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* EvilIsCool: Some players have this reaction toward Mikko Sandt, who is the [[CorruptCorporateExecutive ruthless CEO]] of his own [[MegaCorp corporation]] and enforces loyalty through [[CultOfPersonality cultish behavior]], where his own employees revere him as a [[AGodAmI god]] and look down on anyone who dares to think otherwise. His [[EvilWearsBlack player sprites]], arsenal, and abilities help his case, and his missions do have some [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome spectacular moments]].

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* EvilIsCool: Some players have this reaction toward Mikko Sandt, who is the [[CorruptCorporateExecutive ruthless CEO]] of his own [[MegaCorp corporation]] and enforces loyalty through [[CultOfPersonality cultish behavior]], where his own employees revere him as a [[AGodAmI god]] and look down on anyone who dares to think otherwise. His [[EvilWearsBlack player [[{{Expy}} player]] [[Videogame/{{Doom}} sprites]], arsenal, and abilities help his case, and his missions do have some [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome spectacular moments]].
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** There's also at least a few players who equip at least one [[BlingBlingBang gold weapon]] in their loadouts before running missions. Since the weapons are unlocked by completing Episodes 1 & 2 on Expert difficulty or higher and then purchasing them from the Shopkeeper for astoundingly high prices, and on top of that can damage all enemy types (including ''supernatural'' enemies, such as the dreaded [[DemonicSpiders Sorcerers]]), gold weapons are often seen as [[GameBreaker essential for surviving harder missions]].
** Also, anyone running missions on [[HarderThanHard Professional or higher]] will equip their characters with the [[DeflectorShields Personal Energy Shield]]. For more information, check GameBreaker below.


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** The [[BlingBlingBang gold weapons]], unlocked by completing Episodes 1 & 2 on Expert or higher [[DoubleUnlock and then purchasing them from the Shopkeeper for very expensive prices]]. The gold bullets they fire are capable of damaging ''all enemy types'', including supernatural enemies (that would otherwise [[NoSell shrug off shots from regular bullets]]), and some of them also possess light [[ArmorPiercingAttack armor-piercing capability]], which allows them to damage enemies such as Pig Cops and Merc Riflers. These weapons also possess staggering base damage output (for reference, James' Golden Jericho deals a flat 23 points of damage to enemies; in comparison, the strongest regular pistol he has, the M1911, deals 14-18 points of damage), which can potentially dwarf the other weapons the player characters can use. Overall, gold weapons have earned a place in the game as [[MasterOfAll great all-rounder weapons]] and a necessity for tackling the game's more difficult missions.
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* MemeticMutation: "[=OOoooOOOH=]"[[labelnote:Explanation]]Micky, at low health, will let out a groan of pain that sounds akin to someone in the throes of passion, so to speak. Because of how ridiculous it sounds, fans have taken to mocking it in voice calls and streams whenever possible.[[/labelnote]]
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** James's [=G36K=] is this, compared to his other Slot 8 weapons, especially the LR-300. It's seen as a direct downgrade of the LR-300, in that it trades that rifle's 60-round quadstacked magazines and AP rounds for 30-round magazines and hollow-point rounds, while still retaining a red dot sight and underbarrel grenade launcher. Adding to this is that the [=G36K=] is obtained much later in the game compared to the LR-300[[labelnote:*]]The LR-300 can be obtained as early as Episode 1 by heading to New Los Angeles on the Moon and getting a license from Major Nelson's Guns; in comparison, the [=G36K=] is obtained in a secret area in the Catacombs in Episode 3[[/labelnote]], which makes the [=G36K's=] drawbacks even more apparent.
** The Dartgun, which suffers from a serious case of CripplingOverspecialization in that it's an underwater rifle that excels at - you guessed it - aquatic combat, and struggles everywhere else. While it can fire explosive micro-torpedoes with its alt-fire, the micro-torpedoes only work when underwater. The darts do travel far while underwater, but will travel in short arcs when on land. And since this started as a [[VideoGame/DukeNukem3D Duke Nukem 3D]] mod, almost all of your weapons can work underwater, which makes the Dartgun rather redundant unless the player is running low on ammunition.
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* ScrappyWeapon: The [=MP40=], widely considered to be the worst SMG and temporary weapon in the game, owing to it's lackluster damage output, low accuracy, and inability to pierce body armor. To add insult to injury, it has a higher loadout cost than the P90, another temporary weapon that lacks the [=MP40's=] drawbacks, which makes the [=MP40=] a waste of space and supplies.[[labelnote:For Comparison]]The P90 costs 0.1 supplies to equip and use, while the [=MP40=] costs 0.25 supplies to equip.[[/labelnote]]
** In older versions of the game, James's [=OTs-33=] pistol was widely considered to be this, since it was just a fast-firing machine pistol and nothing else. A fully-upgraded Glock pistol would outshine the [=OTs-33=] by a country mile by virtue of being James's default pistol, available to him from the beginning of the game, whereas the [=OTs-33=] has to be unlocked by rescuing Matvei from the Palace Bunker in The Revolution and then buying it for a slightly steep price from the Shopkeeper, making the whole endeavor pointless. [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap Recent updates have alleviated the weapon's status]] by making it fire silver bullets, which not only makes it capable of damaging supernatural enemies, but also grants players who haven't attained the Colt M1911 in the game a chance to fight supernatural enemies before other options are available.
