Four ways to play
The Viruses
Every run you are one virion trying to take over a host. Start as Influenza A, then unlock the Retrovirus, the Halovirus and the Filovirus, each with its own signature move, ultimate and passives. Rival viruses turn up to fight you for the same host.
The lineup
Pick your virus
Every run you are a single virion trying to take over a human host. You start as Influenza A, and levelling your lineage in Infect Game Mode unlocks the Retrovirus, then the Halovirus, then the Filovirus. All four share the same base health, damage and fire rate, so what sets them apart is how they fight.
At a glance
- Influenza A is the starter and keeps switching its shot type
- The Retrovirus turns its kills into allies and can hide in Latency
- The Halovirus moves faster and raises Detection more slowly
- The Filovirus makes cells bleed and heals when they die
Shared rules
How every virus fights
Your auto-attack fires on its own at the nearest cell you can see, leads moving targets and never shoots through tissue, so your job is to move. Kills charge your signature move, while hits and kills together charge your ultimate. The signature opens after your first finished run and the ultimate after your second.
- Aim is automatic, so positioning decides every fight
- Catch a cell before it notices you to land an ambush
- Passives shape each virus on top of its signature and ultimate
- Each virus has its own Petri Lab branch, and core Lab upgrades carry over to all of them
Signatures and ultimates
Four kits that play nothing alike
Each virus brings its own signature move, ultimate and passives, along with its own Victory and Dynasty challenges. Influenza A rewards switching tactics, the Retrovirus builds an army, the Halovirus spreads through crowds and the Filovirus drains health to stay alive.
- Influenza A: Antigenic Drift rotates its shot types, and the Pandemic wave infects every cell nearby
- Retrovirus: kills fill a reservoir, and Integration Surge releases them as allies with a blast
- Halovirus: Variant Surge cycles Swarm, Fury and Ghost forms, and a Superspreader Event chains outbreaks
- Filovirus: Hemorrhage bleeds and weakens nearby cells, and bleeding cells heal you as they die
- Family Tree: Tap a virus there to see its passive, signature ability and ultimate at a glance
Generations
A lineage that jumps between viruses
After every Infect Game Mode run you choose the mutation your next generation inherits. Some offers jump your lineage to another virus you have unlocked, and a newly opened virus always turns up in the very next offer. The Family Tree gives every virus its own lane and every generation a flu-style name.
- With a second virus open you get four offers, and the left one always keeps your current virus
- A parent's mutation can come back to stack, and a stacked jump keeps that virus
- Jump bonuses grow each generation you inherit them in a row
- Abandoned runs and Pandemic or Endless Game Mode runs make no new generation
Organ milestones
Viruses that adapt for good
The first time your lineage reaches certain organs in Infect Game Mode, the Retrovirus, the Filovirus and the Halovirus adapt permanently, whichever virus got there. A banner announces each adaptation, and it switches on mid-run the moment you arrive. Adaptations work in every organ and every game mode, and they multiply together.
At a glance
- Only Infect Game Mode runs unlock new milestones
- The Filovirus adapts earliest, starting in the Lungs
- From the Gut, every cell the Retrovirus shoots down adds a kamikaze
- Influenza A has no organ milestones of its own
Rival viruses
Other viruses want your host
Rhinovirus, Norovirus and Adenovirus unlock as you level and can burst in after you clear a fight. Rhinovirus is fast, Norovirus is slow and leaves sticky pools, and Adenovirus is armoured. When a rival breaks for the nearest door, follow it in quickly to corner it before it gets away.
At a glance
- Only one rival hunts you at a time, at a random tier
- An escaped rival returns a tier higher, a generation stronger and with a bigger bounty
- Bounties pay nucleotides, materials and gear, with a chance of an extra life
- Rival Pheromone and the Singapore and Sydney policies in Pandemic Game Mode bring more rivals