X-Com: Enemy Unknown (new Firaxis version)

[Mooияakeя™]

I love the old one. I mean, love it. I just decided to replace my Terror From The Deep version on the PSX too as I never gave it as much love. However, my Enemy Unknown still plays as good now on my PS3 as when I brought it back in the day.

So anyway, there's a new Turn-based one coming out (not the FPS one - not gonna talk about that... eugh)

Website is here: http://www.xcom.com/enemyunknown/

Some videos...

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and a demo of the game being played...

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I think I will buy on PS3 (in homage to the PSX buying of the original and prefering it on there) and prob d/l on PC if I can't get into it.

Anyone else getting it?

[The Destroyer]

Didn't even know they were doing this, and out pretty soon by the looks of things.

Only played a little bit of the original, but I will probably give it a go.

[Ultra Mantis]

I've had my eye on this since I loved the originals, I'll probably pick it up soon after release. Looks pretty good.

[Tommy Gunn]

Never played the originals but been following this game for months, looks right up my alley and will be a refreshing change from cover shooters and RPGs. Haven't been massively into a strategy type game since Command and Conquer's glory days in the 90s.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

FUCK YOU YOU BUY IT ON STEAM AND SAVE MONEY AND GET US ALL A FREE COPY OF CIV 5.

PS FUCK YOU

http://store.steampowered.com/app/200510/

[Corporate CockSnogger]

SHAUN HASNEY SIGHTING

[The Destroyer]

Looks like my PC might actually manage it, I may just pre-purchase.

Although given I already have Civ 5, what's in it for me?

[#BROKEN Hasney]

There's like MOTHERFUCKING IN-GAME PRE-ORDER ITEMS and CRAP. Also, TEAM CUNTING FORTRESS 2 HATS! COCKING HATS! The you think you're a big shot with having Civ 5 already? YOU CAN GIFT THAT SHIT. Give it to KANE FUCKING KNIGHT or something.

BOLLOCKS.

[Mooияakeя™]

Never played the originals but been following this game for months, looks right up my alley and will be a refreshing change from cover shooters and RPGs. Haven't been massively into a strategy type game since Command and Conquer's glory days in the 90s.

You really need to czech them out.

Got Terror From the Deep and X-Com on the PSX and both share the most time in my PS3. I heard you can get the original on Steam that won't run stupidly fast like the DOS one does on today's machines.

[Mooияakeя™]

Pretty pissed as I don't think these guys are in :(

http://www.ufopaedia.org/images/a/ab/Snakeman.png

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Nah, that Steam shit runs in Dosbox man. Emulates a whole fucking PC to get it right.

[Mooияakeя™]

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/12824117/images/1289980749050.jpg

[Ultra Mantis]

Snakemen have to be in there somewhere, and they'll bring their god damn motherfucking Chryssalids with them.

[Mooияakeя™]

Oh shit. lol. NOOOOOooooooooooooooooo. If there was one thing that made me say "oh for fuck sake"... it was this type of image...

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b148/peptuck/terror2slaughter2.jpg

[Ultra Mantis]

I also expect a frame by frame remake of the opening movie

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pX0Cm3N_n6k" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Tommy Gunn]

You really need to czech them out.

Got Terror From the Deep and X-Com on the PSX and both share the most time in my PS3. I heard you can get the original on Steam that won't run stupidly fast like the DOS one does on today's machines.

Cool, I'll check ebay for the first two games on PSX.

[Mooияakeя™]

They sell for some whack considering. Having said that, I don't know where you operate from!

Either way, I think I will buy this game. I'd love if you could CO-OP on some big map against bastard aliens. Or even against bastard terrans as the aliens.

[The Destroyer]

I'm having second thoughts about buying on PC after seeing it in action. Think my computer might struggle a bit. :-\

[Mooияakeя™]

I'll handle it fine. I am convinced Firaxis have enough clout to do it justice and out of honour for my TFTD and EU I will get this on PS3 and just download on PC when I want to give it a crack on there.

There is another game being developed called Xenonauts, albeit by a couple of guys and independent stylee.

[Mooияakeя™]

http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs23/f/2007/323/2/d/XCOM__Snakemen_by_CapnChryssalid.png

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Let's not be Eskimo about this. Pre-order on Steam so we all get hats, a superior control scheme for strategy games and save yourself a tenner and this doesn't get ugly.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

I mean you don't see me running around toget the Amiga A420000 version for nostalgics sake.

[The Destroyer]

Fine Hasney, FINE. I will pre-order it once my credit card enters its next billing period at the weekend. So help you god if I can't run it...

[#BROKEN Hasney]

I was talking to that moonrise chap, but word.

[Mooияakeя™]

Fucking hell Hasney. I mean, ain't there a sale going on @ Steam? Then maybe I buy it on there as well. In fact, I think I might just PC this shit up.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Because the free gifts are based on how many people pre-order. I'm desperate, brah.

[Sixx]

I absolutely loved the original.

This looks pretty sweet, I'ma fuck some mutons up.

[Sixx]

Wait, is this what mutons look like in the new game?

http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120418081707/xcom/images/thumb/5/55/XCOM-EU_Mutons.jpg/350px-XCOM-EU_Mutons.jpg

Fuck that.

[Mooияakeя™]

Because the free gifts are based on how many people pre-order. I'm desperate, brah.

Hmmmm. OK then.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

So we have the Elite Soldier Pack which includes: Classic XCOM Soldier
Players will instantly receive a new recruit in their barracks inspired by the original X-COM: UFO Defense. The iconic soldier with the blonde, flattop hairstyle will return fully modernized.

And some other things. But who cares? Classic soldier!

The we're at 72% for the TF2 hats and then if there's another load of pre-orders, that's where free Civ5 kicks in.

[Mooияakeя™]

Free Civ5 is a great idea, I mean if this was EA we'd be buying this shit. Extra £40 for premium on BF, after paying like £40 for the game anyway.

TF2... meh.

YAY.

http://cdn.memegenerator.net/instances/250x250/25213201.jpg

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Exactly. 2K know that Steam is their bread and butter for new turn-based XCom.

