Wanted: Dead – How To Defeat Mr. Holiday
Quick Links
- Mr. Holiday Overview
- Mr. Holiday Phase One
- Mr. Holiday Phase Two
Wanted: Dead's fourth boss encounter occurs inside the Police HQ against Mr. Holiday on the first floor of the building. This Mission is one of the longest in the game, as you have to navigate from the station's top floor down to the lobby, with very few checkpoints in between.
Like all the other bosses in the game, Mr. Holiday has two phases and a unique mechanic that will force you to use specific strategies to take him down. Fortunately, compared to what you had to go through to reach this point, this encounter isn't too demanding and is much more manageable.
Mr. Holiday Overview
This encounter begins with two Mr. Holidays introducing themselves to Stone before launching into the fight. This is a two vs. one battle, leaving you at a disadvantage since the rest of the Zombie Unit continued ahead. This means that Doc cannot Revive you, and you will have no support from the others to help fend off the other Mr. Holiday. However, this encounter is far easier than you would expect, especially if you have some crucial Skills unlocked, which you can find below!
Recommended Skills
- Standard Combo Extension (Offense)
- Melee Adrenaline Rate Up (Offense)
- Handgun Counter Follow-Up (Offense)
- Melee Damage Up (Offense)
- Guard Strength Increase (Defense)
- Increased Melee Defense (Defense)
- Evade Window Increase (Defense)
- Armor Reinforce (Defense)
Since you are near the end of the game, you should have a good deal of your Skill Trees filled out and will more than likely have most of the Skills above. If you don't have all of them, this fight is still doable, you just won't do as much damage overall, but the exact same strategies will apply to you.
Mr. Holiday Phase One
Despite there being two Mr. Holidays, the first phase of this encounter is oddly straightforward, as one of the Mr. Holidays will idly stand and watch as the other attacks. They seldom attack together or in unison, meaning your attacks will never be interrupted, making this stage of the fight manageable and a little underwhelming. Nonetheless, you will still need a bit of focus, patience, and strategy to overcome them, especially since you are alone in this endeavor.
Mr. Holiday Phase One Strategy
One crucial aspect of this encounter is understanding that both Mr. Holidays share the same Health Bar at the top of the screen, meaning no matter which one you hit, it will go down. Getting their HP down halfway will kill the clone, leaving behind the real Mr. Holiday and starting the second phase of the fight with full HP.
Knowing this is crucial as both Mr. Holidays in phase one have Handgun Counterable attacks, allowing you to use your Handgun Counter Follow-Up Skill to take large chunks of their health away. Furthermore, both will use this action a lot, making the first phase all about dodging their attacks and having a fast enough reaction to land a Handgun Counter. As stated earlier, if you attack one of them, the other will idly stand by, allowing you to land your Standard Combo after stunning them with the Counter. However, the exception is when it comes to your gun, which we suggest not using until the second phase. You can learn more about their attacks below!
Lethal Shot
One of the Mr. Holidays will quickly take a stance and aim down the sights of his pistols. Before he pulls the triggers, a red light will quickly flash, allowing you to press the "Y" button (Xbox Controller) to Counter it with your Handgun, temporarily stunning them. If you have the Handgun Counter Follow-Up Skill, pressing "X" immediately after the Counter will have you perform a devastating slash, allowing you to follow up with the Standard Combo for maximum damage. If you do not have this Skill, you can do the Standard Combo right after you hit the Handgun Counter.
Pop Shots
As one of the Mr. Holidays charges toward you, the other will fire off multiple shots from their dual pistols at you. Despite the other one making a beeline at you, your primary concern should be on the one shooting at you, as you can time your Evades to negate all damage or run diagonally away from the bullets to dodge them. The other Mr. Holiday is merely a distraction, so running away from both of them is our preferred way to handle this.
Beatdown
The last attack you have to keep an eye out for is when one of the Mr. Holidays attempts to land several strikes on you, which almost always happens immediately after the Pop Shots attack. The Mr. Holiday that charged you will typically try to land several hits on you as soon as the other one stops shooting, so be prepared to Block the first two hits if you have the Guard Strength Increase Skill, then Evade or Parry the remaining attack. We prefer Evading, especially if you have the Evade Window Increase Skill.
While not always the case, the flowchart for Mr. Holiday's attacks in phase one goes as follows:
- Pop Shots > Beatdown > Lethal Shot
However, this is not always the case, as Lethal Shot will be occasionally placed between Pop Shots and Beatdown, meaning you should always be on the lookout for the red flash to Counter it. Repeat everything above until you get their HP down halfway to begin the second phase!
Mr. Holiday Phase Two
After whittling Mr. Holiday's health down to the halfway point in the first phase, the second phase will begin with the real Mr. Holiday having his health restored. With the clone being defeated, the situation is now a one vs. one, making things even more manageable than before. Additionally, other than the speed of the fight being much faster, you don't have to worry about anything new here. Mr. Holiday more or less follows the same formula outlined above, allowing you to resolve the mechanics the same way, making this phase an endurance test of sorts.
Mr. Holiday Phase Two Strategy
The overall strategy in phase two essentially boils down to not trying to reinvent the wheel and going through the same motions as the first phase. At least for us, this stage of the encounter went by much faster than the previous one, and it's primarily due to how much more aggressive Mr. Holiday is here. He will constantly attempt the Lethal Shot attack, giving you many opportunities to Counter it with your Handgun and follow it up with your Standard Combo for tons of damage.
You can also use your gun during this phase since you don't have to worry about the other Mr. Holiday interfering as you take the time to aim and shoot. If you have access to Melee Adrenaline Rate Up Skill, you can use Bullet Times several times, which will end this encounter swiftly and painlessly. Overall, if you get past the first stage with no issues, this should pose no threat to you. While adapting to the new pacing can be challenging, not having to worry about a second Mr. Holiday sort of balances things out, allowing you to find the rhythm pretty swiftly.
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