I hereby typing this because I've read quite a number of complains stating that the game is too "difficult". The last time I've tried this technique, it'd gotten me to level 54 with ease. Hence I believe that this guide will be more than sufficient for all the casual gamers out there to last a bit longer.
The red dot is where your shots will most likely hit. Keep in mind that this game has bullet spread -- the shots may deviate away from the sights -- and it increases in proportion with the number of consecutive shots. So if you're in a trigger-happy mood and hold down the fire button, the first 3 shots will land within close proximity of each other while the remaining shots will fly all over the place. So its recommended that you perform short-quick burst or switch to semi auto ("F" button).
Here's my recommended built for this game:
Select the Glock as your starting weapon. The Glock is no doubt the best pistols among the three. Reason being that its as accurate (if not more) as the Kimber and its the only starting pistol that can be upgraded with extended magazines.
Level 1: Either purchase the secondary pouch or do not puchase anything at all (to save up cash).
Level 2: You should have sufficient cash to purchase the extended magazines for Glock. Buy and equip it.
-This should last you for quite awhile. Use the Glock with extended mags to save up for the big thing -- AK-47 (you should be able to get it by level 8). Purchase the grip and sling for the AK-47. Other attachments are not recommended as they just provide cosmetic differences.
-Purchase Primary Pouch, Heavy Belt Tier & Heavy Vest Tier.
-The remaining cash will be used to repair the Blackhawk or to purchase the A10. (to repair the Blackhawk, drag the slider towards the right and click "buy"
-Targer priority: 1. Always aim for the RPG soldier first! For they're the ones that'll cause a lot of damage. 2. Technicals (aim for the fuel tanks)
level 10+: there will be 1 technical for each round. There's no need to call in the A10. Just shoot the gas tank and watch it explode.
level 20+: 2 technicals. If you have good aim, there's no need to call in the A10 either. However, if you really feel that there's a need to, call in the A10 the moment you sense that you're in trouble. There's a delay before the A10 arrives. So you're on your own within that time frame.
level 30+, 40+, 50+ etc: 3, 4, & 5 technicals respectively. Its pretty compulsory to call in an A10 every round if you want to survive. (its recommended you call in the air support when there's at least 2 technicals in the screen).
Well, that's all I could cover so far. This is my first guide so please do go easy on me. =[
The AK is a very nice gun however around Wave 17 or so, you can buy the M14 without any damage to your budget. The M14 has a lot more accuracy than the AK so I choose to use the M14. The AK does have the vertical grip to reduce the recoil however the accuracy of the M14 more than makes up for that.
The main problem I have with the M14 is that it somehow only carries a 20 round mag (yes, I've counted each shot. In-game stat appears to be inaccurate somehow =/), that alone merits the usage of AK-47 over M14 imo.
I can see why the 20 round mag would be a problem however I don't just shoot randomly. I'm not saying you do but with the AK, you have some tolerance just randomly shooting into a crowd.
I also disagree with the OP where he states that other upgrades are just cosmetic. I bought the EO Tech Sight and mounted it on the AK. This made aiming so much easier. The default aiming "crosshairs" are completely outshined by the EO.
The AK-47 may be less accurate than the M14, but its not outrageously inaccurate to the extend that it'll miss 10 shots per mag. Counting in the misses, the AK-47 still has more hits-per-mag compared to M14. And best of all, its way cheaper (so you can obtain it earlier in the game).
As for the sights, well, that's just personal preference. Different people may find different sights useful. However, I find all the sights equal (including the stock one) hence there's no need for me to waste my resources on other cosmetic sights.
I didn't buy the EO Tech Sight early. I bought it around Wave 32 when I just wanted to try them out. I don't know if all the sights are equal however the stock one seems overly inefficient compared to the others.
Yeah, I agree with you, the AK-47 is a lot better. It seemed worst because I used it without the sling/grip against an M14 with the sling. I forgot to click the sling/grip to equip them.
I personally got to Wave 40, then I quit due to boredom. I just activate a grenade early in the match, wait about 15 seconds, activate an A10, then clean up.
Overall, the game is a bit too shallow however it has a lot of potential.
i was about to add to this guide, but here is another big tip that goes with shooting number 1 priorities first. Go to breifing and look at each person, rockets do the most with 20-50 damage, next is trucks, i think its 10-15, and they shoot fast so, yeah :P shooting the number one prioreties first can save u money and help you survive. try to buy a sniper too, they dont really do much, but i think they pick off units in the back and cause a distraction from the helicopter (not sure about that last bit) when you said use semi auto fire, you are wrong. if you use a slow, strong gun, like the AK-47, just use automatic but pace yourself to shoot in bursts. airstrikes take a while to come, so if you are going to use one, i recommend using it about 10 seconds in, so right when the big wave of baddies come, they get wasted :P