Broforce Beginner Tips - Bros, Rescues, Terrain, and Co-op

Broforce, developed by Free Lives and published by Devolver Digital, is a side-scrolling run-and-gun action platformer built around fast rescues, rotating action-hero parody characters, destructible terrain, chain reactions, and up to four-player co-op.

Content note: ESRB rates Broforce T for Teen with Violence, Blood and Gore, Mild Language, and Use of Tobacco. This guide keeps combat descriptions non-graphic and focused on player decisions.

This guide covers campaign and general-play fundamentals. It does not include a full walkthrough, all-bro unlock chart, character tier list, boss script, Covert Operations route, Ironbro route, achievement guide, custom-level sharing guide, or exact Broforce Forever route because those details vary by version.

Essential Tips

1. Learn the New Bro Immediately

Every rescue can change your whole plan.

Each bro has unique weaponry and special attacks, so treat a character swap like picking up a new loadout. Fire one controlled burst, check range, test the special when safe, and notice whether the current bro is better at tunneling, crowd control, long-range shots, melee, or movement.

2. Rescue POWs Before You Rush the Exit

POWs are lives, rescues, and long-term unlock progress.

Touching a Prisoner of War gives a free life and a rescue, and rescues are tied to unlocking other bros. If a POW is on a safe route, get them before finishing the level. If the cage sits above pits, explosives, or a collapsing route, clear the danger first.

3. Use Terrain as a Weapon

The map is not just scenery.

Most runs become easier when you stop treating walls and floors as fixed. Shoot or blast routes around heavy pressure, drop enemies through weak ground, open side angles, and make escape tunnels before the screen fills with threats.

4. Respect Your Own Explosions

Chain reactions help only when you are not inside them.

Explosive barrels, gas tanks, falling blocks, falling cars, and collapsing terrain can solve a room quickly, but they can also erase your cover or take out your whole co-op group. Step back before starting a chain reaction.

5. Spend Specials on Bad Rooms

A special attack you never use is wasted power.

Broforce gives many bros limited but dramatic tools. If the room has a shield line, dangerous vehicle, alarm pressure, or awkward vertical angle, check whether your special is the clean answer instead of trying to force basic shots.

6. Use Melee for More Than Panic

Close range still has purpose in a shooter.

Melee can handle cramped spaces, some close enemies, and certain throwable interactions. Do not run into danger just to knife something, but remember melee when a target is too close, a shield blocks frontal fire, or a thrown object can start a better chain.

7. Slow Down at Checkpoints

Respawning into motion can get you killed twice.

Checkpoint terrain can work as cover, but some checkpoint starts sit near gaps or hazards. After a death, pause for a beat, read where you respawned, then move. Holding a direction immediately can turn one mistake into another.

8. Shut Down Alarms When You Can

Endless reinforcements turn small mistakes into messy screens.

If an alarm or alerted enemy starts calling more enemies, prioritize either disabling the alarm or leaving the area. Staying in place while reinforcements keep arriving usually makes the terrain less stable and your escape route worse.

9. Play Co-op With Spacing

Four bros standing on one explosive is not four times safer.

Co-op is strongest when players cover different angles and leave rescue room. Spread out enough that one explosion, falling object, or bad tunnel does not take everyone down at once.

10. Treat Broforce Forever as the Current Baseline

The current package includes the final update content.

Broforce Forever added campaign updates, new unlocks, new bros, new challenge levels, new threats, and fixes. Use this guide for broad fundamentals, but check exact routes, unlocks, and character behavior against your current version before following any detailed checklist.

Combat and Terrain

1. Open a second route before committing - If the direct path is guarded, dig or shoot an alternate angle so you are not trapped in one corridor.
2. Let hazards work for you - Falling objects and explosive props can remove enemies, but start them from a safe position.
3. Do not destroy every platform under pressure - A clear shot is not worth losing your footing, cover, or return path.
4. Use sprinting with intent - Sprint to cross open danger or clear a jump, not to blindly enter an unseen room.
5. Watch ladder momentum - Fast ladder movement can throw off jumps, so reset your footing before jumping toward traps or enemies.
6. Mix weapons, specials, and melee - Your current bro may have a safer answer than standard shooting.
7. Leave yourself an exit - Before attacking a vehicle, alarm room, or explosive cluster, know where you will move after the first blast.

