I have to echo the “gamey” feel of EU. It’s X-Com, no doubt: the same energy, the same tension, and very similar tactical feel. I can’t think of a better implementation since the original.
But one grenade? Max six men on a mission? One Skyranger? And I’m saving the world on a budget? I really wish they had tied the economic model to something other than cash/credit; in the event of a real alien invasion I’m hoping that, you know, the world will band together and put as much money into R&D as possible so that the world doesn’t get destroyed.
“Sorry, you can’t build that alien containment facility because you can’t afford it.”
“Sorry, soldiers are only allowed one grenade per mission!”
“Sorry, I know you all really want to go kill some aliens, but I can only pick six of you.”
On the other hand, I really like being able to use plasma weapons without having to worry about ammunition. Plasma rifles were useless in the original because of the difficulty in finding ammo.
Anyway. Little nitpicks, but once you’re actually playing all these issues disappear into the woodwork. Intellectually it’s a bit disappointing, but the game is just so darn fun that it’s hard to work up any enthusiasm for these complaints.
geewhiz
2902
I just make believe that we are SHADO (a secret anti-ufo fighting organization from the old 1969-1970 British TV show “UFO”).
That is the reason the governments do not want to fund the war - they were given the amnesia drugs and just forget about everything. :>)
What is neat about this show is that they had interceptors based on the moon and if a UFO gets passed them than they had to deal with the aliens on the earth. I always thought/wondered if the interceptor part of X-Com may have been influenced by this show).
Grifman
2903
That was going to be my guess. As a “power” it seemed like it would not be overruled by ammo limitations. 4 times is a lot and I think you usually have to reload before that in most normal cases. Thanks for confirming.
Started playing last night (PC). On the second mission on normal, the game started getting stuck sometimes when a certain guy finished his movement. I got this maybe three times, always with the same guy. The screen was stuck in place with him in the center and I could still click on action buttons which gave the sound but nothing happened. Had to restart and load the last save.
The game feels great, but I can’t imagine playing ironman with these problems.
Quaro
2905
So apparently the ‘Second Wave’ extra options Jake talked about on three moves ahead aren’t in the game:
Some people have hacked them in: http://forums.2kgames.com/showthread.php?150041-Do-quot-Second-Wave-quot-Settings-Even-Exist-Doesn-t-Look-Like-It
I really want to be able to randomize unit stats, country stats, etc, at least, to increase replayability.
Weird, they don’t appear when you finish a game?
Quaro
2907
Nope. Could have sworn Jake talked about them like they were a finished feature, but that post is from a dev.
rezaf
2908
Thanks for the clarification.
Non-native english speaker makes a typo, news at ten.
I think it blends in quite well with the drool of many of you, thank you very much.
Even if it may sound a bit like that, I don’t have hatred for the new XCOM and think it’s a crime against humanity or something.
It’s a very solid game so far, slick and short on bugs and issues.
I like it much more than I liked Civ5 at release (which wasn’t very much).
They just made some design decisions that I really find myself disagreeing with. And I don’t really care if some stupid fanboy calls pointing at some of those things trolling.
It wasn’t neccessary to dumb things down THAT far. The same decisions as in the original, only condensed? Pfft. Does anyone remember Tetris 1D.
Research, progress in the game and the development of your soldiers unlock some additional tactical options, which is nice, but still, there’s SO MUCH LESS than in the original, I just can’t help to feel some disappointment.
Near where I work, there’s a pizza restaurant in which you used to get the best pizza I ever ate. Since then, the quality has degraded - you can still get a decent pizza there, but is it wrong to have fond memories of the days when the pizza was much better still? I don’t think so.
rezaf
12 is a bit too much for the maps, but maybe with 8… in a way it would serve to easy a bit the hard Classic mode.
I think it’s a side effect of putting all those skills that unlock when they level up, now experience matters more than in the original games because not only the veterans have better stats, but because all those super-useful special skills are locked for newbies.
If that’s the same bug I’ve experienced a few times, you can fix it by clicking on another weapon to switch weapons. Then the rest of the interface starts working again.
Giaddon
2912
?