I'm pretty convinced that they're doing this to convince console owners to come to PC. I can't see a joypad holding up to turn based strategy.

[The Destroyer]

I'll do it at the weekend. Gotta get my hat.

[The Destroyer]

There Hasney, you pushy shit, I've done it. HAPPY?!?!?!?

[Ultra Mantis]

I'm kind of tempted to pick up the original on Steam now. Pretty sure my laptop can run that at least.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

There Hasney, you pushy shit, I've done it. HAPPY?!?!?!?

Ecstatic thanks. My the glory of today bless your soul.

[Kane Knight]

There's like MOTHERFUCKING IN-GAME PRE-ORDER ITEMS and CRAP. Also, TEAM CUNTING FORTRESS 2 HATS! COCKING HATS! The you think you're a big shot with having Civ 5 already? YOU CAN GIFT THAT SHIT. Give it to KANE FUCKING KNIGHT or something.

BOLLOCKS.

I approve of this namedrop.

[The Destroyer]

37% of the way to the free Civ 5. Come on!

[#BROKEN Hasney]

I've not got mine yet. My mum wants to pre-order it for my birthday so I'll poke her next week.

[The Destroyer]

Your mum has excellent taste in presents.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

She asked what I wanted.

Admittedly, she did remember me playing the original on my Amiga which I was pretty shocked by.

[Tommy Gunn]

Just went on steam and bought the 5 game collection for £8.99, kind of a blind word-of-mouth purchase as I've never played them, but it's cheap enough to take the plunge.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Enemy Unknown, Terror From The Deep and Apocolypse are great. The other 2 get rid of the strategy and add a flight sim or a 3rd person shooter depending on the game. A fine idea, but the execution is awful.

[Sixx]

Only the first two parts matter. Third one was alright I guess, better than those shitty FPPs for sure.

Also, Hasney, what do you mean by "poking" your mom?

[#BROKEN Hasney]

I really like the 3rd one. Not in that real- time mode though, that was wank.

And by poking, I mean to encourage my mum to pre-order me the game ASAP and nothing involving appendages.

[Sixx]

I hated graphics in the third part.

Like trying to look futuristic or something. Dunno, just weird.

And I remember switching to the real-time mode a few times when there were some hard parts in the game, cause for some reaoson the real-time mode was way easier.

[Ultra Mantis]

I always thought Terror From The Deep was the weakest of the three. Pretty lame aliens, except for LOBSTERMAN.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Got it anyway. Up above 40-odd % now!

[The Destroyer]

We're at 66%. Nearly there.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

79% to free Civ 5!

Not convinced yet? Well I don't want to call you manliness into question, but this here might change your mind:

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2012/09/13/hands-on-forty-hours-with-xcom/

Hands-On: Forty Hours With XCOM

By Adam Smith on September 13th, 2012 at 1:30 pm.Tweet this



I’ve been playing a preview version of XCOM: Enemy Unknown for the past few days. I haven’t really been doing anything else, except occasionally falling to sleep in front of my computer and dreaming about XCOM. I apologise in advance for the length and possible incoherence of what follows. I’m giddy, maybe I’m rambling, but I’m as excited about a game as I have been in a long time. No coy introduction here; XCOM is marvellous and now that I’m not playing it, all I want to do is talk about it, write about it, and jump up and down hollering about it.


Remakes, reboots, repetition and recall – welcome to the multiplex of today, where you might need to take out a mortgage on the sensationally priced barrel of popcorn that classes as ‘medium’, and may well have an unwanted and poorly implemented extra dimension forced into your eyes. I’m usually happy to visit the past rather than waiting for the old to be made new, perhaps even more so with games than with films. Despite that, from the moment I heard that Firaxis were making a new XCOM, an honest-to-goodness tactics and geoscape tale of alien invasion and defense against overwhelming odds, I had a good feeling. Spurred on by lead designer Jake Solomon’s enthusiasm, openness and understanding of the original game, encouraged by a promising but all too brief hands-on with the game, my excitement had become unmanageable.



It often happens that people innocently ask if there are any games I’m particularly looking forward to this year. Six hours later they’ve heard all my best stories, the ones where a squad survived the impossible, the ones where a lone survivor fled back to the Skyranger, her will shattered, and, of course, all the ones with the chrysalids. I’m talking about the past but I’m also talking about the future, because XCOM is coming back and I’m hoping for a new take on what I already know, all new stories with the same props and the same cast.

Preview code has been with me for a week now, allowing freedom of play up until a specific research-based cut-off point, and I’ve collected about forty hours of new stories. I want to tell you about the time my squad entered the burning ruins of a large UFO, searching the rooms slowly and methodically, travelling deeper into the interior, all smoke and the sinister glow of mysterious power sources. I want to tell you how they didn’t find a single living thing until they reached the very centre of the ship, how they heard the sound of movement and followed it.

Whatever was scurrying about in the wreck seemed to be on the run, perhaps the last survivor, an engineer or a pilot, not ready to face Earth’s best. Then I’d tell you how we lost track of whatever it was we were following and I’d gesticulate wildly as I told you how those men and women died, suddenly surrounded by noise as a trap was sprung, the broken ship now a tomb not for its crew but for us, for my people, for the poor bastards I failed.



It was chrysalids, you see, and they were coming out of not just the bloody walls but the bloody ceiling as well. It wasn’t a set piece though, they’d been waiting to strike and if I’d been smarter, I wouldn’t have sent my soldiers into that claustrophobic, smoke-filled labyrinth of twisted metal, I would have drawn whatever was inside out.

My sniper, who had been with XCOM since the very beginning, turned zombie on us and chewed the throat out of a young rookie. As the remaining members of the squad tried to blow a hole through the chitinous wave of death and devourance, one of them blew the ex-sniper’s infested guts out with a well-placed grenade. It didn’t feel right to leave her like that.

