Basics - Killer 7 Guide - IGN (2024)

Basics

Combat Strategy

You've got guns and the enemy doesn't—this should be easy, right? Not quite. There's more to combat in Killer 7 than having an itchy trigger finger. It takes timing, skill and finesse to artfully take down the nasty Heaven Smile, and a bit of strategy doesn't hurt either. Study our combat tactics before you accept your next assassination job. You won't regret it.

Weak Spots
Every enemy in the game can be taken down with one well-placed bullet, almost always aimed at their bubbling weak spot. An enemy's weak spot shows up as a group of yellow particles somewhere on the body and this small spot is your key to an instant-kill. Nail the weak spot with any weapon and the enemy will explode in a burst of blood that you can collect. For more details on using blood read further down this page, and remember that it's always best to aim for an enemy's weak spot. You may be able to just blast away and kill the Heaven Smile just as quickly but you'll be wasting valuable blood that you should be collecting.

Remember! Move your aiming reticle over the entire body of the enemy to expose the weak spot. When you move over the correct area the weak spot will appear.

Secondary Attacks
As you further the growth of your characters, upgrading their abilities with serums you'll learn new secondary attacks that are great for getting you out of tight spots. One secondary attack is called the Down Shot which lets you instantly kill any enemy that's crawling on the floor very close to you. The other secondary attack is the Counter Attack which lets you intercept an enemies the moment before they hit you for an instant kill.

While both of these secondary attacks are very useful you don't want to rely on them. Both the Down Attack and the Counter Attack will kill an enemy in an instant but you forfeit any chance to earn blood. Always remember your options—secondary attacks can save you big time—but stick to weak spot targeting for the majority of your combat.

Remember! You can not earn blood by killing with secondary attacks. Use the Counter Attack and Down Attack only when you absolutely have to or you'll be wasting precious blood.

Best Combat Characters
You'll end up using every character in your party of seven assassins, and while they've each got their own unique skills they're definitely not all created equal. For general exploration and killing you should stick to using Kevin and Con Smith. For more details on why Kevin and Con are simply the best check out our breakdown of [[The Killer 7</B>|The Killer 7]] .

Puzzle Solving

Each of Killer 7's levels is rife with odd puzzles that impede your progress, though calling them puzzles is somewhat misleading. You'll be presented with the same set of three "puzzles" throughout the game, so be sure to keep them in mind when exploring.

The first puzzle type requires the use of a specific character in a specific part of the level. Every time a puzzles requires a specific character that character's icon will appear on your map in the exact location of the puzzle. Simply switch to the required character and either examine the area or press the special skill button to "solve" the miniature puzzle.

Another puzzle type you'll deal with in nearly every single level is the collection of soul shells, small bullets that are used as currency to exit the level. Soul shell locations will be marked on your map, so you don't have to do much searching, but you will frequently need to solve a nearby puzzle in order to make the soul shell appear. These puzzles usually vary, so be sure to study our Killer 7 walkthrough any time you're stumped.

The third recurring puzzle type involves the finding of "odd engravings" hidden around the level. These odd engravings are frequently used to unlock gates or to turn on contraptions that allow for progress to be made. If you come to any sort of locked door and see a strange hole in the lock chances are that you need to find an odd engraving or two in order to continue further.

Blood Collection and Use

Every time you kill an enemy by hitting their weak spot you're rewarded a shower of blood that's worth way more than simply looking sweet. This shower of beaded blood earns you vials of thin blood as well as a growing stock of thick blood. The two different blood types are earned the same way but they've both got wildly different uses.

Thin Blood
The primary use of thin blood is for healing your team of assassins. Any time you sustain damage, pause the game and select "Blood" to use your thin blood stocks to boost your health. You'll lose vials (or test tubes) of thin blood each time you heal, but you won't take away from your stock of thick blood at all.

The other use of thin blood is to power the Killer 7's charged attacks. Various members of the assassin group (Dan, Kevin, Coyote, and MASK) can sacrifice a vial of thin blood (or two or three vials) for a powered-up attack capable of some serious destruction. For more details on the characters' unique skills, be sure to read over our breakdown of [[The Killer 7</B>|The Killer 7]] .

Remember! Reserve thin blood stocks for healing your characters, but feel free to use vials of thin blood for special attacks (like Dan's charged shots or Kevin's invisibility) if you max out your stock (20 vials).

Thick Blood
Like thin blood, the thick stuff has more than just one use. The primary use of thick blood is for creating serums which can be used to grow your characters' skills. During gameplay, locate one of Harman's Rooms and access the TV to find the Blood Room channel. Here you can turn your thick blood stocks into serums, though there is a limit to how much serum can be created per level. Be sure to convert as much thick blood as possible, and also be sure to empty your thick blood stock whenever it's nearly full. If you max out your thick blood stock (1,000 dl) you'll be throwing away any extra blood you get from enemies.

Remember! Convert thick blood to serum every time you find a new Harman's Room. If you max out your thick blood stock (1,000 dl) any extra blood you earn will be lost and wasted.

The other use of thick blood is much less important and can actually be completely ignored (especially with the help of this guide). In most levels you'll find a hint-giver, an odd ghost named Yoon-Hyun that carries a kabuki mask. Talk to him and he'll give you a tidbit of information before daring you to shoot his mask to earn even more info. If you shoot the kabuki mask and then talk to him again you'll sacrifice some thick blood for an elaborated hint. Fortunately, you shouldn't need his extra hints as he usually gives some pretty obvious information. In other words, don't waste your thick blood on this joker unless you've already maxed out your serum creation for the level.

Skill Growth and Abilities

After creating serums with the thick blood you collect you'll be able to spend those serums to grow your characters' skills and abilities. For tips on which characters you should focus your efforts on be sure to check out our breakdown of [[The Killer 7</B>|The Killer 7]] .

Apart from simply boosting the assassins' stats, upgrading skills will also earn you new abilities such as Counter Attack, Down Attack, DoubleTap and Head Lock-On. You'll learn these abilities as you grow each skill to the same level.

[[The Killer 7|On to The Killer 7...]] </b>