A few basic things about the weapons you should know. The reload animation and mechanic are dependent on the weapons themselves. Some weapons like the carbine and the magazine fed pistols are quick to reload, but you waste what you did not shoot from that magazine before you dropped it to the ground. (You apparently do not hold onto your mags as a gameplay feature with those weapons.) So if you only shot two bullets from a twenty-four round magazine and reload, you lost twenty-two bullets. If you reload after firing twenty rounds of a twenty-four round magazine, you only lost four bullets. There is a technique called "Topping Off" however. That topic will be covered on it's own.

You have to pay attention to how much you have left in the current mag and how many mags you have on hold and if you think you will need a full magazine to take down what ever is around the next corner. I try to not reload until I only have five rounds in my current magazine left myself. Are you good with your weapon? Does it take half a mag to kill some one or only a few shots? Also if I know up ahead there is a room full of enemies however, I will reload for the upcoming shoot out or switch to my side arm.

For the revolvers colt and magnum, you keep the rounds you did not fire, but the colt for instance, is a slow reload and you have to hold onto the R button in order to continue loading the bullets into the cylinder one at a time. If you let go of the R button, it will immediately stop reloading. Or if you only press it once, you only reload one bullet. On the flip side, the colt allows for rapid fire of up to six rounds by fanning the hammer like in an old western. That only works if not holding onto two pistols at the same time though. The magnum however will load all rounds at once with a moon clip, but you do not lose any rounds. I assume it is easier to keep track of a few bullets than several. And also to make those pistols feel unique from the others as a gameplay mechanic.

The pump action shotgun is the same thing as the colt. You have to keep the R button pressed down or you will only load one round. The sawed-off's main fire is both shells as well. A devastating wall of buckshot that can kill in one shot. The secondary fire is one shell at a time. It also does not lose rounds when reloading one shot at a time. Be aware however of the double barreled shotgun. It has a game play quirk of not being able to hit it's target from afar. Note I do not mean it has poor accuracy. I mean medium to long range, the pellets just disappear. If you stand far enough away, they can not reach you. No joke.

You can find ammo scattered around the map, although it takes a keen eye to make out the ammo for your desired weapon. However sometimes it is better to simply drop your current weapon with the G key by default, in order to pick up another. Be aware you will only get a single magazine or a chamber full. So thirty rounds for the carbine for instance and six for the shotgun or only two for the sawed off. But in a pinch it could be the matter of life or death. I tend to have starting favorites, however it is good to use all weapons fairly well for such situations when your mains are empty.

Pay attention to what your opponent is carrying. Although it can be hard when both are going at each other guns blazing, knowing what the other opponent has and knowing how to deal with it, can be the difference between life and death. The easiest example that I can think of is when facing off with an opponent carrying the hand cannon or sawed-offed double barrel shotgun. In close range both barrels fired can kill quite easily, but if they miss and they are trying to reload, it takes a few precious seconds where you can get off a shot or two, where as if they had a carbine and dropped the magazine for another, they would already be back into the action almost immediately.

Throwing knives can be thrown through breakable glass, but not through doors or walls. However they will always land or stick on the point side, so provided you can hit your opponent with it, they will be injured. Also you can make them bounce by throwing them diagonally on the floor. Depending on the angle it will bounce to different heights. Throwing it too close to you for instance will just make the knife stick to the floor.

Bandolier holds more ammo. Twice as much actually. Also it allows you to carry another unique weapon like both shotguns, instead of just one of them. Or the sniper rifle and the sub-machine for instance. I do not think it allows you to carry an extra pistol however. So four is the norm or three and then dual wield what you currently have and are allowed to dual wield.

Quick Draw Holster just makes it faster to switch weapons, basically instantly instead of trying to pull your weapon from your back pocket for so to speak. This pulls it from a holster more conveniently located for speed. It could mean the difference between life and death.

Laser Sight allows for better grouping of shots, especially with automatic weapons, than with just the normal cross hairs. For single shot weapons, it seems less useful. Most pistols for instance, provided you let the cross hair settle down between trigger pulls, the bullets will hit a man sized target, even from all across the map on Metro for instance. If you are a head hunter though, this may be very useful. But trying to pistol snipe from too far, not sure even the best of monitors can make it worth your while. This also only works on all slide pistols, the AR-15 and the Magnum.

Silencer only works on weapons that allow for it, so for the slide pistols and the smg. Anything like the shotgun or the revolvers it is a waste to choose this item. This does not even work on the AR-15.

Stealth Slippers allow you to run around more quietly. I have not confirmed if it can deal more or less damage while using kicks. It does not allow you to run faster or to take less damage from falls that I am aware of.

Armor vest allows for some protection against bullets and shrapnel. I am not sure if it does anything against melee damage. It will however not make you bullet proof and you can still be killed. You can still get head shot while wearing it.

Grenade will give you a single powerful hand thrown weapon. Useful if you can catch a group in a small room or tight quarters. Also can be used to lob over a balcony if there is an annoying camper just out of reach. Five second fuse with primary fire and you can cook it off with alt fire. Prepping it gives less time for the enemy to run or find cover, but if you release too late, you will be killed as well.

You have the option to randomize your gear by one game round or every round, meaning what you randomly start with you are stuck with or every respawn gives you another random item main, side weapon and equipment item. However it does not seem to work for me. I keep getting the same stuff every round.

