F.I.S.T.: Forged In Shadow Torchis an enthralling journey through the depths of a character-drivenMetroidvania. FIST will have you unlocking new abilities, exploring branching paths, and honing your skills to push back against the Iron Dogs. The tips & tricks on this list will help prepare you for everything Torch City has to offer.
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From a wide range of enemies, a labyrinth full of treasures, and a rewarding combat system, FIST is easy to enjoy but hard to master. Maneuvering Rayton through Torch City’s traps and surprises can be difficult, yet extremely satisfying. By learning the intricacies of FIST, you can get farther into the compelling story and enjoy the combat even more.
10Explore Everywhere
Look for hidden pathways and explore as much as you may. Atthe heart of every Metroidvaniais a world of twisting and turning corridors. From the very start, FIST offers you the ability to head off the beaten path and explore options routes. These pathways can be both easy to find or expertly hidden.
Many secret routes will be home to treasure chests filled with Fursos (currency) or even a powerful upgrade. Not only is it important to collect these resources for your character’s benefit, but it’s part of the reason why FIST is so addictive and fun to play.
9Check The Map Frequently
The map is filled with useful information, you should glance at it early and often. A red exclamation mark will indicate your current mission, obstacles blocking pathways will be color-coordinated as well as show an icon of how to proceed, and other important landmarks will be noted.
Take time to double back and return to the branching pathways that you went past as you pushed through the game. Fully uncovering the map can be a highly beneficial and entertaining way to spend your time in Torch City.
8Check New Areas With Caution
When dropping down a pipe or jumping to a new area, move slowly at first. The platforms in Torch City are often filled with traps and enemies waiting to ambush you. When it’s possible, slowly wall slide or feign-jump to see a little more area before committing to a new platform.
Torch City is hoping that you won’t check every new area with caution before jumping right in, the world is out to get you. Foil the evil plans of the Iron Dogs by moving slowly through new areas and spotting the safest path to stay alive.
7Experiment With The Traversal
One of the best design elements in FIST is the way you move around the map. With a Jump, Dash, and Wall Grab available to you at the start of the game, you have a lot of movement options. While more traversal options open up as you progress through the game, we will focus on just the basics here.
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The best basic movement option is to Jump and Dash while in the air for a greater travel distance. This allows you to not only jump much farther but is a great option for closing the gap to flying enemies or high-altitude platforms.
6Fight Enemies As A Group
The best way to approach a multitude of enemies is to deal with them as a group. Don’t think of each enemy independently, but more as a squad. The frontline enemies will protect the high-damage weaker ones, while snipers will fire at you from a distance.
Try throwing enemies into others, grouping up all melee units, and dealing with the highest priority first. When you enter a new screen, always survey the scene and take note of the unit composition you need to deal with. Take out the low hit-point units first, then combo the rest.
5Learn The Combo System
The upgrade skill tree in FIST is filled with new attack options and ferocious combinations. With these unlockable skills, you can learn the basics of FIST combat and start to discover the depth of what is possible. Prioritize unlocking Pulverize and Whirlwind Punch as soon as you can.
Pulverize is done by chaining together two Light Attacks, followed by a Heavy Attack. This sequence will end in a heavy ground blow that deals medium damage. Whirlwind Punch is unleashed when you execute three Lights Attacks followed by a Heavy Attack. This combo finishes in a spin attack that hits all surrounding enemies with small damage.
4Use Your Resources Wisely
Defeating enemies and finding treasures will provide you with resources to spend on upgrades. Currency can be spent on a few different options that can’t be refunded. Look through everything that’s available before committing to an upgrade.
Focusing on a single weapon upgrade can be strong if you don’t like to weapon switch, but many enemies are weak to only one weapon. It’s recommended to upgrade your weapons equally and give yourself more versatility. This strategy is well-rounded and better than spending all your resources on one weapon and neglecting the others.
3Use All Of Your Available Tools
FIST provides you with a plethora of weapons, abilities, and options for combat and movement. Don’t forget about your toolkit when you’re in the heat of battle.Survey your situationand choose the proper setup to face whatever you’re up against.
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Remember to use your combat resources like SP and purchase upgrades at the terminals and shops. While you only start out with a few options, these will increase as you progress through the game. Newer options that you unlock are often the most powerful or are needed for a given situation.
2Hit Downed Enemies
Sometimes when you’re launching a volley of hits at an enemy, they will fall down and take time to recover. Don’t give them the opportunity to catch their breath, instead, use a ground attack to punish downed enemies.
There’s no need to be honorable and let your foe return to their feet (not in FIST anyway). Certain attacks can hit a grounded opponent, while others will swing right over them. Test out which of your combat options can get in that extra damage while your enemies are recovering.
1Be Prepared To Leave Questions Unanswered
Like any Metroidvania, you will not have access to much of the map as you play through the game.Many secrets, treasures, and pathwayswill be blocked out or just out of reach until you get the proper upgrade.
Be comfortable leaving things behind as you will be faced with a lot of obstacles that you can’t unlock until later. Newly unlocked skills can destroy barriers, allow you to reach new heights, or bypass dangerous obstacles. Once you’ve upgraded your kit, head back the way you came to unlock areas that were previously unreachable.
