Killing Floor 2's Open Beta has come to a close (or never really opened, if you're in Germany), but that doesn't mean you can't get hyped for it to finally release on Nov. 18.
In case you didn't get to play in the open beta, or didn't care to try out the new classes (known as Perks in the Killing Floor series) at the time, here is a guide to the Gunslinger and SWAT Perks, both of which are new to Killing Floor 2.
There will be a third new perk – the Survivalist – which was earlier announced during a Twitch stream. The Survivalist will be available on PS4 on the launch date, but the PC version will require a day-one patch. Since this Perk has not yet been playable, it will not yet be included in this guide, but we will update it once it becomes available. In the mean time, more information on the class can be found here.
Gunslinger
Overview
The Gunslinger is perhaps my new favorite perk. In a game already as viscerally entertaining as Killing Floor 2 – with gore so satisfying as to be unrivaled by anything else currently in release – the Gunslinger perk adds even more fun to the equation. Suddenly, you're a cowboy dual-wielding revolvers and headshotting zeds with ease. What could be more fun?
Each level you gain in your Gunslinger perk will give you 1 percent Perk weapon damage, 1 percent bullet resistance (base 5 percent), .8 percent movement speed, 1 percent recoil reduction & 3 percent bonus reload speed during Zedtime (awesome slo-mo sequences that can be triggered by headshots and dramatic explosions).
You gain experience in this perk by dealing damage and landing headshots with Gunslinger weapons.
Weapons
You're going to start out with dual Remmington 1858 Revolvers acting as your primary weapon. For those new to Killing Floor, you'll be delighted to know that you can, in fact, aim down the sights while dual wielding. This makes this class so much more viable, because hip firing with revolvers gives you quite the kick, especially when you upgrade to Desert Eagles or Magnums. The Remmington's are going to be appealing, because they each have a magazine size of 6 for a total of 12 shots between reloads, whereas the uppercrust of the Gunsliger class only offer 10 shots.
Probably the first weapon you want to buy, though, is a second 9mm pistol. Dual wielding these is crazy beneficial if you find yourself under assault while needing to reload. They're also effective at dealing with Crawlers and Clots without wasting your more valuable ammo. Since each gun has a 15 magazine size, you can fire an unbelievable 30 shots between reloads, making these must-have as a reliable crutch in case of danger.
After this, though, you'll want to go straight for the Dual Magnums. While you can purchase a Desert Eagle or two to tide yourself over, I'd recommend saving your money. In the early rounds of a 10-round game, you don't really need more than Dual 1858's and Dual 9mm, so you can afford to pinch your pennies.
The capabilities of dual .500 Magnums cannot be overstated. Even a single .500 Magnum can down a Gorefast (those blade-armed mofos) with one shot to the chest. It can also take the head clean off a Bloat again with only one shot. They're amazing. Get them.
Skills
New to Killing Floor 2, each Perk now has a skill tree of sorts. Every five perk levels you unlock access to two different skills, but you can only use one of them at a time (you can switch back and forth between these choices before, during and after each match).
The Gunslinger's Skills are as follows:
While it may seem like a toss-up between Steady and Quick Draw, it's really not – Quick Draw is the way to go. A base movement speed increase of 5% is not to be underestimated and nullifies the benefit of Steady's movement speed penalty buff. Also, switching between perk weapons 50 percent faster is also helpful, especially if you took my advice about Dual 9mms and find yourself in a bind.
But the real benefit of Quick Draw in removing the recoil penalty for hip firing. While you can use this to simply never aim down the sights, I wouldn't recommend it. The added accuracy for long range that ADS offers is still beneficial, but when you're facing a horde of Zeds up close, or a more threatening Zed like a Scrake or a Fleshpound, you'll find the ability to fan the hammer without recoil to be an absolute lifesaver.
Moving quickly through the later levels, you'll want to get:
– Bone Breaker at level 10 (a base 20 percent damage increase is too good to pass up, while also giving you a benefit for inaccuracy).
