I have been playing this game for a day or so and have developed a strategy where I consistently get on the leaderboard, often get #1, and have, a couple times, gotten over 50k mass. It’s nothing crazy or revolutionary, but here is what I do:
-Phase 1, Quick Growth — go aggressive in the middle of the map. Try to cut off big snakes and take their mass. Try to follow big snakes around and steal mass once they die. Often times, I follow around a really large snake that is boosting because boosting often precedes death. This is a risky move, but you can get to 5-10k mass pretty quickly doing this. If you die when you’re below 10k mass, who cares? Just try again until you get around 10k.
-Phase 2, Move Outside — Once you’re around 10k, move further to the outside of the map. This is where a lot of the big snakes hang out and there are fewer small snakes around to spoil the fun (i.e. dive in front of you, steal mass if a big snake dies: the things you were just doing in Phase 1). Get good at challenging other big snakes. Also, you’re big enough to start circling other snakes now. This is a crucial skill as the game progresses and you get bigger.
-Phase 3, Get and Stay HUGE — This is the long game, and it begins when you’re about 20k mass. You need to play very conservatively from here on out. You’re big, which is an advantage and a disadvantage. On the plus side, you can really start to circle and trap some large snakes now; this will be how you get most of your mass from now on. On the downside, your turning radius is garbage, so you need to avoid small snakes like the freaking plague because they can dive in front of you easily. Stay on the outside of the map and focus on circling. Use your boost to move around and envelop someone quickly and then just circle until you capture their mass.
GENERAL TIPS:
-Boosting full speed into a mid-map clusterfudge is fine early on and can get you mass quickly. But you’re basically rolling the dice each time, and it’s not a strategy for long-term success.
-Use boost to encircle snakes. Oftentimes, you can get around them and close the loop before you know what’s happening.
-As you circle someone, just stay on your own path and don’t worry too much about scooting in to close the circle if it’s risky. The circle will shrink on it’s own. Remember, looping someone in is a war of attrition. Just hang tight and you’ll win.
-When looping someone, watch out for others trying to loop you (you’ll be small and thus an easy target). On the flip side, try to loop snakes who are looping other snakes. It’s more mass for you and you’ll often find players are distracted by their own looping and wont notice. Again, use boost to get around them quickly.
I’ll post other tips/ideas as I think of them.