The research trees are almost identical to the original, if I remember correctly. Hell, there’s a bit more in the new one, I think. You can even find (and sell!) some of the red-herring, non-useful stuff from the first game
like…
alien entertainment, I’m looking at you!
Giaddon
2913
Jesus Christ, almost all of these would make the game even harder, which I don’t need.
rezaf
2914
I’m not sure what you’re referring to Giaddon.
I think the original games’ research tree was much better, because it was more successfully used to further (and integrate with) the storyline, but I was referring to the fact that you get additional stuff by various means which makes the tactical game a bit more interesting.
Obvious stuff like better armor, the ARC thrower and medkit (and improvements to both), the ability to grapple on top of buildings (I haven’t gotten that yet, and it’s uses are limited - there are no multi-floor buildings etc.), upgrades to equipment from the forge, the higher level soldier skills etc., these things enrich gameplay.
Though, like I wrote earlier, the reliance on these things makes your veterans much more important, and while in X-Com, your soldiers were constantly in danger, XCOM goes the extra mile to actively try to screw you over. Setpiece encounters and especially the teleporting enemies means either you’ll commit the cardinal sin of reloading a savegame (if you’re not playing ironman) or will every now and then lose a veteran who was much more important and harder to replace than any veteran in X-Com ever was.
Still, provided the veterans are there and you’ve made some progress in research, the tactical game is richer than it looked initially.
Other things I like:
The UFO designs. The larger ones are pretty cool. I miss true flanking and going around UFOs and blowing a new entrance and flying in from above - the maps are STILL narrow tubes which now consist of nothing but the UFO, but the vehicles themselves are pretty cool.
The alien design. I still like the originals better, but they did a good job of modernizing the aliens, imo. They kinda drop the ball by the pitiful presentation during research, but in combat, there’s some coolness to be observed.
rezaf
It’s true most of them are geared to increase the game difficulty… but you don’t have to play on Classic or Impossible! Normal difficulty with a pair of these options could be an interesting take on the game.
I started a new Classic game knowing everything I know now. Not ironman, becaus of the bugs, but really trying not to abuse save/load.
I will say that my survivability has increased dramatically, especially on missions where you’re not under time pressure.
-
Be patient. As the SEALs like to say, don’t run toward your death. Don’t dash forward into the unknown; you’re screwed if you stumble upon the enemy. Always give yourself the option to fallback immediately.
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Speaking of which, falling back is not a sin. Establish a defensible position with lots of overlapping fields of fire and lure the aliens into it.
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Full cover at all times, unless there is non available. It makes a huge difference over half-cover.
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Understanding the skill tree better lets me optimize for my style of play. Run & Gun with that double shot skill plus a shotgun is amaaaaazing for taking out an alien you’ve isolated but is under full cover.
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Better equipping squaddies. Scopes for the sniper and heavies. (Makes a big difference for the latter; they go from shitty at early levels to halfway decent.)
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PATIENCE. Unless the bomb is ticking, don’t be afraid to abuse the turn button.
I don’t understand why only having one Skyranger is such a problem. Events don’t stack and the game is evenly spaced apart enough so that you should always be able to get where you’re going, not miss anything, and it doesn’t take forever to get anywhere. Having one is just fine, far as I can tell.
— Alan
^^^ very good points!
Also, how the HELL does my assault dude who I just gave a laser scatter gun, miss a Muton in half cover, 2 spaces away , who he has 90% chance to hit / 60% chance to crit.
>.>
I don’t know who your are answering to, but I suspect you’re really missing the point. Of course it’s not a problem having only one Skyranger, the entire design of the game is done knowing that the player would only have one.
In fact you have answered yourself, all is paced in a way that it can be done with only one Skyranger, all is designed around that. Which is exactly the problem, the fact the design was done in first place with only one Skyranger in both the options the player would have in their hands and the alien events pace, special missions, etc.
edit: In other words, it’s not a flaw of the design, it’s more complaining the design is “A” instead of “B”.
The shaky cam combined with the reappearing UFO ceilings has led to many a squaddie deaths as they walk to the wrong freaking square. ARGH!