It feels so good to have new chrysalid stories, even if I’m still not entirely used to these scuttling insect incarnations of nineties nightmares. A terror mission turned from bug hunt to zombie horror when a pack of the blade-limbed monstrosities decided against peeling off our armour and instead darted down an alley to find softer, fleshier incubation chambers for their spawn. It didn’t take long for the civilians they discovered, the ones we were supposed to be protecting, to surround the grocery store in which we were taking cover, engaged in a deadly firefight with a gang of floaters. Then it was a case of cover-be-damned as eight hungry corpses bore down on our position. The dead don’t die easily and ammunition burned down quickly. The sound of each clip locking into place was like the cough that clears the throat at the beginning of a eulogy.



That’s two stories, both of which involve my squad being wiped out, the Skyranger returning with nothing but the stench of fear and scorched plasma. There are happier stories too: the unlikely shot that saves a squadmate’s life or the rare mission when the whole team comes home without so much as a scratch. The successful rescue, the necessary sacrifice, the old-fashioned, fist-bumping bout of xenocide.

Enough stories for now though. It’s time to pick through the details and to break down why XCOM works as splendidly as it does.

Before zooming back into the tactical level, here’s how base and squad management works. There’s just the one base, XCOM HQ, although you do get to choose which continent it’s located in. There’s a geographical bonus for the placement. These include Asia’s ‘Future War’ boost that reduces the cost of advanced weaponry and training, and South America’s efficient questioning and dissection techniques, which allow the player to complete autopsies and interrogations instantly.

Being based in one location doesn’t mean it’s not important to expand coverage though and this happens in two different ways. First of all, new satellites and uplink facilities must be constructed. The satellites can then be launched over different countries, which reduces the panic level in that part of the world and provides a bonus from the ruling government. Any UFOs in the nearby skies will also now be detected and this is where the second part of geographical coverage comes in to play. Detecting UFOs is all well and good, but to bring them down you’ll need to station Interceptors, or more advanced fighters, on that continent as well. They can be transferred or purchased, and to stop the world from turning its back on XCOM, it’s necessary to expand coverage frequently and intelligently.



The single base doesn’t dumb down the strategic side of the game and it has the advantage of looking utterly stunning, the side-on ant-farm design a perfect introduction to the game’s chunkily believable B-movie aesthetic. An alien containment chamber is instantly recognisable because it has a massive transparent chamber in the centre, with science bods prodding clipboards all around. Engineering workshops are full of automated machinery, robotic arms ready to build massive guns. And the guns really are massive – a heavy weapons squaddie can’t be mistaken for anything else because he is toting a bloody great machine gun, a rocket launcher strapped to his back.

Every animation is a big sell. People don’t reload carefully and daintily, they SLAM a clip into their weapon, and an angry muton doesn’t snarl, it ROARS AND BELLOWS AND PUNCHES ITS CHEST AND THEN EVERYBODY PANICS AND WHIMPERS, CRYING AND PEEING IN THEIR FANCYPANTS ARMOUR. There’s not a great deal of subtlety in the portrayal of the space bastards, although there’s a huge amount of character and variety. Sectoids are almost dog-like at times, fitting their role as advanced, expendable scouts perfectly. They scamper, crawl, snarl and flee when the going gets tough.



Adding to the characterisation are the comments of XCOM’s lead scientist, engineer and your own second-in-command. Encountering a new type of alien, technology or weapon for the first time leads to a description, usually shocked and awed, as the various higher-ups remain in contact. It could be grating but the execution makes it a wonderful touch, not only because it adds to the game’s atmosphere of panic and wonder, but because it also provides hints and a sort of ongoing guide to the world. “You probably want to avoid shooting that UFO power core”, science lady might say, to which you might well respond – “at this very moment, on the verge of total annihilation, I’ll shoot any damn thing I please as long as it’s guaranteed to vaporise every alien in the vicinity. Thanks for the tip.”

BOOM

Sure, she’ll chew you out for destroying precious artifacts but, hey, I just saved the lives of four rookies who were in over their heads. I’m some kind of goddamn hero.



The interaction with XCOM staff also helps to avoid some of the problems of the original (yes, there were problems; I usually try to deny them as well). It’s no longer possible to miss vital research and you won’t have to consult a FAQ to work out how to reach the next point in the game’s narrative. That narrative was always there, it was the link between one piece of research and the next, the escalation occurred in stages as did the player’s progression toward understanding and destroying the alien threat. The difference in Firaxis’ XCOM is that the narrative has found a voice, so objectives are set during discussions between the various members of the organisation. It starts with the construction of a containment chamber, and the research, construction and action necessary to fill that chamber with a living specimen.

There’s no requirement to follow these tasks but it’s all delivered sensibly, as part of the fiction, and it’s not as if the objectives are the only thing to concentrate on; the world is still falling apart around your ears, don’t worry about that. A great deal of Firaxis’ work, beyond the brilliance of the actual tactical systems, has gone into the setting, and the world, its inhabitants and its visitors are all recognisable to players of the original, but with so much more detail to them. There are still page-long textual descriptions when research is completed, but there are also cutscenes showing the joy that becomes fear when a UFO is shot down, only for movement to be detected inside the wreck.

Nowhere more so than on a terror mission is the effort that has gone into creating a living and dying world evident. There’s a real sense of activity beyond the pockets of activity that the player sees, with an ordinary mission area often surrounded by a perimeter of police vehicles, their occupants now encased in green gunk, their Pompeii-like poses suggestive of particularly unpleasant endings. One UFO crash site that I saw had a truck parked nearby, a dead stag dumped in the back. A hunter had seen the flaming saucer crash and curiosity had made him pull over and take a look. His body was a little further down the trail.



That’s one more, tiny story. On terror missions the stories are painted in broader strokes and there’s a suitably apocalyptic feeling. Air raid and ambulance sirens wail, blockades have been set up, tanks burn in the streets. The battle has already been lost, XCOM are just there to minimise casualties and to hit back as hard as they can, to let the invaders know that there are consequences, no matter how slight they might seem.

