The For Honor open beta is live starting today and will run through the 12th and PS4, Xbox One and PC. You may have been wondering if For Honor is the game for you, and you plan on jumping into beta this weekend. However, as tired as the phrase may be at times, this game truly is a little different from most other games. Many of us here are Dark Souls fans, and if you try and play this like Dark Souls you’ll be in for a rough time. So here’s a few tips and tricks to help you get the most out of the beta experience.

Start with the AI

No really, start with the AI. I am far more inclined to compare this combat system to Street Fighter than to Dark Souls.  Each class has combos, and to be effective you must know your class’s combos. AI 1v1 duels are a great way to get that initial learning curve out of the way.

Dabble in All Before Unlocking

It is important to understand that all the classes play slightly differently, even within the same category. Wardens and Raiders might both be Vanguards, but they do play differently.  This makes it important to try out all the classes. Here’s the trick though, you do not have to unlock a class to play it. All unlocking does is allow gear and skill customization.  So play around a bit before deciding which classes you want to unlock.

Gain Some Levels Before Buying Packs

Speaking of unlocking, hold off on buying backs until you have a few levels in your chosen class. The gear level in the packs is based on your character’s level, so waiting until level 3 or 4 to open packs will get you better gear.

Understand the Modes

If you are looking for duels, be sure to stick with 1v1. While you will get mostly duels in 2v2 Brawls, 2v1 situations will commonly occur. 4v4 Elimination will be a long running battle with frequent instances of 2v1 and even 3v1. Dominion? Stay out of Dominion if you want to focus on fair fights between players. Killing other players is secondary in this mode, with the focus instead on claiming the control points.

Be Patient

This game has a high skill ceiling. You will most likely suck and lose horribly at first. Be patient. Take your time, think about why you lost, and try and improve for the next time. Always remember you have the option of practicing against the AI if you feel you’re really stuck.

The Faction War

You can contribute to this by fighter players or the AI. If you really don’t want to be bothered, then just fight.  The system will allocate resources automatically. If you do want to control things a bit more, remember to go to the Faction War screen to allocate your war resources after every match.

Have Fun

It is, after all, a game. Enter the field of battle with a courageous heart, and enjoy.

In this final beta period, the primary main item we’ll get is access to a new mode, 4v4 Elimination, which is effectively Brawl only with teams of 4 instead of 2. The final character class will still be locked out as well.

Launch is right around the corner for this game, February 14th, Valentine’s day if you happen to celebrate it. Personally, I think every fan of Dark Souls owes it to themselves to checkout the final open beta to see if it’s your cup of murder. Not everyone who likes Dark Souls will like this game, but I feel the overlap is large enough that it’s worth checking out. Hopefully I’ll see some of you on the battlefield!

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