~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ THE INCREDIBLE HULK: ULTIMATE DESTRUCTION Challenge Mission FAQ For the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube By Nathan Eveland (BlueSunrise) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Version 1.0 Copyright (C) 2006 Nathan Eveland This document is protected under United States copyright law. It is for personal and private use only. It cannot be reprinted in any way, shape, or form, in part or in whole, written or otherwise. This guide cannot be used, referenced, or altered without my expressed written consent. It is free for personal and private use, and is not to be involved in any sort of commercial transaction. I, Nathan Eveland, have created and own the rights to this guide. It can be found exclusively on GameFAQs (http://www.gamefaqs.com). I forbid any other web site or publication for using this document for any reason, unless I am contacted beforehand and give my expressed written consent. If you should find this document elsewhere, electronically or in print, please contact me immediately via e-mail at nathaneveland@gmail.com so that I may take the necessary actions. Remember that plagiarism is a crime and is punishable for law. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction (C) Universal Interactive, Inc. Marvel, The Incredible Hulk, and all related comic book characters TM and (C) Marvel Characters, Inc. All other copyrights and trademarks not specifically mentioned herein are property of their respective owners. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ =========================== TABLE OF CONTENTS =========================== I. Introduction II. In-Game Controls III. Legend IV. Mission Types V. Difficulty Levels VI. Notes about Moves VII. City Challenge Missions (in Alphabetical Order) 1. Air Supremacy 2. Batter Up! 3. Casualty 4. Downtown Dogfight 5. Fare Play 6. Fast Mover - 1 7. Fast Mover - 2 8. Fast Mover - 3 9. Fast Mover - 4 10. Fast Mover - 5 11. Fast Mover - 6 12. House of Cars 13. Hulk Float! 14. Hulk Float! Again! 15. Hulk Juggle! 16. Hulk Smash City! 17. Hulk's Rooftop! Hulk's! 18. Kick the Can 19. Lights Out 20. My Car! 21. Point Defense 22. Rooftop Jumping 1 23. Rooftop Jumping 2 24. Smashing Spree 25. Soldier Seeker 26. Surf City 27. S.W.A.T. 28. To the Rescue 29. Urban Golf VIII. Badlands Challenge Missions (in Alphabetical Order) 30. Blonsky Don't Surf 31. Desert Dogfight 32. Fast Mover - 7 33. Gamma Field Goal 34. Gamma Golf 35. Hulk Smash Badlands! 36. Hulk Soccer 37. Long Bomb 38. Puny Humans 39. Unfriendly Fire 40. Wide Right IX. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) X. Special Thanks XI. Version History XII. Contact Information ============================================================================== I. INTRODUCTION ============================================================================== The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, arguably one of the most overlooked home console video games of 2005, offers hours of doing what Hulk does best - bashing, crashing, and, well, SMASHING! The Story Mode will keep most players occupied for quite a while, but for those looking to sink their teeth into more juicy Hulk gameplay, look no further than the Challenge Missions that the developers over at Radical Entertainment have included with the game. There are 40 challenges in total (29 in the city, and 11 more in the Badlands), and most of them can be completed in any order. Do note, however, that some of the missions will not be available for play until certain Story Mode levels are complete, and some challenges require the purchase of certain moves through the Buy Menu at the Church. What you have in front of you is a complete guide for all 40 Challenge Missions, including tips on how to earn the elusive gold medal available for each. This FAQ is relatively spoiler-free (exceptions only being that I give away the names of certain moves and missions). I have separated the City Challenge Missions from the Badlands Challenge Missions, and you will find each list in alphabetical order for ease of browsing. Use the above Table of Contents or Control + F on your keyboard to search for a specific challenge. I also recommend that you read Section IV (Mission Types), Section V (Difficulty Levels), and Section VI (Notes about Moves) before heading into the individual guides. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please let me know! I will be sure to give you credit in this guide. See Section XII (Contact Information) for information on how to reach me. Enjoy! - Nathan Eveland (BlueSunrise) ============================================================================== II. IN-GAME CONTROLS ============================================================================== The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is a multiplatform game, available for the PlayStation 2, the Xbox, and the GameCube. I will frequently refer to both button presses and combinations (example: "Press and hold the special attack button") in the individual guides - here is a quick layout of the controls for each platform and what each button does. For further control information, consult your game's instruction manual. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SONY PLAYSTATION 2 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Left Analog Stick - Movement Right Analog Stick - Camera Control X - Jump Square - Basic Attack Triangle - Special Attack/Weaponize Circle - Grab/Throw L1/L2 - Target/Lock-on R1/R2 - Dash (Hold to Run)/Air Dash ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MICROSOFT XBOX ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Left Analog Stick - Movement Right Analog Stick - Camera Control A - Jump X - Basic Attack Y - Special Attack/Weaponize B - Grab/Throw Left Trigger - Target/Lock-on Right Trigger - Dash (Hold to Run)/Air Dash ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NINTENDO GAMECUBE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Control Stick - Movement C-Stick - Camera Control A - Jump B - Basic Attack Y - Special Attack/Weaponize X - Grab/Throw Left Trigger - Target/Lock-on Right Trigger - Dash (Hold to Run)/Air Dash ============================================================================== III. LEGEND ============================================================================== MISSION NAME (and level found in) Availability: What story-based mission you must complete before it becomes available for play. Mission Type: There are six basic mission types for challenges. See Section IV below for a description of each one. Objectives: The requirements for completing the challenge at hand. Time Limit: The amount of time allotted to the challenge. Not all challenges have a time limit. Bronze Medal: Silver Medal: Gold Medal: (For each of the three medals, I will list requirements, Smash Point rewards, and difficulty levels. See Section V below for more information on the five difficulty rankings.) Recommendations: Moves that I recommend purchasing before attempting the challenge. Some Challenge Missions REQUIRE certain moves before attempting them. How-to: Here I will give a basic walkthrough for completing the challenge, and list any tips and/or strategies I have gained from my experiences. Gold Medal: I will delve into what is required of you for earning a gold medal and just how to go about earning one. ============================================================================== IV. MISSION TYPES ============================================================================== There are six basic types of Challenge Missions you will encounter while playing The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. DEFENSE - similar to Destruction missions, except for the fact that Hulk has a set area that he must defend from enemy forces (usually a rooftop or a ring of flares). Leaving the area will fail the mission. DESTRUCTION - as the name implies, Hulk's goal here is to SMASH (which, if I may add, he does quite well). Your objectives typically consist of either destroying swarms of enemies or certain objects in the environment. DISTANCE - Distance missions measure a variety of different things: Hulk's ability to stay on rooftops for as long as possible (the "Rooftop Jumping" missions), his ability to bat a soldier as far as possible ("Batter Up!"), and the "Hulk Juggle" mission (in which you're not specifically aiming for distance, but for how many hits in a row the soldier is kept in the air). INTO THE GOAL - these common Challenge Missions will have Hulk attempting to maneuver an object into a ring of flares by striking it in various ways (without picking it up). Into the Goal missions also describe the "Hulk Float!" challenges in which Hulk himself must jump and land in the ring of flares (as close to the center as possible) and the Field Goal Missions ("Gamma Field Goal" and "Wide Right".) SPEED RUN - missions in which Hulk's goal is to collect a set amount of waypoint markers (blue orbs) in the fastest time possible. In most cases, the orbs must be obtained in a certain order as you race against the clock. TRANSPORT - Hulk must safely carry one (or more) objects to a designated area before time expires. ============================================================================== V. DIFFICULTY LEVELS ============================================================================== Please note that I have provided the following difficulty rankings ASSUMING that you have all of the moves I have recommended for a particular mission. For example, getting the Silver medal for the "Fast Mover - 2" mission might be a <2/5> because you have the Double Super Air Dash - but, if you don't, expect the mission to be harder. It only makes sense, and that is also why it is a good idea to wait until you have the right moves to attempt each challenge. <1/5> A very easy "challenge" that even a novice player should not have too much of a problem with. <2/5> One of the game's easier medals to acquire. A few tries should net it. <3/5> This is where things start getting a bit difficult - but, with persistence, you can complete it. <4/5> One of the harder medals to earn, a mission in this category can really test your patience (after repeating it over and over again). <5/5> Borderline impossible. One of the hardest Challenge Missions in the game. Good luck - you'll need it! ============================================================================== VI. NOTES ABOUT MOVES ============================================================================== I mentioned above that I would assign difficulty rankings assuming that you had all of the moves that I've recommended for each mission. While you don't need all of them for success, here are a few that I recommend before taking on any Challenge Mission (and they help out a lot in Story Mode, too). Air Dash Move Set - There are four "Air Dash" moves to acquire in the game. Buy each one as soon as they are available, as they are probably the moves you will use the most in both the challenges and the story. The more Air Dash techniques you have, the easier a given challenge will be. AIR DASH (Chapter 3, 12,000 SP) - pressing the right shoulder button will give Hulk a little extra distance on jumps. SUPER AIR DASH (Chapter 4, 25,000 SP) - increases the distance of the initial Air Dash. DOUBLE AIR DASH (Chapter 5, 60,000 SP) - gives Hulk a second Air Dash to use. DOUBLE SUPER AIR DASH (Chapter 7, 150,000 SP) - both Air Dashes have greater speed and distance. Expensive, but invaluable. Air Recovery - a staple in Hulk's Move Set, as it allows him to recover quickly after being knocked into the air. It is very useful for Challenge Missions in which you have to fight the military. It costs only 2,000 Smash Points and is available from Chapter 2. You need to have it. Air Stomp - Also available in Chapter 2 for a cost of 8,000 Smash Points. It's not very useful in Story Mode but it can really help in Speed Run missions for controlling Hulk's jumps. Ball and Chain - Not available until Chapter 5 for 30,000 Smash Points. However, it is one of the more useful weaponizations in the game as it is extremely powerful. Most aircraft can be downed in one hit from a fully charged attack, so it helps with the missions that require the destruction of helicopters and/or fighter jets. Cyclone Skyjack - Next to the Ball and Chain, this is generally considered the best move for going after airborne enemies. Jumping towards an aircraft and latching on with grab/throw allows you to ride the planes to the ground. It is available in Chapter 4. Target Kick (Chapter 5) is also useful. Dashing Straight - Buy this move early in the game (Chapter 2) for 4,000 Smash Points. It can really aid in speed for many Challenge Missions. Punt Kick - Available for cheap in Chapter 2 (3,000 SP). It is required for several challenges and makes several others much easier. Running Grab - Another staple in Hulk's move set, this technique works very well for Transport missions. Pick it up in Chapter 2 for 6,000 Smash Points. Shield - Required for two Speed Run missions ("Surf City" and "Blonsky Don't Surf"). Shield Grind - Also required for the two Speed Run missions I have listed above. Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball - These handy moves can help with jumping and attacking almost any enemy in the game, particularly soldiers and aircraft. You'll start the game with the standard Air Strike, and it can be upgraded for 35,000 Smash Points in Chapter 4 (Super Air Strike), and to the Air Cannonball in Chapter 6 for (100,000 SP). Trust me - it's worth it. There are many other moves that can help in the completion of the Challenge Missions. I've only listed the ones that I think will be most useful in a wide variety of challenges from my experience with the game. ============================================================================== VII. CITY CHALLENGE MISSIONS ============================================================================== ==================================== 1. Air Supremacy (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 4, Mission 4 ("My Other Voice"). Mission Type: Defense Objectives: Defeat as many Air Strike fighters as possible before time expires. You must stay on the building marked by flares. You are allowed to scale back up the building should you fall, but if you touch another building or land on the ground, you will fail the mission. Time Limit: 2:30 Bronze Medal: Destroy 5 or more fighters. (3,000 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Destroy 10 or more fighters. (6,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Destroy 15 or more fighters. (10,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Air Recovery, Missile Catch, Air Critical Thunderclap, Air Dash Move Set, Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball, Cyclone Skyjack How-to: This one really has a King Kong-esque feel, doesn't it? The mighty beast atop the skyscraper, valiantly fighting off the military planes for the one he loves... except that in this version, the ending is tragic for THEM, not you, because you're going to turn the fighters into scraps. While you may be lead to jump off the building after the fighters, this can be quite a risky proposition as the jets tend to fly far out of reach - so you'd better make sure that you can make it back to the flare-marked building. Air Dashes work well, of course, but I personally feel more at home atop the building. Thanks to the steady supply of green orbs, you should be able to enter Critical Mass, and an Air Critical Thunderclap may be just the trick. Really though, your bread and butter here is the Missile Catch. The jets swoop in endlessly and launch missiles every few seconds, so just snatch them out of the sky and launch them back. Gold Medal: Play this challenge conservatively and the medal is yours. Meaning: don't go after them - let them come to you. The fighter pilots seem more than happy than to provide you with an endless supply of ammunition - just make sure that you fully charge your missiles before launching them back. If you do, the projectile will hit and destroy the targeted jet 100% of the time (even when it is clear that the pilot dodges it, the plane still blows up). If you'd rather knock them from the sky with your fists of fury, a well-timed Air Critical Thunderclap or Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball as they're passing by will have these military men rethinking their careers. ==================================== 2. Batter Up! (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Distance Objective: Use your club to hit soldiers (which constantly drop from a nearby helicopter) as far as possible. Time Limit: 2:00 Bronze Medal: Hit a soldier 250 yards or more. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Hit a soldier 350 yards or more. (700 SP) <1/5> Gold Medal: Hit a soldier 400 yards or more. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: N/A How-to: Success in this mission will simply be determined by the timing of your strikes. That said, special attacks with the club do work a bit better than basic attacks, so stick with them for maximum distance. There's no need to rush here - you have two minutes to find what works best for you, varying how much you chare an attack as well as its timing. Gold Medal: Fully charging your special attack with the club will not see the soldier fly much over 375 yards, so this is where timing is crucial: charge the special attack button JUST as the soldier jumps, and then release it BEFORE it's fully charged to knock him to 400-yard land and beyond. ==================================== 3. Casualty (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Transport Objectives: Safely carry the ambulance across the city to the hospital before time expires. Destroying the ambulance will fail the mission. Time Limit: 1:45 Bronze Medal: Deliver the ambulance in time. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Deliver the ambulance with at least 0:30 left on the clock. (700 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Deliver the ambulance with at least 1:00 left on the clock. (1,000 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Running Grab How-to: Mastering Air Dashes and chain jumps (stringing multiple jumps together - jump, charge one as you are in the air, and release it upon landing) is crucial in this mission, which involves Hulk playing the hero and delivering the ambulance across the city before it's too late. Thankfully, you are given plenty of time to deliver the vehicle, so there's no need to sweat - just keep your head down and keep moving. Gold Medal: While earning a bronze or silver in this challenge is relatively simple, claiming the gold as your own can prove to be more difficult than you may expect. Making it halfway across the city with a minute remaining on the clock is no easy task - much to my own frustration, I continually finished this mission with 0:58 or 0:59 remaining, mere milliseconds away from the gold. Getting a head start is important here - dash forward immediately WHILE charging a jump. Grab the ambulance with the Running Grab move and then release the jump as soon as you pick up the vehicle. From there, it's a matter of chaining your jumps together for maximum speed - but be careful! If you're off on the timing of a jump (trying to jump too soon after landing, for example), you'll botch your takeoff and burn precious time. Buildings can also be problematic, as they also tend to screw up some of your jump attempts. Because of this, I recommend using the streets below as your path and not attempting to take shortcuts through the skyscrapers. Chain your jumps along the roads and you'll come to a clearing after the fourth or fifth one. You'll come upon a tall building with multiple spotlights - stay towards the right side of it and chain jump along the coastline, down towards your destination until the clock has about 1:13 - 1:15 remaining and then it'll be time to enter the buildings. This is where Air Dashing really comes in handy; it'll give you the extra boost you need when landing your jumps. If you're quick enough, you should be able to drop the ambulance off with just a second or two to spare! ==================================== 4. Downtown Dogfight (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 4, Mission 4 ("My Other Voice"). Mission Type: Destruction Objectives: Defeat as many aircraft as possible before time expires. Time Limit: 3:00 Bronze Medal: Destroy 3 or more aircraft. (3,000 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Destroy 9 or more aircraft. (6,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Destroy 18 or more aircraft. (10,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Air Recovery, Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball, Air Dash Move Set, Cyclone Skyjack, Target Kick, Air Critical Thunderclap, Ball and Chain How-to: The whole city is your playground for this challenge, and you have three minutes to wreak havoc on anyone and anything that dares to enter Hulk's airspace. Helicopters and fighter jets will swarm around you in droves, but they shouldn’t be too much of a problem thanks to your deadly move set. Home in on a targeted aircraft by targeting it with a Super Air Strike or Air Cannonball, and then either beat it out of the sky or latch onto it with Cyclone Skyjack. Target Kick helps for taking out two at once, and Critical Mass moves like the Air Critical Thunderclap or Critical Pain can be used liberally thanks to the abundance of green orbs dropped by the fallen fighters. Of course, throwing stuff works as well as it ever has. Gold Medal: Use all of the techniques I listed above and you shouldn't have a problem earning the gold medal. The Ball and Chain weaponization can be also be a huge help against the enemy aircraft. Check your map as soon as you start the mission to find yourself in the northeast corner of the City. Go southwest of your starting position to an area on the map that looks like a sharp edge jutting out into the sea. Head there to find a ball-and-chain truck surrounded by a fence near the coastline. Be careful, missiles can destroy it before you manage to get your hands on it, so swat your foes out of the sky, THEN grab the truck and weaponize it. Your shiny new wrecking ball should last most of the mission, and a fully charged attack with it will see an aircraft downed in one fell swoop. Hulk, it's time to go hunting! ==================================== 5. Fare Play (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Transport Objectives: Find yellow cabs and deliver them safely to their destinations before time expires. Damaging a cab you're carrying will fail the mission. Each successful delivery will yield you more time on the clock. Time Limit: 1:00+ (successful deliveries will add approximately 0:20-0:30 to the clock) Bronze Medal: Deliver 5 or more cabs safely. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Deliver 10 or more cabs safely. (700 SP) <1/5> Gold Medal: Deliver 15 or more cabs safely. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Running Grab, Air Dash Move Set How-to: This is Hulk's rendition of Crazy Taxi, but it's certainly proves to be a lot easier than the game it's modeled after. This is because you're given more than enough time to deliver the taxis - each time you make a successful delivery, you'll earn approximately 0:20 to 0:30 back on the clock. If you're fast on your feet and can master the timing of your charged jumps and Air Dashes, it may feel like you could keep going on forever in this mission. Oh, and don't feel bad about damaging the cabs on the streets before you pick one up - it's not until you actually GRAB a taxi that you will fail the mission for damaging it. You can ever deliver crunched cabs or vehicles that are in flames, so long as they're not damaged AFTER being picked up. Gold Medal: Again, learn to master your charged jumps and wall running for the best results. Having all of the Air Dash techniques really helps out here in positioning yourself. Fifteen taxis delivered safely should come easily after the first or second try. ==================================== 6. Fast Mover - 1 (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must tag each waypoint marker in turn to activate the next one. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Collect all 10 markers in 1:00 or less. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Collect all 10 markers in 0:50 or less. (900 SP) <1/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 10 markers in 0:30 seconds or less. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Air Stomp How-to: The first Fast Mover mission is one of the easiest Speed Run challenges because you only have to grab 10 waypoint markers. You'll need to rely heavily on your Air Dashes for positioning, and the Air Stomp can be helpful (particularly on the seventh marker - jump over it, rotate the camera below you to gain an idea of where you'll need to land, and quickly tap the special attack button to quickly descend on top of the marker). Keep moving and don't look back (unless you miss a marker, that is). Consider this a warm-up for the Challenge Missions to come. Gold Medal: It's really just a matter of practicing and learning the course (as it is with all of the Speed Run missions). To get a head start, dash forward immediately (don't wait for the blue orbs to appear before running) and remember to constantly adjust the camera so as not to become too disoriented - the camera will really be your biggest challenge here, as it tends to go haywire when changing directions quickly. Master IT - don't let it master you! ==================================== 7. Fast Mover - 2 (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 4 ("Need-To-Know"). Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must tag each waypoint marker in turn to activate the next one. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Collect all 20 markers in 2:30 or less. (500 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Collect all 20 t markers in 1:30 or less. (900 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 20 markers in 1:00 or less. (1,500 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set How-to: This time you have 20 orbs to collect. The first ten or so are bunched together, but the last set is spread farther apart which makes this mission a bit harder than the first Fast Mover challenge. Again, rely on Air Dashes and well-timed jumps to collect the waypoint markers. Use the mini map on your HUD and make sure that you have the blue orb in your sights before you take off after it. Gold Medal: Once again, you'll want to dash forward immediately before the blue orbs appear. In this mission I found that I performed better if I was "quick but cool" rather than "really fast but all over the place". Since you'll end up fighting with the camera, if you move too fast and change directions too much, you'll botch your jumps and ruin your shot at the gold. So plan out your movements as opposed to blindly rushing at the markers. It also goes without saying that having the Air Dash Move Set is invaluable with this type of mission. Nevertheless, in the end, it simply comes down to practice. ==================================== 8. Fast Mover - 3 (City) ==================================== Availability: Unknown Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must tag each waypoint marker in turn to activate the next one. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Collect all 35 markers in 3:00 or less. (500 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Collect all 35 markers in 1:30 or less. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 35 markers in 0:50 or less. (2,500 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Air Stomp How-to: 35 of them this time, yikes! The third Fast Mover mission primarily tests your ability to run up buildings in a straight line. Immediately dash up the building to your left when the mission starts to grab the first two. After that, hop down. You'll see a string of markers going up the side of a building. Make sure you line up with them before beginning your dash upwards. From here, leap from building to building (Air Dashes work well as usual), collecting four or five markers until you're led to a string of markers going down by dropping or Air Stomping. Then, you'll be running up another building. Jump off that one to wall run up the next building, going even higher. Finally, with just two more to go, you'll need some well-timed (and charged) jumps on the rooftops. Gold Medal: This mission is not that hard provided that you can line yourself up with the waypoint markers and run up the buildings in a straight line. When running up the sides, you can also charge jumps to get up to the top faster. The same basic principles apply here - dashing for a head start, making sure you can see the markers before taking off, and practicing, of course. The gold will be yours with a little patience. ==================================== 9. Fast Mover - 4 (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 2 ("Dark Desert of the Soul"). Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must tag each waypoint marker in turn to activate the next one. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Collect all 27 markers in 4:00 or less. (900 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Collect all 27 markers in 2:30 or less. (1,500 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 27 markers in 1:10 or less. (3,000 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Air Stomp How-to: This mission is tough to master as you have 27 markers to collect and they're all deposited sporadically all over the city. After jumping around for the first five, the next four will require a DIAGANOL wall run up the building. Don't mess this part up! Carefully Air Dash to transfer to the next building to collect marker 10. It's across the rooftops now for 11-15. Air Dashing helps a lot here. Marker 16 is in the park below, so drop off with an Air Stomp to get down there quickly. Book it across the park, run up another building (charge and use a jump while running to get up faster) to get the next three, and to get marker 20 on top. Rooftops again for 21-23, and the remaining markers involve short wall running stints to finish the mission off. Gold Medal: It's difficult, but it can be done. Remember, class, what did I teach you? "Practice makes perfect!" Very good, children, very good! ==================================== 10. Fast Mover - 5 (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 2 ("Dark Desert of the Soul"). Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must tag each waypoint marker in turn to activate the next one. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Collect all 44 markers in 4:00 or less. (900 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Collect all 44 markers in 3:00 or less. (2,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 44 markers in 1:40 or less. (4,000 SP) <4/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Air Stomp How-to: With 44 markers to collect all over the city, this is the most daunting Fast Mover challenge yet. There's no real particular strategy besides what I've already outlined - keep moving, use Air Dashes generously, and always know where the next marker is. In this one, they're pretty much everywhere. Expect to run in circles around buildings after them and wall run frequently. It's a good idea to have the Air Dash Move Set before attempting this mission. Gold Medal: Good luck! ==================================== 11. Fast Mover - 6 (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must tag each waypoint marker in turn to activate the next one. Time Limit: N/A F Bronze Medal: Collect all 19 markers in 1:00 or less. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Collect all 19 markers in 0:30 or less. (700 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 19 markers in 0:22 seconds or less. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Air Stomp How-to: This one tests Hulk's agility (the ability to change directions quickly). Stick to the ground for the first 13, constantly adjusting both your trajectory and the camera with the right analog stick. The remaining markers (14-19) involve a quick couple of leaps over some buildings and use an Air Stomp to secure the last one. Piece of cake. Gold Medal: This is one of the easier Fast Mover missions, thanks to how closely the orbs are packed together. Finishing it in under 0:22 may seem a bit out of reach at first, but after a few tries you should have it down. ==================================== 12. House of Cars (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Transport Objectives: Carry vehicles up onto the building to earn points. Larger vehicles and higher altitudes will earn you more points, but a vehicle must remain on the building until time runs out to maintain its value in points. Time Limit: 2:00 Bronze Medal: Earn 300 points or more. (300 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Earn 700 points or more. (700 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Earn 1,400 points or more. (1,000 SP) <4/5> Recommendations: Running Grab, Air Stomp, Air Dash Move Set How-to: In this mission, you're asked to place as many vehicles up onto a multi-tiered skyscraper as you can in just two minutes. However, it's not necessarily how many vehicles you stack that earns you points, but the size of the vehicle as well as how high it is placed. What makes this challenge mission especially difficult is the fact that space is fairly limited on each level, and should vehicles tumble off (and believe me, they will), you'll lose any points you earned by putting them up there in the first place. If it falls and lands on a lower tier, you'll still get the points for the story it lands on, but if it falls all the way to the ground, your efforts will have been for naught. Small vehicles (cars, vans, etc. - the ones that you can turn into Steel Fists) only earn you half as many points as the large ones do (busses, ambulances, cargo trucks, etc. - the ones you can turn into Shields or Ball and Chains), so it's worth your while to seek out a large vehicle. Note, however, that the larger a vehicle is, the easier it seems to fall off the edge of the building. Here is a chart detailing the points awarded for each vehicle type and each level of the building. Tier - Small Vehicle/Large Vehicle 1st Tier - 200/400 (the very top of the building) 2nd Tier - 150/300 (just below the top) 3rd Tier - 120/240 (these tiers are the "stairs" that wrap around the sides) 4th Tier - 110/220 5th Tier - 100/200 6th Tier - 80/160 7th Tier - 70/140 8th Tier - 60/120 9th Tier - 50/100 (the ring around the building, close to the bottom) 10th Tier - 25/50 (just above the building's entrance) The top tier can generally only hold one large vehicle, so I prefer to load the level just below it (2nd tier) with trucks and busses for maximum points. Air Dashing can be helpful in setting up some of your placements, as controlling Hulk while running up the side of the building and trying to scope out a spot can be cumbersome. Jumping while traveling up the side also aids in speed. Gold Medal: As you can see, a large vehicle on both the first and second tier will net you a silver medal (700 points), but it's that elusive gold you really want, eh? Stick to large vehicles only, and make SURE that they don't tumble off when you set them down. After leaping off the edge, perform an Air Stomp to get to the bottom as quickly as possible. Stick to the second tier with large vehicles and place just one on the very top. Because large vehicles don't drive by the building very often on the streets below, there are two in a concrete lot just a bit behind it (a Ball and Chain vehicle and a cargo truck) that you can bring up with you. With some persistence, the gold will be all yours. ==================================== 13. Hulk Float! (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 4 ("Need-To-Know"). Mission Type: Into the Goal Objectives: Using the large inflatable gorilla, jump off the building and glide towards the ring of flares, aiming to land in the center of the ring. The mission ends when you touch the ground. If you wall run or land on a rooftop, you will fail the mission. