I've always considered myself to be more of a tactical player as opposed to the run-and-gun variety.  Particularly when it comes to my action games.  I've always preferred 'duck-and-cover' style third-person offerings when given an option between that and the most recent high budget shooter.  Not that I don't enjoy them, but the twitch based game play gets to me after a while and I always end up resorting to that last ditch effort of full-on charging the enemy.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it causes me to rage quit, but the suicide dash has become one of my favorite moves in gaming.

Got an enemy in Civ 5 who just won't cooperate?

Give 'em the combination of moving troops into and out of their territory, general spy-related things, and diplomatic insults until they declare war on you and have stockpiles of troops waiting on the border.  Works best with smaller nations, but a big neighbor involved in a separate-front war can also be extremely susceptible to this move.  Late game nuke/amphibious assaults on enemy water-based capitals can work wonders as well.

Confused about the best way to handle a water level in a shooter?

Forget about being sneaky after the first two or three kills for this level.  They're going to spot you eventually and you might as well choose the location to start off safe. After the first couple of kills during the firefight it's best to ignore instinct and the game's penchant for use of cover and just run from spot to spot, picking up new weapons as they become available and killing anyone in your path.  It won't be pretty, but it'll work. At least on the less difficult settings!

Is a particularly tough group of aliens causing re-start after re-start?

Load your team up with three assault class troops, two heavies, and a support.  Forget tactics and charge using run-and-gun and all the rockets you have available.  It'll be sloppy and your support class may stay busy reviving characters, but ignoring the need for materials and getting reckless may just be the strategy this particular map calls for.  (Ignore this particular advice if playing on impossible.  And good luck!)

Do you need this zombie hoard to just back off a bit?

Holding your ground in the Treyarch developed Call of Duty zombie modes is usually a recipe for disaster.  Unless of course you're well-geared, know the map backwards and forwards, and have a bit of luck with the juking and jumping and what have you.  Sometimes it's best to turn around, throw a monkey bomb, and unload with whatever high-powered machine gun you've got available.  In this particular case, bouncing back and forth between sprinting from choke point to choke point while gathering the herd, and making tension-filled stops to thin their numbers is the best way to make continued progress.

I suppose the take-away here is that, while tactics have their place in most games, there will always be spots where it pays to be reckless and just dive in head-first!  Giving us those moments of adrenaline filled, consequence-free recklessness are what escapism hobbies are all about!  Just remember in real life it doesn't always end with a game over screen.

(A belated thanks to all who serve!)

Anyone else 'always' resort to the charge in the end?

It may cause it's share of do-overs, but damn if it's not fun!

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Thanks for reading everyone!