Every time you start the game, you'll review your Messages to see activity related to you. You'll receive messages when you're attacked or killed, as well as when you receive In-Game replies or System Messages. System Messages include Level Alerts & Special Game Scenarios!

Reply

Anytime someone attacks or kills you, you have the opportunity to tell them how you feel! Simply view the details of the message and select REPLY. You can send them a short reply, which will show up in their messages list!

Counterattack

Every attack runs the risk of being counterattacked. Counterattacks earn you less money, but you get a 50% damage bonus on any weapon you choose. Counterattack is available by viewing the message details of an Attack or Kill message.

The Rubber meets the Road on the Actions screen. You'll spend most of your time Scanning for Targets so you can attack and kill them. When you're ready for a break, you'll hide & this will give you time to Swap your Armor and Invite other people to play through Humiliations.

Scan for Targets

Each time you 'Scan for Targets', you'll be presented with a list of players in Short and Long Range. Short Range is 2 miles or less and Long Range is 2-5 miles. Targets are sorted in order of their activity, with the most active being at the top of the list. Selecting a Target will take you to 'Attack' screen and you'll be presented with a few options.

Attack: You can select a range-specific weapon or custom weapon from your arsenal and launch an attack. The attack screen shows you the Targets Health and Armor, so you'll be able to select an appropriate strength weapon based on that info.

Profile: If you want to know more about who you're playing, check out their profile. If they've decided to share their information, you can see their info and get to know them better. This is also a good way to see how good they are in terms of Rank, Level, Kills, and Deaths.

Hide

Operating as a full-time Assassin is intense work. Take a break by Hiding & you'll disappear from all Target Scanning for 4 hours (Visit the market to become a Professional & hide for 8 hours!). With Hiding, there are a few things you should remember. First, you gain 100 Health every time you hide. Second, you can't unhide for at least 30 minutes (since you're healing) and you will automatically UNHIDE after 4 hours - so be careful!!! Last, you can UNHIDE anytime after the initial 30 minutes, so use that to your advantage.

Note: Attacking others prevents you from Hiding for 30 minutes, so be careful about exposing your position!

Swap Armor

Each time you're attacked, your armor will take damage until it reaches zero - and then your health will follow! To manage your armor, you'll visit the Actions screen and will choose 'Swap Armor' to start using a new piece of protection! Remember: When you 'Swap Armor', you'll drop whatever you were wearing at the time - so don't swap too soon and lose a valuable piece of protection.

Humiliate

Anyone can assassinate a total stranger, but it takes a TRUE Assassin to attack and kill a friend. Taunt others to play the game by sending them humiliation in the form of an old-school diss. This is required to gain certain Levels & is also a great way to taunt existing players who you can't attack because they aren't in range, are hiding, or haven't resurrected (aka: dead).

One of the Goals in gpsAssassins is to gain levels so you can ultimately raise your Rank from 'Weakling' to 'Killing Machine' and beyond. You'll change Ranks with every 4 levels you gain. Reaching a new level updates your profile & awards you $5000 in Blood Money! With each new Rank, you'll collect new items and a 'primary' weapon with unlimited usage.

Level Progress

To become the greatest Assassin in the world, you must progress through multiple levels and Ranks. Each Rank has multiple levels, and you're awarded Blood Money with each new level. New Ranks will award you a new title, as well as more powerful weapons and armor!

Achievements

Achievements are all about credibility and style. Can you conduct 20 Assassinations in a row without dying? Can you deliver 10,000 points of massive damage? If so, then you'll gain achievements and show others just how dangerous you really are.

When you first start playing Assassins, you have both short range and long range weapons as well as armor to protect yourself. As you earn money for your attacks and kills, you'll be able to buy stronger weapons (faster kills) and armor (less deaths!).

Weapons

The best Assassins know that different weapons fit different occasions. Should you use a "Lazy Husband" or a "Nagging Wife" to devastate your opponent? Advanced game play allows each Assassin to create their own weapons in the Marketplace and deliver a more 'personal' attack / kill. Standard weapons are separated by short/long range and display damage, max uses, and their cost. Created weapons cost more than the standard fare, but are rangeless & much more interesting.

