Bangu Bang Mania’s Open Beta Changes

by Pepper Laforteza

The Bangu’s world has changed so much since we had last seen it. Many things have been modified to make the Bangu fighters’ experience better. With the large change in the game’s Graphical User Interface (GUI) and gameplay, BBM players have new challenges to overcome and new enemies to face.

GUI and Graphic Modifications
The GUI system has been revamped for a better and more pleasurable experience. It has been replaced by a new world map theme, which gives the players a view of how the Bangu world looks.

Remember the old BBM stages? Well, they’ve been replaced with ten spanking new levels! Gone are the Trainstation AM/PM, VR Red/Yellow/Green/Blue stages, which are now replaced with the following levels:

1. Sierra Station
2. Downtown: Street AM
3. Downtown: Street PM
4. Downtown: Rooftop AM
5. Downtown: Rooftop PM
6. Sewer A
7. Sewer B
8. Highway
9. Container Yard A
10. Container Yard B

More changes to the graphic system include the new Cel Shading, or Toon Shading feature, which gives the Bangu a more animé-ish feel to them. The stages have also been modified, renewing their 2D look with a more 3D feel, using better light and shadow rendering.

Adventure Mode
New players, rejoice! With BBM’s new Adventure Mode, you can now safely learn the tricks of the trade. You won’t be fighting veterans on your first day, as you can opt to play solo, or with another party member, in this mode which matches you up against renegade Bangu in the city. Each stage will give you different renegade Bangu to fight, so no two stages will have the same enemies to fight.

The renegade Bangu will also attack players in numerous waves, with their numbers constantly changing, so entering the same stage will yield a different playing experience. You won’t be able to predict what type of Bangu, and how many of them, are coming out next with this new system.

What exactly will you get if you join in on the adventure? You get drops and more playing experience, that’s what. The next renegade Bangu you defeat may drop rare parts and weapons, among other things. That, and you get enough practice in fighting in the stage. You can use what you’ve learned from the renegade Bangu to own other players.

Newbies aren’t the only ones who can participate in Adventure Mode. Veterans of the game can also join in and get the chance to get rare weapons, as some parts and weapons will come only from boss fights.

What exactly will you be facing in each stage?

 

Sierra Station	Downtown (Street)	Highway	Sewer	Container Yard
Sweeper	Signal Jammer	Speedster	Slime Squirter	Heavy Lifter
Soarer	Trasher	Puncturer	Root Cutter	Supply Carrier
Security	Riot Control	Wheeler	Shoveler	Wrencher
	Gyrotor	Drill Bit		Magnetaur

NPCs
NPCs have come to the new world. Perhaps their existence means there will be a quest system to follow?

Pai and Mai – Twins from China who sell Bangu merchandise in their shop

Dr. Ed – A scientist involved in the production and designing of Bangu. He manages your game options and will also be the help NPC in future versions

Rivet – Spunky mechanic girl who manages a Bangu workshop. She will be the Upgrade NPC in future versions

Bjorn – Owner of the “Bianca Salon and Haute Couture.” He will be the Avatar customization NPC in future versions

Refresher Course
Remember how a Bangu is assembled? Well, some of the parts have more features now. You’d better take down some serious notes! Well, let’s get through the basics.

HP – Your Hit Points. Determines the amount of damage you can take before entering Repair Mode

Defense (DEF) – Determines the amount of damage you take whenever you get hit

Block Defense (Block DEF) – Determines the amount of damage you take whenever you successfully block an attack

Resistance (RES) – Your Resistance against specific types of weapons (ranged, melee, etc.)

