Follow TV Tropes

Following

History YMMV / DeadAheadZombieWarfare

Go To

OR

Added: 1030

Changed: 797

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* SelfFanservice: Female characters who aren't explicity sexualised in the game tend to receive this treatment by the fandom, with Pepper being the most prominent example. Abby is the closest to an exception as most ZW fan-artists just don't seem to be into muscular women.

to:

* SelfFanservice: SelfFanservice:
**
Female characters who aren't explicity sexualised in the game tend to receive this treatment by the fandom, with Pepper being the most prominent example. Abby is the closest to an exception as most ZW fan-artists just don't seem to be into muscular women.women, but even she gets her share of "loving" drawings once in a blue moon.



** Among level-specific challenges, the classic one is to beat mission 138 with only bullet-firing units. The catch is that this mission consists of nothing but non-stop waves of Twins, [[MightyGlacier durable enemies with 95% resistance to bullet damage]], occasionally supported by the Insectoid that rips ranged units to shreds. No melee rushdown, no fire, just a lead storm.

to:

** Among level-specific challenges, the classic one is to beat mission 138 with only bullet-firing units. The catch is that this mission consists of nothing but non-stop waves of Twins, [[MightyGlacier durable enemies with 95% resistance to bullet damage]], occasionally supported by the Insectoid that rips ranged units to shreds. No melee rushdown, no fire, no armor penetration – just a lead storm.



* ThatOneLevel: The bad rep of Mission 136 is hard to overestimate. After all these years, it established itself as the hardest level in the entire game, being even harder than the final boss (who is [[ThatOneBoss no less infamous]], but is at least cheesable and could be worked around more easily). Basically, Mission 136 is a combination of all infamously challenging wave layouts, ramped up to eleven. A constantly incoming mook that's both sturdy, resistant, and hits hard? (Prisoner) Check. Frequent damage sponges? (Crank) Check. Two Charged Zombies coming at once? Check. Insectoids? ''Make it double''. Oh, and don't forget the relatively short delay between all of these, and needing absurd luck to get an alright headstart. Managing to beat this mission on three stars without use of buffs and ''anything'' meta is considered an achievement for a reason. It's also worth noting that this is the second level of the only linear stage in the game, meaning that it's a massive unavoidable roadblock, only adding to the mission's infamy.
* ThatOneSidequest: Before update 3.7.4, Bill's simple, mundane daily quests weren't mandatory, but their coin/XP rewards were often worth going for, and so players dedicated their time to them anyway. Thanks to this, many people grew to hate star acquisition quest, as it's very tedious, requiring you to spend much more fuel than on other tasks. With the complete overhaul of the daily task system in 3.7.4, this quest got removed, and it's safe to say that it's not missed at all.

to:

* ThatOneLevel: The bad rep of Mission 136 is hard to overestimate. After all these years, it established itself as the hardest level in the entire game, being even harder than the final boss (who is [[ThatOneBoss no less infamous]], but is at least cheesable and could be worked around more easily). Basically, Mission 136 is a combination of all infamously challenging wave layouts, ramped up to eleven. A constantly incoming mook that's both sturdy, resistant, and hits hard? (Prisoner) hard?[[note]]Prisoner.[[/note]] Check. Frequent damage sponges? (Crank) sponges?[[note]]Crank and Putrid.[[/note]] Check. Two Charged Zombies coming at once? Check. Insectoids? ''Make it double''. Oh, and don't forget the relatively short delay between all of these, and needing absurd luck to get an alright headstart. Managing to beat this mission on three stars without use of buffs and ''anything'' meta is considered an achievement for a reason. It's also worth noting that this is the second level of the only linear stage in the game, meaning that it's a massive unavoidable roadblock, only adding to the mission's infamy.
* ThatOneSidequest: Before update 3.7.4, Bill's simple, mundane ThatOneSidequest:
** Practically any type of
daily quests weren't mandatory, but their coin/XP rewards were often worth going for, quest can become this if it requires using a bad unit. However, one specific combination is hated more than the others: "Use Chopper's activated ability X times". Of all units with manually activated perks, Chopper's is the hardest to farm because it requires him to be at <50% health, and so players dedicated their then it has a cooldown of a ''whole minute'', which is also the same time it takes for Chopper to them anyway. Thanks to this, recharge himself. The way this quest is consistently tedious and demanding is what has earned it its infamy.
** During the days of the old daily quest system,
many people grew to hate hated star acquisition quest, quests, as it's they were very tedious, requiring you to spend much more fuel than on other tasks. With the complete overhaul of the daily task system in 3.7.4, this quest got removed, and it's safe to say that it's not missed at all.tasks.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
dewicking Gainaxing


** For what it's worth, Charlotte is a solid sniper unit who can help her teammates by dealing large amounts of damage from a distance. However, the ''real'' reason most people decide to try her out is to see [[{{Gainaxing}} her huge breasts shake while she is firing]]. Fortunately, most of them [[JustForFun/ComeForTheXStayForTheY grow to appreciate Charlotte's actual combat skills]] too.

to:

** For what it's worth, Charlotte is a solid sniper unit who can help her teammates by dealing large amounts of damage from a distance. However, the ''real'' reason most people decide to try her out is to see [[{{Gainaxing}} her huge breasts shake while she is firing]].firing. Fortunately, most of them [[JustForFun/ComeForTheXStayForTheY grow to appreciate Charlotte's actual combat skills]] too.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None

Added: 745

Changed: 863

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* GoodBadBugs:

to:

* GoodBadBugs:GoodBadBugs: Throughout the game's history there existed multiple bugs that gave units unintended advantages.



** If a ranged unit fires a critical shot it doesn't consumes ammo from their magazine. When combined with Gambling item set, this bug can be abused to create an impenetrable bullet storm. Pretty much the only time when this bug is detrimental is when its used on Lester, Farmer, and Ranger with their specials unlocked, as critical bullets aren't able to cause knockback.

to:

** If Due to an error, Gambling set's bonus wasn't multiplying its wearer's crit. chance by x1.25, but instead adding a very high flat number to it, causing every attack they land to be critical. In truth, this wasn't worth using on majority of units since their criticals simply weren't that special (or were too slow, and as a result – counterproductive), but the few who could benefit from it were effectively becoming game-breakers. Rogue is one of the better examples: Gambling set's effect was essentially turning him into a true stunlocker.
** Update 3.6.0 introduced crticial hits to
ranged unit fires units, and those came with a critical shot it doesn't consumes pleasant bug: such shots didn't consume ammo from their magazine. When combined with magazines. Even though it's a nice bonus, critical builds weren't a realiable enough option for ranged units... up until introduction of the Gambling item set, this bug can be abused set discussed above. The combination of these two bugs allowed players to create an impenetrable bullet storm. Pretty much the only time when this bug is detrimental is when its used on Lester, Farmer, and Ranger with abuse ranged units in skirmish, causing them to fire their specials unlocked, as critical bullets aren't able guns infinitely. Abby was the most popular pick for this combo, for obvious reasons.
** There existed an error that caused some units' special abilities
to cause knockback.apply twice on their owners. Some notable examples include Sniper Polina's armor penetration going from 40% to 80%, and Swat's charisma bonuses granting 50 damage instead of 25.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
There's two l's in Redneck's name in his retconned backstory


*** Redneck’s name is Russel in his backstory.

to:

*** Redneck’s name is Russel Russell in his backstory.

Added: 624

Changed: 1150

Removed: 1284

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Rogue has been nerfed after all, and the discussion has died down. At least for now. Also, Turbo's weapon was always a gnome stick. It was never treated as just a colourful bat.