Maps aren’t randomised, which distressed me a little, but although I’ve seen a bit of repetition enemy placement and types don’t repeat, and no two missions have been quite the same. The detail and variety are excellent, and there are some sizeable locations. The alien AI takes advantage of the space too, with separate groups occupying different areas and then flanking, surrounding and generally making a nuisance of themselves. Cover is hugely important, with a normal turn being a quick jog to the best position available and then a shot fired, overlook engaged or an item used. The aliens know this too and the easiest way to see your squad decimated is to trade shots without moving, like a tennis player in a baseline rally not willing to take a risk. You’re always outnumbered, so in a straightforward slugging match, you’ll eventually lose. This is a game that rewards intelligence, learning and brave decisions as much as planning, prepration and positioning.

The special abilities, probably the most discussed change from the original game, are essential tools to tip the balance. You’ll need every trick your soldiers have learned and every piece of equipment you’ve researched. Choosing a loadout is simple; gun, armour, sidearm and auxiliary item. The latter can be a medikit, a flak jacket, a grenade, an ARC thrower (stun baton), or whatever else you’ve researched and constructed. That item is an ability or stat boost available in addition to whatever class-specific abilities your soldiers has. The classes are sniper, assault, support and heavy, and they all have strengths as well as a choice of abilities at each promotion after the first.



A sniper, for example, could have the ‘squad sight’ ability, which allows him/her to shoot at anything that a member of the team can see, even if it’s outside normal range. This kind of sniper is best placed on a rooftop, away from the action and with a height advantage adding to accuracy. But there’s another type of sniper, one with the ‘snap shot’ ability that allows him to move and shoot in the same turn, normally impossible with a scoped rifle. The sniper with that skill is better able to react but less accurate, less of a ghost. Brilliantly, long-serving soldiers are given nicknames that fit their class type, so a sniper might well become ‘Ghost’, although my personal favourite was a heavy weapons guy called ‘Stacks’.

Over a hundred missions in, I’m a happy convert to the class and ability system. It means there are more tactical decisions on each turn and more quandaries in squad selection, particularly given that there are only four-to-six soldiers allowed in the Skyranger. Do you take all of your elite soldiers or stick in an untrained rookie or two? They’re not as much of a loss if they die, plus on an easier mission they might pick up a few kills and become more useful in the process. That’s not to say it’s ever easy letting someone die, no matter how green they are. They might have silly gung-ho soundbites (can be turned off), but I’ve even found myself warming to that aspect of the game; it’s all part of the world’s oddball military sci-fi texture and, besides, bravado swiftly becomes fear. Further to that, when everything is going to hell, I sometimes yell daft things myself every time one of the ‘orrible things goes down screaming.

To counter your soldiers’ skills, every species of alien has a special ability too, none of which I’ll spoil here. Suffice to say, they fit the character of each type and often subvert the tactics already taught, making the battlefield even more problematic with yet more issues to take into account during every phase.



There’s so much more to say. I want to share everything that’s happened, want to talk at length about how critically wounded soldiers can be accidentally killed by a grenade even as a medic is closing in, about the special council missions that offer great rewards at great risk. We’re talking disarming bombs in a power station or rescuing a UN official, pinned down and under fire on a huge concrete bridge that looks like Godzilla just stomped on it.

I’ll finish by saying that my biggest concern has completely evaporated. I wasn’t sure how different the game would feel on each playthrough, whether it would be as replayable as the original. I’ll need to answer that when I’ve got the full game and spent almost two decades with it, but I’ve started from scratch at least ten times in the last week, and it’s felt like a different experience every time.

When I wrote about Crusader Kings II back near the beginning of the year, I said this: “If it doesn’t wind up being among my very favourite games of the year, spectacular things will occur in the next ten months.” Well, CK II will still be up there, but XCOM really is something spectacular. With all the burden of expectation and doubt, it manages to be both a hugely respectful reimagining and, all ties ignored, one of the best turn-based tactical games I’ve played in, well, forever.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Oh shit, missed the fact there was a demo.

[The Destroyer]

Awesome, now I get to find out in advance if I wasted my money.

[The Destroyer]

Hooray, the demo runs ok.

Not had the chance to play it much, but the game seems alright. Less evil than I remember the original game being, which is a good thing in my eyes.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

WE DID IT GUS! FREE CIV 5 FOR ALL!

[The Destroyer]

Now to find someone to give my copy to.

I really enjoyed the one "proper" mission in the demo, I want more, now!

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Played the tutorial and didn't go any further. It was too fucking good that I want to wait for the actual game to play the mission!

[The Destroyer]

Disappointingly, no matter which abduction site you choose, you get the same mission.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

The other XCOM is coming out by the end of the year too. Now 3rd person instead of FPS and one guy who played it said it had the feeling of being a "1940's Ghostbusters".

[Ultra Mantis]

Kotaku says (http://kotaku.com/5947737/the-other-xcom-game-might-now-be-a-third+person-shooter)

While everyone gets excited over Firaxis' very-promising XCOM remake, it's easy to forget that there was once another XCOM game on the cards from 2K. One we haven't seen nor heard from for a very long time.

There may be a good reason for that. First seen by the public as a uniquely retro first-person shooter, these screenshots sent in by a Kotaku reader - part of what we're told was a recent marketing survey - suggest the game has gone back to the drawing board, coming back as a third-person shooter.

While the 1960s setting and general XCOM prequel vibe remains, it's now apparently being pitched as a squad-based game similar to SOCOM or Republic Commando, with the player in command of a team of agents, which you can order around the map to perform various actions.

The survey suggests the game is still in development at 2K Marin (it was originally being led by 2K's Canberra team before all the delays), as it tells the user that "it is being developed by the same people who created BioShock 2".

If that's not interesting enough, the survey takers are also being told the game would be for PS3 and Xbox 360 (with no mention of PC), and are being asked how they'd feel if it was made available as a $30 downloadable title, as opposed to a $60 retail game.

All of which, if true, make it sound like 2K is set to pull an "I Am Alive", cutting its losses on a troubled project and trying to make the best of a bad situation by selling it on the cheap.

Bear in mind though this is all unconfirmed. We've contacted 2K for comment, and will update if we hear back.