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* GameBreaker: The Personal Energy Shield, which grants the player character an energy shield with 25 HP. While this doesn't seem to be much, the PES is [[RegeneratingShieldStaticHealth rechargeable just by standing still outside of combat for a few seconds]], absorbs more damage than armor does, and has a fast recharging rate, all of which allows a player to remain in combat a lot longer than with just armor itself. If that's not enough, there's two research projects that buff the shield by doubling the amount of hit points it has to 50 ''and'' let it regenerate energy just by moving, thereby making combat less stressful on higher difficulties. The caveat here is that you can only get the Personal Energy Shield by blasting a shielded [[EliteMook Elite Enforcer]] with the MIA Gun, and Elite Enforcers make their first appearance in Episode 3, but by the time you start it, the new player character Snowfall will have his own Personal Energy Shield, which can grant players [[ATasteOfPower an early preview of the equipment]] before they unlock it. Another caveat is that the PES itself is expensive to research and equip, costing 150K base budget to research and 8K supplies to equip, but as long as you have enough base budget and supplies to cover it and other projects & equipment, these issues won't be a bother in the long run.
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* ThatOneBoss: AMC Squad isn't messing around in this department, as you'll be facing off against some really tough bosses.
** Prokhor Vilmos, the boss of The Revolution (see below for more info), fights you in a [[MiniMecha giant powersuit]] and attacks by firing [[GrenadeSpam volleys of grenades]] at you, forcing you to be constantly on the run while fighting him, and his arena is rather cramped, with a few stacks of crates here and there as your only cover. Oh, and he is [[NoSell immune to most of your attacks]] save for [[ArmorPiercingAttack your sniper rifle]] or [[StuffBlowingUp a missile launcher]] that can be found in the area, meaning you have to be careful in landing your shots lest you either run out of bullets or rockets, or you get blown up. Thankfully, the one saving grace is that there's a checkpoint just before the boss's arena, meaning you won't have to hightail it to him should you die and reload a save.
** The Cycloid Emperor at the end of City Under Siege. By this point, [[NoGearLevel you don't have your weapons with you, so you have to make do with the Cycloid weapons found on the mothership]]. When you face off against the Emperor, he'll start [[MacrossMissileMassacre spamming volleys of rockets at you]], and the irritating part about this fight is that he is damn good at leading his shots, which makes dodging his rockets a pain in the ass. [[HopeSpot You do have plenty of health pickups dotted around the arena]], but good luck getting them while avoiding his rocket spam. And on top of that, once you defeat him, [[LoadBearingBoss he activates the ship's self-destruct]], [[TimedMission giving you two minutes to escape via fighter craft]] and hoping that you don't run into a wall while flying down the escape tunnel.
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* GoddamnedBats: The Losts, evil spirits resembling floating skeletons, don't have a lot of HP and are weak to anti-supernatural attacks, but they're hard to find and can deal a lot of damage to your character if they don't have a Spirit Shield equipped. And their main method of attack involves [[SensoryAbuse blisteringly loud noises while the textures rapidly shift]].
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** Geoffrey. While he has a few fans for his [[PluckyComicRelief comedic attitude]] and interesting weapons, he also has a few detractors, citing his [[TheGenericGuy lack of personality or role]] in the overall plotline and [[OutOfFocus being sidelined by other characters]], [[ADayInTheLimelight save for one mission in Episode 3 where he takes center focus]]. He doesn't get as much attention compared to the other characters, though, but some players wish that he gets more focus in later episodes.
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* GrowingTheBeard: While Episode 1 was well-received, it has received complaints from fans regarding, among other things, pacing issues, level design quirks and [[ItsShortSoItSucks its short length]]. Episode 2, however, blew fans away by addressing those issues, providing larger, more satisfying levels, a more cohesive story & engaging plot, better pacing, and a wider variety of locales and enemy factions.


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* NightmareFuel: [[NightmareFuel/AMCSquad Has its own page now.]]
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* HesJustHiding: While the in-game lore claims that Duke Nukem is, in fact, dead, some believe he's simply taking a long-overdue vacation from constantly saving the world. [[AllThereInTheManual A readme file for earlier versions of the game]] even posited that angle, but it's since been removed from more current versions.