* BrokenBase:
** Who is the better shooter – Sonya or Carlos? This debate arose right after the former's release, and hasn't died down since. Even though it's been established that both are equally viable, with Sonya being preferable when survivability matters more than damage, and Carlos – in inverse cases, people still believe that some aspects of one unit make them overall better than the other. The debates continued even after the release of version 3.6.0, which heavily favored the argument into Sonya's side.
** Does Rogue deserves a nerf? His extremely high damage is seen by many as an overkill for a fighter unit, and the fact that he has access to stuns allows him to get out of many situations that would spell doom to other meat shields. At the same time, people also believe that this is a valid design for a post-game unit, and acts as a reward for the effort you have to make to acquire him. Not to mention that Rogue, in his current state, is virtually a crutch for the TMF team, and if he gets nerfed the entire team might irrecoverably suffer from this, ''even'' if other members receive some buffs as a compensation.

to:

* BrokenBase:
**
BrokenBase: Who is the better shooter – Sonya or Carlos? This debate arose right after the former's release, and hasn't died down since. Even though it's been established that both are equally viable, with Sonya being preferable when survivability matters more than damage, and Carlos – in inverse cases, people still believe that some aspects of one unit make them overall better than the other. The debates continued even after the release of version 3.6.0, which heavily favored the argument into Sonya's side.\n** Does Rogue deserves a nerf? His extremely high damage is seen by many as an overkill for a fighter unit, and the fact that he has access to stuns allows him to get out of many situations that would spell doom to other meat shields. At the same time, people also believe that this is a valid design for a post-game unit, and acts as a reward for the effort you have to make to acquire him. Not to mention that Rogue, in his current state, is virtually a crutch for the TMF team, and if he gets nerfed the entire team might irrecoverably suffer from this, ''even'' if other members receive some buffs as a compensation.



** In fanart, Turbo's colorful bat is often just replaced by the makeshift gnome stick weapon used by [[{{Film/TurboKid}} the original character that she's an Expy of.]]
** Rogue's armor and mask broke after he left the TMF. this is mostly to explain why he doesn't have natural bullet or poison resist like the other TMF members.

to:

** In fanart, Turbo's colorful bat is often just replaced by the makeshift gnome stick weapon used by [[{{Film/TurboKid}} the original character People like to believe that she's an Expy of.]]
**
Rogue's armor and mask broke after he left the TMF. this is mostly to TMF, which can explain why he doesn't have natural bullet or and poison resist resistances like the other TMF members.



* GoodBadBugs: As already discussed in the above section, Desperado's abnormal reload animation was seen as a massive unitended boon by the community. Even though it seemingly became a feature, veteran players still tend to perceive it as an example of this trope.

to:

* GoodBadBugs: GoodBadBugs:
**
As already discussed in the above section, Desperado's abnormal reload animation was seen as a massive unitended boon by the community. Even though it seemingly became a feature, veteran players still tend to perceive it as an example of this trope.trope.
** If a ranged unit fires a critical shot it doesn't consumes ammo from their magazine. When combined with Gambling item set, this bug can be abused to create an impenetrable bullet storm. Pretty much the only time when this bug is detrimental is when its used on Lester, Farmer, and Ranger with their specials unlocked, as critical bullets aren't able to cause knockback.



** There's plenty of outright bad units in the game, but most of them still have their fans or just stay ignored. Same can't be said about Gunslinger, who is the second worst high-rate-of-fire unit in the game due to his lack of close quarters protection, unjustly slow speed, and poor damage output. His final nail in the coffin, though, is that he doesn't even have any weird fun gimmicks or cool strategies to mess around with, or anything that could let him fill a niche, which could've at least made him fun or interesting to use with the right teams. This him a very bland shooter with no reason to use him over Carlos and Sonya. You'll have hard time finding anyone who has at least some appreciation for him.

to:

** There's plenty of outright bad units in the game, but most of them still have their fans or just stay ignored. Same can't be said about Gunslinger, who is the second worst high-rate-of-fire unit in the game due to his lack of close quarters protection, unjustly slow speed, and poor damage output. His final nail in the coffin, though, is that he doesn't even have any weird fun gimmicks or cool strategies to mess around with, or anything that could let him fill a niche, which could've at least made him fun or interesting to use with the right teams. This makes him a very bland shooter with no reason to use him be used over Carlos and Sonya. You'll have hard time finding anyone who has at least some appreciation for him.



** Beating [[FinalBoss Cephalopods]] in creative ways is also a challenge of its own. This usually refers to tactics that aren't Nitrogen rushdown or Willy stacking, both of which are abused to disable the boss.

to:

** Beating [[FinalBoss Cephalopods]] in creative ways is also a challenge of its own. This usually refers to tactics that aren't Nitrogen rushdown or Willy stacking, both reliant on [[ZergRush spamming fighters]] at the right time. One legendary example is using Polina with a Patriot item set, and farming deaths of which are abused to disable her teammates until she can deal well over ''30,000'' damage, and essentially one-shot the boss.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None

Added DiffLines:

** In fanart, Turbo's colorful bat is often just replaced by the makeshift gnome stick weapon used by [[{{Film/TurboKid}} the original character that she's an Expy of.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None

Added DiffLines:

** Rogue's armor and mask broke after he left the TMF. this is mostly to explain why he doesn't have natural bullet or poison resist like the other TMF members.

Changed: 614

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* ScrappyMechanic: The modern day unit upgrade system is disliked by the community because of how much it worsens the already bad grindiness. Not only do you need to grind for double the amount of coins than before, you also need to acquire special upgrade points to spend, which don't come in big quantities for free, and have a questionable price tag in the shop. It's also worth noting that this might not have been a problem had it not for the upgrades' conversion rate: spending one UP costs one coin, which isn't a big deal for early levels, but is definitely a problem for ones in double digits, which can require as much as ''11 thousand'' points.

to:

* ScrappyMechanic: The modern day current unit upgrade leveling system is disliked by the community because of how much it worsens the already bad grindiness. Not only do you need to unneeded grind for double the amount it introduces. It requires use of coins than before, you also need to acquire special upgrade points to spend, points, which don't come in big quantities for free, and in hourly rewards, have a questionable price tag in the shop. It's also worth noting shop, and can only be farmed in supply runs, which means they compete for keys with upgrade items. The worst part is that this all might not have not've been a problem had it not for if the upgrades' conversion rate: rate was more reasonable: right now, spending one UP costs one coin, which isn't a big deal for early levels, but is definitely a problem for ones in double digits, which can require as much as ''11 thousand'' points.points – if you want to max out your units then you are essentially forced to do heavy grinding for both UP and gold. Fortunately, Mobirate are aware of this system's issues, but they are yet to take any action because of prioritising other parts of future updates.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* ScrappyMechanic: The modern day unit upgrade system is disliked by the community because of how much it worsens the already bad grindiness. Not only do you need to grind for double the amount of coins than before, you also need to acquired special upgrade points to spend, which don't come in big quantities for free, and have a questionable price tag in the shop. It's also worth noting that this might haven't been a problem had it not for the upgrades' conversion rate: spending one UP costs one coin, which isn't a big deal for early levels, but is definitely a problem for ones in double digits, which can require as much as ''11 thousand'' points.

to:

* ScrappyMechanic: The modern day unit upgrade system is disliked by the community because of how much it worsens the already bad grindiness. Not only do you need to grind for double the amount of coins than before, you also need to acquired acquire special upgrade points to spend, which don't come in big quantities for free, and have a questionable price tag in the shop. It's also worth noting that this might haven't not have been a problem had it not for the upgrades' conversion rate: spending one UP costs one coin, which isn't a big deal for early levels, but is definitely a problem for ones in double digits, which can require as much as ''11 thousand'' points.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None

Added DiffLines:

* ScrappyMechanic: The modern day unit upgrade system is disliked by the community because of how much it worsens the already bad grindiness. Not only do you need to grind for double the amount of coins than before, you also need to acquired special upgrade points to spend, which don't come in big quantities for free, and have a questionable price tag in the shop. It's also worth noting that this might haven't been a problem had it not for the upgrades' conversion rate: spending one UP costs one coin, which isn't a big deal for early levels, but is definitely a problem for ones in double digits, which can require as much as ''11 thousand'' points.