Head – As of the moment, the Head serves only as an accessory. In the future version of BBM, however, the Head will determine how much Energy Points (EP) you gain during a battle. EP is used to cast skills

Torso – Determines part of your Bangu Hit Points (HP), your Defense (DEF), and your RES to specific types of weapons

Shoulders – Determines your Block Defense (Block DEF) and also adds additional DEF

Legs – Determines your basic movements such as Walk Speed, Dash Speed, Dash Distance, Jump Height, Jump Distance, and air movements such as Air Jump, Air Dash, and Hover

Melee Weapons – Equipped either on your left or right arm, categorized as Slash, Blunt, or Pierce types. Each melee weapon has its own attack properties. Some melee weapons are for dealing strong one-hit attacks and some are for dealing multiple combo hits. Most melee weapons can be canceled into another weapon you’ve equipped for more combo possibilities. Melee weapons can also hit opponents standing side by side.
Ranged Weapons – Also equipped either on your left or right arm, categorized as Single, Burst, or Thrower. Single weapons shoot one generally powerful projectile, Burst weapons shoot, at most, five long-range projectiles, and Thrower weapons shoot more than five projectiles but on a shorter range. Just like the melee weapons, each ranged weapon has its own attack property for various purposes. Some can be for supportive fire and some can be for combo-ing.

Back Weapons – Equipped at the back part of your Bangu torso, categorized as Missile, Cannon, and Mine. Missile weapons shoot out a homing projectile that chases down enemy targets. Cannon weapons shoot a powerful projectile on a specific trajectory and have a wide explosion range. Mine weapons are dropped either on the ground or float in mid-air, exploding when an opponent gets near or when its time runs out, depending on the weapon. Back weapons function much like ranged weapons but have a differing trajectory for different strategies or combos that ranged and melee weapons cannot do.

Kagenui
Number of Hits: 4
Ground Damage: 350, 450, 450, 600
Air Damage: 900
A fast four-hit Slash weapon that pushes off your opponent straight up to the air, making him open for a juggle combo. Perfect for beginners

Joy Hammer
Number of Hits: 1
Ground Damage: 1150
Air Damage: 900
One-hit Blunt weapon that pummels opponents to the ground. Has a wide range and fast startup. Use with caution, though, as it has a long recovery period when blocked. The Joy Hammer’s damage, however, can be prevented by canceling it into another equipped weapon

Morning Star
Number of Hits: 2
Ground Damage: 700, 850
Air Damage: 900
Two Blunt weapons mostly for combo starting. Its air attack is a strong overhead attack that launches your opponent horizontally to the air, allowing you to chase after him or herwith a juggle combo. Its ground attack is a strong punch that pushes your opponent forward, which has two uses: as a combo startup or as a finisher by pressing attack again

Shock Rod
Number of Hits: 5
Ground Damage: 350, 350, 400, 500, 600
Air Damage: 1000
A five-hit Pierce weapon that stuns your opponent in a field of electricity, allowing you to hit him or her with another attack.

Shot Knuckle
Number of Hits: 1
Ground Damage: 900
Air Damage: 1000
A unique rocket powered Blunt weapon. Pressing the attack button makes your Bangu quickly rocket boost forward. Pressing the attack button again makes your Bangu do a rocket-powered uppercut that launches your opponent straight to the air. Meant for intermediate players

Dust Wand
Number of Hits: 3
Ground Damage: 350, 350, 600
Air Damage: 400
Three-hit Pierce weapon that sucks your opponent’s HP for your own use

Sacred Edge
Number of Hits: 3
Ground Damage: 550, 750, 0
Air Damage: 800
RARE DROP. Three-hit, wide Slash weapon that sends your opponent flying away and heals you in the process

Mjolnir
Number of Hits: 1
Ground Damage: 1150
Air Damage: 900
RARE DROP. Powerful one-hit Blunt weapon that stuns your opponent with a bolt of lightning

Fastball Launcher
Number of Projectiles: 3
Projectile Damage: 400
Burst weapon. Quickly shoots out three fast moving baseballs. The third ball knocks your opponent to the ground

Steam Roller
Number of Projectiles: 5
Projectile Damage: 400
Burst Weapon. Shoots out five bullets. Perfect for supporting your teammates by keeping your opponents busy with a barrage of bullets