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* BaseBreakingCharacter:
** Fans are split down the middle with Zaxtor Znort. On one hand, he's an easy character to follow and has some really good weapons to use, as well as some witty one-liners. On the other hand, he's seen as a carbon copy of [[VideoGame/DukeNukem3D Duke Nukem]] [[RecycledInSpace if he was an anthropomorphic fossa]], and his one-liners are just Duke's lines repeated in a scratchy voice. It doesn't help that the missions tailored to him are some of the [[ThatOneLevel most difficult missions]] in the game.
** Mikko Sandt. Some fans see him as a [[EvilIsCool cool]] [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot cyber-cultist CEO]] who runs his own [[MegaCorp company]] and has some of the best gameplay in a Build Engine game. Some other fans see him as an unlikeable character in his own right, what with his [[TheSocialDarwinist mentality]] and [[LackOfEmpathy lack of concern]] over most events that transpire over the course of the game's story, as well as his playstyle being seen as [[GameBreaker overpowered]]. Compounding this further is [[spoiler: his seeming lack of loyalty to the Squad, if the vats in his room in the new base are of any indication]].
* ComplacentGamingSyndrome: Good luck finding anyone who uses a loadout that includes at least one weapon that has [[ArmorPiercingAttack armor-piercing capability]], due to the many enemies that wear either body armor or heavy armor and therefore making regular weapons have reduced effectiveness.


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* EvilIsCool: Some players have this reaction toward Mikko Sandt, who is the [[CorruptCorporateExecutive ruthless CEO]] of his own [[MegaCorp corporation]] and enforces loyalty through [[CultOfPersonality cultish behavior]], where his own employees revere him as a [[AGodAmI god]] and look down on anyone who dares to think otherwise. His [[EvilWearsBlack player sprites]], arsenal, and abilities help his case, and his missions do have some [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome spectacular moments]].
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Setting the foundation for the YMMV page with a few examples.

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* DemonicSpiders: There's plenty to go around in this game, which means no shortage of frustration for players.
** Pig Cops have been upgraded to this status compared to their vanilla counterparts in ''VideoGame/DukeNukem3D'', as they now wear body armor, which makes them resistant to regular attacks and forces players to equip weapons with [[ArmorPiercingAttack armor-piercing capability]]. While they're not that common in the missions featuring Cycloids as the enemy faction, they're a LOT more prevalent in the [[BonusLevel EDF missions]], and they're very capable of dishing out hurt with their shotguns. And they're ''very'' accurate with their shotguns. Also, should you defeat Pig Cops, they'll have a random chance to [[LastStand get back up and shoot at you with a pistol]], which forces you to waste more ammunition just to ensure they stay dead.
** In later missions, you'll come across Riot Cops, which are Pig Cops decked out in full body armor and equipped with automatic shotguns. And you'll ''hate'' these enemies more than the regular Pig Cops, as they love going prone before pumping you full of lead in seconds. Naturally, they appear a lot in the [[BrutalBonusLevel hardest missions]], such as the exit path to [[ThatOneLevel Jungle Base]] and the end of the first part of Micky Begins.
** Converted Grenadiers, which are zombified soldiers packing automatic grenade launchers and body armor, and they love to [[GrenadeSpam shoot large volleys of grenades at you]]. Better equip a weapon that has armor-piercing capability, since regular bullets won't penetrate their armor. Of course, they also tend to be placed in areas above the player, which nets them an advantage over you as they continue to [[DeathFromAbove rain hell on you]]. On the plus side, shooting them with the MIA Gun nets you a research project.
** Maephistos rarely appear, which is a good thing since they tend to dish out a ''lot'' of damage and are extremely tanky to boot. Better hope you still have ammo left for your stronger weapons when you encounter them early on.
** Flesh Wizards. While they [[GlassCannon don't have a lot of health]], they can deal a lot of damage with their rapid-fire [[BloodMagic blood projectile]] attacks, and they appear rather commonly when you engage them in missions featuring Abyssal forces. Also, they're never really by themselves when they appear, and by that, they tend to show up in pairs at the very least.
** Cultists appear in different flavors, but the ones in either dark brown robes or purple robes are the worst of the lot. In the case of the former, they're basically the [[VideoGame/{{Blood}} Fanatics]] equipped with [[InescapableNet nets]] that they love to toss at you, forcing you to mash the use key to escape while they perforate you with their [[MoreDakka Tommy Guns]]. In the case of the latter, they're armored and wield powerful FN FAL rifles, which can rip you to shreds while you scramble to find a weapon that can pierce armor; they also love to [[GrenadeSpam toss grenades]] at you.