Added: 230

Changed: 1209

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** Once Policeman Diaz is unlocked there's a very good chance he will be staying in any player's team for the remainder of the main game. Diaz is often considered the best unit for use in the campaign, boasting a high damage shotgun with lots of spread, while also having high health and being the only unit with melee resistance, in a game where zombies primarily rely on such attacks. This combination of crucial upsides makes him an overly effective unit who is never a bad option for any mission. Therefore, people rarely ever remove him from their decks.
* CriticalBacklash: Back when updates 3.6.0 and 3.6.1 were only available as random-invite betas, there wasn't much info shared on how exactly the new item system worked. There were, however, many stories of how new upgrade items allow units to have extreme stats, and how overpowered some of the set bonuses are. This caused a small portion of the fandom to preemptively bash on the overhaul, assuming it strips the game off the tower defense elements in favor of mindless gacha grinding for raw power. However, once every player got access to the new system, and people had enough time to properly analyse ''all'' changes made to the game, the aforementioned vocal minority changed their atittude entirely, seeing the new system as an interesting way to diversify gameplay of overwise stale units, and make certain underdogs much stronger than before.

to:

** Once Policeman Diaz is unlocked there's a very good chance he will be staying in any player's team for the remainder of the main game. Diaz is often considered the best unit for use in the campaign, boasting a high damage shotgun with lots of spread, while also having high health and being the only unit with melee resistance, in a game where zombies primarily rely on such attacks. All for the low unlock price of 1,250 Coins, being a unit you unlock in the early game, and have easy access to throughout the entire game as a whole. This combination of crucial upsides makes him an overly effective unit who is never a bad option for any mission. Therefore, people rarely ever remove him from their decks.
* CriticalBacklash: Back when updates 3.6.0 and 3.6.1 were only available as random-invite betas, there wasn't much info shared on how exactly the new item system worked. There were, however, many stories of how new upgrade items allow units to have extreme stats, and how overpowered some of the set bonuses are. This caused a small portion of the fandom to preemptively bash on the overhaul, assuming it strips the game off the tower defense elements in favor of mindless gacha grinding for raw power. However, once every player got access to the new system, and people had enough time to properly analyse analyze ''all'' changes made to the game, the aforementioned vocal minority changed their atittude attitude entirely, seeing the new system as an interesting way to diversify gameplay of overwise stale units, and make certain underdogs much stronger than before.



** Sort of, since it used to be official. Even though it’s widely accepted that the unit’s deleted backstories are no longer canon, one detail from then is still definitively remembered and accepted years later: Redneck being brothers with Private Rodriguez. Since they both fulfill the same role (cheap spammable meatshield who can deal good damage) they’re often remembered as brothers, and it’s not uncommon to see them together in fan-work. And since Rodriguez is a navy-man and Redneck’s direct upgrade in-game, he’s often depicted as the older brother, if they’re not depicted as twins first.
*** Also due to the retconned backstories, the other detail people often remember is that Redneck’s name is Russel.

to:

** Sort of, since it used to be official. Even though it’s widely accepted that the unit’s The units used to have backstories, but they were deleted backstories (sans Marine/Rodriguez) and reconned and are all no longer canon, one detail due to copyright problems with making all of them {{Whole Plot Reference}}s. Despite that, though, details from then is said stories have been remembered, and are still definitively remembered and unamonously accepted by the community years later: later.
*** The most popular one is
Redneck being brothers with and Private Rodriguez. Rodriguez being brothers. Since they both fulfill the same role (cheap spammable meatshield who can deal good damage) {{Meat Shield}}s or {{Glass Cannon}}s) they’re often remembered as brothers, and it’s not uncommon to see them together in fan-work. And since Rodriguez is a navy-man and Redneck’s direct upgrade in-game, he’s often depicted as the older brother, if they’re not depicted as twins first.
*** Also due to the retconned backstories, the other detail people often remember is that Redneck’s name is Russel.Russel in his backstory.
*** Sheriff Charlotte is Sniper Polina's aunt. This detail is less remembered than the brothers, but the sniper duo are still considered aunt and niece by anyone who knows that detail.



** Although College team powers are fairly useful nowadays, their original version were infamous for being one of the worst synergies in the entire game. They were all centered around disabling the mechanic of dead units turning into zombies, which is rarely ever a real threat. The situation doesn't gets better when you realize that none of College members have dangerous on-death transformations themselves, and that all of the team's skins are premium.

to:

** Although College team powers are fairly can be useful nowadays, their original version were infamous for being one of the worst synergies in the entire game. They were all centered around disabling the mechanic of dead units turning into zombies, which is rarely ever a real threat. The situation doesn't gets better when you realize that none of College members have dangerous on-death transformations themselves, and that all of the team's skins are premium.



* {{They Wasted A Perfectly Good Plot}}: The potential for some kind of an interesting story was present in the beginning. A lot of players were interested in where it was going, especially considering that Dead Ahead is praised for having a more unique take on the ZombieApocalypse compared to other media, even by those who don't like the game very much. However, the trainwreck would start with all the unit's backstories being deleted and likely reconned, likely because all of them were {{Whole Plot Reference}}s with barely anything original. Even though it means the cast can't be just a bunch of unoriginal ideas, which is a good thing, it still kills any chance of the units being actual official characters. It gets worse in the game, as all it has are some short cutscenes that barely tell or do anything. Then the intro to Location 4 (halfway through the game) is the last proper cutscene in the game, with the only other cutscene left being Bill literally saying "so easy" at the FinalBoss. And then the Marauders; likely the only enemies that aren't mindless monsters, appear in a grand total of 5 missions, and disappear after their final mission together in Location 5, Mission 91. Even though they barely had any characterization as well, it still ended any potential for an interesting antagonistic group. Overall, fans are disappointed. With the missing characterization of the units who could've been a unique cast of characters, to the half-baked incomplete "storyline" that had no real substance to begin with, and the unexplored universe that could've been so interesting with just some worldbuilding, it all leaves fans a lot to be desired, when it had so much great potential.

to:

* {{They Wasted A Perfectly Good Plot}}: The potential for some kind of an interesting story was present in the beginning. A lot of players were interested in where it was going, especially considering that Dead Ahead is praised for having a more unique take on the ZombieApocalypse compared to other media, even by those who don't like the game very much. However, the trainwreck would start with all the unit's backstories being deleted and likely reconned, likely because all of them were {{Whole Plot Reference}}s with barely anything original. Even though it means the cast can't be just a bunch of unoriginal ideas, which is a good thing, it still kills any chance of the units being actual official characters. It gets worse in the game, as all it has are some short cutscenes that barely tell or do anything. Then the intro to Location 4 (halfway through the game) is the last proper cutscene in the game, with the only other cutscene left being Bill literally saying "so easy" at the FinalBoss. And then the Marauders; likely the only enemies that aren't mindless monsters, appear in a grand total of 5 missions, and disappear after their final mission together in Location 5, Mission 91. Even though they barely had any characterization as well, it still ended any potential for an interesting antagonistic group. Overall, fans are disappointed. With the missing characterization of the units who could've been a unique cast of characters, to the half-baked incomplete "storyline" that had no real substance to begin with, and the unexplored universe that could've been so interesting with just some worldbuilding, it all leaves fans a lot to be desired, desired when it had so much great potential.

Added: 1557

Changed: 243

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** Once Policeman Diaz is unlocked, there's a very good chance he will be staying in any player's team for the entire rest of the main game. Diaz is undoubtedly considered the best unit in the entire main game. a high damage shotgun with lots of spread that dishes out tons of damage, combined with high health and being the only unit with melee resist, in a game where zombies primarily rely on such attacks, make him a strong, tanky unit who is never a bad option for any mission.

to:

** Once Policeman Diaz is unlocked, unlocked there's a very good chance he will be staying in any player's team for the entire rest remainder of the main game. Diaz is undoubtedly often considered the best unit for use in the entire main game. campaign, boasting a high damage shotgun with lots of spread that dishes out tons of damage, combined with spread, while also having high health and being the only unit with melee resist, resistance, in a game where zombies primarily rely on such attacks, make attacks. This combination of crucial upsides makes him a strong, tanky an overly effective unit who is never a bad option for any mission.mission. Therefore, people rarely ever remove him from their decks.


Added DiffLines:

** Jailer, who is actually a solid unit in his own right, earned his status of a "letdown" after the release of Rogue, which is the biggest example of a PowerCreep in the game's history. Not only does Rogue have much better stats and the same perks, he can also be obtained with in-game currency instead of being locked behind a paywall. And although Jailer's team has better [=PvE=] synergies, they fail to favor the comparison in his side due to Jailers' powers being held back by their poor unit rotation, meanwhile TMF as a whole are strong in [=PvP=], and Rogue doesn't needs them to be overpowered everywhere else. These unfortunate facts led to Jailer being seen as nothing but a waste of money.


