Watch Dogs 2 (reviewed here) has all the hacking mayhem you could want in its open world San Francisco, letting you cause chaos in your wake as you access street lights, play with people’s phones, remotely activate vehicles, and use drones to devastating effect.
Pulling up the Research app in your phone gives access to the skill tree, which lets you pick new abilities from seven different lists. Which options you pick will determine whether you are going through the campaign as the Trickster, Aggressor, or Ghost play style (and you really should be doing Trickster). Below we cover all seven skill trees and their various options.
Looking for more help with Watch Dogs 2? Check out our complete beginner’s guide. For those wondering about rumors of the Watch Dogs 2 vagina shot and tales of full frontal nudity, yes, they are true.
Botnets
Unlike the other research branches, this one doesn’t unlock cascading skills. Instead, the first node increases Botnet resources by 4, while each additional branching node past that point increases Botnet resources by 2.
Botnets Skill Tree
City Disruption
Auto Takedown – trigger gates and steam pipes on nearby enemy vehicles
Robot Exploits – create a distraction for robots (hold LT for more distraction options)
Traffic Control Exploit – Auto Takedown skill now hacks traffic lights to cause accidents and stop pursuit
Massive System Crash – all city infrastructure shut down for 30 seconds
System Crash Upgrade Blackout – turn off all power and lights (while useful for stealth, this is less helpful than it seems, since it limits hacking options)
Security System Shutdown – exactly what it sounds like, this one shuts down security systems
Botnet Savings City Hacking – reduces Botnet costs while hacking city infrastructure
City Disruption Skill Tree
Marksmanship
Sleight Of Hand – increased reload speed for stun gun and pistols
Advanced Slight Of Hand – increased reload speed for two handed guns
Steady Hands – lessened sway on scoped weapons
Keen Eye – extra damage with sniper rifles
Strong Grip – increased stability with two handed guns
Target Weakness – extra damage against armored targets and vehicles with shotguns
Steady Aim – increased range with stun gun
Fast Finger Trigger – pistol rate of fire increased (fires as fast as you press the button)
Stun Amp Up – decreases charges needed to stun armored enemies
Marksmanship Skill Tree
Remote CTRL
Environmental RC – remote control lifts and cranes
Proximity Scanner – equip Quadcopter with more powerful scanning and tag NPCs through walls (this is incredibly useful and should be purchased quickly)
Expert RC Engineering – decrease cool down time for RC Jumper and Quadcopter
Remote Gadgets – RC Jumper and Quadcopter can drop IEDs and Zappers
Taunt – add speaker to RC Jumper for luring enemies
Speed Boost – increase speed for RC Jumper and Quadcopter
Enhanced Spring – increase RC Jumper’s jump height for reaching new areas
Remote CTRL Skill Tree
Social Engineering
Create Distraction – send signal to phones or guard headsets for distraction so you can execute a melee attack or sneak by, also cancels 911 calls
Gang Attack – assign a target to a gang
Gang Skirmish – use higher level gang members to attack target
Gang War – call on highest level gang members to attack target
Improved Profiler – flag civilians with large bank accounts (very useful if you need more money)
Massive Communication Disruption – trigger ALL distractions within range (incredibly useful for escaping situations)
Botnet Savings – reduce Botnet costs when hacking individuals
APB Suspect Located – plant evidence and send police to arrest target
APB Wanted Criminal – upgraded version of Suspect Located that marks target as a dangerous criminal
Social Engineering Skill Tree
Tinkering
Electro Shock Device – knock out target temporarily
Explosive Device – explode and kill targets
Expert Tinkering – reduce cool down time on Tinkering abilities
Electro Shock Optimization – carry and place up to 5 ESDs at once
Tweaked Blast – Tinkering abilities have larger area of effect
Explosive Optimization – carry and place up to five explosives at once
Tinkering Skill Tree
Vehicle Hacking
Vehicle Directional Hack – move cars in specific directions for attack or disruption
Hijacker – hack locks to avoid car alarms (a must-have for stealing vehicles)
Chopper Retreat Exploit – force helicopters to retreat when you are being pursued
Engine Override – burst of vehicle speed that drains Botnet
Massive Vehicle Hack – hack all vehicles in area to cause mass chaos
Botnet Savings Vehicle Hack – reduce Botnet cost on hacking vehicles
Vehicle Hacking Skill Tree
What direction are you planning on moving through the skill tree, and what do you think are the best Watch Dogs 2 research options?
