hunting/sniper rifles.
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Only use rocket launch when machine is contained/controlled first. Either be it by luring it into favorable surroundings or when using traps.
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Only shoot a runner if you can one or two shot the canister on its back while its standing near another runner. 2 for one shot.
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Use health packs with abandon. The one thing this game gives you in good supply is health packs, Use them when you need them and dont hoard them.
I hope that helps a bit. Again I am not trying to tell you that you are playing the game wrong, I just think that you might want to approach it differently with a different mindset. I hope my tips help.