As a game set in a cyberpunk world, players can expect harsh and dehumanizing treatment in The Ascent. True to its theme, the player character is nothing but a small cog in the corrupted and corporate scheme of Veles. The players are quickly chucked into the gutters, where they're expected to rise above the challenge in a disheartening dystopia.
The Ascent doesn't exactly hold the players' hands, as some tutorials are brief and vague. In a true Kafkaesque cyberpunk spirit, it's as if they handed players a brochure on the first day of work and expect them to perform employee-of-the-month duties. Not to worry — these tips can help players survive the crushing corporate clout of the Ascent group.
Updated May 15, 2022 by Jason Collins: The Ascent's dystopian world of Veles is cruel and fierce. Corruption is the currency, and it’s every man for himself (or woman) as the districts and rival corporations fight for rulership. It’s the player's goal to keep the factions under control and find out why The Ascent Group fell. Much like the setting of the game, The Ascent may not be the easiest game to succeed at. Perhaps the developers added the difficulty as a special effect, feeling the struggle that roams the gutters and alleys of Veles. A few more The Ascent tips have been added to this article.
15 Prepare To Die Often… Learn From It
This is more of a friendly word of advice than a tip. Before focusing on suggestions for gameplay and fighting, players should be warned and accept this likely outcome – they are going to die a lot. However, it is totally okay. One of the best ways to learn the ropes is to fail.
By dying a lot in the beginning, players still earn valuable XP. Once they play (and die) for a while, they will eventually learn how to dodge the shots that previously hit them.
14 Talk To More NPCs
As players walk around the city, they will see many NPCs. They will offer side quests and small missions to complete. Do as many of these missions as possible to gain experience for the bigger quests.
This tip is especially handy if someone is in the process of completing a mission and finds themselves ill-equipped. Players can do a few of these small side quests to gain enough XP to move on in the game and buy better gear. Despite how it may feel, these quests aren’t a waste of time.
13 Experiment With Gear
While in the early phases, it might be a good idea to use this time to try different gear. When the player has some free time, or when they are not fighting for their lives, they should swap their gear around and try some smaller quests to see what works best.
When buying or swapping armor, look for stats that mostly provide protection from physical, fire, and digital damage. This sort of armor will benefit the user in the beginning. Not only will the armor protect players from damage, but it can also boost their skills.
12 Create a Good Build
As they go through the game and complete missions, players will earn points to add toward the skills they can upgrade. These skills will enhance the character and make them stronger. One skill that is particularly good to upgrade is Weapon Handling. This skill speeds up reloading and swapping weapons.
It is also wise to increase the Aiming skill as this will improve accuracy and extend shooting range. These skills boost the Motorics attribute, which will increase the damage of Hydraulic Slam, the first upgrade players unlock. This augmentation is helpful for beginners.
11 Sell Bounties & Weapons
If players spot an enemy with a red skull above his head, they should kill and loot them. This is a bounty that can be sold to a bartender to earn some extra money. If players find weapons that they already have in their inventory or gear of a lower level, they should sell these and earn more Ucreds. There is no point in keeping them.
The money from the bounties and loot can be used to buy weapons and armor that are better suited to the player's level.
10 Shoot Vending Machines To Save uCreds
Playing The Ascent is all about rebelling against Veles' oppressive and rotting system. Hence, using cash or uCreds in order to grab the innards of vending machines is an un-thematic way to do it. Instead, players will want to conserve their uCreds by shooting or destroying the vending machines.
This will yield some free rewards, usually some health packs — which are a godsend in prolonged exploration runs. In the late game, uCreds don't really matter much since players will be swimming in them; however, it pays to be frugal with the money early on so players can afford some advantageous items.
9 Players Can Hack Anything Electronic
In addition to conserving some uCreds, players can also resort to something less loud and less violent by hacking stuff. The hacker tool they're given is basic and un-interactive, but it gets the job done. The tutorial lets players hack and open doors with them.
However, the applications go a bit beyond that. The hacking tool and function can also be utilized to get free stuff from vending machines. Other times, players can get resourceful by tampering with other electronics. Some enemies, particularly the robots, also have a disadvantage against hacking.
8 Walk Around Or Near The Stations To Unlock Them
Despite the enemies that impede exploration in The Ascent, the game gets generous later on with a fast travel system. This makes traversal especially easy, though players will have to keep in mind that fast travel can only be done in stations.
Unlocking stations, for that matter, is something that players need to keep on their checklist when entering a new area. Otherwise, they won't be able to fast travel to the area. When in doubt, simply treat these stations as Diablo-style waypoints that need attention before they reward players.
7 Take Note Of Color-Coded Damage Numbers
When it comes to combat, the game often pits players against enemies that are of higher levels. Apart from the level number indicating that players shouldn't be in that area yet, another cue involves the damage number colors. These can indicate whether the damage players are doing to enemies is going to waste or not.
- Red means the damage is efficient against an enemy type.
- Yellow means it's good enough, or starting to be inefficient.
- White indicates that players are dealing normal damage numbers.
- Grey means players need to fight someone their own weight class or resort to a different tactic, because they're out of their depth with this enemy.
6 Keep All Kinds Of Guns & Armor
In addition to being mindful of the damage number color, players would also do well to ensure they have at least one copy of every weapon. This is because certain enemies are more resistant against other damage types. Organic enemies gate ballistics weapons, while mechanical ones don't fare well against energy weapons.
Consequently, players might also want to keep themselves insulated from the same enemy tactic by bringing at least one copy of every armor. Difficult enemy encounters or boss fights will be easier if players switch out armor pieces, to make themselves more resistant to certain weapons.
5 Don't Veer Off & Explore Too Much
Open worlds can be tempting in many games, but The Ascent treats its setting differently. While players are allowed to make their own explorations, they will soon be punished for it by running into enemies that are several levels more powerful.
Instead, it's best to stick to the suggested path in The Ascent. There's a dedicated button for that, where players are railroaded to their mission destinations. As such, they have few reasons to venture off their intended path — unless they want an unfair challenge.
4 The Loot Drone Can Save You
One of the earliest enhancements a player character can have in The Ascent is the Loot Drone. At first glance, it seems like a waste of space or allotment since players can do just what the Loot Drone does: pick up items on the ground.
However, the Loot Drone does it at a bigger radius and picks up items more reliably. This can be highly useful when the item drops on the ground are health packs, and the players are close to dying. Thus, Loot Drones can be unexpected life-savers.
3 Practice Backtracking While Shooting
Players who aren't used to twin-stick shooters will likely be perplexed or even frustrated at the fiddly shooting in The Ascent. They simply need to get used to how it works. One way to go about it is by practicing walking backward while the aiming reticle or cursor is pointed in a different direction.
This is the best way to deal with multiple enemies, particularly those who tend to bum-rush the players with their melee attacks. It's also a way to save some precious dodge rolls. At times, it can also be a more effective tactic than strafing.
2 Do Dodge Rolls Instead Of Crouches
During the early game, if players don't have fast travel options yet, traversal can be a slow and daunting process. Certain places have low clearance and require the players to crouch. Passing through these areas is a slow ordeal. They can even turn into death traps if there are enemies nearby.
Players will be pleased to know that they can dodge roll under these low-clearance areas, which is significantly faster than crouching beneath. The animation allows the player character to pass through unhindered. It could be a bug or glitch, so there might be a chance it could get patched out.
1 Vendors Often Sell One Unique Item
Once players learn how to save some uCreds, one aspect of the game they might want to remedy with all that money is the weak starting weapons. The vendors of each area have something for the players.
Some of them sell at least one distinct or unique weapon, perhaps even armor pieces. These can grant considerable advantages in combat, and will likely carry the players until they can find an upgrade to the weapons. In any case, it's good practice to check out the local struggling merchants and support them.
The Ascent is available on Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.