UFO:Afterlight(Now Released)

[Mem]

More info on the demo and different download link.

The release date of UFO: Afterlight is coming up fast and the day has come when we let you smell the martian air for the first time. You can get to know the Afterlight team in the today revealed Public Demo.

The demo allows you to test all features of the final game for whole 10 game days. You will be able to go through all options in the strategic part and experience tactical action in approximately 5 randomly generated missions.

.

Click on" Public Demo "part. ,Note : Download has users cap limit so you might not be able to download it straight away, you can always try FishTaco's link or this one.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: lozina

Originally posted by: apoppin
how were the earlier 2 games in the series? ... i see they are below bargain bin prices

worth playing?

. . . and i am no longer worrying about StarFarce/SecureCrap ... all these "infected" games and programs will end up 'together' --on a separate HD.

AFAIK, it does not matter what HD you install them on because starforce messes with your operating system. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/StarForce

actually it DOES matter

having StarFarce on one HD and not the other is like having it on one computer and not the other

an OS is installed on each HD ... all the malware can play together on ONE HD

sorry for the 'interruption'

 

[Schadenfroh]

Originally posted by: apoppin

Originally posted by: lozina

Originally posted by: apoppin
how were the earlier 2 games in the series? ... i see they are below bargain bin prices

worth playing?

. . . and i am no longer worrying about StarFarce/SecureCrap ... all these "infected" games and programs will end up 'together' --on a separate HD.

AFAIK, it does not matter what HD you install them on because starforce messes with your operating system. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/StarForce

actually it DOES matter

having StarFarce on one HD and not the other is like having it on one computer and not the other

an OS is installed on each HD ... all the malware can play together on ONE HD

sorry for the 'interruption'

It is getting to that point, they must really want us all to switch to the xbox 360.

 

[pontifex]

i just played the demo, and i hated it. i never played any of the other UFO games but this one is horrible.

 

[ROTC1983]

Originally posted by: Schadenfroh

Originally posted by: ROTC1983
So happy that they ditched Starforce...friggin evil program.

But StarForce prevents pirating and helps keep legitimate users honest, it is like mana from heaven for the publishers and the consumer will never notice that it is there like a watchful mother ever vigilant so that one cannot be corrupted.

You make me want to buy it...

 

[imported_FishTaco]

I tried the demo, doesn't really feel like x-com.

 

[Mem]

New review@[url="http://www.strategyinformer.com/pc/ufoafterlight/review.html"]Strategyinformer[/url].

So to my original question ? is UFO: Afterlight as good as UFO: Enemy Unknown? The answer to that question is probably no because it doesn?t have that feeling of eeriness and suspense that had you looking over your shoulder while playing the game late at night. But that said, UFO: Afterlight is a great game that you?ll find yourself unable to step away from because you have to research one thing more, or expand to one more territory. It?s certainly an enjoyable game that any fan of the original will not find a disappointment.

.

 

[TheRyuu]

Well, if no Starforce...normally means it's probably gonna be SecuRom.

But thats not a big deal though (at least I think so).

 

[CP5670]

It's a bit worse than Starforce IMO. Starforce is at least easy to remove.

 

[Mem]

Btw I read the demo works fine in Vista if you select WinXP SP2 compatibility mode.

 

[Mem]

Another review dated 21st JAN from Jolt,link. .

Overall UFO: Afterlight provides a very worthwhile time investment as the reward you reap is a deep and intriguing strategy game with the kind of RPG elements that add a less geeky feel to it - a surprise hit with us.

.

 

[BladeVenom]

UFO Extraterrestrials is also suppose to come out this month.

 

[Mem]

My pre-order of UFO-Afterlight has been dispatched today.


New review can be found here at Eurogamer .

In terms of scope and replayability, Afterlight is up there with the likes of Total War. Decisions made in one area reverberate in countless others. Though a plot does stick its oar in occasionally, you're basically free to expand as you see fit and forge alliances with whomever you choose (oh yes, there's diplomacy too).

 

[Schadenfroh]

Originally posted by: wizboy11
Well, if no Starforce...normally means it's probably gonna be SecuRom.
But thats not a big deal though (at least I think so).

Please see my RootKit and DRM Thread for information regarding SecuROM and Starforce.

 

[Mem]

I received my UFO-Afterlight this morning,running the game in Vista x64 requires you to use XP SP2 compatibility mode or it will not run.

The manual is basic but there is a basic tutorial guide in the game.

I have had no crashes when running in XP SP2 mode,sound and music is fine,as to the game you can put scientist into training straight away, there are different options for training too ,the game has a lot of different things you can do from research,training ,missions,mining ,production and new buildings to name a few.


Graphics are nothing special but ok and adequate for the game.

Too early to give any real feedback on the game since this game will require quite a few playing hours to get into the gameplay and storyline.

 

[lozina]

Did you take the day off?

I'll probably order it as soon as it shows up on gogamer 48 hour madness

 

[Mem]

Originally posted by: lozina

Did you take the day off?

I'll probably order it as soon as it shows up on gogamer 48 hour madness

Got the day off,btw it comes as one DVD and you have lot of different options for resolutions etc.. including HDR.

I'm using 1680x1050 ws mode.

 

[ShotgunSteven]

What kind of gameplay is it compared to something like Galactic Civilizations II: Dread Lords?

