Highway To Hell (A Beginner's Guide to Highway)

Written by Arohbe

Thursday, 04 March 2010 23:21

Since our stage guides are pretty much empty I'm going to see if I can write up some basic guides for all of the stages, starting with Highway. There's a pretty good chance reading this that you already know a bit about Highway. But in case you don't allow me to start with a few simple facts. Highway is one of few stages compatible for multiple game modes, having both a DM version and a TD version. It's also the largest DM stage in the game and quite possibly the largest TD stage, possibly even larger then Tunnel. As well it seems to be one of, if not the most underplayed maps in S4 (Just about every time I've ever played it at least 1 person comments on it being their first time on the stage. They're also usually a semipro.) Our experts have made this piechart in MSpaint to show roughly how many times the average S4 Player plays each TD stage. These numbers were pulled out of thin air. Aren't statistics fun? The first thing you need to know about Highway is that it's large. It consists of two main floors, and has quite a bit of horizontal distance as well. Bringing a skill to move around quickly like Anchor, Wings or SP+ is advised, though not at all required. Most skills work fairly well on Highway, however Block is a bit limited unless you get creative. Here is a basic map of Highway. It looks a bit confusing on first glance but will slowly start to make more sense. For TD you need to keep in mind that the diamond shaped areas are the spawns for Alpha and Beta, the goals are on the lower level nearby, and the fumbi will spawn on the opposite end of the stage on the upper level. If you don't happen to have a skill such as Anchor or Wings, you'll need to know your way around the lower level, and how to get back to the top. If you're near one of the goals, there will be a ramp near a yellow car that you can jump onto, which will lead you onto the catwalks. Exhibit A. Also note the backwards advertisement of S4 PSP on the car. Running down these you should find a winding staircase that will lead you back up. If you're on the other end of the stage, there is another winding staircase that will lead you up to the catwalks. The choices are yours and yours alone. Once you're on the catwalks, look for this staircase to get up to the top level. One thing to keep in mind about Highway, alot of areas are breakable. The bridge connecting the spawn area to the upper level, the tall wall by the goal and every car (including the buses) can be destroyed with enough force. Breaking down the opponent's bridge will generally help to slow them down upon spawning. There are only really two TD routes you can take on this stage. You either go straight through the curved path to the opponent's goal, or you go around to the side wall. The curved path is a rather large choke point, similar to the tunnels on Neden-3 and Tunnel, so you're unlikely to score without your team backing you up. The sidewall is a good way to score if your team manages to break it down. It takes roughly 5-6 plasma sword dashes to break the wall down, or 100 bullets from a shooting weapon. (I should note these numbers are not 100% exact, so it's better to just keep shooting at it till it goes down.) It's possible to score without your team breaking down the wall if you use anchor/wings, or wall jump/dodge from the lightpole, but it requires a fair amount of SP so you'll have to grab the ball nearby. If this wall is broken, it's very easy to score a touchdown. If your team is organized it's always a nice idea to try for it, but watch out that the other team isn't looking to do the same move on you. One popular move on Highway that is used very often in matches is the "Gate Hop". In between the two goals on the lower stage are four laser fences, one for each team on each side. If one goes up to the fence closest to the wall and jumps, they can go over the lasers even if it looks as if they shouldn't have. This allows you to not only jump over your opponent's laser fence, but also allows you to jump over your own without reseting the ball. The gates in question. Each side has one blue gate and one red gate. When attempting to jump, make sure you time it right so you go into the lasers at the peak of your jump. If you go too soon or too late you'll end up going into them. It may take a little bit of practice to get it down, but once you can do it regularly you'll be able to shave off a good 15-20 seconds that you would normally have to take to run from one end of the stage to the other with the ball. This is roughly what a successful gate hop looks like. It's a little hard to take a picture of it. Another method for the gate hop, while harder is much more rewarding. Line yourself up with the fence and run toward the open door, then wall jump off of it. If you manage to jump around the top of the door and aim it properly, you'll fly through both fences, going even faster. This is much more difficult to pull off then the standard gate hop, and of course can't be done if you run out of SP. Face the gate somewhat at this angle and try to wall jump around the upper bar on the door. It might take you a few tries practicing it before you can do it. Another thing to note about Highway - All the clear walls can be shot through. This is especially helpful for snipers. You can stand inside the spawn area and shoot at people who run for the ball. From the spawn you can get a nice view of the lower area of the stage. It's a good spot to snipe from, just make sure you keep an eye on the ball. Reseting on Highway is a bit different then any other stage. It's rarely a valid tactic to reset the ball and attempt to have someone on your team take it and run. Reseting should only be done to buy time, if you're trying to stall a match or if your side is being swarmed by people on the other team. Or if you just want to be a troll. One last tip to note, the buses on the stage make for good cover. Hiding behind one near the fumbi spawn is a great spot to ambush someone when they come to grab the fumbi. Lying in wait for an extended period of time is never a good idea, however. The DM version of Highway isn't all that different from Touchdown, most of what has been said can be carried over, but with a few changes. As it's DM there are no laser fences to worry about jumping over or running through. Also, the spawn points all occur on the ground floor/catwalks. Because of this, the upper level of the stage is rarely used on DM. A general DM strategy is to hold out behind these two buses with some healers and snipers. Anyway this is all I have to say for now. As with any TD stage, make sure you always focus on the ball and run with your team. I'll update this later if I can think of something I forgot to add in. Now go play some Highway, god damn. Before I forget, lolicatgirl made a video a while ago showing off a few Highway jumps. These are also helpful so I'm including a link to it here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbkVi2yXBSs

Last Updated ( Thursday, 04 March 2010 23:59 )