Armor

Death is your enemy and the best Assassins know how to protect themselves with Armor. Visit the market to purchase standard armor or show-off by creating your own, customized armor & including a message for those that dare attack you. Created armor items cost more than the standard fare, but are much more stylish and interesting.

Blood Money

Whoever said money doesn't make you happy obviously never played Assassins. Blood Money is vital to your success as an elite Assassin. Earn Blood Money through attacks and kills so you can purchase better items in the Market. Better Weapons & Armor allow you to establish your dominance in the world of Assassins, especially as you create your own, personalized items. If you don't have time to 'earn' money, you can exchange real-world US Dollars for in-game Blood Money. A quick infusion of Blood Money may be all you need to deliver the righteous retribution another Assassin deserves. Here is the exchange rate, effective April 2009 until further notice:

• $0.99 USD = $10,000 Blood Money
• $1.99 USD = $22,500 Blood Money
• $2.99 USD = $35,000 Blood Money
• $3.99 USD = $47,500 Blood Money
• $4.99 USD = $60,000 Blood Money

Go Professional

The best Assassins Go Professional, period. Professionals receive a 20% bonus on all earnings, as well as a 20% discount on all purchases (40% net swing over non-professionals!). Professionals can hide up to 8 continuous hours, thus protecting themselves during crucial times when they can't actively engage the enemy (like sleeping!). Professionals also receive notification when they come out of hiding, allowing them to quickly re-hide and avoid being Assassinated before they can react. In the Market, Professionals have a special category for Professional-only weapons with some VERY unique features. Last, Professionals receive a signing bonus of $10,000 in Blood Money

Going Professional costs 100,000 Blood Money. To recap, Professionals receive the following benefits:

• Earnings Bonus (20%)
• Market Discount (20%)
• Hide up to 8 Hours
• Unhide Alerts
• Special Weapons and Armor
• Signing Bonus ($10,000 Blood Money)

Update your settings to share your info, control alerts, and check your inventory. You can also Logout to allow multiple players to share one device or to simply play multiple characters!

Edit Profile

It's more fun to kill your friends and neighbors than total strangers! Update your Profile so others can connect with you outside the Assassins game. Your name is important for connecting on large social networks like Facebook and MySpace. You can also share info such as your email, Twitter handle, and personal website. Most Assassin players talk trash in their Bio, so choose your words wisely.

You can share/edit the following information:

• My Name - Important for connecting via Social Networks
• My Bio - Intimidate others in 140 Characters or Less!
• My Email - Share the email address you want others to use
• My Twitter - Your twitter handle so people can follow you
• My Website - Add whatever site you want to share with others

Edit Alerts

The most active Assassins know that alerts are a critical part of being an effective players. However, they also know that alerts can become overwhelming if not carefully controlled. Edit your Alert Settings to choose where and when you want to be notified. The Edit Alerts section also has a DO NOT DISTURB for those sensitive periods you can't afford to get distracting emails (like work!).

You can share/edit the following information:

• Email Address - Where you want your alerts sent
• Notify On:
  • Replies - When someone replies to your attacks/kills
  • Attacks - Anytime someone attacks you
  • Death - When you Die
  • Unhide - When you automatically come out of hiding (Professionals only)
• Do Not Disturb - You can set a time when you won't get any alerts.

Inventory

Some Assassins like to check their inventory, especially those that have amassed a significant number of custom items. You can view the details of all items within your Inventory and you have the option to drop any items you may have mistakenly created. Item details include the Description for Standard items, as well as the custom messages for created items. You can also view details such as cost, damage, and uses for Weapons and strength & cost for armor.

Logout

Logout has two features. First, it allows multiple players to use a single device. Simply choose 'Logout' and enter a new Alias & email combination to load that player. If that player doesn't exist, it will create a new Assassin for you to play with. Some players like to have multiple Assassins in the game.