Becoming the Apex Predator in Maneater is no easy task. When you first start off as a Juvenile Shark there are already so many larger and deadlier fish out there. That's also not including the Hunters, which are humans with their specialized and incredibly strong Anti-Shark equipment.
Climbing to the top of the food chain as a beginner in this action RPG by Tripwire Interactive can be pretty grueling at times as there's a lot to take in. So, to make those first couple of hours into the game a little easier, here are a couple of simple tips to make the most of your deadly new Shark friend.
Updated July 10th, 2022 By Matthew Mckeown: After recently appearing as a free game of the week on the Epic Store, now is as good a time as any to pop back in and see what’s been happening with Maneater.
For fans of this underwater eating machine, things haven’t been quiet as the game got some more fun things added to its toybox. This came in the form of the Truth Quest DLC which added an entirely new map, story, creatures to fight, mutations to unlock, and much more fun Shark content. So for those checking back in on this powerful super predator, here are some more Maneater game tips for beginners.
15 Watch For Telegraphs
Underwater combat is often a hard thing to balance as having a large open space for combat on a shifting axis usually devolves into a big button-mashing, camera-spinning brawl. But in Maneater, there is a little more depth to your undersea fish fights. Other creatures have telegraphs and watching for these makes the whole chomping your way to the top of the food chain process much easier.
For example, most targets switch between quick lunges or a charge attack that comes with a slight charge-up window that you can dodge. This is usually followed up with a tail swipe if you drift too close to them. It’s a move set they never really get out of, so if you hang back and attack either immediately after a dodge or when they glow before dashing you’ll do a big chunk of damage. Then just rinse and repeat. This can be extremely helpful when fighting the bigger Apex boys, especially since they can deal massive amounts of damage if their hits land.
14 Don’t Overlook The Tail Launch
It’s easy to forget about certain moves in your set when you’re neck-deep in fish guts during a fight, but the Tail Swipe move of your super predator is extremely helpful. Not only does it give prey and predators a good whack to keep them at bay, but if angled right you can launch them pretty far.
You can’t do it to anything that’s much larger than your shark, but as your big bitey pal grows, you’ll be able to toss various creatures right out of the sea in some cases. This can be particularly chaotic and fun to watch as Barracudas and smaller Sharks go soaring onto the human-filled shoreline where they get stuck, suffocate, and then die for easy kills. You could also hop out after them and follow up with bite attacks if you’re brave and their health bar is particularly chunky.
13 Spread The Damage Against Groups
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Combat against a single target in Maneater is tricky enough, but when there’s a group of predators or Hunters swarming around you it’s extremely easy to end up as fish food. But, there are some tricks you can try to keep yourself alive.
First and foremost, don’t focus on just one target. Spread out your damage and wear down the group as a whole, dart and dodge around to give everyone a good smack as it’ll reset their attack pattern and give you a little breathing room. Tail whipping smaller targets at their friends as makeshift projectiles also help do a little damage. Prime targets for this are smaller fish, humans that fall into the water or if you time it right, you can punt people straight out of their boats. So be fast and unpredictable if you find yourself getting cornered.
12 Take Advantage Of The Slowdown
An interesting little feature of Maneater is that when you grab someone, say a helpless human or a floundering fish in your big meaty jaws, the game slows down for a few seconds. Whilst this is to make the shot of you munching someone look and feel more dramatic, it’s just long enough to give you some breathing room.
For those brief few seconds, you can get a moment to pause in a fight. It’s recommended you use it to either reposition the camera to a new target, fling your food with a tail whip or make a speedy escape if you’re getting overwhelmed. Combat can get quite chaotic and using those short few seconds to plan ahead can be surprisingly helpful.
11 Losing Hunters Is Easy
Whilst Apex Predators are your bane under the waves, they’re few and far between. Your main threat is the Hunters and early on they can wreck you pretty quickly if you don’t know how to deal with them.
Whilst you can attack them if you want, it’s often better to just ditch them. Hunters have a lot of trouble tracking you in deep water, in the grotto, or inside grates and tunnels. Hanging around down there for a little whilst will eventually lose them, so always have an eye out for a quick exit strategy as it’s not too hard to ditch these hard-hitting maritime enforcers.
10 Never Stop Eating
Just like in nature and B-movies, Sharks have to constantly eat to survive, and in Maneater being in a feeding frenzy is always beneficial. So bite down on anything and anyone unfortunate enough to be trapped within swimming range.
Not only will munching down on any unfortunate human or sea creature keep your health topped up, but most creatures in the game drop nutrients that can also help you upgrade and unlock new skills and abilities for your Shark. So, whether it's a docile fish or a human floating on the surface alone, make sure your fish is chowing down on something or someone.
