Cronos: The New Dawn, Bloober Team’s first original survival horror IP, is now out, allowing horror game fans to suit up as the imposing ND-3576, a Traveler with a bizarre and dangerous mission. Looking like Resident Evil and Dead Space merged, with some time travel thrown in to spice things up, you’ll want to be as prepared as possible. So, we’ve pulled together a Cronos: The New Dawn Beginner’s Guide to give you some tips, and hopefully a better chance at survival!
Such is our calling.
Read our Cronos: The New Dawn Review to get our full thoughts on the game.
Flashlight On Equals Danger
When ND-3576 has her flashlight turned off, you are in a safe area and don’t have to worry about being attacked, so breathe easy. When she turns her flashlight on, that means you are entering the danger zone, but at least you can see…
Except for those moments when it craps out before a fight!
Every Bullet Matters
Like any good survival horror game worth its salt, ammunition is in short supply in Cronos: The New Dawn. Small quantities can be bought at Traveler outpost shops, and you can craft if using resources, but the rest is scavenged from the environment, either lying out in the open or hidden in crates you can smash and stomp.
This means you don’t want to waste any bullets if you can help it. A good rule of thumb is that you should always shoot enemies with charged shots, as regular shots are too weak for most enemies. Charged shots take time to prepare, and then they will fire as soon as they are primed. There are sound and visual cues to let you know when it is ready.
But if you are worried about missing a shot you are charging, just stop aiming to cancel it. It’ll take some getting used to, but it may save you from a fatal miss. Speaking of shooting stuff…
Headshots And Fleshy Bits
Headshots are king. A few shots to the dome are going to do a lot more than half a dozen slugs to the gut, which is also a waste of precious ammo. More often than not, going for a charged-up headshot is the best plan, and even if it doesn’t put your target down, it’ll have them reeling afterwards; the perfect chance to reposition yourself.
As you progress further, enemy variety will grow, introducing armoured enemies. These goons have a hard, spiky shell covering parts of their body, and sometimes their head, making those parts invulnerable to firearms. Your best move is to find their soft tissue, preferably a leg, and take aim. Not only is this the only way to hurt them, but leg shots can cripple a foe for a short period.
You’ll know if their armour has blocked your shot, as sparks will fly off them instead of the familiar spray of blood and viscera.
Running Is An Option
ND-3576 is not a fast walker, or talker for that matter, but even with her slow jog, she can outmaneuver her grotesque assailants. Whether it’s kiting enemies around an area and using the environment to your advantage, or retreating down a corridor to reposition, reload, and resume fire, movement is one of your greatest strengths.
It’s also worth mentioning that you don’t always need to kill your enemies to continue forward and find safety. There are times when it may be in your best interest to make a run for the exit at the sound of encroaching horrors. Enemies can’t open the doors installed by the Travelers, and certain interactive obstacles will block their pursuit. So, if you’re low on rounds and resources, consider choosing flight!
Reusable Traps?!
You read that right! Certain strategically placed fuel tanks, barrels, and canisters can be reused after you’ve detonated them.
The ones we are referring to are those that you summon into existence using your gadget. After they have been used for their purpose, and after a short period of time, the black hole anomaly will reappear in the same place, allowing you to recreate the fire trap all over again!
Cores And How To Spend Them
Cores are something you want to be on the lookout for, as they are what you need to upgrade ND-3576’s Shell, her suit. Some of the cats you can find in Cronos: The New Dawn will give you one, but most are found by scouring the environment and checking down side paths.
As far as spending your Cores is concerned, we would recommend using them to upgrade the Shell’s durability and storage, increasing your health and the number of inventory slots you have, respectively. It’s also a good idea to upgrade the number of fuel canisters you craft for your Torch, letting you burn Biomass and dead bodies, as well as stun enemies more.
Need More Pockets
Another staple of survival horror is an inventory system, and normally, not a very big one. You can increase the number of slots in your inventory using cores at the Traveler outpost shops. All items take one slot, with ammo, healing items, and torch fuel stacking to a certain limit.
It’s worth noting that items will persist in the world if left in the environment, and you don’t leave the region. This allows you to run back and sell/stock items at a nearby outpost and then pick them up once you return, or pick them up later once you have freed up some space.
Essence Management
ND-3576’s mission involves her extracting the essence of certain individuals. Each essence grants the Traveler a unique passive, such as increasing the amount of energy you receive on pick up, or increasing your damage against burning enemies.
These passives are great, but you can only hold up to 3 essences at any given time. Which means that if you come across another essence during your playthrough, you will have to decide to discard it or lose one of your currently equipped essences. This also becomes more difficult if you are trying to unlock certain trophies/achievements, which require you to have certain essences altogether, or finish the game with certain ones.
That was our Cronos: The New Dawn Beginner’s Guide! We hope it was helpful, and you can find more guides for this game below.