** Bird-masked Cultists, available in two flavors: red and blue. Red bird-masked cultists wield [[FireBreathingWeapon flamethrowers]] while the blue ones wield [[PlasmaCannon plasma rifles]], and both of them are capable of depleting your health faster than you can react. Thankfully, they're uncommon and they don't have a lot of health, but that doesn't mean you should put your guard down when you're in the clear. You may never know when one's sneaking around to find you.
** Sorcerers. [[NoSell Immune to regular attacks]], can cast damaging spells at you, and they can cast spells that either push you away from them when you're too close to them (and they ''love'' to do that every time you're within breathing distance of them), or teleport closer to you should you get too far away from them. Thankfully, they're vulnerable to silver bullets, silver bolts, magic attacks, and energy weapons, so you have plenty of options to defeat them, and hitting them with the MIA Gun nets you a research project that better protects you from their attacks.
** Footsoldiers, who are infantrymen equipped with laser rifles that can shred your armor like a hot knife through butter and are always found in squads of at least 5. You'll be seeing them a lot in [[ThatOneLevel The Revolution]], where they'll make short work of Highwire and his rebels.
* ThatOneLevel: AMC Squad isn't pulling any punches when it comes to missions, and you'll be [[SaveScumming mashing Quicksave and Quickload]] a lot in some of the harder ones. As a general rule of thumb, any mission that has 5 purple squares as their difficulty rating will be guaranteed to be this.
** From Episode 1, we have The Revolution. A [[MarathonLevel long]] gauntlet of [[DemonicSpiders Footsoldiers]] guarding chokepoints in the city streets, on top of [[EscortMission escorting your pal Vladmir]] alongside a squad of rebels through these chokepoints as you get torn apart by the footsoldiers' laser beams. While Vladmir has a [[LightningBruiser ton of health, is capable of catching up to you]], and [[MoreDakka packs a machine gun]], he, as well as the rebels accompanying you, suffer from [[ArtificialStupidity the issue of getting stuck behind level geometry]], which means you having to hightail it back to their positions and get them unstuck. There is a breather in a segment where you play as James, which is just him crawling through a parking garage and then ziplining to a rear yard containing a power generator, but the majority of the mission has you playing as Highwire, [[GlassCannon who is rather fragile even with body armor but packs some damaging weapons]]. And on top of that, the second half of the mission has two frustrating segments: one where you have to rescue a rebel [[ArmsDealer weapons supplier]] from a trio of footsoldiers, and a [[ThatOneBoss boss fight against a heavy powersuit]], which can only be damaged by missiles or your sniper rifle's rounds. Your reward for this, if you play your cards right, is a new supply of special weapons for some of your agents, which makes the whole ordeal worth the trouble.
** City Under Siege, the opening mission of Episode 2, is just brutal. It's a [[MarathonLevel large city level]] filled with [[ScaryDogmaticAliens Cycloids]], mostly consisting of heavy hitters with occasional low-level enemies, and your objectives are spread across the whole map. One segment, in particular, has you getting shrunk by a shrinker trap, which forces you to engage enemy forces in a LEGO house and then ride out of the room on a toy motorcycle, which is much easier said than done. The worst part has to be the bank assault, which, after fending off a massive ambush of Cycloid forces, has you clearing out a Federal Loan & Trust building of Pig Cops before grabbing a key, then fending off Assault Commanders during your escape. And when you think you're in the clear, the second level of the mission [[NoGearLevel robs you of your equipment]], forcing you to use Cycloid temporary weapons while making your way through the alien mothership. To cap it off, you fight against the [[ThatOneBoss Cycloid Emperor]], who will mop the floor with you multiple times, and then have to make a mad dash [[TimedMission against the clock]] in a spacecraft [[LoadBearingBoss while the ship explodes around you]].
** Jungle Base, an [[BrutalBonusLevel optional mission]] in Episode 2. The first half of it consists of you [[PlatformHell hopping across tree branches]] while fighting off Cycloids and cultists, all to find a keycard to enter the eponymous base. It is much, ''much'' easier said than done as the branches are thin and spread apart, and the paths are extremely confusing to navigate, even with the advice the fossaman gives you at the start of the level. Drop off of a branch at any point in the level? Gotta start off all over again. The second half isn't that better, as you navigate a confusing series of corridors in the base while fighting numerous heavy-hitting enemies such as Battlelords, Pig Cops, Sorcerers, and Converted Soldiers. At one point, you have to activate a switch to reroute power to the doors leading to the base's reactor, which prevents you from retracing your steps back and forces you to take an alternate route to the reactor. And to add more salt to the wound, opening the reactor itself has you jumping across tiny platforms to reach a switch, then retrace your jumps back to the reactor entrance and flick a series of switches. And the cherry on top of the backbreaking difficulty cake? You have ''[[TimedMission one minute]]'' to escape the base, which is now full of enemies, including Riot Cops and Protector Drones, before the base explodes. Better prepare extensively for this mission.

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