Combine the dusky dilapidated streets of the fictional Eastern European Lasria with a rampant mutating virus, fierce gunplay, a quality cover system and smooth controls, and you already have a recipe for hardcore success. Add a massive, whirling blade called the Glaive with boomerang action designed to slice, sever and decapitate enemies, and you're really cooking with gas.
Inventive as the Glaive and our hero's myriad powers are, they may prove a shade too powerful until you've unlocked the game's Brutal difficulty setting. Therefore, the hardcore gamer must necessarily take steps to add that extra bit of sweet difficulty that we all require. If you want to truly test your Dark Sector prowess, allow me to suggest the following challenges.

After Touch Restraint

Sublime though it may be to hurl the Glaive in slow-motion with After Touch, guiding the lethal tri-blade to a gory outcome at the expense of your enemy, I urge you to practice restraint when activating this slow-mo power. Use it instead to highlight a rare moment or cap off a frantic battle.

Enemy Weapons Only

While you should certainly buy and upgrade weapons in Dark Sector's Black Markets if for no other reason than to score the related achievements, avoid taking advantage of the increased firepower they represent. Instead, if you feel the need to retire the Glaive briefly, use the enemy's time-bombed weapons (they explode after several seconds of use) as your Glaive alternative.

Finish the Red

Mistime a power throw with your Glaive and the targeted enemy will find themselves only temporarily wounded. While in this stunned and bewildered state, the enemy will often glow red, opening themselves up for a melee "finishing" move for a short time.

Headshot the Shields

The riot-shield toting enemies in Dark Sector are imposing adversaries, but a quick power throw to the shield can expose them to gunfire. Effective? Yes. Hardcore? No. Rather, the hardcore gamer should endeavor to pick off these opponents by targeting that bare sliver of forehead that pokes ever so slightly above the top of their shields with a pistol shot.

Glaive Only

While retrieving and using the time-bombed enemy weapons offers its own extra challenge, you might find an even tougher test of skill and tactics by restricting yourself to Glaive-only attacks. This is particularly true in large, long-distance fights where so many of your enemies will be outside the Glaive's range at the battle's outset.

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