Added DiffLines:

** The current butt-of-all-jokes team synergy is Builders' 5/5, which grants its members a double increase to damage against barricades. This already sounds like a negligible upside, but it gets worse with the fact that Builders have a bad unit rotation with only 2.5 of them being able to even target the barricade. Funnily enough, the "0.5" unit, Abby, is the only one who can put this power to proper use, and not even with her axe but rather her minigun – using Abby with 5/5 Builders in Supply Runs allows to destroy the supply cache in around 2 seconds, the fastest in the game... but good luck actually reaching it, since the aforementioned rotation of Builders is not optimised for Supply Run game mode. The fact that this power has exactly one reasonable use case which still gets outclassed by safer options is what has earned it so much infamy.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None

Added DiffLines:

* BrokenBase:
** Who is the better shooter – Sonya or Carlos? This debate arose right after the former's release, and hasn't died down since. Even though it's been established that both are equally viable, with Sonya being preferable when survivability matters more than damage, and Carlos – in inverse cases, people still believe that some aspects of one unit make them overall better than the other. The debates continued even after the release of version 3.6.0, which heavily favored the argument into Sonya's side.
** Does Rogue deserves a nerf? His extremely high damage is seen by many as an overkill for a fighter unit, and the fact that he has access to stuns allows him to get out of many situations that would spell doom to other meat shields. At the same time, people also believe that this is a valid design for a post-game unit, and acts as a reward for the effort you have to make to acquire him. Not to mention that Rogue, in his current state, is virtually a crutch for the TMF team, and if he gets nerfed the entire team might irrecoverably suffer from this, ''even'' if other members receive some buffs as a compensation.


Added DiffLines:

** Although the statement about singleplayer top tiers is overall accurate, you are unlikely to find any massive fans of Turret. Veteran players rarely use it in their playthroughs because of how cheap it is at higher levels, stripping even the most difficult missions of any challenge, meanwhile newbies tend to get confused by how it works, dislike that [[DifficultButAwesome it takes a while to get the hang off]], and are scared off by its high price.

Added: 260

Changed: 1181

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


*** While Military's 3/3 and 5/5 are rather tame, with the former being inconsistent, and the latter tied to cost reduction items, once they come into effect they easily ruin any fun for the team's opponent. 3/3 provides a chance to spawn a Specops upon a military's death, and 5/5 makes it so any individual militia won't be attacked by its opponents until they start attacking themselves. Since most of Military units are viable for Skirmish on their own, fighting their team requires extra effort unless you also use a similar formation.

to:

*** While Military's 3/3 and 5/5 are rather tame, with the former being inconsistent, and the latter tied to cost reduction items, once they come into effect they easily ruin any fun for the team's opponent. 3/3 provides a chance to spawn a Specops upon a military's death, and to provide strength in numbers at a random chance. And the dreaded 5/5 makes it so any individual militia won't be attacked by its opponents until they start attacking themselves. themselves, essentially meaning that the Military team will always get the first hit, providing a massive starting advantage. Since most of Military units are viable for Skirmish on their own, and the others still contribute to the team well, fighting their team requires extra effort unless you also use a similar formation.



* RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap: Although update 3.6.2 has done more harm than good, it's hard to ignore that some units have only benefitted from its reworks:
** Because of how leveling formula affects damage, Polina has went from one of the worst to one of the best units for use during majority of missions, since her damage ramps up ''that'' much. If you give her preparation time decreasing watches and a good item set, she becomes one of the best single-target eliminators, easily taking care of any dangerous zombie.
** Now that upgrades affect all forms of damage, Abby can have her minigun upgraded, which means she can go from base 40 to as high as 130 damage for each of her bullets. This transformed her from a mediocre burst damager into a living definition of overkill.

to:

* RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap: RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap:
**
Although update 3.6.2 has done more harm than good, it's hard to ignore that some units have only benefitted from its reworks:
** *** Because of how leveling formula affects damage, Polina has went from one of the worst to one of the best units for use during majority of missions, since her damage ramps up ''that'' much. If you give her preparation time decreasing watches and a good item set, she becomes one of the best single-target eliminators, easily taking care of any dangerous zombie.
** *** Now that upgrades affect all forms of damage, Abby can have her minigun upgraded, which means she can go from base 40 to as high as 130 damage for each of her bullets. This transformed her from a mediocre burst damager into a living definition of overkill.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None

Added DiffLines:

* CriticalBacklash: Back when updates 3.6.0 and 3.6.1 were only available as random-invite betas, there wasn't much info shared on how exactly the new item system worked. There were, however, many stories of how new upgrade items allow units to have extreme stats, and how overpowered some of the set bonuses are. This caused a small portion of the fandom to preemptively bash on the overhaul, assuming it strips the game off the tower defense elements in favor of mindless gacha grinding for raw power. However, once every player got access to the new system, and people had enough time to properly analyse ''all'' changes made to the game, the aforementioned vocal minority changed their atittude entirely, seeing the new system as an interesting way to diversify gameplay of overwise stale units, and make certain underdogs much stronger than before.


Added DiffLines:

* EpilepticTrees: Bill's bus is somehow able to contain well over a hundred passangers in it, on top of said passengers being identical copies of characters that are implied to be unique individuals. The community's explanation? It's a cloning machine.

Changed: 114

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* {{They Wasted A Perfectly Good Plot}}: The potential for some kind of an interesting story was present in the beginning. A lot of players were interested in where it was going, especially considering that Dead Ahead is praised for having a more unique take on the ZombieApocalypse compared to other media, even by those who don't like the game very much. However, the trainwreck would start with all the unit's backstories being deleted and likely reconned, likely because all of them were {{Whole Plot Reference}}s with barely anything original. Even though it means the cast can't be just a bunch of unoriginal ideas, which is a good thing, it still kills any chance of the units being actual official characters. It gets worse in the game, as all it has are some short cutscenes that barely tell or do anything. Whas worse is that the intro to Location 4 (halfway through the game) is the last proper cutscene in the game, with the only other cutscene left being Bill literally saying "so easy" at the FinalBoss. And then the Marauders; likely the only enemies that aren't mindless monsters, appear in a grand total of 5 missions, and disappear after their final mission together in Location 5, Mission 91, ending any potential for an interesting antagonistic group. Overall, fans are disappointed. With the missing characterization of the units who could've been a unique cast of characters, to the half-baked incomplete "storyline" that had no real substance to begin with, and the unexplored world that could've been so good with just some worldbuilding, it all leaves fans a lot to be desired, when it had so much great potential.

to:

* {{They Wasted A Perfectly Good Plot}}: The potential for some kind of an interesting story was present in the beginning. A lot of players were interested in where it was going, especially considering that Dead Ahead is praised for having a more unique take on the ZombieApocalypse compared to other media, even by those who don't like the game very much. However, the trainwreck would start with all the unit's backstories being deleted and likely reconned, likely because all of them were {{Whole Plot Reference}}s with barely anything original. Even though it means the cast can't be just a bunch of unoriginal ideas, which is a good thing, it still kills any chance of the units being actual official characters. It gets worse in the game, as all it has are some short cutscenes that barely tell or do anything. Whas worse is that Then the intro to Location 4 (halfway through the game) is the last proper cutscene in the game, with the only other cutscene left being Bill literally saying "so easy" at the FinalBoss. And then the Marauders; likely the only enemies that aren't mindless monsters, appear in a grand total of 5 missions, and disappear after their final mission together in Location 5, Mission 91, ending 91. Even though they barely had any characterization as well, it still ended any potential for an interesting antagonistic group. Overall, fans are disappointed. With the missing characterization of the units who could've been a unique cast of characters, to the half-baked incomplete "storyline" that had no real substance to begin with, and the unexplored world universe that could've been so good interesting with just some worldbuilding, it all leaves fans a lot to be desired, when it had so much great potential.

