Plague Inc

STEP ONE
Customize your five types of genes to either double down on a unique strength (Patho-stasis for Fungus, e.g.) or else shore up a weak zone, like climate resistance or spreading bonuses for environments. These aren’t unlocked by default and are overkill on easier difficulty modes, but they are crucial for Brutal and above and allow experienced players to fine-tune builds and strategies to suit both personal preferences and the situation at hand.

STEP TWO
Aside from the disease pick, a player’s starting location is absolutely pivotal. The spread pattern and rate depend heavily on the position and climate of the country of origin. It’s a Plague, Inc cliche that Greenland and Madagascar end up being late-game roadblocks, becoming totally inaccessible once they close borders and thereby snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. When selecting the starting country, you want some land spread, usually, and islands or flights on nearby neighbors. Starting out in the corner position is also a mistake, though, because your disease will be locked-in for far too long in these isolated pockets, making detection come sooner than necessary. To get to Greenland, start in northern Europe or Russia, as a bonus, cold resistance will help. For Madagascar, try equatorial Africa or the mid-east.

STEP THREE
Your first and foremost task is to spread far and wide. The transmission rate is influenced by a few factors. The infection stat, which is helpfully displayed on the evolution page, is the single greatest factor. It is your first priority. Select the most immediately advantageous ones at the start and transition to the niche cases last. In the beginning, spend as soon as points become available, and pop those orange and red bubbles constantly. (If your disease is sub-Saharan, use insects to spread at only move into urban biome bonuses later). Situationally the various resistances will also play a role in the right environment. Russia is frigid, so cold resistance confers a benefit there; first-world countries use antibiotics and other treatments so the appropriate resistance is practically a must to spread effectively in that nation.

STEP FOUR
The game awards evolution points for infecting new countries as well as for reaching certain population milestones. These are the bread-and-butter of strategy, and forming an effective build path depends on the nature of your disease and random events of a particular playthrough. Speaking generally, maximizing transmission and resistances early is a must, with an inevitable late-game pivot to lethality. Something innocuous and omnipresent, like the common cold, that morphs into pure putrefaction in the final act. There are a few expensive symptoms that can increase lethality fivefold or more.

STEP FIVE
The cinch to all of this is rationing and timing the ever-necessary evolution points because perks cost progressively more to evolve with each pick, and the points additionally become harder to earn. Timing this pivot takes a little practice, but you’ll get the hang of it. Parasites can afford to be stealthy and pool points insidiously for ages; viruses have spontaneous traits added through uncontrollable mutations and must move quickly. The general scope and plan is always: lay low, travel to as many countries as you can, then once you’re in position, steal the spotlight and end the game.

How to get DNA points?
Infecting greater raw numbers of people
Killing more of its hosts
Spreading to new countries
Devolving traits to reclaim points (done manually, only offers a pittance)

What are the best plague types?
- Bacteria are the default, middle-of-the-road plague type. They are average in their abilities and drawbacks, and their unique ability to research
- Parasites turn the game progression upside-down: they start rather noticeable and lethal, and must quickly evolve to blend in. Once they do, though, they are uniquely stealthy and can often infect the whole world before cure research begins or progresses far.
- Viruses mutate new symptoms constantly throughout the game and must pay to remove them. They are high-profile and chaotic but powerful, as mutated symptoms mean more DNA to spend elsewhere.
- The Fungus is slow-moving and dull but can use points to spread to new countries via its Spore Burst upgrade.
- The Nano-Virus begins the game detected and with a worldwide effort to find its Kill-Code (aka cure). It has beefier stats all-around to compensate for this and has unique upgrades to slow research.
- The Bio-Hazard increases in lethality as time passes and must actively be reset multiple times to avoid having the transmission rate fall below the death count.
- Prions are subtle and difficult to cure but exceptionally difficult to spread.

Unlockables and Secrets
- To unlock diseases, you must beat them in a set order. Simply beat the game using the previous disease on normal or better.
- To unlock genes from the collective pool, simply beat the game with anything.
- The rarer diseases (Neurax, Necroa, Simian, Shadow plague) will all be unlocked once you beat the game on brutal difficulty with every basic disease.
- Finally, cheat codes are unlocked by beating the game on mega-brutal difficulty with every disease.