UFO: Enemy Unknown, remake by Firaxis

ImperialGuard said:

After moving my "men" forward on their first move, I could not figure out how to turn them, to face another direction (to be facing the way I thought aliens might approach from). Not sure if this is possible, and if its necessary. I almost got the impression that the xcom units could see in any direction regardless of which way they were facing....not sure though

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Yes, I think it's automatic - and that's another minor gripe from me as well.

I don't think time units are all that good. They encourage tactics "come in, shoot and come out", nothing else. The same as it was in Fallout. From the demo "2 actions" system looks better. Not sure how it will come in full-featured game, though.

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If that's perceived as an issue, there are better ways of resolving it, I feel - higher cost to fire weapons (it's true that in the original game someone could stand still and get off 9 shots a turn if they wanted, which was certainly excessive), or simply prohibiting certain actions after you've fired (so, you could duck into adjacent cover but not stroll off across half the map, say). That retains the tactical flexibility of a system where how far you move, whether you kneel, the direction you face in etc. all have trade-offs in whether and how accurately you can fire/whether you can burst fire, whether you can equip, prime and throw a grenade in the same turn etc. The two-move in particular seems to strongly limit the tactics required to implement overwatch effectively, since move-overwatch will now be the default option whether or not you're well set-up for it just because there's nothing else to do with a spare time unit if you don't have any better cover to run to nearby. From vague recollection, turn-based mode in X-COM Apocalypse tried something more restrictive than UFO time units while retaining the same tactical flexibility.

I've played the demo a couple times now, and while I am still a bit hurt about the features that have been dropped, I did enjoy the experience. I got chills after completing the sample mission and they teased the UFO crash. I can't wait for the full release.

While I do intend to get both... I can't decide if I want the PC or XBOX version first. While I think the interface and interactivity of the PC version will be better (not to mention the eventual mods which may restore the original gameplay that I will miss), the XBOX might be better for me in my current situation. Still I do plan to get both and I am just looking forward to just getting the game. I see a lot of lost hours in my future.

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Played through the demo today. As a big fan of the original, I'm pretty pleased with this one, but only the full version will tell if it's replay value stacks up.

Good:

• Graphics were terrific.
• Gameplay true to the original.
• Soldier progressions.
• New options such as Run n Gun, Overwatch, etc.

Meh:

• A bit much on the cutscenes. Maybe this is a function of the demo - I hope it's not quite so much on the full game.
• I will miss the different shot types, but not as much as I thought I might, at least in the demo.
• Smaller operational area.

Despite a few Meh items, I've already preordered mine at my local Gamestop, so I'm just killing time until release day...

Wanted to ask people who played the demo:

I noticed when the demo ran, it referenced that it was running with DX9.

When I play Civ I can run it with DX11.

Not sure if this is just a demo thing, and the full version will support DX11.


Anyone see if there demo was running DX11?

thanks - just curious

ERLoft said:

Played through the demo today. As a big fan of the original, I'm pretty pleased with this one, but only the full version will tell if it's replay value stacks up.

Good:

• Graphics were terrific.
• Gameplay true to the original.
• Soldier progressions.
• New options such as Run n Gun, Overwatch, etc.

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Nitpick: Overwatch isn't a new option, it's just what used to be called opportunity fire (from way back in Laser Squad days, the original design team's pre-UFO version of UFO), except that you now have to actively trigger it and it will only be used once per turn. No more calculating whether to stay still in the hopes of getting multiple shots at opportunity fire.

On a similar basis, 'Run n Gun' is simply a way of enacting in a time unit-less system something that could have been used by anyone in the previous game - and in this case restricting it to a specific class.

Meh:

• A bit much on the cutscenes. Maybe this is a function of the demo - I hope it's not quite so much on the full game.

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• 
  
  It seems clear that there's too much scripting in it to be used on more than a few occasions during gameplay, and it's not nearly as evident in the designers' videos of actual gameplay.
  
  

  Despite a few Meh items, I've already preordered mine at my local Gamestop, so I'm just killing time until release day...

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  I'm not the sort of player who dislikes one game for the perverse reason that a different game is perceived to be better - after all, how many people play only one game, or only one game of the same general type? But I'd practically never pay $50 for a game (at least in a single release) and there's nothing to appeal in the pre-order deals. It plays quite a lot like UFO; it plays a lot more like Dawn of War II; but I already have both and didn't pay that much for either, so I'll still wait on the inevitable sale.

I guess everyone, who's worried about the linearity and the cut scenes in the demo, might be pleased to hear that this is only in the demo, according to RockPaperShotgun (Article: Some Things You Should Know About The XCOM Demo).