Changed: 449

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* {{They Wasted A Perfectly Good Plot}}: The potential for some kind of an interesting story was present in the beginning. A lot of players were interested in where it was going, especially considering that Dead Ahead is praised for having a more unique take on the ZombieApocalypse compared to other media, even by those who don't like the game very much. However, the trainwreck would start with all the unit's backstories being deleted and likely reconned, likely because all of them were {{Whole Plot Reference}}s with barely anything original, or even nothing original. Even though it means the cast can't be just a bunch of unoriginal ideas, which is a good thing, it still kills any chance of the units being actual characters. It gets worse in the game, as the intro to Location 4 (halfway through the game) is the last proper cutscene in the game, with the only other cutscene left being Bill literally saying "so easy" at the FinalBoss. And then the Marauders; likely the only enemies that aren't mindless monsters, disappear after their final mission together in Location 5, Mission 91, ending their developing plotline, and any potential for an interesting antagonistic group. Overall, the missing characterization of the units and the half-baked incomplete storyline leave fans with a lot to be desired.

to:

* {{They Wasted A Perfectly Good Plot}}: The potential for some kind of an interesting story was present in the beginning. A lot of players were interested in where it was going, especially considering that Dead Ahead is praised for having a more unique take on the ZombieApocalypse compared to other media, even by those who don't like the game very much. However, the trainwreck would start with all the unit's backstories being deleted and likely reconned, likely because all of them were {{Whole Plot Reference}}s with barely anything original, or even nothing original. Even though it means the cast can't be just a bunch of unoriginal ideas, which is a good thing, it still kills any chance of the units being actual official characters. It gets worse in the game, as all it has are some short cutscenes that barely tell or do anything. Whas worse is that the intro to Location 4 (halfway through the game) is the last proper cutscene in the game, with the only other cutscene left being Bill literally saying "so easy" at the FinalBoss. And then the Marauders; likely the only enemies that aren't mindless monsters, appear in a grand total of 5 missions, and disappear after their final mission together in Location 5, Mission 91, ending their developing plotline, and any potential for an interesting antagonistic group. Overall, fans are disappointed. With the missing characterization of the units and who could've been a unique cast of characters, to the half-baked incomplete storyline leave "storyline" that had no real substance to begin with, and the unexplored world that could've been so good with just some worldbuilding, it all leaves fans with a lot to be desired.desired, when it had so much great potential.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* RecurringFanonCharacter: Lilly, who is basically what became of the [[{{RuleSixtyThree}} sexualized genderbent Willy]] mentioned under SelfFanservice below. While she's not very popular these days, she still shows up in fan work every once in a while.

to:

* RecurringFanonCharacter: Lilly, who is basically what became of the [[{{RuleSixtyThree}} sexualized genderbent Willy]] mentioned under SelfFanservice below. While she's not very popular these days, (unlike years ago) she still shows occasionally pops up in fan work every once in a while.while. Never to be forgotten.

Added: 253

Changed: 4

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** For what it's worth, Charlotte is a solid sniper unit who can help her teammates by dealing large amounts of damage from a distance. However, the ''real'' reason most people decide to try her out is to see [[{{Gainaxing}} her huge breasts shake while she is firing]]. Fortunately, most of them [[JustForFun/ComeForTheXStayForTheY grow to appreciate Charlie's actual combat skills]] too.

to:

** For what it's worth, Charlotte is a solid sniper unit who can help her teammates by dealing large amounts of damage from a distance. However, the ''real'' reason most people decide to try her out is to see [[{{Gainaxing}} her huge breasts shake while she is firing]]. Fortunately, most of them [[JustForFun/ComeForTheXStayForTheY grow to appreciate Charlie's Charlotte's actual combat skills]] too.


Added DiffLines:

* RecurringFanonCharacter: Lilly, who is basically what became of the [[{{RuleSixtyThree}} sexualized genderbent Willy]] mentioned under SelfFanservice below. While she's not very popular these days, she still shows up in fan work every once in a while.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** Among level-specific challenges, the classic one is to beat mission 138 with bullet-firing units only. The catch is that this mission consists of nothing but non-stop waves of a [[MightyGlacier tanky enemy with 95% resistance to bullets]], occasionally supported by a pest specifically designed to counter rangers. Using fire is also not allowed, as that's an actual strategy required to beat the level.
** Beating [[FinalBoss Cephalopods]] in creative ways is also a challenge of its own. This usually refers to tactics that aren't Nitrogen rushdown or Willy stacking.

to:

** Among level-specific challenges, the classic one is to beat mission 138 with only bullet-firing units only. units. The catch is that this mission consists of nothing but non-stop waves of a Twins, [[MightyGlacier tanky enemy durable enemies with 95% resistance to bullets]], bullet damage]], occasionally supported by a pest specifically designed to counter rangers. Using fire is also not allowed, as that's an actual strategy required to beat the level.
Insectoid that rips ranged units to shreds. No melee rushdown, no fire, just a lead storm.
** Beating [[FinalBoss Cephalopods]] in creative ways is also a challenge of its own. This usually refers to tactics that aren't Nitrogen rushdown or Willy stacking.stacking, both of which are abused to disable the boss.



* ThatOneLevel: The bad rep of Mission 136 is hard to overestimate. After all these years, it established itself as the hardest level in the entire game, being even harder than the final boss (who is [[ThatOneBoss no less infamous]], but is at least cheesable). Basically, Mission 136 is a combination of all infamously challenging wave layouts, ramped up to eleven. A constantly incoming mook that's both sturdy, resistant, and hits hard? Check. Frequent damage sponges? Check. Two Charged Zombies coming at once? Check. Insectoids? ''Make it double''. Oh, and don't forget the relatively short delay between all of these, and needing absurd luck to get an alright headstart. Managing to beat this mission on three stars without use of buffs and ''anything'' meta is considered an achievement for a reason. It's also worth noting that this is the second level of the only linear stage in the game, meaning that it's a massive unavoidable roadblock, only adding to the mission's infamy.

to:

* ThatOneLevel: The bad rep of Mission 136 is hard to overestimate. After all these years, it established itself as the hardest level in the entire game, being even harder than the final boss (who is [[ThatOneBoss no less infamous]], but is at least cheesable).cheesable and could be worked around more easily). Basically, Mission 136 is a combination of all infamously challenging wave layouts, ramped up to eleven. A constantly incoming mook that's both sturdy, resistant, and hits hard? (Prisoner) Check. Frequent damage sponges? (Crank) Check. Two Charged Zombies coming at once? Check. Insectoids? ''Make it double''. Oh, and don't forget the relatively short delay between all of these, and needing absurd luck to get an alright headstart. Managing to beat this mission on three stars without use of buffs and ''anything'' meta is considered an achievement for a reason. It's also worth noting that this is the second level of the only linear stage in the game, meaning that it's a massive unavoidable roadblock, only adding to the mission's infamy.



** The Free Hugs zombie is basically this. Completely harmless (has an AI that prevents her from doing anything, hence being the most harmless zombie ever), standing still with an adorably-dumb stare with the 'Free Hugs' sign still sticking to her chest, many a player have expressed their feelings of not wanting to kill her, despite doing so nets you ''50'' Rage points. No wonder she's the mascot of the first ''Dead Ahead'' game. This is reflected in the fact that your Units and the enemy's Units don't register her as a target.

to:

** The Free Hugs zombie is basically this. Completely harmless (has an AI that prevents her from doing anything, hence being the most harmless zombie ever), standing still with an adorably-dumb stare with the 'Free Hugs' sign still sticking to her chest, many a player have expressed their feelings of not wanting to kill her, despite doing so nets you ''50'' Rage points. No wonder she's the mascot of the first ''Dead Ahead'' game. This is reflected in the fact that your Units and all units on the enemy's Units don't register her as field just ignore her. There's a target.chance she might be caught in the crossfire, though.

Added: 448

Changed: 759

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** For what it's worth, Charlotte is a solid sniper unit who can help her teammates by dealing massive amounts of damage from a distance. However, the ''real'' reason most people use her is to see [[{{Gainaxing}} her huge breasts shake while she is firing]].
** Try asking Zombie Warfare players what they remember the Witch for. A small part would complain about her being a huge pain in the ass. Everyone else will mention her unintentionally suggestive outfit, ''especially'' the wide cleavage of her shirt.

to:

** For what it's worth, Charlotte is a solid sniper unit who can help her teammates by dealing massive large amounts of damage from a distance. However, the ''real'' reason most people use decide to try her out is to see [[{{Gainaxing}} her huge breasts shake while she is firing]].
firing]]. Fortunately, most of them [[JustForFun/ComeForTheXStayForTheY grow to appreciate Charlie's actual combat skills]] too.
** Try asking Zombie Warfare players what they remember the Witch for. A small part One half would complain about her being a huge pain in the ass. Everyone else Another will mention her unintentionally suggestive outfit, ''especially'' especially the wide cleavage of her shirt.