9 Backtracking Is Always Worth It
Whilst the game does take you to new and interesting locations as you progress through the story in Maneater (the Golden Shores being the most massive and memorable), it's always worth backtracking.
This is because the game likes to lock upgrades and other rewards behind barriers, so early on it's more of a struggle to get stronger. But, as your Shark grows, you can return to these locations to knock down any grate or barricade that's blocking your path. So, if you want some extra rewards, go revisit your old stomping grounds once in a while.
8 Remember To Swap Your Sets
One of the best features of Maneater is the various ways in which you can customize your Shark, with the Evolution Sets being a particularly strong and unique way of making a merciless killing machine. But, if you want to survive under the sea, knowing when to swap out your Sets to suit your needs is crucial.
For example, the Lightning Set is great for taking down multiple attackers at once, whilst the Bone Set is incredibly tanky. If you want poison buffs and life-steal, then the Shadow Set should be used. There are also some interesting human-munching parts in the Maneater Truth Quest DLC that are worth checking out, so remember to equip the one that works for each situation and you should last a little longer.
7 Know Your Nutrients
When you first start out in Maneater, finding and collecting nutrients is going to be your main goal. These colorful collectibles are what you need to level up your skills and make your Shark a more efficient killing machine.
There are four types to keep an eye out for:
- Fat, which is yellow and found in most of the fish in the game.
- Proteins, which are red and are found in more aggressive fish as well as humans.
- Minerals, which are blue and from Turtles.
- Mutagen, which is green and can only be obtained from killing Albino creatures.
6 Everything De Aggros in The Grotto
Maneater can be a little unforgiving at times in the early game and finding an exploit or two that can make things a little fairer is always worth knowing. Even more so if you're having a hard time feeding your shark to make them big and strong.
One particular trick players in the community have found is that hostile AI will de-aggro once your Shark is safely within its Grotto, since the game classes it as a safe area. Some clever players have been using this as a way to lure in larger predators or as an easier way to handle some of the game's tougher and more terrifying sharks for free hits, as they won't attack back.
5 Sonar Often
The Sonar in Maneater should be your best friend. This basic ability is essentially your scanner and not only does it reveal the genetic makeup of prey, but it also permanently marks locations on your map.
Although not as important early on, when you progress to the much larger Golden Shores area, it can make backtracking later much easier. It can be incredibly handy knowing where collectibles are for later retrieval, where hidden secrets in Maneater are, or the areas that predators cruise around in. It'll also save you a lot of time when you start grinding up your Shark stats.
4 There Is No Shame In Retreating
When you first start off in Maneater, you would assume that, as a Shark, you're already at the top of the food chain. Unfortunately, there are many larger and deadlier fish in the sea and you're not always going to win in a one-on-one fight with them.
Knowing when to literally turn tail and run can often save your hide. Until you can grow and evolve into the Mega Shark, you're going to spend a lot of time in Maneater running away from humans or other fish, and there's no shame in that.
3 Remember To Dodge
Combat in Maneater can get a little hectic, especially if you're taking on a lot of Divers, Predators, and/or Hunters at once. Things can devolve into a massive melee pretty quickly.
You're particularly squishy early on, so your primary goal from any encounter should be just like a real Shark: sneak attacks from below with the lock-on before diving away to safety. Grabbing targets and thrashing around is also good for extra hits, but remember to leave before they retaliate by keeping a finger on the evade key (or console button depending on your platform of choice) to get out into deeper water quickly.
2 Being On Land Isn't Always Bad
Normally you would assume that, in a game where you play as a massive man-eating Shark, staying in the water would be your main priority. Oddly enough, there are times when getting out of the sea and onto land for a while can be beneficial.
For example, it's easy to benefit from grabbing a human target, taking a shortcut, or avoiding larger Predators by escaping onto land until they de-aggro. Whilst your O2 bar does deplete after being out of the water for too long, you can just tank the damage with your health bar for extra time until you get back to the sea.
1 Yellow Always Lights The Way
The maps in Maneater are pretty sprawling and there are a lot of tunnels and caves to explore and instantly get lost in. Whilst there is a map that can help you navigate your way out, it can be tricky at times to figure out which way is the right one to take in order to progress in the game.
Luckily, there's a very simple indicator of which way you need to go to keep the game's story ticking along. Throughout the levels, you may see yellow lights or plants. These are markers of where you need to go next. So, if you start to feel lost, just keep an eye out for anything in this less than subtle shade.