Energy Bow
Number of Projectiles: 1
Projectile Damage: 800
Single Weapon. Shoots one fast moving energy bow that knocks your opponent down. Also pushes opponents back when blocked

Stun Gun
Number of Projectiles: 1
Projectile Damage: 700
Single Weapon. Shoots a slow moving ball of electricity that speeds up as it gains momentum. Stuns opponents that it hits, and also has a unique property of being a ranged weapon that has an explosion range, meaning it can hit opponents standing side by side. Can also be shot in mid-air

Dust Buster
Number of Projectiles: 8
Projectile Damage: 300
Thrower Weapon. Sucks in clouds of dirt that pulls your opponent towards you. Meant for advanced combos and strategy setups

Hyper Mag
Number of Projectiles: 5
Projectile Damage: 500
Thrower Weapon. Emits a wide-ranged, multi-hit magnetic field in front of your Bangu

Starlight Wand
Number of Projectiles: 10
Projectile Damage: 0
Thrower Weapon. Emits a near-stationary wide star wall that shields you from enemy fire, both in mid-air and on the ground. Guarantees that your Bangu is safe

Laser Rifle
Number of Projectiles: 5
Projectile Damage: 400
RARE DROP. Burst weapon. Shoots five very fast laser beams

Sprout Layer
Number of Projectiles: 3
Projectile Damage: 900
Mine weapon. Lays down three sprouts. Each one explodes when stepped on. Perfect for keeping a knocked-down opponent at bay

Ballista
Number of Projectiles: 1
Projectile Damage: 1220
Cannon weapon. Quickly shoots out a flaming arrow upwards in an arc. However, it has a long recovery time. Very versatile as it can be used against jumping or flying opponents, combo ending, or supportive fire

Agent Orange
Number of Projectiles: 1
Projectile Damage: 1100
Cannon weapon. Drops down a wide explosion ranged bomb that explodes on impact. Best used with hover type legs as it can be used only in mid-air

Mag Hunter
Number of Projectiles: 1
Projectile Damage: 1000
Missile weapon. Launches a magnet missile that effectively and quickly tracks down opponents

Smokestack
Number of Projectiles: 1
Projectile Damage: 1400
Missile weapon. Launches a powerful and unblockable slow-moving missile. Meant for advanced players or advanced team support tactics

Fairy Wings
Number of Projectiles: 8
Projectile Damage: 0
Missile weapon. Launches eight stationary fairies that quickly intercept incoming enemy fire. Mainly a defensive weapon as it does not deal damage or tracks down enemy Bangu. Can be used in mid-air.

Repair Box
Number of Projectiles: 1
Projectile healing: 800
Rare Drop. Mine weapon. Drops down a repair box that activates after a few seconds, repairing both allies and enemies within its area.

Bomb Pack
Number of Projectiles: 1
Projectile Damage: INSTANT KILL
RARE DROP. Mine weapon. Upon activation, your Bangu explodes instantly, destroying both itself and nearby opponents

Tips for beginners

1) Although you start off with a basic Bangu and basic weapons, you also have D200,000 (Dines) in your inventory which you can use to buy some weapons and parts in the shop.
2) Start off with a melee weapon in one hand, and a ranged weapon in the other. Do not start off with double ranged weapons as these are a bit hard to use and are meant for advanced players with support tactics in mind.
3) In PvP mode, when your Bangu gets destroyed, you enter a Repair Mode. During this mode, your Bangu HP slowly recovers and your Bangu automatically respawns into the match when full. You can, however, interrupt this process to enter the match quickly with the HP you had before you respawn again to help your teammates.
4) Do not respawn immediately after your Bangu gets destroyed. Wait for a little time to regain some HP and check if your teammates really do need you back in the fight immediately.
5) Check part stats carefully to suit your fighting style. High HP builds usually lead to slow movement ratings while Fast movement builds have low HP.
6) Don’t forget to press Space Bar in the match to display all the players’ names and team colors so you know which ones are your teammates and which ones are your opponents.