** Speaking of Prisoners, these guys are borderline JackOfAllStats – they are quick, have moderately high HP, and very high base damage for an "ordinary" zombie. To top it off, they turn into a Small Insectoid upon death – another annoying, fireproof pest.
** Cranks. They have an astronomical amount of health, are [[LightningBruiser deceptively quick despite their sheer bulk]], and can easily gut even your most durable Units in about two to three strikes, being also immune to knockback. There's no real way to counter these guys other than concentrated fire and a ''lot'' of Red Barrels.
** The Big Blues – extremely slow enemies with enormous ''1200'' HP. On its own, it's actually not a big problem. But then you find out that they can ''regenerate health'', and stun your units just like their smaller contemporaries. To top it off, they usually come in swarms of three to four. For an enemy designed to be a BeefGate rather than an actual threat, these things are too good at their job. The only weakness is that Big Blue can't attack when healing, so if you can overpower it with damage he goes down quickly.
** The Twins. Despite her being slow as molasses, she can easily back it up by being constantly on the move and possessing a double attack, with each hit doing extremely high damage. Practically no unit in the game can take it more than once, save for a maxed-out Policeman Diaz or Guard. But the real worst part is that she has a whopping ''95%'' bullet resistance on top of a high HP pool, basically rendering your long-ranged Units (who will be your main damagers at that point) completely useless. There's basically no way to defeat Twins other than spamming melee units, abusing knockback/resistance penetration, and fire.
** Slobs – bloated epidemiologists dressed in hazmat suits that make them fireproof. Another meat shield, this one is infamous for its on-death explosion that ''fatally'' poisons any Units nearby, which makes it difficult to keep them away from ranged units by spamming fighters. They however are still the less threatening, as some poison immune units perform decently well.

to:

** Speaking of Prisoners, these guys are borderline JackOfAllStats – they are quick, have moderately high HP, and very high base damage for an "ordinary" zombie. To top it off, they turn into a Small Insectoid upon death – another annoying, fireproof pest.
** Cranks. They have an astronomical amount of health, are [[LightningBruiser deceptively quick despite their sheer bulk]], and can easily gut even your most durable Units units in about two to three strikes, being also immune to knockback. There's no real way to counter these guys other than concentrated fire and a ''lot'' of fire, with support from Red Barrels.
Barrels if it's really needed.
** The Big Blues – extremely slow enemies with enormous ''1200'' a hefty amount of HP. On its their own, it's these guys aren't actually not a big problem. But then you find out that they can ''regenerate health'', and stun your units just like their smaller contemporaries. To top it off, they usually come in swarms of three to four. For an enemy designed to be a BeefGate rather than an actual threat, these things are too good at their job. The only weakness is that Big Blue can't attack when healing, so Make sure to bring at least two ranged units if you can overpower it with damage he goes down quickly.
are gonna attempt a mission that has Big Blues in it.
** The Twins. Despite her being slow as molasses, she can easily back it up by being constantly on the move and possessing a double attack, with each hit doing extremely high damage. Practically no unit in the game can take it more than once, save for a maxed-out Policeman Diaz or Guard. maxed out heavyweights. But the real worst part is that she has a whopping ''95%'' bullet resistance on top of a high HP pool, basically rendering your long-ranged Units units (who will be your main damagers at that point) completely useless. There's basically no way There ''are'' reliable ways to defeat Twins other than spamming melee units, abusing knockback/resistance penetration, her, but they are slightly unorthodox for end-game meta, and fire.
will still require considerable effort if a player can't afford to properly level up items required for them.
** Slobs – bloated epidemiologists dressed in hazmat suits that make them fireproof. Another meat shield, this one is infamous for its on-death explosion that ''fatally'' poisons any Units units nearby, which makes it difficult to keep them away from ranged units by spamming fighters. They however They, however, are still the less threatening, least threatening among all infamous enemies, as some poison immune units perform decently well.well against them.


Added DiffLines:

* SelfFanservice: Female characters who aren't explicity sexualised in the game tend to receive this treatment by the fandom, with Pepper being the most prominent example. Abby is the closest to an exception as most ZW fan-artists just don't seem to be into muscular women.
** Of all characters, Willy. What started as a RuleSixtyThree joke of a raunchy variety has spiraled into a trend that took a while to die down, and even stuck to some people.

Changed: 128

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** There's plenty of outright bad units in the game, but most of them still have their fans or just stay ignored. Same can't be said about Gunslinger, who is the second worst high-rate-of-fire unit in the game due to his lack of close quarters protection, unjustly slow speed, and poor damage output. His final nail in the coffin, though, is that he doesn't even have any weird fun gimmicks or cool strategies to mess around with, making him a very bland shooter with no reason to use him over Carlos and Sonya. You'll have hard time finding anyone who has at least some appreciation for him.

to:

** There's plenty of outright bad units in the game, but most of them still have their fans or just stay ignored. Same can't be said about Gunslinger, who is the second worst high-rate-of-fire unit in the game due to his lack of close quarters protection, unjustly slow speed, and poor damage output. His final nail in the coffin, though, is that he doesn't even have any weird fun gimmicks or cool strategies to mess around with, making or anything that could let him fill a niche, which could've at least made him fun or interesting to use with the right teams. This him a very bland shooter with no reason to use him over Carlos and Sonya. You'll have hard time finding anyone who has at least some appreciation for him.

Changed: 211

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** There's plenty of outright bad units in the game, but most of them still have their fans or just stay ignored. Same can't be said about Gunslinger, who is the second worst high-rate-of-fire unit in the game due to his lack of close quarters protection, unjustly slow speed, and poor damage output. You'll have hard time finding anyone who has at least some appreciation for him.

to:

** There's plenty of outright bad units in the game, but most of them still have their fans or just stay ignored. Same can't be said about Gunslinger, who is the second worst high-rate-of-fire unit in the game due to his lack of close quarters protection, unjustly slow speed, and poor damage output. His final nail in the coffin, though, is that he doesn't even have any weird fun gimmicks or cool strategies to mess around with, making him a very bland shooter with no reason to use him over Carlos and Sonya. You'll have hard time finding anyone who has at least some appreciation for him.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Toned down some exaggerations. Some of them don't apply to modern meta anyway.


** The only time the negative attitude has stuck around is when players noticed that ZW's item system overhaul is essentially a watered down version of [[VideoGame/GenshinImpact Genshin Impact's]] artifacts. This is thanks to veteran players being flabbergasted by Mobirate's lack of originality reaching a new high, and the game's primary audience of teens having a polarizing attitude towards Genshin to begin with.
* ThatOneLevel: It's hard to overestimate how much veteran players hate Mission 136. Countless replays have proven that it's indeed the toughest level in the entire game, being even harder than the final boss (who is [[ThatOneBoss no less infamous]], but is at least cheesable). Basically, Mission 136 is a combination of all possible challenging wave layouts, ramped up to eleven. A constantly incoming mook that's both sturdy, resistant, and hits hard? Check. Frequent damage sponges? Check. Two Charged Zombies coming at once? Check. Insectoids? ''Make it double''. Oh, and don't forget the relatively short delay between all of these, and needing absurd luck to get an alright headstart. Managing to beat this mission on three stars without use of buffs ''and'' any of overpowered team synergies is considered a major achievement for a reason. It's also worth noting that this is the second level of the only linear stage in the game, meaning that it's a massive unavoidable roadblock, only adding to the mission's infamy.
* ThatOneSidequest: Before update 3.7.4, Bill's simple, mundane daily quests were not mandatory, but their coin/XP rewards were often worth going for, and so players dedicate their time to them anyway. Thanks to this, many people grew to hate star acquisition quest, as it's very tedious, require you to spend much more fuel than on other tasks, and could only be done at Missions you have not yet completed. With the complete overhaul to the daily task system in 3.7.4, this quest got removed with the old system. It's safe to say that this task has not been missed at all.