UPDATE - 2K tells Kotaku "We have not made any new announcements regarding the XCOM title currently in development at 2K Marin, and it is our policy not to comment on rumors or speculation."


http://img.gawkerassets.com/post/9/2012/10/xcom3.jpg

http://img.gawkerassets.com/img/180taaq3wc9nhjpg/xlarge.jpg

http://img.gawkerassets.com/img/180taao4swmi3jpg/xlarge.jpg

[The Destroyer]

Not really being grabbed by those screenshots. Hopefully Enemy Unknown will have plenty of mileage in it.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Pre-loaded. Cannot freaking wait until Tuesday.

[The Destroyer]

Will we get it on Tuesday though, or are Steam a bunch of shits who'll make us wait til Friday?

I'm really hoping for Tuesday, since I've got a day off on Wednesday. Friday is bad, because I've got work on Saturday. Eating into my alien killing time. :(

-edit- Steam is telling me it's available Friday. Bastards.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Oh Baird, I have so much to teach you via the magic of PM.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

http://www.destructoid.com/review-xcom-enemy-unknown-236113.phtml

I dream of XCOM. I have fever dreams where I debate using my assault soldier’s Run and Gun ability to flank an alien or play it safe and stay behind cover. I wish I was kidding or being hyperbolic, but I’m not. I gain new strategies as I lose sleep.

There are two types of games I delete upon completion. There are those I am done with but, on a very rare occasion, there is also a game that just isn’t done with me. These are games I obsess over. I begin to incorporate them into my daily routine, somewhere between eating and sleeping -- sometimes cutting out basic living essentials, when necessary.

I don’t want to eat because I’d rather play a dang videogame. This is not normal. For me, someone who struggles to do anything consistently for two hours, this is what can only be labeled "super abnormal." So take the act of me wiping XCOM from my hard drive as high praise. It speaks volumes on how addictive and replayable XCOM is. It’s not you, XCOM. It’s me, truly. Now, pack your shit and leave!
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XCOM: Enemy Unknown (PC [reviewed], Xbox 360, PlayStation 3)
Developer: Firaxis Games
Publisher: 2K Games
Release: October 9, 2012
MSRP: $59.99

Enemy Unknown is a game about defending the world on a budget. Corners will be cut, soldiers will be lost (RIP Chad Concelmo), and countries will withdraw support if you don’t help them when asked. Not since Dark Souls has a game been so gleefully vicious in punishing a player’s loss. There are many times where I was tempted to start anew, but I played the odds and pulled through. That’s the genius of XCOM: It wants you so badly to give up, but that small percentage of victory will give you the courage to continue. In Mass Effect, alien takeover was a backdrop. In EU, it feels like an inescapable reality that beats your team down, time and time again.

Being that EU is a considerable challenge full of painful losses even on easy, it is a fairly faithful remake of the original, landmark X-COM (you see that hyphen!?!). The base building, squad management, tactical combat, space battles, leveling, and most other elements of the ‘94 MicroProse cult hit appear, albeit with fat trimmed. Through the modern miracle of intelligent menu design, a fair difficulty gradient, and refined combat, the team that made Civilization a great fit for consoles has done the same for XCOM.


Firaxis has made a simpler (but not simple) XCOM that is approachable to more than just diehard series and genre fans. As your squad gain new abilities and passive buffs, elevation and grouping become more important aspects of strategy. Once you can use a grappling hook and make psychic links with others, the game becomes even deeper. However, EU never comes close to approaching the complexity of other games in the strategy-RPG genre that the original helped pioneer. This design choice may divide some genre fans, but there is certainly a good enough challenge and varied tactical options to satisfy most players, especially those that worship Final Fantasy Tactics, Jagged Alliance, or Valkyria Chronicles.

One smart change is that the player now controls a maximum of six members on a mission, instead of an entire platoon. Coupled with the small maps and quick animation, this makes EU a much faster paced and accessible action game. The action and missions themselves transpire so quickly that it’s hard to stop playing, as you rationalize taking on one more abduction in Japan. Every now and again, actions will be presented in a cinematic style that is similar to Valkyria Chronicles. It helps highlight the turning points of a battle, racketing the tension up at times.

EU begins with a cinematic tutorial and a series of missions that feel on-rails, but the game soon opens up to let you screw up in the most fantastic ways imaginable. You’ll always have a primary goal that revolves around researching a specific thing, capturing a specific alien, and, occasionally, invading a specific location. These goals keep the player free to do what he or she wants when it comes to taking on missions or building the XCOM headquarters. You can fulfill these goals at your leisure, but you’ll always be at risk of panic striking nations.
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Your base is not only where you upgrade troops and do research, it’s also how you track progress made across the globe. Since XCOM is a private military with an international council, you’ll always be in danger of countries withdrawing support if their panic level rises to five (the highest level). The only way to combat this is to do missions in that country or launch a satellite over it, which takes a lot of time and money. If too many countries pull out, it’s game over. I lost a country in every region but still managed to beat the game. The possibility of losing always loomed right over my shoulder, making for a relentlessly tense experience. A good thing, mind you.

Even after a flawless battle, there is no escaping the inevitable tough decisions you’ll have to make at the base. The hardest decisions come from invasions that ask the player to take a mission at one of three countries presented. Each offers a difficulty level, reward, and panic level. I found myself constantly conflicted. “Do I risk Australia pulling out of XCOM just so I can get some immediate cash from China?" is the type of question you’ll find yourself asking a lot. Managing your research and development is also a hard job that you’ll only figure out through time and experience. I’m replaying the game on Classic difficulty (read: Hard), as this review goes up, and am still discovering new strategies on and off the battle grid.

Missions cover bomb defusals, VIP escorts, and rescue operations, but most of the time you’ll just need to wipe out aliens in one of the game's 80 maps. This is a lot harder said than done because of monster closets. This term, made popular by critics lambasting Doom 3’s enemies that magically appear instead of approaching the player, is the best way to describe one of EU’s most puzzling and upsetting design decisions. Unlike most other SRPGs, the enemy does not move until discovered. Once discovered however, the enemy is given a free turn to move and take cover -- which for the player, really, really sucks!
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The main problem with this is that you start playing the game around this design decision, which, in effect, ruins the game. It makes sense to slowly creep through a forest, hoping to get the drop on aliens. It doesn’t make sense to slowly creep through a forest, fearing aliens will get the drop on you as you suddenly freeze in time. As a defense measure, you can position your guys to go into overwatch, gunning down any creature that passes their line of sight. It’s certainly a change from the original, where aliens would be found standing still when discovered.