Co-op and Modes

Campaign

Campaign is the best first stop. It teaches the rescue loop, bro swaps, destructible terrain, level exits, bosses, checkpoints, and world-map flow without asking you to understand every optional mode at once.

Arcade Campaign

Arcade Campaign is better after you know the campaign’s room language. It removes some campaign framing and lets levels be chosen more freely, so it works well for practice once you can read hazards and bro swaps.

Explosion Run

Explosion Run is a time-pressure mode. Learn basic movement, safe detonations, and co-op spacing before expecting clean time-attack clears.

Custom Campaign and Level Editor

The level editor and community levels are a separate rabbit hole. Play some official content first so you understand what a fair route, readable hazard, and reliable rescue setup look like before judging or building custom maps.

Co-op

In co-op, revives through rescues can give a short invulnerability window, and close partner melee can trigger a brofist effect. Those tools are useful, but spacing still matters more than crowding together.

Resource Management

Resource	What It Does	Beginner Habit
Current bro	Defines your weapon, special, and practical range	Test the loadout safely after every swap
POWs	Give a free life, rescue credit, and unlock progress	Rescue safe POWs before the exit
Lives	Keep the run alive through deaths and swaps	Do not spend a life chasing an unsafe cage
Specials	Solve dangerous rooms or awkward enemies	Use them when the room is genuinely bad
Terrain	Creates paths, cover, drops, and hazards	Destroy deliberately, not constantly
Explosives	Start chain reactions and clear threats	Step away before shooting them
Checkpoints	Reset the run from safer positions	Pause after respawning before moving
Co-op revives	Bring partners back through rescue moments	Leave enough room for someone to reach the rescue

Hidden Mechanics

Mechanic	Why It Matters	How to Use It
POW rescue invulnerability	Rescue moments can briefly protect the player	Use the window to reposition, not to stand in danger
POW hazard vulnerability	A cage can be lost to pits, crushing, or explosions	Clear nearby hazards before careless blasting
Destructible cover	Terrain can protect or trap you	Keep some cover until the room is stable
Falling objects	Blocks, cars, barrels, and tanks can be lethal	Trigger them from outside the landing path
Alarm pressure	Reinforcements can keep arriving	Disable alarms or leave before the screen gets crowded
Checkpoint cover	Some checkpoint terrain can block attacks	Use it as a breather after respawning
Brofist co-op effect	Close partner melee can create a shockwave and slow time	Use it intentionally with a partner, not while clustered near explosives
Campaign completion lock-in	Completed campaign levels are not freely replayed from that campaign state	Explore safe rescue opportunities before finishing

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Do not play every bro the same way - A shotgun, explosive, melee-heavy, or long-range bro needs a different route through the same room.

2. Do not rush past safe POWs - Skipping easy rescues costs lives and unlock progress.

3. Do not shoot every explosive on sight - Start chain reactions only when you have cover, distance, and an exit.

4. Do not tunnel under yourself without checking the floor - A clever shortcut can become a fall or a dead end.

5. Do not hoard specials through the hardest room - Use special attacks when they solve a threat that basic fire cannot handle safely.

6. Do not crowd together in co-op - One blast or falling hazard can punish the whole team.

7. Do not ignore alarms - Reinforcements make the level more chaotic the longer you wait.

8. Do not hold movement blindly after a respawn - Take a beat at checkpoints near gaps or hazards.

9. Do not start with custom levels as your main training ground - Learn the official campaign’s rules before judging community routes.

10. Do not treat Broforce Forever specifics as universal without checking version - Exact unlocks, challenge levels, and character behavior can vary by current version.

Summary

Category	Top Tip
Bros	Test each new loadout immediately
POWs	Rescue safe cages for lives and unlock progress
Terrain	Destroy paths deliberately and keep escape routes
Explosives	Use chain reactions from a safe distance
Specials	Spend them on rooms that basic fire cannot solve
Checkpoints	Pause before moving after a respawn
Co-op	Spread out, rescue carefully, and avoid shared blast zones
Modes	Learn campaign fundamentals before challenge and custom modes