to:

** The only time the negative attitude has stuck around is when players noticed that ZW's item system overhaul is essentially a watered down version of [[VideoGame/GenshinImpact Genshin Impact's]] artifacts. This is thanks to veteran players being flabbergasted baffled by Mobirate's continuing lack of originality reaching a new high, originality, and the game's primary audience of teens having a polarizing attitude towards Genshin to begin with.
* ThatOneLevel: It's The bad rep of Mission 136 is hard to overestimate how much veteran players hate Mission 136. Countless replays have proven that it's indeed overestimate. After all these years, it established itself as the toughest hardest level in the entire game, being even harder than the final boss (who is [[ThatOneBoss no less infamous]], but is at least cheesable). Basically, Mission 136 is a combination of all possible infamously challenging wave layouts, ramped up to eleven. A constantly incoming mook that's both sturdy, resistant, and hits hard? Check. Frequent damage sponges? Check. Two Charged Zombies coming at once? Check. Insectoids? ''Make it double''. Oh, and don't forget the relatively short delay between all of these, and needing absurd luck to get an alright headstart. Managing to beat this mission on three stars without use of buffs ''and'' any of overpowered team synergies and ''anything'' meta is considered a major an achievement for a reason. It's also worth noting that this is the second level of the only linear stage in the game, meaning that it's a massive unavoidable roadblock, only adding to the mission's infamy.
* ThatOneSidequest: Before update 3.7.4, Bill's simple, mundane daily quests were not weren't mandatory, but their coin/XP rewards were often worth going for, and so players dedicate dedicated their time to them anyway. Thanks to this, many people grew to hate star acquisition quest, as it's very tedious, require requiring you to spend much more fuel than on other tasks, and could only be done at Missions you have not yet completed. tasks. With the complete overhaul to of the daily task system in 3.7.4, this quest got removed with the old system. It's removed, and it's safe to say that this task has it's not been missed at all.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None

Added DiffLines:

* SelfImposedChallenge: Once you've beaten the game and maxed out all meta units, there's not much left to do aside from investing into the entire roster, or replaying missions in creative ways. People found plenty of ways to do the latter:
** The go-to way to spice your experience up is to play without buffs and team synergies. It's also a good way to learn advanced tricks, since you can no longer crutch on double increase to damage and faster preparation time.
** Among level-specific challenges, the classic one is to beat mission 138 with bullet-firing units only. The catch is that this mission consists of nothing but non-stop waves of a [[MightyGlacier tanky enemy with 95% resistance to bullets]], occasionally supported by a pest specifically designed to counter rangers. Using fire is also not allowed, as that's an actual strategy required to beat the level.
** Beating [[FinalBoss Cephalopods]] in creative ways is also a challenge of its own. This usually refers to tactics that aren't Nitrogen rushdown or Willy stacking.

Changed: 49

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** In the very first mission of the game, Bill calls out to someone named Joe. It's often theorized that "Joe" is the Mechanic. Since Mechanic is one of the first units you unlock, (he's the first unit bought with coins that becomes available to you) and the first mission takes place at a repair shop named "Joe's Repairs".

to:

** In the very first mission of the game, Bill calls out to someone named Joe. It's often theorized that "Joe" is the Mechanic. Since Mechanic is one of the first units you unlock, (he's the first unit bought with coins that becomes available to you) and the first mission takes place at a repair shop named "Joe's Repairs".Repairs", the Mechanic's name is often presumed to be Joe.

Added: 324

Changed: 68

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** In the very first mission of the game, Bill calls out to someone named Joe. It's often theorized that "Joe" is the Mechanic. Since Mechanic is one of the first units you unlock, (he's the first unit bought with coins that becomes available to you) and the first mission takes place at a repair shop named "Joe's Repairs".



* ThatOneSidequest: Before update 3.7.4, Bill's simple, mundane quests were not mandatory, but their coin/XP rewards were often worth going for, and so players dedicate their time to them anyway. Thanks to this, many people grew to hate star acquisition quests, as they are very tedious, require you to spend much more fuel than on other tasks, and could only be done at Missions you have not yet completed. With the complete overhaul to the daily task system in 3.7.4, it's safe to say that this quest has not been missed at all.

to:

* ThatOneSidequest: Before update 3.7.4, Bill's simple, mundane daily quests were not mandatory, but their coin/XP rewards were often worth going for, and so players dedicate their time to them anyway. Thanks to this, many people grew to hate star acquisition quests, quest, as they are it's very tedious, require you to spend much more fuel than on other tasks, and could only be done at Missions you have not yet completed. With the complete overhaul to the daily task system in 3.7.4, it's this quest got removed with the old system. It's safe to say that this quest task has not been missed at all.

Changed: 45

Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


** Due to a single pixel that is placed between Robber’s mouth and facial hair, he’s often mistaken for constantly smiling in battle, in a game where none of the human characters smile ever. It turns out that this pixel is just part of his beard. However, that revelation hasn’t stopped people from still portraying the Robber as a SmugSmiler with a cocky attitude.

to:

** Due to a single pixel that is placed between Robber’s mouth and facial hair, he’s often mistaken for constantly smiling in battle, in a game where none of the human characters smile ever.battle. It turns out that this pixel is just part of his beard. However, that revelation hasn’t stopped people from still portraying the Robber as a SmugSmiler with a cocky attitude.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* BreatherLevel: Each world has at least a few easy/medium missions located right next to multiple hard/nightmarish ones. Stage 8 is the only world where this doesn't applies, as each of its missions is brutally difficult.

to:

* BreatherLevel: Each world has at least a few easy/medium missions located right next to multiple hard/nightmarish ones. Stage 8 is the only world exception where this doesn't applies, as each of its missions every stage is brutally difficult.a literal nightmare.



** Long-time players tend to add Red Barrel to any deck they use, even if a mission they about to play has fire-resistant enemies.
** Once Policeman Diaz is unlocked, there's a very good chance he will be staying in any player's team for the entire rest of the main game. Diaz is undoubtedly considered the best unit in the entire main game. a high damage shotgun with lots of spread that can clear out lots of zombies and do lots of damage, combined with high health and being the only one of your unit in the entire game with melee resistance, in a game where zombies only have melee attacks, make him a strong, tanky unit who is never a bad option for any mission.

to:

** Long-time players tend to add Red Barrel to any deck they use, even if a mission they about to play has fire-resistant enemies.
enemies. Red Barrel blocks enemies, does explosive damage (which can STILL hurt enemies resistant to fire slightly) and burning everything that's vulnerable. It also serves as a bait for nasty Charged Zombies, so it's a good all-round choice.
** Once Policeman Diaz is unlocked, there's a very good chance he will be staying in any player's team for the entire rest of the main game. Diaz is undoubtedly considered the best unit in the entire main game. a high damage shotgun with lots of spread that can clear dishes out lots of zombies and do lots tons of damage, combined with high health and being the only one of your unit in the entire game with melee resistance, resist, in a game where zombies only have melee primarily rely on such attacks, make him a strong, tanky unit who is never a bad option for any mission.



*** Pooches. They usually come in groups, can reach your bus in a blink of an eye, and sprint around in a zigzag pattern so your Units will have trouble targeting them. Luckily, they only appear in Location 2 (and certain Location 1 challenges).

to:

*** Pooches. They usually come in groups, can reach your bus in a blink of an eye, and sprint around in a zigzag pattern so your Units will have trouble targeting them. Luckily, they only appear in Location 2 (and certain Location 1 challenges).challenges), being irrelevant everywhere else.



** Insectoids are very fast enemies that can pounce in the air, completely out of range, to reach and damage humans. Seems manageable enough, until you realize they only target ''ranged'' units with this attack, and possess DPS rivaled by nobody but the Prisoners, which means that melee fighters will have hard time dealing with them too.

to:

** Insectoids are very fast enemies that can pounce in the air, completely out of range, to reach and damage humans. Seems manageable enough, until you realize they only target ''ranged'' units with this attack, and possess DPS rivaled by nobody but the Prisoners, which means that melee fighters will have hard time dealing with them too.too, unless you're Policeman Diaz.