Personally, I find a lot of these wasteful and really only the quick drawl holster and the armoured vest worth while. Since most weapons, as long as you do not wildly shoot them, will hold a decent shot group, the laser sight is of little use. Hardly any reason to be super stealthy and quiet, so both the slippers and the silencer seems a waste. Grenades you can pick up later. Bandolier is useful, but since weapons and even more ammo is scattered every, there is really no need to horde it. And unless you are really good, you are going to die and have to respawn anyway. So trying to collect all that ammo is almost pointless. Although carrying a second unique weapon does have it's advantages, but you can also simply trade for another by dropping the current one you hold.

Stunts are a way to both surprise your opponent and look cool doing it. It also allows you to become a smaller target, diminishing your hit box both in the air and while on the ground. However there is a caveat to doing this. You can be momentarily disoriented depending on how you land. It also takes a moment to get back up, which can cost you precious moments in a heated gun battle. There is no slow motion like in Max Payne, so you are not exactly at a real advantage for doing it.

You can Stunt through windows. Just be aware you know where that window leads out to, as it could be to your death. Stunting does not prevent you from injuring yourself from heights. It may "lessen" the damage, (unconfirmed) but it will not keep you from being injured or dying from too great a fall.

Also be aware that you can not "stunt" through a closed door. You can open it that way, just not stunt through it. So you would have to run into the door to open it first and then immediately start your stunt to catch cool air and hopefully your opponent off guard. I myself do not use this technique very often however, as I find it does more harm than good. Although laying on the floor does make you less of a target, you really can not move which makes it easier to shoot you. Like I said it has it's caveats. ^^!

To perform a dive, just move in the direction that you want and press the stunt button.

To perform a roll, just move in the direction that you want and press both the stunt and crouch button at the same time.

To perform a long jump, just move in the direction that you want and press the crouch button just slightly before the jump and you will launch in the direction that you want.

You may see others doing this cool kung fu kick and wondering how you too can do this, as there is no button in configuration that is mapped for it. It's actually quite simple to perform, although maybe not so simple to land. You just have to press the jump button twice- once to jump and then again to do the kick, preferably towards an opponent.

Be aware kicks are not just to look cool though, but it also takes off a fairly decent amount of health from your opponent, but better yet, knocks whatever weapons they have currently in their hands out of them. Keep it up and you can essentially disarm them for easy pickings, provided they do not pick up what they just dropped or run to find more or even disarm you in the process, as it is a two way street.

Be aware it is not as easy to perform against an opponent already in the prone position or laying down. It can be done, but is harder. Also guns will kill you far quicker. Although there are people who go around just doing this technique and it can be effective, you DO have to be up close and personal. Trying to run down a long corridor to an opponent, especially who is facing you, will most likely get you killed. Flank from the side or close the distance with your own firepower and then unleash the dragon makes for a great send off to the afterlife for your opponent. However not being careful will be your demise and not look cool at all.

Also be aware you can not perform a kick through objects, even breakable glass. All you will do is essentially "kick off" sending you backwards, which can be a tactic for distraction as well. And yes, kicking an explosive barrel will kill you. But what a way to go for style, if you take about five other people with you! ^^!

Pro tip- you can actually parkour off of things if you time it right and use your environment to your advantage by jumping and facing the nearest object if it is close enough to you.

Bandages work differently than most people are accustomed too, when it comes to first-aid. They do not heal, only simply stop the bleeding. But you want to stop the bleeding as soon as possible, because if it is not taken care of you will continue to bleed out until you either take the time to perform first-aid (by pressing the T key by default) and already lost precious HP or you bleed out entirely and die. You could go from 100 to 70 health from a gunshot and if you are not paying attention, slowly drop to 45 hit points and below, simply because you did not realize or did not take the time to bandage yourself.

And you have to weigh the pros and cons of dealing with your current wound or continue fighting. If not directly in a fire fight, I would recommend to bandage yourself up. If you are currently in a fire fight, deal with the threat at hand or retreat if there is more than one combatant and they have engaged each other, as it is a free for all and you might be able to run and find cover for a few precious seconds to stop the bleeding, while the other two are duking it out. Provided the next corner you come to, does not also have an enemy in the waiting. Also try to listen for upcoming footsteps and gunfire to hear if the area you are about to enter is relatively safe or not. Be aware that the slippers and the silencer will deaden the noise from footsteps and shots fired respectively.

But never take bleeding lightly. If caught in time, you may be able to survive another bullet or two before death, which means more time to play and possible points earned before a short respawn. Or you bleed out and you die a fool's death. Also be aware you can bandage yourself more than once. I have done it three or four times. I think you have infinite gauze to wrap your arm with. It should be noted that once started, you can not stop the animation for the wrapping however, so again do it when you have the time.

Also be aware that if you get fall damage, you may not bleed, but may still need to perform first-aid. You will know, because you are greatly slowed down. You wont lose any hit points if you do not do first-aid, but you wont be able to run at all. Once you perform it however, you are back to running again. I am not sure if getting shot in the leg will slow you to a crawl or not.

You can find these scattered about the levels. They are very useful because they contain one magazine for every pistol in the game, including six rounds for the revolvers. You can pick them up and even gain ammo for the pistols you have not even acquired yet.