The_J said:

I guess everyone, who's worried about the linearity and the cut scenes in the demo, might be pleased to hear that this is only in the demo, according to RockPaperShotgun (Article: Some Things You Should Know About The XCOM Demo).

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That mostly matches my impressions of the demo's shortcomings having watched the preview as well as played the demo - it's very disappointing to learn that the two-click-to-fire interface is a non-disableable part of the main game, but hopefully that can be patched.

I'm still not a fan of the 'alien gear automatically breaks when they die' element, although with no inventory system I suppose soldiers wouldn't be able to grab and use alien gear anyway. Capturing live aliens was fundamental for story reasons (and particularly to learn psionics) in the first game as it was. On the other hand, an incentive to have more live aliens is good - once stun launchers appeared in the first game, I rapidly ended up with more live aliens than I had a use for.

There's a video of 2K/Firaxis people playing XCOM for an hour (the video is month old, but still good). They completed 2 missions and they don't have any linearity. Anyone in doubt - you could check.

It was fun when player find 3 sectoids and positioned soldiers to get them... just to find 3 mutons behind their backs the next turn.

PhilBowles said:

I'm still not a fan of the 'alien gear automatically breaks when they die' element, although with no inventory system I suppose soldiers wouldn't be able to grab and use alien gear anyway. Capturing live aliens was fundamental for story reasons (and particularly to learn psionics) in the first game as it was. On the other hand, an incentive to have more live aliens is good - once stun launchers appeared in the first game, I rapidly ended up with more live aliens than I had a use for.

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I believe I saw enemy weapon intact in the demo. Looks like what capturing live aliens (they stunned one) allows getting their weapons as well. But only in the end of the mission.

Played the demo.

It seems ok but I really miss having an inventory and the flexibility of TUs over set actions.

The other thing I think I'll miss is the organic development of your units. Shoehorning them in to set classes is ok but feels a bit to restrictive to me.

Ultimately the demo is to narrowly scripted and short to get a real idea about how good the final game will be. I'll wait for some reviews and a few LPs from people who I trust before I commit. I'll probably wait for a sale to as ATM is £32 on Amazon and £30 on Steam.

What is that crap about getting a copy of civ V if enough preorders? I would not want to be a part of giving out that lousy game to people. It is enough that they have produced a bad game; no need to encourage people to play it too.

TowerWizard said:

What is that crap about getting a copy of civ V if enough preorders? I would not want to be a part of giving out that lousy game to people. It is enough that they have produced a bad game; no need to encourage people to play it too.

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Oh look , Civilization V complaining. My eyes need to read more of it, it's super novel and interesting.

I assume that this is going to be another Steam-exclusive then?

Rub'Rum said:

Oh look , Civilization V complaining. My eyes need to read more of it, it's super novel and interesting.

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That's what the ignore list is for. You won't even notice him gone.

It's been unlocked. Civ V free copies available to all pre-orders, or you can gift them if you already have it.

Arakhor said:

I assume that this is going to be another Steam-exclusive then?

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Yep. Unless you want a console version.

stealth_nsk said:

Yep. Unless you want a console version.

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To be honest, the Steam demo felt very console-like.

I'll wait for reviews then and see if they're as "mixed" as Civ V was.

Arakhor said:

I'll wait for reviews then and see if they're as "mixed" as Civ V was.

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Apparently there's a Firaxis "let's play" somewhere online.

Civ 1-3 was absolutely mindblowing games for me, then 4 came and I felt a dull feeling playing that game. Then 5 came out and that dullness turned into even worse, dullness is a fine word to use for that game, YAWN comes into mind when playing. I still play, but it's not anywhere of the excitement as from the earlier games.

They did a remake of Colonization and completely killed it. Original Col was a wonderful game and I played it over and over again. The remake? I finished one game and didn't look back.

Now UFO, in how many ways will they mess up this great title? I played the UFO-series too much as well and can't see this new launch succeed, with the record of destroying good old games.

2 of my all time favs been "nearly" destroyed already and here comes the third, can I even hope they will do something good this time?

gozpel said:

Civ 1-3 was absolutely mindblowing games for me, then 4 came and I felt a dull feeling playing that game. Then 5 came out and that dullness turned into even worse, dullness is a fine word to use for that game, YAWN comes into mind when playing. I still play, but it's not anywhere of the excitement as from the earlier games.

They did a remake of Colonization and completely killed it. Original Col was a wonderful game and I played it over and over again. The remake? I finished one game and didn't look back.

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Never got Civ IV Colonization, but I did pick up the original on Good Old Games - I remember playing it ceaselessly when it first came out.