take down powerful bosses like Papa Feral. Upgrades become essential in The Ascent as players move into more crowded and dangerous areas. From hand cannons to SMGs, Launchers, and Gatling Guns, the weapons in The Ascent gradually become more enjoyable and slightly more absurd with each improvement.
Weapons in The Ascent each have their individual stats and quirks. While upgrading them increases these stats, there are some limitations as to what exactly will improve. Weapons are upgraded as a whole rather than in individual pieces. Choosing a weapon to stick with is pretty important when creating a character build, as weapon stats need to coincide with the selected skills and attributes of the character. Here's how players can upgrade their weapons in The Ascent to better suit their needs.
How to Upgrade Weapons in The Ascent
On The Ascent's world map, important areas that contain vendors or subjects of interest are usually denoted by a light blue symbol. To upgrade weapons, players must locate the Gunsmith, which is represented by a hammer symbol. Here, players may use Components and UCRED to make upgrades. UCRED is a common resource found in areas all over the Arcology and as a reward from completed main or side missions. Bounties are also a good source of UCRED, but pose a higher risk since they require the elimination of a dangerous individual who will never go down without a fight.
Components usually sport a blue, purple, or golden stream of light shooting straight up that corresponds to its tier, Basic, Advanced, or Superior. The Tier of a Component dictates the Tier of the weapon upgrade. Components are often found in Chests, which are marked by a chest symbol on the minimap. Some Components can be a little hard to find since the map isn't always an accurate representation of an item's location. The Arcology has multiple levels, locked doors, and hidden areas holding valuable treasures, so it'll take some exploring to find these Components.
As for weapon upgrades, they begin at MK1 and increase up to MK15. Materials come in different grades, so as the weapon becomes stronger, higher grades of materials are required to improve the weapon. The side during upgrades displays the stats before and after the change, so players should use this to obtain a more appropriate idea of how to build the character's skills. Skills can emphasize the usefulness of a weapon in The Ascent, so playing around with a few upgrades earlier on in the game should help players decide which weapon is the right pick for a specific build.
The Ascent is available on Xbox and PC.