– Speedloader at level 15 (it's way too good and is much less situational than Line 'em Up).
– Skullcracker at level 20 (this is only beneficial for larger Zeds such as Bloats, Scrakes and Fleshpounds, but boy will you find it helpful).
– Zed Time – Fan Fire at level 25 (reloading in real time during Zed Time, on top of Speedloader and your inanate reload time bonuses is a game changer – plus 3x firing rate).
While you may be able to get away with using Line 'em Up once you have Fan Fire, I'd still recommend doubling down on reload speed, rather than investing in odd situational skills. Your call.
Bonus Tip
Your Alt-fire for dual weapons will have you aim directly down the sights for one pistol, making that shot incredibly accurate. While the left pistol's accuracy will suffer as a result, this is very good for picking off high-value, far-away targets, such as Sirens or Bloats.
SWAT
Overview
The Swat perk is a one-man killing machine – or at least he will be. Strapped head-to-toe with body armor, he specializes in combating hordes of smaller zombies with submachine guns. Flashbang crowds to stun them, and then mow them down! Sounds like a fun night out, to me.
Each SWAT level will net you 1 percent bonus perk weapon damage, 1 percent bullet resistance (base 5 percent), 4 percent increased magazine size and 1 percent bonus weapon switch speed.
The SWAT gains experience through perk weapon damage and killing Clots with perk weapons, making him not only an effective Clot killer, but a lucrative one as well.
Weapons
As with most perks, your weapon upgrade strategy will be a race to the most expensive gun, but, unlike the Gunslinger, you can have your cake and eat it, too. Still meeting the weight requirements, you can upgrade to the P90 SMG and then get the Kriss SMG when you can afford it (you'll have to sell off your starting MP7, though). And these are both good weapons to have – whereas the Gunslinger is better off picking of an off-perk weapon such as a shotgun or launcher instead of another set of dual pistols.
Speaking of pistols, you're going to again want to keep your 9mm and upgrade to duals. if you're doing the math, you've probably noticed that you can get the MP5RAS SMG, the P90 SMG and the Kriss SMG all within the weight limit of 15 if you don't get the Dual 9mms, but, trust me, once you get your skills upgraded, you'll want to keep those Dual 9mms.
One thing you won't want to neglect is your flashbangs. These can get you out of almost any bind with a couple-second stun on a zombie horde. Keep these filled every round past round 3 – no matter the expense. If nothing else, use them when you need to reload.
Skills
These are really what transforms the SWAT perk into the killing machine it is. Play your cards right, and you'll be nigh-unkillable with a damage dealing capacity unrivaled by other perks.
The SWAT's skills are as follows:
Heavy Armor Training is, simply put, your bread and butter with the SWAT perk. Do not give even a passing glance at Tactical movement instead. Not only does Heavy Armor training give you 50 percent starting Body Armor, but it makes it so you can't take damage to your health while you have armor – except through sonic damage, which is inflicted by all of one Zed type. As if this wasn't enough, throw in the fact that Clots can't grab you while you have armor, and this is a no-brainer at level 5.
As I sad before, you're going to want to keep your Dual 9mms – and Close Combat Training at level 10 is the reason why. For one, you'll begin each game with Dual 9mm, so this kind of makes the decision for you, but it also more than doubles their damage output (110 percent increase). Yes, increased reload speed of Tactical Reload is tempting, but you already have several ways to avoid reload issues – including the ability to carry three different viable weapons at any given moment and your flashbangs to buy you time.
Running through the other skills quickly:
– Get Ammo Vest at level 15 (your success at this class requires you to be able to fire for as long as possible)
– Get Assault Armour at level 20 (With Heavy Armor Training, you'll start each game with 100 armor and now have the ability to get 50 more).
– Get Battering Ram at level 25 (this will get you out of any tough situation, knocking over all Zeds in your path in real time during Zed Time).
Killing Floor 2 will release on Nov. 18 for PS4, PS4 Pro and PC.