** Cranks. They have an astronomical amount of health, are [[LightningBruiser deceptively quick despite their sheer bulk]], and can easily gut even your most durable Units in about two to three strikes. There's no real way to counter these guys other than concentrated fire and a ''lot'' of Red Barrels.
** The Big Blues – extremely slow enemies with enormous ''1200'' HP. On its own, it's actually not a big problem. But then you find out that they can ''regenerate health'', and stun your units just like their smaller contemporaries. To top it off, they usually come in swarms of three to four. For an enemy designed to be a BeefGate rather than an actual threat, these things are too good at their job.
** The Twins. Despite her being slow as molasses, she can easily back it up by being constantly on the move and possessing a double attack, with each hit doing ''80'' damage. Practically no unit in the game can take it more than once, save for a maxed-out Policeman Diaz or Guard. But the real worst part is that she has a whopping ''95%'' bullet resistance on top of a 500 HP pool, basically rendering your long-ranged Units (who will be your main damagers at that point) completely useless. There's basically no way to defeat Twins other than spamming as many melee Units as possible at her, or setting her on fire.
** Slobs – bloated epidemiologists dressed in hazmat suits that make them fireproof. Another meat shield, this one is infamous for its on-death explosion that ''fatally'' poisons any Units nearby, which makes it difficult to keep them away from ranged units by spamming fighters.

to:

** Cranks. They have an astronomical amount of health, are [[LightningBruiser deceptively quick despite their sheer bulk]], and can easily gut even your most durable Units in about two to three strikes.strikes, being also immune to knockback. There's no real way to counter these guys other than concentrated fire and a ''lot'' of Red Barrels.
** The Big Blues – extremely slow enemies with enormous ''1200'' HP. On its own, it's actually not a big problem. But then you find out that they can ''regenerate health'', and stun your units just like their smaller contemporaries. To top it off, they usually come in swarms of three to four. For an enemy designed to be a BeefGate rather than an actual threat, these things are too good at their job.
job. The only weakness is that Big Blue can't attack when healing, so if you can overpower it with damage he goes down quickly.
** The Twins. Despite her being slow as molasses, she can easily back it up by being constantly on the move and possessing a double attack, with each hit doing ''80'' extremely high damage. Practically no unit in the game can take it more than once, save for a maxed-out Policeman Diaz or Guard. But the real worst part is that she has a whopping ''95%'' bullet resistance on top of a 500 high HP pool, basically rendering your long-ranged Units (who will be your main damagers at that point) completely useless. There's basically no way to defeat Twins other than spamming as many melee Units as possible at her, or setting her on units, abusing knockback/resistance penetration, and fire.
** Slobs – bloated epidemiologists dressed in hazmat suits that make them fireproof. Another meat shield, this one is infamous for its on-death explosion that ''fatally'' poisons any Units nearby, which makes it difficult to keep them away from ranged units by spamming fighters. They however are still the less threatening, as some poison immune units perform decently well.



*** Also due to the reconned backstories, the other detail people often remember is that Redneck’s name is Russel.

to:

*** Also due to the reconned retconned backstories, the other detail people often remember is that Redneck’s name is Russel.



** Rogue, when his special ability gave him the possibility of gaining 100% bullet resistance, made him one of the most broken units in the game. This, combined with his immunity to explosions (Courtesy of being a TMF unit) and all-around high stats, meant players quickly abused him to get ''thousands'' of levels in the otherwise difficult Corn Farm event with little effort, since his resistances made him immune to every problematic form of damage present in Corn Farm. Of course, [[{{Obvious Rule Patch}} this got nerfed just a day after Corn Farm came back into the event rotation.]]

to:

** Rogue, when his special ability gave him the possibility of gaining 100% bullet resistance, made him one of the most broken units in the game. This, combined with his immunity to explosions (Courtesy of being a TMF unit) and all-around high stats, meant players quickly abused him to get ''thousands'' of levels in the otherwise difficult Corn Farm event with little effort, since his resistances made him immune to every problematic form of damage present in Corn Farm. Of course, [[{{Obvious Rule Patch}} this got nerfed to 90% just a day after Corn Farm came back into the event rotation.]]



** Among units, the most despised are Abby and Sniper, since they are both long-distance fighters with access to very high damage. Abby can mow through entire teams with her machine gun if you grant her Tactical set, and Sniper is overly efficient with her backline support, often being the last unit standing yet entirely capable to finish off remaining opponents.

to:

** Among units, the most despised are Abby and Sniper, since they are both long-distance fighters with access to very high damage. Abby can mow through entire teams with her machine gun if you grant her Tactical set, set (multiplicatively ignores 50% enemy bullet resist which is otherwise the bane of ranged units), and Sniper is overly efficient with her backline support, often being the last unit standing yet entirely capable to finish off remaining opponents.



*** While Military's 3/3 and 5/5 are rather tame, with the former being inconsistent, and the latter tied to cost reduction items, once they come into effect they easily ruin any fun for the team's opponent. 3/3 provides a chance to spawn a Specops upon a military's death, and 5/5 makes it so any individual militia won't be attacked by its opponents until they start attacking themselves. Since most of Military units are viable for Skirmish on their own, fighting their team requires extra effort.

to:

*** While Military's 3/3 and 5/5 are rather tame, with the former being inconsistent, and the latter tied to cost reduction items, once they come into effect they easily ruin any fun for the team's opponent. 3/3 provides a chance to spawn a Specops upon a military's death, and 5/5 makes it so any individual militia won't be attacked by its opponents until they start attacking themselves. Since most of Military units are viable for Skirmish on their own, fighting their team requires extra effort.effort unless you also use a similar formation.



** Although College team powers are fairly useful nowadays, their original version were infamous for being one of the worst synergies in the entire game. They were all centered around disabling the mechanic of dead units turning into zombies, which is rarely ever a real threat. The situation doesn't gets better when you realise that none of College members have dangerous on-death transformations themselves, and that all of the team's skins are premium.
* {{Moe}}: The game's fandom reinterpreted Pepper as this, thanks to her design that comes off as cute for many. Same happened to Free Hugs, but this one might've been an inteded reaction, considering that she is one of the series' mascots.

to:

** Although College team powers are fairly useful nowadays, their original version were infamous for being one of the worst synergies in the entire game. They were all centered around disabling the mechanic of dead units turning into zombies, which is rarely ever a real threat. The situation doesn't gets better when you realise realize that none of College members have dangerous on-death transformations themselves, and that all of the team's skins are premium.
* {{Moe}}: The game's fandom reinterpreted Pepper as this, thanks to her design that comes off as cute for many. Same happened to Free Hugs, but this one might've been an inteded intended reaction, considering that she is one of the series' mascots.



* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Every time Mobirate introduces a new mechanic for units, few people take to it lighthly. And while they tend to have valid complaints, such as said mechanics being overpowered or requiring too much grind to acquire, they are also prone to preemptively considering the game ruined because of them. This happened with level-13 specials, team powers, and then with the overhaul of item and unit upgrade systems.

to:

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Every time Mobirate introduces a new mechanic for units, few people take to it lighthly.lightly. And while they tend to have valid complaints, such as said mechanics being overpowered or requiring too much grind to acquire, they are also prone to preemptively considering the game ruined because of them. This happened with level-13 specials, team powers, and then with the overhaul of item and unit upgrade systems.



** The Free Hugs zombie is basically this. Completely harmless (no kidding, she won't even attack your bus), standing still with an adorably-dumb stare with the 'Free Hugs' sign still sticking to her chest, many a player have expressed their feelings of not wanting to kill her, despite doing so nets you ''50'' Rage points. No wonder she's the mascot of the first ''Dead Ahead'' game. This is reflected in the fact that your Units and the enemy's Units don't register her as a target.

to:

** The Free Hugs zombie is basically this. Completely harmless (no kidding, she won't even attack your bus), (has an AI that prevents her from doing anything, hence being the most harmless zombie ever), standing still with an adorably-dumb stare with the 'Free Hugs' sign still sticking to her chest, many a player have expressed their feelings of not wanting to kill her, despite doing so nets you ''50'' Rage points. No wonder she's the mascot of the first ''Dead Ahead'' game. This is reflected in the fact that your Units and the enemy's Units don't register her as a target.

Top