 

[Mem]

Originally posted by: ShotgunSteven
What kind of gameplay is it compared to something like Galactic Civilizations II: Dread Lords?

It is in real time(3 different speed settings) but you can pause the game any time for new orders etc the game auto pauses if an alien is spotted and you can give new orders if needed .


The research section you are free to choose the subject you research in,same goes for production,as for the soldiers ,you can choose what weapons each one uses etc...

 

[lozina]

Originally posted by: ShotgunSteven
What kind of gameplay is it compared to something like Galactic Civilizations II: Dread Lords?

Gal Civ is a strategy game on an empire scale. You develop and expand an empire consisting of colonies and fleets of ships.

UFO is a tactical game on a world scale. You develop bases on a planet and hire/train your soldiers in an almost RPG fashion, then command those soldiers individually in combat. You research and manufacture better equipment for them etc.

 

[lozina]

Originally posted by: Mem

Got the day off,btw it comes as one DVD and you have lot of different options for resolutions etc.. including HDR.

I'm using 1680x1050 ws mode.

Gotten a chance to play the game more? Any new opinions/experiences you'd like to share for us?

 

[Mem]

Originally posted by: lozina

Originally posted by: Mem

Got the day off,btw it comes as one DVD and you have lot of different options for resolutions etc.. including HDR.

I'm using 1680x1050 ws mode.

Gotten a chance to play the game more? Any new opinions/experiences you'd like to share for us?

Sorry for late reply ,but I have been playing Afterlight anyway I have left HDR off for now and set shaders to very high quality and anisotropic filtering to 100% in options of the game ,plays fine with these settings and game is 100% stable on my Vista x64.


I have 3 soldiers being trained as snipers at the moment and one soldier is also a scientist,so you do have some muliti-class characters.


You have one main base which you can expand and also add interior stations depending on what has been researched and what resources you have.As you conquer or explore new areas you get new mines like fuel,chemical,crystal,metal mines etc...these are needed to make certain types of equipment.You can also add radar to these areas which are good for early warning of attacks.

I have about 26 areas under my control and without spoiling the game you can make alliances or break them with other factions,there is a diplomacy section in the game .
I have not really touched on main story yet, being I'm too busy researching and expanding.
I hated the auto camera mode and set it to free camera look,too bad you have to keep doing this for every mission.

There are a lot of research fields and also training options for your characters(soldiers,scientist,technicians) too.
I like the game and it was worth the £17.99 I paid ,so far it does seem to be the best of the 3 UFO- After series that have been made.

 

[lozina]

Thanks for the update

Wow sounds great! Are there hard caps on how many skills soldiers can learn? I remember I gimped alot of my soldiers in the previous UFO game by giving guys 3 level 1 skills like Sniper, Trooper, whatever and then realizing late rI couldn't advance those skills anymore because of some limit. I was pretty bummed out about that

It sounds almost as if you are making a choice to stay out of the main story line for now. So its not like the previous UFO where there is this set time limit before some race arrives and you have to rush to complete things in time?

 

[Mem]

Originally posted by: lozina
Thanks for the update

Wow sounds great! Are there hard caps on how many skills soldiers can learn? I remember I gimped alot of my soldiers in the previous UFO game by giving guys 3 level 1 skills like Sniper, Trooper, whatever and then realizing late rI couldn't advance those skills anymore because of some limit. I was pretty bummed out about that

It sounds almost as if you are making a choice to stay out of the main story line for now. So its not like the previous UFO where there is this set time limit before some race arrives and you have to rush to complete things in time?

I think story has to do with some of the key research items,I could be wrong but only time will tell,I have not capped out level wise on any of my soldiers yet,guess only way to find out is to play and finish the game.Btw I got two snipers now to minor sniper skill level,working on major sniper level now for them.

This game seems to be bit more user friendly then previous games ,even with all the added features, yes it does take bit of time to learn the new features/changes etc.... but after that very easy to play.

 

[lozina]

OK so gogamer had this game in 48 hour madness sale early this month so I bought it and have been playing it over the weekend.

It is very addictive, caused me to skip a few things on my TODO list over the weekend...

I like the interface, just a few awkward things like the screen for composing weapons is a bit confusing, and it is odd that you must click the picture of the item - not the box surrounding it - to select it in the production screen.

I really like how the skills system works now. I can train my guys with alot more stuff than in Aftershock which was extremely limited (only 3 skills not counting advancing their level).

Getting suit damaged seems to be kind of unecessary- having a guy equiped with the equipment to repair the suit is a total waste of a squad mate and you could just use your medic anyway to keep the guy ok until the end of mission.

I really don't like the view distance, my guys only notice enemies in broad daylight when they come within 30 feet of them. It makes long range weapons useless unless you have someone running around scouting.

I really enjoy the technical/science part of the game - the way you could give them skills and the way they are used for building improvements in the regions.

Right now I got some of my guys carrying the projectile shotguns and heavy armor. They are my favorite now they can really clean up the map. Just last night I had one of them round a corner to stumble upon 4 reticulans, he shot them all down with snapshot before they could fire a single shot

Before this I used to love using a really fast guy to just beeline around the map planting mines and dynamite- that was loads of fun too

I just got sniper training available but cannot build a rifle yet - need one more metal mine. I hear though that sniper is pretty weak until you are able to build scopes and learn the precise shot skill