Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

X-COM

filfre.net

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

71–80 of 238 posts

Re: X-COM

#71

Post by eru »

user5994461 wrote: post #52
nottorp wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Xcom 2 is a disaster due to the arbitrary time (or turn, for the nitpickers) limits in all missions. If you don't rush via the shortest path or if you do the unthinkable and explore the map a bit you'll run out of time and die. And if you install a mod that removes the turn limits it becomes way too easy because it's balanced for rushing blindly ahead and it's like taking candy from a baby if you have time to scout a…

Chimera squad is the latest Xcom game. It's a bit simplified and you jump straight into position. It's nice to not have to spend 50 hours moving around but not everybody likes the change in gameplay. Do NOT buy it though, the game is buggy as fuck.

Yes. If you want to have a quicker tactics game that's a tiny bit like some aspects of X-Com, then 'Into the Breach' is probably a better use of your time than Chimera Squad.

Chimera Squad is an OK game, and good if you like the (rebooted) X-Com universe.

Re: X-COM

#72

Post by leoc »

mcbuilder wrote: post #10

My favorite game of all time is another one in the turn based tactical genre, Jagged Alliance 2. A game still under active fan development some 20+ years later with the excellent 1.13 mod.

For those who haven't played it: Jagged Alliance 2 is the missing link between X-COM, Fallout and the most childish scriptwriting you've ever experienced.

Re: X-COM

#73

Post by eru »

nottorp wrote: post #46
sgillen wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you mean Xcom2 or Chimera Squad?

Xcom 2 is a disaster due to the arbitrary time (or turn, for the nitpickers) limits in all missions. If you don't rush via the shortest path or if you do the unthinkable and explore the map a bit you'll run out of time and die. And if you install a mod that removes the turn limits it becomes way too easy because it's balanced for rushing blindly ahead and it's like taking candy from a baby if you have time to scout a…

War of the Chosen fleshed out the turn limit mechanics quite a bit and made them more palatable.

I understand why they added the turn limits, but I think the execution could have been handled better.

'Invisible Inc.' did a much better job of getting you to hurry up.

Another interesting take on the squad level tactical game is Into the Breach. They solve the design problem of getting you to hurry up, by inverting the game compared to X-Com: in Into the Breach the player squad has to hold out for 4 turns per mission and hold of the aliens.

Re: X-COM

#74

Post by eru »

rhn_mk1 wrote: post #62
eru wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can still catch enemies unaware. In fact, enemies in the reboots only become aware of you when you are within visible range of their pod (ie group). The pod system is at the heart of the reboots. High level play involves exploiting it to the hilt.

If I remember correctly, they gained awareness unconditionally, so they always or almost always had the opportunity to take the first shot.

See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLwSYej6R2k&list=PL_lgEqY9K6... for more than you ever wanted to know about the rebooted X-Com.

To get the beat on an alien pod, you need to use some kind of stealth-ing mechanic.

Otherwise, it's mostly about guessing where they are, and trapping them with overwatch.

Re: X-COM

#75

Post by nxpnsv »

pjmlp wrote: post #28

I loved this series all the way back to Rebelstar Raiders. Must have spent endless hours playing all Laser Squad versions on the Speccy and it was only natural to jump into X-COM. Although the ones that moved away from the Rebelstar Raiders/Laser Squad initial concept are not worthy to me.

My takeaway from the article is I got to get these running on an emu...

Re: X-COM

#76

Post by usrusr »

rhn_mk1 wrote: post #44
simonw wrote: post #18

One of my favourite things about XCOM was the destructible scenery. The isometric building design (on the procedurally generated maps) was superb, and you could blast holes in it to make your own routes through the map. Likewise the design of the larger UFOs themselves was so exciting - not to mention the variety of scenery a UFO might land in. It was so far ahead of its time in that regard.

One of the fatal flaws that made the reboot X-COM worse than the original was the inability to control the environment. Shots could no longer be aimed at scenery, and stray shots that hit the walls anyway proved that said walls were made out of cardboard. Even a pistol round could break an undamaged wall! This made hiding behind corners much less useful: if you're suddenly flanked, you have a great risk of losing you…

Destructible environment and the off-screen action in terror missions. You'd never be able to save them all (attacked civilians), but where your team did stumble into an instance of the aliens grinding through a bunch of still-alive civilians they made a difference far more palpable than any sequence of artfully scripted set-pieces could ever achieve.

Re: X-COM

#78

Post by twic »

eru wrote: post #55
kiksy wrote: post #35

A solid article. I'd disagree with the "single play through" and "pointless starting weapons" comments though. For me it was multiple play throughs learning about what worked and what didn't. This for me was actually a thing that kept me coming back. Trying out new tactics, base locations and equipment to see what worked. All the while trying to balance the budget and keep the squad alive long enough to level up. A t…

If you want to play the classic X-COM today, make sure to grab the latest community patches. I really liked the old X-COM games and had anticipated that I would not like the reboot very much. However, while I wouldn't want to miss the originals for the reboot, the reboots are done very solidly and in most instances I even find myself agreeing with the streamlining the new authors chose. If you want a tactical squad-l…

Frozen Synapse has a good soundtrack too!

Re: X-COM

#79

Post by jyrkesh »

kiksy wrote: post #35

A solid article. I'd disagree with the "single play through" and "pointless starting weapons" comments though. For me it was multiple play throughs learning about what worked and what didn't. This for me was actually a thing that kept me coming back. Trying out new tactics, base locations and equipment to see what worked. All the while trying to balance the budget and keep the squad alive long enough to level up. A t…

It's interesting to me that what you're describing has basically been codified into the game design of "rouge lites" like Enter the Gungeon, Binding of Isaac, and now Hades...bunch more, Mana Quest, Spelunky...it's a whole game mechanic now

Re: X-COM

#80

Post by isolli »

mcbuilder wrote: post #10

My favorite game of all time is another one in the turn based tactical genre, Jagged Alliance 2. A game still under active fan development some 20+ years later with the excellent 1.13 mod.

I never played the 1.13 mod (did not manage to make it work with my Steam install). But imagine: better AI, more refined movement points, multiplayer!

Maybe once my son is old enough I'll play with him (hopefully it will still be available in another 10 years).

Post reply on HN