A lot of XCOM comes down to luck and risk. Every shot you fire is complemented by a screen with info on the percentage of the shot landing and damage it is likely to do. This is a risk you agree to take. The same can be said for the smart cover system that divides positions as no cover, half cover, or full cover, each increasing your chances for an enemy to miss. I eventually grew to accept these monster closets, but it sure is a jarring element to battle. It is made even worse with the occasional glitch. One time I had an alien suddenly appear beside me and drop a grenade. I didn’t care very much for its parting gift.

It may have taken console games a good amount of time, but I think we’ve finally arrived at the ideal control setup for a turn-based strategy game. Being able to quickly zoom out with the left trigger, rotate camera with D-pad, and switch characters with the bumpers feels natural. EU takes influence from Call of Duty in more ways than one. Just as CoD and Gears of War popularized the use of sticky actions for shooters -- as in the game guides your character/crosshair to the action you wish to perform -- EU does the same for strategy games. Getting rid of grids and adapting this new system feels natural and so damn good.
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Ironically, the PC controls are abysmal. Firaxis took one step forward and one step back. There is no quick zoom button (there is one listed in the options menu but it wouldn’t work, no matter how I reconfigured it), rotating the camera is awkward, zooming is even worse, and keyboard shortcuts are not as smartly placed as they are on the controller. The menus are harder to navigate, you can’t zoom in on your headquarters, and a lot of other actions that are easy to perform with a controller are made difficult or taken out altogether. You’re going to want to play this with a controller and, yes, I know how strange that sounds. Even the PC exclusive grid mode is a nuisance that only breaks immersion and makes the game frustrating.

Once you’ve conquered the campaign (my playthrough ran 23 hours), multiplayer awaits. Playing only with friends and fellow reviewers, it was hard to get a good grasp of where the multiplayer scene can go. The mode is a mess that, like the singleplayer campaign, gives players the freedom to screw themselves. Multiplayer is just straight forward one-on-one match, but you are free to make your squad however you like. Each unit and each modification to a unit costs points which can be limited (or not) by the host. This means you can have six-on-six matches with the most powerful enemies in the game, or play a straightforward match. I found the aliens to be so laughably unbalanced that it risks making the mode completely irrelevant, unless an update gives the host more options to limit loadout choices. The map selection is small, the netcode is touchy, and there are some terrible design choices, like letting players see the opponent open doors, thus giving away positions in an already tiny map. Maybe it will grow on me or be fun with more match rules, but I got pretty negative impression from my time with it.

XCOM looks good and sounds good, but the score is too similar to Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Mass Effect. I know EU shares the former’s composer, but it still cheapens the experience and makes it feel less unique. The greater problem are the bugs that not only get in the way of presentation but combat as well. One bug kept me from being able to properly use a key feature later in the game that lets you further upgrade units. Another bug had my character’s ponytail wrap around the loadout screen and dance around, as if possessed by the God of hair (an awesome bug, I must admit.) You’ll also see lots of clipping and glitchy cinematic camera angles in combat.
So, it’s fair to say that EU has some problems. While the game lacks the polish we’ve come to expect from Firaxis, it stands up as one of the most addicting and fun strategy games I’ve ever played. The game has its issues. It doesn’t help that it ends on the worse stage with one of the worst boss battles in recent memory. Oh yeah, and you can wash it all down with a terrible ending cinematic.
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Outside the endgame, you’ll rarely see all of the game’s issues grouped together in one place. Sure, the UFO missions aren’t the best and you’ll run into the occasional bug, but I am willing to accept these minor issues. That’s just how much fun the game is. If you’ve ever played a game on a PC with a loud fan or sneaked into the living room as a kid to game at night, you should be able to understand that sometimes it's worth putting up with a little discomfort for a lot of enjoyment. That’s Enemy Unknown for you.

I was disappointed EU didn’t have a great story, at first. But, somewhere along the way, my own story played out through the game’s intense missions and grueling decision making back at the base. My story is about an unlikely group of space heroes. After months of waging a seemingly impossible war, my elite squad of XCOM soldiers died. Well, all but one. Her name was Tara Long. With one bullet left in her rifle aimed at two of the toughest foes she’d ever seen, she knew it was fate when the SUV behind the Mutons exploded, sending the two to a fiery death.

As the world descended into panic, Tara led a troop of new recruits. Hamza the support, Conrad the heavy, and Tony the assault rose through the ranks and succeeded where the older soldiers failed. Let’s not forget Holmes, the sniper who once saved the day after going into panic mode, gunning down an incoming cyberdisk as his sanity deteriorated. Poor Holmes hasn’t been the same since ….

Against all odds, Destructoid managed to save the galaxy, even though we barely manage to keep this site running. That’s a story worth seeing to its end, even if I’ll soon forget it as many more stories play out in my future XCOM sessions. All the small nagging complaints I have with the game fade away when I recall all the great moments I've had with it.


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Final Verdict:
9.0
Superb: 9s are a hallmark of excellence. There may be flaws, but they are negligible and won't cause massive damage to what is a supreme title in its *genre*.

[Ultra Mantis]

95% on Game Informer
9/10 on Eurogamer
4.5/5 on Joystiq

Looking pretty good with the critics. I assume any dropped points are due to the absence of Snakeman and that alone.

[Ultra Mantis]

I was going to hold off on getting this for money / work reasons but now I'm teetering on the verge of pre-ordering the day before release. Somebody push me over the edge then I can hold you responsible.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Free Civ 5! 2 excellent games from the price of 1!

[Ultra Mantis]

Very good point Hollywood Hasney but I'm going to have to get this on console since the Steam demo almost made my shitty laptop explode into tiny fragments.

