The next stage is the warehouse, probably my favourite environment to play in!



Not much of an intro here, really- you just enter the warehouse, ready to destroy it.

Before we get into the stage proper, let's talk about the best toy in this stage:

See that switch on the wall? Get by it and press dive or shoot it from a distance, and...



If you pull the switch, you even get a voice clip: "Eat this as well!".



OK, let's talk about the rest of the stage. There's a conveyor belt that you're best staying away from, but the main threat here is that it feels so cramped, and getting to higher ground is a task. Just like the last stage, climbing ladders is a bit of a problem- the one on the left is pretty much out-of-bounds as you'll get shot halfway up (you'll also fall if you stand above the ladder when you make it to the top!). It's safer to use the stairs on the right, and from there the ledge is a pretty good place to take out enemies from... But I hope you're good at dodging, because there's no vertical movement allowed up there. If any enemies give you grief from below, vaulting down and hitting them will kill them, though! You can also use the room at the base of the stairs to take cover, but really what you'll be doing here is playing with the switch on the wall to fry everyone. The only new enemy isn't even new- a recolour of the Round 3/4 boss shows up at one point. The Book is hidden in the bottom-left corner, just above the machine- you don't have to destroy it, just start kicking around that area and you'll find it.

The boss this time is probably the most stylishly-dressed gangster in the game, and I'm willing to bet he's historically inaccurate. Purple, in the 1950s? Get outta here! He's actually a pushover as his shotgun doesn't really fire that fast. It's his cronies you have to watch out for, because as usual they're packing machine guns. However, they must be wearing fire-proof clothes, as the most entertaining toy on this stage can't be used on them! Avoid shooting the lever, because the only person it'll be setting on fire is you. You'll just have to do things the ol' fashioned way, and fill them with bullets.



"This guy's [unintelligble] information, hasn't he?"

Seriously, I have no idea what's being said here. Any help?

In any case, it looks like we've been invited to a party. We'd best not be rude.



Are you ready? You sure? OK, here's the best animated .gif in Gaming Hell's history.



There's nothing I can add to this. Just let it sink in.

Now let's murder some gangsters.



There's not many toys, so to speak, at the Garden Party- you can destroy the statues, and the tables here act as they always do, but this is one of the more open-plan stages in the game, and as such, it's quite tough. No hidey holes, no doors to skulk behind, you're constantly out in the open. You'll be spending a lot of time diving here, especially to avoid the pool- the water will slow you down. There's another close-range enemy type too, big red-coats who look like they're wielding... Well, they're either knives or broken bottles, but they take a fair few hits before dropping, so get on that. Watch out for the other red-coats brandishing massive guns, too. Keep that trigger finger itchy, dodge like you're on fire, and you should pull through, just about. The Book is behind the ornate statue on the right-hand side- you don't need to destroy the statue, just try kicking behind it to find it.

The boss on this stage is a new one- a blonde-haired gangster who wields a machine gun, and acts very much like the two machine gun goons. He also takes ages to get back up when he's been shot, but this boss fight isn't radically different from previous ones. Take out his underlings, then keep shooting (and avoid his gun when he throws it after getting shot) and justice will be done.

... But seriously, that intro! God-damn! How insane is that?



"Nerozzia... I'll chase you to hell and back!"

Always good to have a cigarette after wasting almost an entire crime family, you know?



The next stage is the penultimate battle. Fezari wanted to make a deal, we're not giving him one.

I guess after we got burned by Vambino in Stage 3, we're not trusting anyone...



There's a small intro, not worth animating- Fezari shoots first and tells us "Go to Hell!". He's asking for it now.



This is where Dead Connection starts to run out of steam, sadly. At least it's doing it now and not a few stages ago, eh? There's not many interactive elements here. You can destroy the fountain if you really want to, and there's a car that drives along the road at the top of the screen that you can turn into a mangled heap, but aside from that and some park benches, that's your lot. Well, except that purple trash-can- on one playthrough, I kicked it open and it seemed to explode and hurt me! Anyway, this is another open-ish level, although you can't dive into the fountain. Lots of bad guys here, so I'd suggest finding a Revolver to plough through 'em. The Book is in the top-left corner- the actual corners at the edge of the screen in this stage, aside from top-right, each hide an item if you get in the right position and start kicking.

The boss is Fezari, as you'd expect, but he's just a copy of the well-dressed gangster from Stage 5! This also means he's one of the easier bosses once you take out the machine gun goons that accompany him, and as a bonus, there's no switch to accidentally shoot and engulf the floor in flames. That's a plus. Deliver justice to this well-dressed gangster!



"You can regret it in HELL!"

Yes, that's a voice sample reused from the intro. I know, I know.

I'm going to make sure I start calling more people 'chicken-livered'. Fantastic.

Speaking of chicken-livered... You're next, Nerozzia!



So it turns out A BIG CITY SOMEWHERE has an abandoned opera house. Makes sense.

And yes, the final battle has started for the both of us. This is the final stage, after all...



"Sleep with the angels, pretty boy!"

That's Nerozzia in the top-right. He runs away before you can fight him...

Time for a good ol' fashioned boss rush!

As close as Dead Connection can get to one anyway, with it not really having bosses an' all.



This stage has the most enemies to kill- a staggering 70 gangsters- and mixed in amongst the standard waves are the four different bosses you've fought throughout the game- the fat guy with a pistol, the tall guy with a machine gun, Fezari with a shotgun, and the blonde guy with another machine gun. Much like Stage 7, by this point the game's out of ideas, so there's not many interactive elements, but at the very least there's more to do here- you can use the doors at the back of the screen to make your way up to the balcony which is a good spot to gun people from, and between waves a car (!) will drive into the theatre and explode, revealing a bonus item. That's all there really is to it- fight wave after wave of gangsters, beat the bosses as they show up, and once the blonde boss has been dealt with, the game's over. If you want to make things a little easier, you can trap enemies in the corner of the stage (seen in the screenshot on the left) and shoot at them from the stairs, a strategy that works best with the Revolver... Oh, and the Book is hidden by the crates near where the piano is (or used to be, if you blew it up already). Not much else to say!



Once the stage is over, you'll hear "Sleep with the angels, pretty boy!" again. What does it mean?

Before we find out, let's just look at some stats, as the game tells you how many people to shoot on each stage:

Over the course of 41 days, 4 mavericks wreck 8 different locations across the city and kill 430 gangsters.

That's... That's a lot. But is it enough to stop Nerozzia?

There's a twist ending on the next page. You ready for it?