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Land in the ring of flares. (500 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Land 8 yards or less from the center. (900 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Land 3 yards or less from the center. (1,500 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set How-to: In this challenge mission, you'll need to jump from the building holding the large inflatable gorilla and land in the ring of flares (marked on your HUD map by the green dot). You should be able to make out the flares and the helicopters swarming around it in the distance. There's no need to get a running start here, as just jumping forward and holding up on the left analog stick will yield you more than enough distance (you may also need an Air Dash to get yourself going if you find that you're gliding too slowly). Alternatively, you can hold back on the stick to slow yourself down so as to time your landing just right. If you accidentally overshoot the ring of flares, you can circle back around. This challenge is more about trial and error than it is about a particular technique, so just try out different jumps and Air Dashes until you find what works best for you. Gold Medal: Nabbing the bronze or silver medals is pretty easy, but it can be tricky business when trying to come as close as three yards from the center. As I've already stated, it's just a lot of trial and error. My personal strategy is holding off as much as I can with the left analog stick until the very end, when I Air Dash and land just in the center. ==================================== 14. Hulk Float! Again! (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 2 ("Dark Desert of the Soul"). Mission Type: Into the Goal Objectives: Using the large inflatable gorilla, jump off the building and glide towards the ring of flares, aiming to land in the center of the ring. The mission ends when you touch the ground. If you wall run or land on a rooftop, you will fail the mission. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Land in the ring of flares. (800 SP) <2/5> Silver Medal: Land 5 yards or less from the center. (2,000 SP) <3/5> Gold Medal: Land 2 yards or less from the center. (4,000 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set How-to: This is very similar to the first floating mission, but it's a bit harder because buildings block your path (it can be hard to determine how far you are from the ring of flares). You will also need to land closer to the center of the ring to earn the silver and gold medals. Of course, trial and error is still your friend. Just jump forward and use Air Dashes when necessary to speed up your gliding. Holding back on the analog stick or hugging a building (letting yourself fall against it without moving forward) can be used with varying results. Gold Medal: Again, trial and error. Vary your timing, jumps, and holding back on the analog stick to see what works best for you. In fact, I don't even jump. I just walk off, use an Air Dash to gain speed, and then hold back on the stick occasionally until I use my second Air Dash at the last moment to land in the center. With some patience and a little luck, the gold will be all yours. ==================================== 15. Hulk Juggle! (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 2 ("Dark Desert of the Soul"). Mission Type: Distance Objectives: Hit the soldier into the air as many times as possible without letting him touch the ground. Time Limit: Bronze Medal: 5 consecutive hits or more. (900 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: 12 consecutive hits or more. (2,000 SP) <1/5> Gold Medal: 25 consecutive hits or more.. (4,000 SP) <1/5> Recommendations: Rising Upper, Tornado Frenzy How-to: This is Hulk's rendition of Hacky Sack, though you don't have to be a whiz of any sorts to keep the soldier in the air. You've got two minutes to explore different ways to juggle the soldier (if you kill one, another will replace it), so there's no need to rush. The best technique I've found to use is to target the soldier (keep him targeted the whole time!) and launch him into the air with a charged rising upper (away + basic attack). Follow him into the air with a partially charged jump and let loose with three or four-hit Tornado Frenzies (use the basic attack button only). Make sure you do not execute the fifth hit as that will send him flying and end the combo. After the three or four hits in midair, land and do another partially charged jump to meet him the air again and execute the Tornado Frenzy once more. Land. Repeat. Land. Repeat. You get the idea. Gold Medal: As long as you can resist the urge to let loose with the fifth attack in the Tornado Frenzy, this gold is one of the easiest to acquire in the game. Just be careful where you're hitting him (the soldier has a tendency to drift towards buildings). ==================================== 16. Hulk Smash City! (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Destruction Objectives: Smash and destroy as many objects, vehicles, and buildings as possible before time expires. Completely destroy the object for more points. Time Limit: 3:00 Bronze Medal: Earn 100 or more points. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Earn 400 or more points. (700 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Earn 800 or more points. (1,000 SP) <4/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Ball and Chain (See Gold Medal Strategy) How-to: Finally, a mission that suits Hulk perfectly! Smashing EVERYTHING! You've got three whole minutes to wreak havoc on anything and everything in your way, so have a blast - literally, as making things go boom gives you lots of points. Simply damaging a car, for example, won't do much for your total, but hitting it until it’s destroyed (target it to see its health) gives you quite a bit more. Try to find vehicles and objects in bunches for a lot of points. Critical mass moves might seem to help, but they tend to only damage objects instead of destroying them (and you NEED to destroy them), so avoid those as they take too much time to get off. For the most points, see the gold medal strategy. Gold Medal: You'll need to earn serious points for Hulk to earn his right to the gold, so you'll need to knock down some serious buildings (okay... that was really bad). Follow these instructions and this seemingly impossible challenge isn't too bad. Remember to pause every now and then to check your map, so you don't get lost. All right, then. Immediately head west when the mission starts, going towards that sharp edge that sticks out on the bottom-left corner of the map. Just before you reach it, use the left trigger to target a large brown building with the green Division Corp. logo on it (you'll know you can destroy it because of the blue "health" bar). Bring it to ground for almost 300 points. Immediately head north, staying along the coastline, all the way until you get to another sharp edge that juts out into the sea, (the top-left corner of the map). You can grab a ball and chain along the way if you see one and have already purchased the weaponization, as it will help in taking down buildings. Anyway, book it north as fast as humanly - er, Hulkingly possible. Once you arrive at the top left corner of the map, you'll find another large brown Division Corp. building that can be targeted and destroyed for almost 300 more points. At this point you'll be tantalizingly close to the gold, so don't give up now! Head east to find a gas station that will bring in another 100 points after it's destroyed. And... right next to the gas station, what do we have here but another Division Corp. building to bring down? Annihilate the brown monster to propel yourself to almost 1,000 points and well above what is required of you for the gold medal. Now breathe a sigh of relief. You did it. Enjoy your meager 1,000 Smash Point reward. I sure did. ==================================== 17. Hulk's Rooftop! Hulk's! (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 3, Mission 1 ("Authority Issues"). Mission Type: Defense Objectives: Defend the rooftop area against enemy units for as long as possible. The mission will fail if you jump to a rooftop that isn't marked by flares or touch the ground. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Defend the rooftop area for 0:30 or more. (1,000 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Defend the rooftop area for 1:30 or more. (3,000 SP) <1/5> Gold Medal: Defend the rooftop area for 2:30 or more. (5,000 SP) <1/5> Recommendations: Gamma Grinder, Critical Atomic Slam, Running Grab, Air Recovery, Air Dash Move Set How-to: Hulk's version of King of the Hill. If you have the Gamma Grinder move, this is probably the easiest challenge mission in the game. If you don't, it's still quite simple providing you're well aware of your surroundings (i.e. stay on the few connected rooftops marked by the red flares). Wall running is okay to get back on, but touching the ground is no-no (just like in grade school days on the playground). The occasional soldier or helicopter may manifest itself, but they don't pose too much of a threat. It's the Hulkbuster Mechs you're worried about. Fortunately, they can be dispatched easily if you have the Gamma Grinder. Simply walk up to one, grab it, fully charge the special button and they're toast (as long as you don't Gamma Grind the Hulkbuster and yourself to the pavement below, which will fail the mission). Eventually, more and more of them show up for the party, but by that time you'll have enough green orbs for plenty of critical mass fun. Gold Medal: Gamma. Grinder. You could theoretically go on forever with this single move, but save yourself time and just jump off to end the mission after the gold is yours. ==================================== 18. Kick the Can (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Into the Goal Objectives: Get the car Into the Goal of flares as fast as possible. You are not allowed to carry the car. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Get the car in the Goal in 3:00 or less. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Get the car in the Goal in 2:00 or less. (700 Smash Point) <2/5> Gold Medal: Get the car in the Goal in 1:00 or less. (1,000 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Punt Kick, Dashing Straight How-to: This mission can seem difficult at first, but it's not too bad if you rely on technique more than blinding speed. Pummeling the car with everything you've got can make it go far, but not always in the direction you want it to go in. Take your time and plan out your strikes for the best results. I found that the Dashing Straight move (rushing forward and punching) works well for positioning the car at the right angle so you can then smash it skyward with a Punt Kick (target + away + special). Try to avoid hitting the car into buildings or objects that will impede its path. Gold Medal: Let loose with a fully charged Punt Kick to start, and then never look back. Try to keep the car targeted at all times and use Dashing Straights to line it up just right for the next Punt Kick. Don't be too hasty! If you punt the car at the wrong angle, it will go flying off in a different direction and cost you a lot of time. Three or four well-placed punts should send the car sailing into or very close to the ring, so just knock it in with a few Dashing Straights to secure the gold medal. ==================================== 19. Lights Out (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Destruction Objectives: Destroy as many spotlights as possible before time expires. Time Limit: 3:00 Bronze Medal: Destroy 6 or more spotlights. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Destroy 12 or more spotlights. (700 SP) <1/5> Gold Medal: Destroy 20 or more spotlights. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Dashing Straight, Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball How-to: What determines your success in this destruction mission is how well you can get around the city's rooftops with charged jumps and wall runs. Air Dashing is obviously very helpful here, as is utilizing the right analog stick to move the camera around (so as to get a better view of your surroundings). There are plenty of spotlights, really, so getting the gold shouldn't be much of a challenge. Down in the southeast corner of the main land mass is a tall building with 8 spotlights. If you wish to know the path I took, follow the gold medal strategy. Gold Medal: Immediately take out the two that are on the building with you. Dash up the side of the building to get a clear view of your surroundings. See the building northwest of your position with 2 more shiny lights? Jump over and take them out. You'll see another building with 2 more just west. They're next, which will net you the bronze medal. Keep heading west for one more on a shorter building, then wall run up a tall skyscraper in front of it for 2 more, which makes 10 total. Halfway there! Jump east to the building with a red billboard on it to knock down 2 more spotlights and earn the silver medal. Keep heading directly east and down towards the street to land on a building similar to the one on which you started for 2 more spotlights. There's 14. Again, keep heading east, up the brown building in front of you for leverage, and leap off onto another building with a red billboard on it to nab numbers 15 and 16. Continue east for a lone spotlight on a tall building with a billboard. Land here, destroy the light, and then you should see numbers 18, 19, 20, and 21 in the distance ahead of you, scattered about near the water's edge. 20 gets you the gold, so after this, go crazy! ==================================== 20. My Car! (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must tag each waypoint marker in turn to activate the next one. If you touch or damage a white car, you will fail the mission. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Collect all 25 markers in 3:00 or less. (400 SP) <2/5> Silver Medal: Collect all 25 markers in 2:30 or less. (700 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 25 markers in 2:00 or less. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: N/A How-to: Hulk's can't smash to his heart's content on this mission, because if you so much as touch a white car, it's mission failed. So be careful, all right? Anyway, this mission is just like the Fast Mover challenges, but you're given a lot more time to Speed Run (25 of them this time) thanks to the white cars being EVERYWHERE. You'll be on the ground the whole time, so just watch your footing and take your time. You don't have to rush to nab the medals here (and if you try to, you'll most likely end up hitting a car and getting quite frustrated). Gold Medal: You've got plenty of time for this one, so there's no need to constantly run (Hulk has a nasty habit of destroying things he runs near or into, anyway). There are definitely some moments where you can dash, but there are also some moments where it's just best to simply use the control stick to maneuver the green giant carefully. Two minutes is plenty; I actually think 1:30 or 1:20 would have been a fitting gold medal goal, but it's nice to see the developers throw you a bone every now and then, eh? ==================================== 21. Point Defense (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 2 ("Dark Desert of the Soul"). Mission Type: Defense Objective: Staying between the bridge supports, defeat as many tanks as possible before time expires. Time Limit: 3:00 Bronze Medal: 3 Tanks Defeated (900 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: 12 Tanks Defeated (2,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: 25 Tanks Defeated (5,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Hammer Toss, Missile Punchback How-to: This mission is one of the easier challenge missions thanks to how quickly tanks go down with the hammer toss. As soon as you grab the barrel of a tank, it registers that the machine is "defeated", so you can just stop spinning and set it down with [Grab/Throw] and then watch the tank explode for no apparent reason. That said, it's a lot more fun to twirl General Ross's troops around, and you can double your pleasure by launching tanks into each other for multiple kills. If you don't have the hammer toss, I'd wait to attempt this mission, but if you insist, then steel fists will be your friend. Charged melee attacks work well with them, but remember that your steel fists will eventually wear out and you'll have to get new ones. Critical Mass attacks are solid here, of course, and you can also destroy a passing ambulance for extra health (you'd think they'd close off the bridge. Sheesh!). Gold Medal: Keep on doing the Bowser - er, hammer toss as you launch tanks into each other and you'll have the gold on your first or second try. Missile Punchback is also helpful (as you swing a tank around, it will sometimes automatically repel missiles fired at you by other tanks). ==================================== 22. Rooftop Jumping 1 (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Distance Objectives: Travel as far as possible by jumping from rooftop to rooftop before time expires. If you climb, wall run, or touch the ground, you will fail the mission. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Travel 200 yards or more. (400 SP) <2/5> Silver Medal: Travel 500 yards or more. (500 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Travel 1,100 yards or more. (1,000 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Air Stomp How-to: Because of the restrictions imposed against you, this challenge can be pretty tricky. If you botch a jump, mission failed, because you cannot climb or wall run to get yourself back up. So don't try to jump too far and bank on catching the side of a building as you fall. It goes without saying that having the Air Dash Move Set is critical here. Remember not to hold forward when coming near a wall as Hulk will automatically wall run. Oh, and make SURE that you constantly travel in one direction! If you go back the way you came, the game will take away from your distance! Gold Medal: Did I mention that there was no time limit? Well, there isn't, so that makes this would-be-really-hard challenge pretty simple as long as you can time your jumps and Air Dashes right. Make use of the control stick (hold back to cut your jump short in mid air), or you can purposely overshoot a rooftop and use an Air Stomp to go straight down (the latter option being my preferred method for this mission). Because you don't have to worry about a time limit, just rely on short hopping jumps to claim the gold as your own. Heading west is the best option because you will eventually run out of room if you go south, and if you try to backtrack, you'll lose distance. Again, watch out for the automatic wall runs - they kill the mission in an instant. To avoid this, I sometimes just jump in place and then Air Dash over to gain altitude. ==================================== 23. Rooftop Jumping 2 (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Distance Objectives: Travel as far as possible by jumping from rooftop to rooftop before time expires. Climbing and wall running is permitted, but if you touch the ground, you will fail the mission. Time Limit: 1:30 Bronze Medal: Travel 200 yards or more. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Travel 500 yards or more. (700 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Travel 1,100 yards or more. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball, Air Stomp How-to: Unlike the first Rooftop Jumping mission, this one is timed, but fortunately for you and the Hulk, wall running and climbing is permitted. Yay! Now you can use the sides of the buildings as a crutch in case you should fall short on a jump attempt. Pick a direction and stick to it (northeast works best), because like the first one, you will actually lose distance if you go back the way you came. Once again, having the Air Dash Move Set is invaluable. Gold Medal: Long, wide, sweeping jumps work best here as opposed to the shorter hops in the first Rooftop Jumping mission. Use your Air Dashes wisely here, and a Super Air Strike or Air Cannonball can help you reach a bit farther (but be careful; sometimes the Air Strike/Air Cannonball automatically targets something, and this can botch your jump). Use Air Stomps when necessary, and get a move on! ==================================== 24. Smashing Spree (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 2 ("Dark Desert of the Soul"). Mission Type: Destruction Objectives: Destroy 8 cars, 4 cargo trucks, 8 trees, and 4 water towers as fast as possible. They must be fully destroyed to count towards your total. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Smash all of the objects in 4:00 or less. (900 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Smash all of the objects in 3:00 or less. (2,000 SP) <1/5> Gold Medal: Smash all of the objects in 2:30 or less. (3,500 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Running Grab, Dashing Straight How-to: What does Hulk do best? SMASH! What is Hulk's favorite thing to do? SMASH! And that's exactly what you'll do here, just keep in mind that you'll need to go after the specific objects I've listed (8 cars, 4 delivery trucks, 8 trees, and 4 water towers). Trees and be taken out simply by running into them, and the water towers are on top of the smaller buildings (they tend to be the hardest object to locate). Cars are all over the place (only small cars count - the ones you can turn into steel fists), and the white cargo trucks an usually be seen driving by. Throwing a car or delivery truck into the ocean also counts as destroying it. Gold Medal: Take out the water towers first, as they are more difficult to locate. Fortunately for you, there happens to be five of them right near your starting position, which eliminates seeking them out across the city. After beginning the challenge, run up the building in front of you (heading northeast) to find the five scattered across a couple rooftops. Take them out in one shot with the Dashing Straight move. Jump down and take care of the trees next by barreling through them. Delivery trucks are next, grab them quickly and throw them into the sea across the northern coast (make sure you jump out far enough so you don't automatically target an object on land and throw a truck at that instead). Finally, the small cars. Take them out just like the delivery trucks, or you can opt to throw them into each other. 2 minutes in 30 seconds is plenty of time to complete the mission, so the gold should be an easy medal to obtain here. ==================================== 25. Soldier Seeker (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 4 ("Need-To-Know"). Mission Type: Destruction Objectives: Defeat all of the enemy units before time expires. Time Limit: 3:00 Bronze Medal: All enemies defeated before time expires. (500 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: All enemies defeated with 2:00 remaining. (900 SP) <1/5> Gold Medal: All enemies defeated with 1:30 remaining. (1,500 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball, Air Dash Move Set How-to: This mission is a breeze if you have the Super Air Strike or Air Cannonball, and Air Dashes help a lot too. You've got quite a few enemy soldiers in the rooftops (6 in total), and 2 helicopters to bring down. Target one with the left shoulder button and use your Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball and Air Dashes to get over as quickly as possible. Wall run up the building to get to each one and take them out with another charged Air Strike/Cannonball. The helicopters can be defeated the same way (you won't really need the Cyclone Skyjack as the Air Strikes take them out easily). No one seems to want to put up too much of a fight, so this mission is more or less a slaughter than it is a battle. Gold Medal: Follow the formula I've laid out above and move quickly to accomplish this mission and earn the gold medal without much effort. ==================================== 26. Surf City (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 3 ("No Mercy"). Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must use the Shield Grind to collect the waypoint markers. Time Limit: 2:00 (time starts from the moment you begin Shield Grinding) Bronze Medal: Collect 35 or more markers before time expires. (2,000 SP) <2/5> Silver Medal: Collect 50 or more markers before time expires. (4,000 SP) <4/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 60 markers before time expires. (7,000 SP) <5/5> Recommendations: Shield (required), Shield Grind (required), Air Dash Move Set How-to: Well, this one's certainly a doozie. This one's like the Fast Mover missions except that you have to be Shield Grinding in order to Speed Run, and controlling the Shield Grind is tough. Turning is slow and you also have to perform some pretty complicated jumps with the Shield in order to tag all the markers. A jump or wall run from a grind can tag the markers, but for anything else you have to be grinding the Shield. You don't have to tag the markers in order (though I recommend it) or get all of them to qualify for a bronze medal (35) or a silver medal (50), but if it's the gold you want, then all 60 must be collected in two minutes. No easy task. Gold Medal: This is one of the hardest gold medals to acquire in the game thanks to the sloppy controls while Shield Grinding - all I can say is to practice. Pressing the right shoulder button will give you a slight speed boost on the ground (once per grind, you can jump quickly and land to use another boost), and Air Dashes can help in jumping, but it's PRACTICE that will net you this medal. Jumps to a building are the toughest - try to hold the right shoulder button and aim for the building, jumping at the last second - if you can wall run up it, you should be able to hop off automatically and then Air Dash for any markers in the air, then land with another Shield Grind and boost your way on. And, of course, use the mini map on your HUD. Good luck - you'll need it! Oh, and... don't throw the truck into the sea... it won't come back. ==================================== 27. S.W.A.T. (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 3 ("No Mercy"). Mission Type: Destruction Objectives: Soldiers are dropping from helicopters on all sides of the building. Hit as many as possible before time expires. Time Limit: 2:00 Bronze Medal: Hit 10 or more soldiers. (800 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Hit 25 or more soldiers. (2,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Hit 50 or more soldiers. (5,000 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Running Club Ram How-to: This mission is similar to the "Batter Up!" challenge, except that you're going for most soldiers hit as opposed to distance. Once on the building, take out the ventilators (they tend to get in your way, so destroy them before the soldiers start dropping). From then on out, it's free swinging. Keep an eye out for the red icons to surface above the soldier’s heads – it’s a dead giveaway of how many will be dropping next. Time your hits appropriately, and don't be afraid to throw your club at a soldier if you're too far away (you'll automatically get another one). Gold Medal: Getting the gold here is all about the timing of your hits. Since the helicopters take turns dropping soldiers, you'll want to move to each one as they drop. Target with the left shoulder button, rush over and just do ONE hit with the basic attack button. Resist the urge to hit the button twice - this will make Hulk swing the club twice and really slow you down. So just press it once, then immediately target the next group after the first one has been sent flying. Rush over, use the basic attack again, and then target the next group. Lather, rinse, repeat. ==================================== 28. To the Rescue (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 1, Mission 3 ("Lightning Strike"). Mission Type: Transport Objectives: Rescue civilians from the burning building by taking them to the ambulance. Rescue as many as possible before time expires. Time Limit: 3:00 Bronze Medal: Rescue 5 or more civilians before time expires. (400 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Rescue 10 or more civilians before time expires. (2,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Rescue 15 or more civilians before time expires. (5,000 SP) <4/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set How-to: Hey... Hulk can be a hero, too! In this mission you'll need to scale the building marked on your map. Once you grab a civilian, take them back down and deposit them at one of the three locations marked on your map by the green circles. Work quickly but not too quickly, because if you're too brash, you'll end up killing the civilians by running into them. Hulk hero, not killer! Use Air Dashes to position your landings as close as possible to the ambulances. Gold Medal: Try to work to rescue 5 civilians per minute. The hardest part about this mission is your natural tendency to kill the people by running into them when you're on top of the building (because once they die... they don't come back). You CAN grab a human immediately after they're knocked over to keep them alive, but still, be careful, all right? Also, when you're setting a person down, make sure you use the right button to do it (the special attack button, not the grab/throw button, because I always seem to do that out of habit and I end up throwing the poor person against a wall. Oops.) If you must destroy those puny humans, set them down first, then bash their skulls in, because you'll still get credit for the rescue that way. Yay! ==================================== 29. Urban Golf (City) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 2 ("Dark Desert of the Soul"). Mission Type: Into the Goal Objectives: Use the club to get the ball to the flags with as few swings as possible. You will need to complete 3 holes of golf. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Complete all 3 holes in 29 strokes or less. (900 SP) <3/5> Silver Medal: Complete all 3 holes in 20 strokes or less. (2,000 SP) <4/5> Gold Medal: Complete all 3 holes in 10 strokes or less. (4,000 SP) <5/5> Recommendations: N/A How-to: Ah, Urban Golf, how I loathe thee. This is probably my most hated mission, because it's very difficult to control the golf ball in how you want it, and if you make one single mistake, you might as well restart if you're going for the gold. You'll be playing as Mr. Fixit (Grey Hulk in his suit) and using a giant "golf club" here for 3 holes of golf. The best strategy is to first clear the path in front of you (as long as you're not hitting the golf ball, it won't count as a swing) and then to simply learn to control your hits. It just takes time to get used to hitting the golf ball. A lot of time - just like the real sport. *sigh* Practice, practice, practice. Gold Medal: Because of all the factors involved in how the golf ball travels, my method might not work as well for you. The best strategy is to practice and find what works for you, because this mission is REALLY hard. If you botch a stroke - restart. Hole 1: First off, DON'T MOVE from your starting position. The game places you at the perfect angle to hit the ball straight. Target the ball and then let loose with a charged special attack. The golf ball should travel more than half the distance to the goal and land next to the side of a building. Take out everything that would block your way to the hole next. Backtrack, get behind the ball, and hit it with a fully charged basic attack. Now you should be all set up for the last push. You can try ramming it in with a dash, but chances are it will overshoot the hole, so just charge a basic attack enough to knock it in. You cannot afford to use up any more than 3 strokes on this hole. Hole 2: You've got to navigate in-between a bunch of buildings, so it's a bit harder than the first hole. Regardless, you NEED to be able to get the ball to the goal in 3 strokes, and it's not going to be easy. Again, you're already set up in perfect position to hit the ball straight, so don't move - just fully charge the special attack button (but don't target this time). The ball will sail forward a great distance, bounce off a skyscraper, and land in between a couple buildings. Now, and this may sound odd, but do another special hit (drive), hard enough and straight enough to hit the ball into the water. Quick! Run towards the hole! You will NOT be penalized a stroke, and the ball will "respawn" to wherever you are when you were running! If you're fast enough, you can actually make it to the ring of flares and the ball will follow you in there for a 2-stroke hole! Now if only you could do that for Hole # 3... Hole 3: Now here is the true test of skill (or luck, depending on your perspective). This time you've got a long way to go, and there are lots of buildings blocking your way. If you managed to get a 3 on hole #1 and a 2 on hole #2 you have 5 strokes remaining, and you'll need all five of them. How well you do on this hole will be determined by your fist stroke - stay as STRAIGHT as possible! I find that the best way to hit it straight is to actually be towards the right side of the ball more than you are towards the left. After this one, it's up to you to make the most use of basic and special hits to get to the hole. Good luck - you'll need a LOT of it! If you can get the gold, have a cookie. No, make that two. Heck, have the whole box, because you deserve it. Just save some for Hulk - you wouldn't like him when he's hungry (okay, now THAT one was really bad). Anyway, on to the Badlands! ============================================================================== VIII. BADLANDS CHALLENGE MISSIONS ============================================================================== ==================================== 30. Blonsky Don't Surf (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 3 ("No Mercy"). Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must use the Shield Grind to collect the waypoint markers. Time Limit: 3:00 (time starts from the moment you begin Shield Grinding) Bronze Medal: Collect 50 markers before time expires. (2,000 SP) <3/5> Silver Medal: Collect 65 markers before time expires. (4,000 SP) <4/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 75 markers before time expires. (7,000 SP) <5/5> Recommendations: Shield (required), Shield Grind (required), Air Dash Move Set How-to: This is the Badlands version of the Challenge Mission "Surf City", and it's a bit more difficult. The total number of markers to collect while Shield Grinding is 75 compared to 60 from the City-based challenge, but you have an extra minute to complete the task. All of the same rules and principles apply here - learn the layout of the course for the best results and use Air Dashes frequently. Of course, controlling your Shield Grind still proves to be irksome here, and because there are so many markers, it can be easy to lose track of where you're supposed to go next, so always keep an eye on your mini map. Gold Medal: This is probably the hardest Gold Medal to earn out of all the Speed Run missions simply because there are so many markers to collect. You'll grind around edges (careful not to fall off) and hit some pretty tough jumps over the canyons for markers high in the sky. Air Dashes really help here to make it over some of the longer gaps. Remember to use the right trigger for speed bursts frequently (once per grind) and keep on your toes (which are kept on your Shield...), because the course zigzags all over the place, and in some places the developers were just downright mean (try it for yourself... you'll see). Overall, though, this course is actually pretty fun, and this was a Speed Run mission where I really enjoyed myself for a change. You've got to give the developers props for their cleverness on this one. ==================================== 31. Desert Dogfight (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 5 ("Inner Sanctum"). Mission Type: Destruction Objectives: Defeat as many aircraft as possible before time expires. Time Limit: 3:00 Bronze Medal: Destroy 6 or more aircraft before time expires. (4,000 SP) <2/5> Silver Medal: Destroy 12 or more aircraft before time expires. (8,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Destroy 25 or more aircraft before time expires. (12,000 SP) <2/5> Recommendations: Ball and Chain, Air Recovery, Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball, Air Dash Move Set, Cyclone Skyjack, Target Kick, Air Critical Thunderclap How-to: Another "Badlands version of a City Challenge Mission", this one requires you to destroy MORE aircraft in the SAME amount of time (compared to "Downtown Dogfight"), but with Hulk's skills, it's still child’s play. All of the same moves apply here when fighting aircraft. Charge a jump, lock on with an Air Strike/Cannonball, latch on with the Cyclone Sky Jack, and ride the birds to the ground. Gold Medal: This is probably my favorite challenge in the game thanks to our friend, the Ball and Chain. There are a bunch of trucks that give you this weapon scattered about the area you start in. Once you're weaponized, a fully charged swoop will destroy a helicopter or fighter jet in one fell swoop. Can we say sweetness? "Sweetness." This gold medal also gives you the most Smash Points in the game for any medal. Can we say sweetness again? "Sweetness again." ==================================== 32. Fast Mover - 7 (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 1 ("The Enemy Within"). Mission Type: Speed Run Objectives: Move through the course as fast as possible. You must tag each waypoint marker in turn to activate the next one. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Collect all 22 markers in 2:40 or less. (500 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Collect all 22 markers in 1:20 or less. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Collect all 22 markers in 0:49 or less. (1,500 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set How-to: For being the last of the Fast Mover missions, this one's not too bad. Nevertheless, all of the same principles from the City-based Fast Mover challenges apply here. Stay on your toes, use Air Dashes generously, and MOVE! Gold Medal: It's that naughty eight-letter word: "practice". It makes a seven-letter word: "perfect". Now, go, my sons, and bring home the gold! ==================================== 33. Gamma Field Goal (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 3 ("No Mercy"). Mission Type: Into the Goal Objectives: Kick as many vehicles as possible through the moving goal posts before time expires. You must stay within the ring of flares. Time Limit: 2:00 Bronze Medal: Kick 2 or more vehicles through the goal posts. (2,000 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Kick 4 or more vehicles through the goal posts. (4,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Kick 8 or more vehicles through the goal posts. (7,000 SP) <4/5> Recommendations: Punt Kick (required) How-to: This one's among my favorite Challenge Missions. It's quite similar to "Wide Right" except that the goal posts are moving, which makes things a bit trickier. Careful aiming of the Punt Kick (target the car and press away + special attack) is the key to your success here. If you try to move too fast, you'll botch your attempts and miss most of the time, so slow down. You have plenty of time. Gold Medal: My preferred method of tackling this mission is to stick to the car in the middle only, or use this car plus the taxi occasionally while I'm whiting for it to respawn. The blue SUV rarely goes the distance needed to reach the goalposts. Time and aim the Punt Kick just right (you'll want to kick it straight on - no angled shots here - just as the goal moves to the right near the rock formation. The car will enter the goal as it moves back in the other direction). You'll soon get a feel for things (whether the kick was too soon or too late) and remember - don't rush! Just take your time and aim carefully, and the medal is yours. ==================================== 34. Gamma Golf (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 1 ("The Enemy Within"). Mission Type: Into the Goal Objectives: Use the club to get the ball to the flags with as few swings as possible. You will need to complete 3 holes of golf. Time Limit: N/A Bronze Medal: Complete all 3 holes in 29 strokes or less. (800 SP) <2/5> Silver Medal: Complete all 3 holes in 20 strokes or less. (1,500 SP) <3/5> Gold Medal: Complete all 3 holes in 10 strokes or less. (3,000 SP) <4/5> Recommendations: N/A How-to: Well, well, well. MORE golf. Yay. Thankfully, this time there aren't tons of buildings in your way (compared to the nightmare that was "Urban Golf"), but that doesn't mean the developers are letting you off THAT easy. Just like the first challenge, it will take practicing, it will take patience, and it will take luck. So on that, I wish you well. Remember that you can still clear stuff out of your way without it counting as a stroke, as long as you aren't hitting the golf ball. And try not to beat up the poor cows, okay? Hmm, but they fly so far... Gold Medal: Just like Urban Golf, with the pressure of completing all 3 holes in 10 strokes or less, except no huge buildings. Only cows. Hooray! Hole 1: You're all lined up for this one - target the ball and let loose for a fully charged special hit without moving Mr. Fixit. The ball should land somewhere around the rock formation ahead of you. Line up for another drive. Try to position yourself perfectly for a straight-on hit. I find that being slightly to the right of the ball and not perfectly in the center will give you a smoother stroke. If you're really good with your aim, you might be able to JUST make it to the hole with 2 strokes. Otherwise, bunt it in for a 3 on the hole. Hole 2: No need to worry about the rock formation up ahead, just drive the ball from where you start. After your first shot, another drive would overshoot the hole, so just use fully charged basic attacks (so long as they're straight). Try not to get more than 3 on this hole. Hole 3:This time you've got buildings to clear, so stay loose. You're in good position to start; drive the ball forward from where you are to effectively go around the buildings. From there, it's another drive to the hole - but first, run up ahead to the ring of flares and take down the rocks, because it's possible that they might block your shots. Drive it as straight as you can to the hole, and then hit it in nicely for a 3 or 4 on the hole. If you got over ten, keep working at it. If you got ten or under, congratulations! But you don't get any cookies until you can get a gold on Urban Golf, got it? ==================================== 35. Hulk Smash Badlands! (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 1 ("The Enemy Within"). Mission Type: Destruction Objectives: Smash and destroy as many objects, vehicles, and buildings as possible before time expires. Completely destroy the object for more points. Time Limit: Bronze Medal: Earn 100 points or more before time expires. (500 SP) Silver Medal: Earn 400 points or more before time expires. (900 SP) Gold Medal: Earn 800 points or more before time expires. (1,200 SP) Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Dashing Straight How-to: It's time for another episode of your favorite show, "Hulk SMASH!!!" In this episode, Hulk will have to completely destroy as much as he can to rack up the points. The same principles from "Hulk Smash City!" apply here - make stuff go boom and crash for lots of points. Ignore rock formations, as they do little for your score. Instead, mainly look for cars in groups and propane tanks to make explosions with. See the gold medal strategy for the best method to take down the largest objects on the map and to earn the most points. Gold Medal: There aren't any big buildings to plow down in the Badlands, but there's still a wide array of stuff to earn you lots of points. First, head southwest and take out the gas station towards the edge of town for around 100 points and an instant bronze medal. Now head southeast towards the bridge. Along the way, take out any red gas cans or white propane tanks you might find to make some explosions. After you get to the bridge, turn it into rubble for around 250 points. By this point you should have the silver and be about halfway to the gold medal. Keep heading south past the bridge and out into the canyons, where you'll reach a dead end with another bridge. For the rest of the points, destroy the lone soldier outposts scattered about. Mission accomplished. ==================================== 36. Hulk Soccer (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 3 ("No Mercy"). Mission Type: Into the Goal Objectives: Get the car into the tunnel as many times as possible before time expires. Beware of the defending Combat Warden. You are not allowed to carry the car. Time Limit: 3:00 Bronze Medal: Score 2 or more goals before time expires. (2,000 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Score 5 or more goals before time expires. (4,000 SP) <3/5> Gold Medal: Score 8 or more goals before time expires. (7,000 SP) <4/5> Recommendations: Punt Kick, Dashing Straight, Air Dash Move Set How-to: This mission finds you playing soccer with a very aggressive Combat Warden as the goalie. It can be tough to get around him, especially when he attacks you instead of the "ball" (which is a taxicab). The best method to get the car into the tunnel is to lead off with a Punt Kick (target + away + special attack) and then use Dashing Straights to beat the car into the tunnel. Knock the Combat Warden away if you need the path clear, but don't waste your efforts trying to kill him as his armor is impenetrable. Gold Medal: Be aggressive. AGGRESSIVE! That's the best advice I can give you. Never stop attacking that goal, ever. The Combat Warden is nothing to you - you're the Hulk! Punt Kick the taxi cab over next to the goal and lay it in with a Dashing Straight, and don't ever stop until time is up. If you Punt Kick the vehicle JUST right, it will actually land on the other side of the tunnel and you may be able to punch it in, but this takes too much time and is too risky, so I'd avoid it. It's also best not to charge the initial Punt Kick too much - just a light kick is fine, and then ram it by running into it or the aforementioned Dashing Straight. ==================================== 37. Long Bomb (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 3 ("No Mercy"). Mission Type: Defense Objectives: Destroy as many helicopters as possible before time expires using only the Missile Punchback and Missile Catch techniques. You must stay within the ring of flares. If you exit the ring, you will fail the mission. Time Limit: 2:00 Bronze Medal: Destroy 6 or more helicopters. (2,000 SP) <2/5> Silver Medal: Destroy 12 or more helicopters. (4,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Destroy 20 or more helicopters. (7,000 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Missile Catch (required), Missile Punchback (required) How-to: This challenge is great! I like how the helicopter pilots edge you on ("Up here, Dr. Banner!") only to be blown from the sky. Anyway, in this mission, Hulk will find himself within a ring of flares being attacked by missiles from two watchtowers. The tower on the right will always fire first, so be ready. You may ONLY use the Missile Catch and Missile Punchback techniques to target and destroy the helicopters overhead. Missile Catch allows you to launch a missile more accurately, but Missile Punchback is quicker when the towers start firing missiles faster - use whatever one suits you best. Just make sure to target a helicopter before you punch the missile. Oh, and one more thing... don't leave the ring of flares. It's VERY easy to do it by accident. Gold Medal: As I said, ease into the mission by simply catching a missile, and fully charging it when you throw it back at each helicopter. Eventually, you can transfer to the Missile Punchback technique (try and fully charge your attack) to get the gold by bringing down 20 choppers, but I find that exclusively using Missile Catch works just fine, too. Whatever suits your playing style. ==================================== 38. Puny Humans (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 1 ("The Enemy Within"). Mission Type: Defense Objectives: Defeat as many soldiers as possible before time expires. You must stay within the ring of flares. If you leave the ring, you will fail the mission. Time Limit: 2:00 Bronze Medal: Defeat 10 or more soldiers before time expires. (500 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Defeat 20 or more soldiers before time expires. (900 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Defeat 40 or more soldiers before time expires. (1,200 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Running Grab, Dashing Straight, Critical Atomic Slam, Super Air Strike/Air Cannonball How-to: Staying within the ring of flares again, Hulk must fight off as many enemy soldiers as possible before time expires. The men aren't really much of a threat to you - they're actually more of a threat to each other, as turning them into human projectiles works well here. If you can get into Critical Mass, a Critical Ground Slam will rock the house and then some, so get to it! Gold Medal: Start out by using the rocks and propane tanks you're given to hurl at the soldiers. Once those are used up, grab the soldiers themselves and toss them at each other, doing so until you have enough Critical Mass power to pull off a Critical Atomic Slam. Repeat the cycle, and wrap up this mission with a shiny gold medal. ==================================== 39. Unfriendly Fire (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete Chapter 2, Mission 1 ("Eye in the Sky"). Mission Type: Destruction Objectives: Destroy as many enemies as possible using friendly fire before time expires. Time Limit: 2:00 Bronze Medal: Destroy 2 or more enemies by friendly fire. (800 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Destroy 5 or more enemies by friendly fire. (1,500 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Destroy 8 or more enemies by friendly fire. (2,000 SP) <3/5> Recommendations: Air Dash Move Set, Air Recovery, Power Surges (Levels 1, 2, and 3), Critical Mass Surges (Levels 1 and 2) How-to: This time, Hulk doesn't do the smashing - the enemies must take care of themselves through friendly fire. You cannot attack or grab in any way, so try to get between enemies and jump out of the way just as they attack. Keep an eye on your health gauge - it depletes very quickly. Gold Medal: The only difficult part about this mission is simply staying alive - fortunately, there are plenty of green orbs near the canyons. Before heading to the war scene, I would first collect enough health to enter critical mass and fill the gauge so that Hulk can take as much abuse as he needs to. Head north of your starting position to the large rock formation in the corner of the canyon. It has plenty of green orbs to get you fully powered up. Needless to say, having all of the health and critical mass upgrades helps out a lot, though you don't necessarily need them for the gold. Anyway, once you've reached full health, simply position yourself between as many tanks as possible and utilize short hops in order to get them to destroy each other. Use Air Recovery and your Air Dashes if you're hit. ==================================== 40. Wide Right (Badlands) ==================================== Availability: Complete all of Chapter 1 ("The Enemy Within"). Mission Type: Into the Goal Objectives: Kick as many vehicles as possible through the goal posts before time expires. You must stay within the ring of flares. Time Limit: 2:00 Bronze Medal: Kick 3 or more vehicles through the goal posts. (800 SP) <1/5> Silver Medal: Kick 7 or more vehicles through the goal posts. (1,000 SP) <2/5> Gold Medal: Kick 13 or more vehicles through the goal posts. (1,500 SP) <4/5> Recommendations: Punt Kick (required) How-to: This is the easier of the two field goal challenges since the goal posts are stationary and a bit closer than the posts in Gamma Field Goal, but you are required to make more kicks this time. Lining up your Punt Kick is as crucial as it always is, and it is the better strategy to use here instead of just kicking everything as fast as you can and hoping the cars will score you points. Meticulously work the camera and Hulk's position for the best shot. I find that your kicks tend to head towards the left, so line yourself and the camera up so you're actually kicking slightly to the right. In your downtime, you might also enjoy heading out past the ring of flares to kick a couple cows through the posts... but you didn't hear it from me! Gold Medal: Take your time, line up your Punt Kicks, and practice. That's the best advice I can give you for this last gold medal. ============================================================================== IX. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ) ============================================================================== Q: Do I have to complete the Challenge Missions to progress further in Story Mode? A: All 40 of the Challenge Missions are entirely optional (call them "side quests", if you will), and you can go through Story Mode without ever even attempting one. However, some of them can really be quite fun, and they also serve as a handy way to earn Smash Points in order to buy those ever-expensive moves in Story Mode. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. Is there any sort of reward for completing all 40 Challenge Missions? How about for earning a gold medal on all 40? A. Besides satisfaction, bragging rights, and a lot of Smash Points earned in the process, there are [unfortunately] no rewards. But there's just so much to do in this game... Really, what else could you ask for (besides a sequel)? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. How do I find a specific Challenge Icon on the map? A. In a future revision of this guide, I will add a location guide for each icon. Until then, just use the same method I did - jump around the map and try any challenge you come across. After you have played it once, you can go to the Church and revisit it any time without having to search for the icon again. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. Did you earn a gold medal on all 40 Challenges? I don't think it's possible. A. I did, as a matter of fact, without using any cheats. I'm just good like that. I wrote this guide, didn't I? Really, as long as you have purchased the moves I've recommended for each challenge, most of them aren't that difficult (save for a few, mainly the surfing and golfing missions). With perseverance, it CAN be done. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. I think that it'd be cool to feature our high scores in this guide. Can we send ours in? A. I though about something like this... but unfortunately, there would be no way to tell if cheat codes were used - even if you sent in a screenshot of your high score. As much as I'd like to include them, the few people out there who think that they actually have something to gain by being dishonest about their scores ruin things for everybody else. Blame them, not me. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. Wait a second... cheat codes affect the Challenge Missions? A. You bet they do! Some of them can actually be pretty crazy with certain codes on. Try playing some of the golf or field goal challenges with low gravity! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. From your experience, what is/are the easiest and/or hardest Challenge Missions to complete in the game? A. The difficulty of any given challenge is usually largely dependent on what moves you have. Most Challenge Missions are far easier if you have all of the Air Dash techniques, and some challenges are made incredibly easy with a certain move (for instance, using the Gamma Grinder on "Hulk's Rooftop! Hulk's!" The hardest challenge mission in the game, without a doubt, is Urban Golf, because it's just so difficult to control where the golf ball goes, especially when there are tons of obstacles and tall buildings in the way. The surfing/Shield Grinding missions take honorable mention for difficulty. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. What is your favorite (and least favorite) Challenge Mission in the game? A. Desert Dogfight in the Badlands is my favorite - using the Ball and Chain move here to take down swarms of aircraft is great fun. I also like Point Defense, because listening to what the tank operators say (such as "No-no-no-no!") as you twirl them around is a riot. My least favorite mission, hands down, is Urban Golf. What a nightmare! Earning the gold medal took me nearly 3 hours of nonstop playing. Oddly enough, I was able to complete the Badlands version (Gamma Golf) in about fifteen minutes, but that's probably because there weren't a zillion objects to golf around. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. Are there any differences between the three versions of this game (PS2, Xbox, and GameCube)? A. Content-wise, no. There are slight graphical differences between them, but they are mostly negligible. All three run in progressive scan (480p) and the Xbox version even runs in HD (720p), so I would say that version is the prettiest of the three. That said, they all suffer from frame rate problems and pop-up because of the huge environments and how so much tends to happen on the screen at one time in Story Mode, so I find that which version you think is the "best" is largely based on user preference and which controller suits your style the most. I find that the PlayStation 2 Dual Shock 2 controller works the best, followed by the Xbox Controller S, and then the standard GameCube controller, which just doesn't work as well for this type of game. During one of the "Making Of" videos, there's a shot of a developer holding a controller, but it's blurred out. If you look closely, you can clearly tell it's a PS2 controller - they just don't want to "offend" Xbox or GameCube owners who purchased the game. What do I say? I say that if your TV can support high definition, go with the Xbox version. Otherwise, pick up the PS2 version. But hey - you really can't go wrong with any version. The game looks and plays great on all three home consoles. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. I found an easier way to complete a Challenge mission, or I noticed an error. How can I let you know? A. PLEASE do tell me! See Section XII (Contact Information) to send me tips and suggestions. If I use it, I will give you credit in this guide. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. I need extra assistance with a particular challenge. Can you help me? A. I'd be more than happy to answer any questions or concerns you might have. Again, see Section XII (Contact Information) to reach me. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. I really like your work. Do you have anything planned for the future, FAQ-wise? A. Nothing at the moment. If I ever do make another FAQ, it'd probably be something pretty specific, like this one. I don't feel that there's a need to make all-encompassing FAQs for every single facet of a game - why? Because there's already plenty of people that are willing to do that, and God bless them for it. I definitely plan on adding more to this FAQ in the future, and adding a spot for contributor recognition once some of you people out there send in your own strategies for completing the Challenge Missions. ============================================================================== X. SPECIAL THANKS ============================================================================== Special thanks go out to: - The developers over at Radical Entertainment who delivered the sleeper hit of 2005, and the game that inspired me to write my first FAQ - ever! Guys, how about a sequel? Just no more golf next time, please! - Stan Lee and Jack Kirby for creating The Incredible Hulk, and Marvel, for helping mold my imagination with such awesome comic book characters. - My wonderful wife, Alisha, for putting up with me while I wrote this guide (and for putting up with me in general). - God, for through His power alone could I find the strength to get the gold medal on Urban Golf. - GameFAQs, for hosting this guide, and for always providing free content to the masses. - All of the other hard-working FAQ writers out there who inspired me to create a guide of my own. - Everyone out there who reads this and appreciates all of the hard work involved in its creation. ============================================================================== XI. VERSION HISTORY ============================================================================== 0.01 (7/22/2006) - Since this game has inspired me so much, and the fact that nobody has written a Challenge Mission guide yet (which surprised me), I've taken it upon myself to do this title justice and create one. 0.55 (7/25/2006) - Most of the groundwork is laid in place, and I have guides complete for nearly all of the City challenges. I originally planned on creating two separate FAQs (one for the City challenge missions, and one for the Badlands challenge missions) but to make things easier I decided to keep them together. 0.80 (7/26/2006) - Finally finished rough walkthroughs of all 40 challenge missions and got Gold medals on all of them. Phew! Urban Golf was BRUTAL. The rest were rather tame in comparison. 1.00 (7/27/2006) - Finally, it is finished! It has been spell-checked, grammar-checked, and Hulk-checked! I still have plenty of work to do, including adding a location guide for the Challenge Icons and adding information for Smash Point rewards for completing a mission but failing to earn a medal. The finished product took me over thirty hours to complete. ============================================================================== XII. CONTACT INFORMATION ============================================================================== Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Stuck on a challenge and need extra help? Find an alternative strategy that makes a mission a lot easier? See an error or something that needs correction? Contact me! I'll be sure to give you credit in this guide. You can e-mail me at [nathaneveland@gmail.com] or contact me via AOL's Instant Messenger (AIM) by messaging [Ignition128]. Thanks for reading, and good luck with those Challenge Missions! - Nathan Eveland (BlueSunrise)