[The Destroyer]

Some twitchiness when aiming the rocket launcher and frag grenades aside, I am really enjoying this game. :y:

[Tommy Gunn]

Just played the demo on PS3, really WANT this game. Tempted to get a last minute online pre-order to get the Elite Soldier bonus stuff, whatever it is, but I may be too impatient and just go into town tomorrow and buy a copy.

[The Rogerer]

"Ironically, the PC controls are abysmal"

:lol:

Just bought it for PS3

[#BROKEN Hasney]

I've not had any M+KB issues at all yet, but my 360 controller is on hand just in case.

Last mission I did last night wiped out most of my non-rookie crew. Those thin men are bastards for poisoning. Once of them dropped in and had overwatch immediately. Thought I was safe running through the building to get a better vantage point... Was not expecting them to shoot through the skylight.

[Tommy Gunn]

Walked into GAME and bought it on PS3, the Elite Soldier Pack comes bundled inside anyway, unless GAME have special copies, I feel like pre-order incentives are a big bag of lies.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

The Steam Civ5 and TF2 gear weren't lies. They were pre-orders only.

I don't mind pre-order bonuses like that. They're not going to effect the game you're buying. I hate the ones with locked content in the product you're willing to hand money over for though.

[The Rogerer]

Beg for your hat, son

[Tommy Gunn]

The Steam Civ5 and TF2 gear weren't lies. They were pre-orders only.


Sorry, I should have said I meant for console pre-orders. If I had a good enough PC I'd be pretty excited to get free Civ 5 with it. :)

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Looked at the clock and it was 9pm. It locked up on the final mission and I'm glad it did because I was about to die and I would have reloaded. That was 1:30am.

They've just streamlined the game in the best ways from the original. Can't see anything else topping this as my GOTY. Going to start an ironman game after I finish.

[Ultra Mantis]

Love this. Named my troops after people I know and so far my girlfriend, best friend and former college lecturer have all died. Going to gloat that I outlived them all in the alien invasion and they will have no idea what I'm talking about. :love:

[Tommy Gunn]

Completed it last night, runs like dogshit on PS3 after the first few months in-game. Gonna wait for a patch before I try and tackle Classic mode.

[Ultra Mantis]

Tried Ironman Classic twice and it was game over by the time the terror mission showed up. Absolutely brutal, aliens wiped out the entire cast of Breaking Bad, Lost and Firefly.

Think I'm going to play Dark Souls for a while to reinflate my gaming ego.

[Ultra Mantis]

So I decided to give Ironman Classic another shot and finally managed to beat it. The start of the game is ridiculous, I managed to scrape through with the doom tracker one space from the end and I had most of the end game gear before I managed to get a squad of guys who werent just cannon fodder. Then I ended up being so cautious not to get any of them killed that I literally had a 15 minute fight with a sectopod. Obviously as soon as I managed to kill it another one showed up. It wouldn't be XCOM otherwise. Once you get some Snipers built up and kitted out it's pretty much a cakewalk to the end.

[Tommy Gunn]

Yeah on my 3rd playthough I got some snipers with the squad-sight perk and nailed those son'bitches to the wall, right to the goddamn wall!

I still need to beat Ironman Classic. I thought there was another DLC pack coming out but apparently it's been cancelled? Or they scrapped it and started a new DLC pack, I need to do some research for some concrete information. Slingshot was okay, nothing I'd miss though if I didn't have it.

[Ultra Mantis]

They're working on another DLC and flat out said theyre not doing anything similar to Slingshot and that they had listened to what the fans wanted put in and were responding accordingly. That lead to some speculation about an expansion pack adding a bunch of new tech, aliens and maps but nothings been revealed yet.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Yeah on my 3rd playthough I got some snipers with the squad-sight perk and nailed those son'bitches to the wall, right to the goddamn wall!

I still need to beat Ironman Classic. I thought there was another DLC pack coming out but apparently it's been cancelled? Or they scrapped it and started a new DLC pack, I need to do some research for some concrete information. Slingshot was okay, nothing I'd miss though if I didn't have it.

At the end of my last playthrough, I had jetpacks on my snipers and just flew them into the air and picked off every last motherfucker with them. It was glorious.

[Ultra Mantis]

Archangel Armour + Plasma Sniper Rifle + Improved Scope + Squadsight + Double Tap and you're pretty much unbeatable.

[Ultra Mantis]

That other XCOM is sounding a lot less terrible and looks a lot more better

From Destructoid (http://www.destructoid.com/xcom-declassified-is-still-a-strategy-game-at-heart-253451.phtml)

Following the huge success of last year's XCOM: Enemy Unknown comes The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, the latest entry to the now revitalized franchise. Developer 2K Marin is bringing us an origin story set at the start of the alien invasion upon Earth, and unlike past XCOM titles, this one is presented through a third-person view.

Don't let the perspective change fool you though. XCOM at its heart has always, and will always, be about strategy; going around acting like a wreckless soldier in The Bureau will get you killed pretty quickly. Strategy is crucial, and you need to play smart if you hope to save the United States of America from the threat of alien enslavement.

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified (PC [previewed], PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
Developer: 2K Marin
Publisher: 2K Games
Release: August 20, 2013

The Bureau is the never-before-told origin story of the XCOM organization. It was originally established to protect the US from foreign threats like the Soviet Union in the 1960s. But things quickly changed because of the alien invaders.

"One of the goals for the setting period is we're trying to get that juxtaposition of the America that we knew going into the '60s, leaving the idyllic '50s, and heading into a time of change," creative director Morgan Gray told us. "A lot of threat, the scare from the Soviet Union with their bombs pointed towards us, we're just past the Bay of Pigs, Vietnam lurks in the horizon. [We're] contrasting that known tension period of our history with the tension we never realized before, which is, aliens come in and attack and shake it all up."

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You play as Agent William Carter, and as Carter you'll be making a lot of choices. A lot of the game centers around your special underground headquarters, where you'll be deciding what missions to take on, managing your agents, and seeing how the war against the aliens is progressing. The HQ features a big map of America that displays numerous current known alien conflicts. The campaign structure is semi-nonlinear, as opposed to your typical level-cutscene-level flowchart, meaning you actually get to choose where to go. There are the operation missions that form the main narrative, optional side missions, and the Dispatch missions, which I'll get to in a bit.

