The man who brought us one of mobile gaming’s best pro wrestling simulators (Wrestling Revolution 3D) and MMA simulators (Weekend Warriors) is back with another iOS and Android game that showcases his quirky, pop culture-centric humor and trademark fighting mechanics. Extra Lives is a new zombie survival sim from Mat Dickie, aka MDickie, and your goal in this game is to survive as long as possible in a world of “brainless zombies and heartless humans.” You start out by creating your own character, then go on to build relationships with 200 other characters who belong to eight different factions, who all hate each other and have their own beliefs, as well as solutions to what they see is the problem. The game has more than 50 locations, hundreds of interactive objects, and once again, MDickie’s “above average” combat system that longtime fans of his may recognize from games like Wrestling Revolution, Hard Time, and others.
Longtime MDickie game players should have a pretty good idea of how to go about things in this zombie survival game, but for the benefit of the new players out there, we’re going ahead and bringing you our Extra Lives strategy guide for beginners, where we focus on the fundamentals of the game, and the most basic things you have to learn in order to survive a little longer and adjust to the strange new world you’re in.
1. Go To The Grocery Store
Like in other MDickie games, your character can go hungry, and that could have untoward consequences if you go without food for too long. For starters, you can head to Chinatown, which is found in the Southeast area of the city; that’s where you will find the grocery store. There will be a lot of food up for grabs in the grocery store, so you can go nuts and grab as much food as you can. Best of all, you can be assured that the food is safe from zombies — they normally won’t be in the area, though this may depend on how far the infection has spread at a given point.
2. Make Sure You’re Properly Equipped
You can’t expect to go around fighting zombies with your fists alone — this isn’t School Days or Hard Time where you can survive in hand-to-hand combat! You’ll need to roam around town to find a good weapon you can use to defend yourself against your enemies, but when we say the word “weapon,” we’re using that term loosely — any item that you pick up in the game, even food, can be used as a weapon against zombies, and can be considered as a better alternative to trying to survive on your bare fists and nothing else. Still, you’ll want to be a safe distance from the zombies even if you’re wielding a weapon. Make sure you’ve got good spacing between you and your target, because you’ll never know when a zombie will try to grab you for a wrestling-style hold or throw, effectively neutralizing your weapon attack.
3. Make Friends With The Humans
Extra Lives is a game that encourages you to be social, but not in the usual way we define it. We’re referring to your interactions with NPCs in the game, so if you see some humans walking nearby, it’s a good idea to approach them and befriend them. In most cases, they’ll complain about the zombies and be done with it, but sometimes you may actually end up making some friends, meaning that they’ll take your side if you get attacked. You will, however, want to be very careful after you’ve made yourself a friend. Due to the mechanics of the controls, it’s very easy to accidentally hit someone you’ve made friends with, and that could turn an ally into an enemy without a moment’s notice! It’s seemingly a staple of MDickie games, and it certainly applies here in Extra Lives, so be careful.
4. Look For A Backpack To Keep Your Stuff In
Backpacks are oftentimes a character’s best friend in MDickie games, and that’s the case in Extra Lives. But it won’t be that easy to find one, and you may end up traveling a distance before you find a backpack you can use. Once you find a backpack, you will then need to follow the commands to place an item inside the backpack. Hit both blue and red buttons at the same time to put the backpack on, and you’re good — you can keep one item inside the backpack, while holding another item and being able to switch those items around if needed.
As a bonus tip, this game seems to have a crafting mechanic, and in theory, it is possible to create a backpack out of materials. So far, we haven’t discovered what it takes to craft a backpack, but don’t worry too much if you can’t find one or make one — it’s merely a nice item to have around, but not a mandatory, make-or-break item.
5. Grab Weapons At The Police Station
Last, but not the least, as far as this beginner’s guide goes, you should make an early trip to the Police Station if you’re looking for some sophisticated, high-powered weapons that could make mincemeat out of those zombies. If throwing weapons is your thing, there are grenades available. You’ve also got assault rifles and flame-throwers if you enjoy blasting away at enemies. All sorts of cool weapons are available at the cop shop, so make sure you’re heading there as soon as possible before the other humans (and the zombies too) call dibs on those implements of destruction!
There you have it! This wraps up our beginner’s guide for Extra Lives. In case you know additional tips or tricks for the game, be sure to drop us a line!