Agent Carter is never on his own, as you'll always have a team of agents to back you up. These agents are fully upgradable, can specialize in different fields (engineer, sniper, etc.), and are fully customizable. Decide what kind of gear they'll have, what weapons they'll use, what skills they'll learn, even what clothing they'll wear. And they will actually die if you don't manage them properly in the field -- yes, there is permadeath, and the loss of someone is meant to be significant. Things will get pretty tough further into the game if you don't have properly leveled agents on your team.

You have a max number of eight agents at all times, two that can go with you on missions and the other six benched at home. You can swap out agents at certain checkpoints during missions, so long as they're at home base, of course. See, while you're on main missions you can send other agents on Dispatch missions, where they'll be taking care of alien threats and leveling up on their own. It's a lot like Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker's Outer Ops missions, except here micro-managing your soldiers will actually benefit you since they can come with you on outings.

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Thankfully there's an assortment of alien tech at your disposal to stand a chance against the aliens. You'll gain cool special abilities thanks to your upgradable and interchangeable backpacks. One grants a pulse wave attack that knocks back enemies, and another lets you lift up a specific enemy into the air for a few minutes -- that one in particular is good for taking out stronger soldiers. Other backpacks provide health increase, shielding, experience booster, damage output increase, and more.

Once familiarized with my team, I jump into the mission demo, which takes place somewhere in the middle of the story. The US is now mounting a counter offensive against the invading forces, and this mission saw my team and I needing to meetup with another XCOM member, Agent DaSilva. He was sent out on an operation himself, but contact was lost and you need to go find out what happened.

The mission takes place in New Mexico, and on your way via helicopter, you can see a giant alien tower in the distance that you need to enter with DaSilva's help. Also on your ride in, you also see humans infected with the Sleep Walker, which basically turns them into mindless drones that are stuck in a loop where they keep repeating the same patterns, like a scratched CD that won't stop skipping. The virus also allows the aliens to turn humans into sleeper agents whenever needed, making infected humans a threat.

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So who are the aliens exactly? They're called the Outsiders, humanoid-like aliens on a quest to conquer the galaxy. So far they've taken over quite a few alien races, like the Sectoids and Mutons from past XCOM games. Other races have been given slave collars wrapped around their necks, and they have no choice but to obey the Outsiders.

Once on the ground, it became immediately apparent how crucial using tactics was. Running straight into a conflict head-on will almost instantly cause you to bleed out, and you'll eventually die if not healed in time. You need to use cover and most of all Battle Focus to maneuver your team around like the master strategist you are.

Once you trigger Battle Focus, the action slows to a crawl and the camera can be moved around freely, allowing you to look at the entire combat area to decide what to do. From here you can decide where to move your men, tell them to flank positions, lure enemies from cover, determine who to attack, throw down mines, place laser turrets -- you have full control over what they'll do on the field.

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It's super easy using the Battle Focus commands. Each agent has a command wheel that pops up so you can easily choose what they'll do, then you just fly around the map and select what happens where. While the action is crawling, there's still some level of tension at play. Things are still happening, and you have to make decisions on the fly lest you or your teammates die. You also have some quick command actions tied to the D-pad so you can tell your teammates to move/attack a specific object or to regroup without having to jump into Battle Focus.

One of the bigger battles has a great mix of aliens. Outsiders are shooting back from a safe distance, supported by their own Commander that could summon in protective barriers. At the same time, the Sectoids are advancing the field, while the black goo creature that we've seen from the earlier versions of 2K Marin's XCOM are coming right at us like crazed attack dogs. To add icing to the cake, a Muton gets summoned in last before the battle was finally over, and it is in that calm I finally remembered to breathe.

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With The Bureau, you are right there in the heart of the battle with your men, as opposed to being this God-like figure that's removed from the battlefield. "We've taken a look at the XCOM franchise and we looked at what we consider the pillars of the franchise," Morgan stated, "which for us is team tactics, tools, technology, terror, tension -- there's a lot of Ts that all fall into that.

"Obviously looking at 1994's original XCOM, we wanted to find that translation of that game. How would that translate into something that would possibly bring a new audience into the XCOM family, let them experience XCOM in a way that fans have never seen it before, or new people who might be of the mind that they don't like turn-based games -- and they're wrong because turn-based games rock -- would finally go, 'Well that's something I'm into, I like the thought of using cover, I like having to make decisions on the fly as the bullets go'?

"So our goal was to go, what is that core of that XCOM experience, how does it translate into this new perspective? We wanted to move beyond the 'I have a God's eye view, I'm looking at my squad below, and I am personally removed from the damage' and now to 'I'm a coach, I'm on the field with my men.'"

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After a few encounters, my team and I meet up with DaSilva and things aren't looking good for him. His squad was wiped out and he's been infected with the Sleepwalker virus. There's a dialogue tree allowing you to grill him about what's happened, and eventually you'll come to a point where you have to make a decision. DaSilva offers himself up as a distraction against the Outsiders, which will in all likelihood get him killed, so you and the team can enter the alien base. You can either let him come along or send him back to HQ so the boys at home can research a cure for the Sleepwalker Virus.

There will be choices you have to make, some that will have immediate effects and others that will affect the storyline. In this case, I choose to send DaSilve back to HQ, thus finding a cure for the virus and saving infected humans.

Our hands-on time was short, but I didn't need long to tell that I really liked The Bureau. I love the mix of being right there in the action, and at the same time needing to be quick on my feet making decisions on the fly. There's a sense of urgency that you feel from having to make decisions while there's terror coming from you in every direction. There's stress, sure, but there's also instant gratification once you've won an encounter, and that's exactly what I enjoy when it comes to strategy games.

[Tommy Gunn]

It looks cool, I just hope it sells well and we get an Enemy Unknown sequel next year.

[Ultra Mantis]

I'm pretty sure Firaxis are already working on either a full sequel or a stand alone expansion campaign. Maybe even Terror from the Deep.

[Tommy Gunn]

Right on :y: