Who's preordering X-COM?

[QuantumPion]

I just played the first couple tutorial missions so far. Did not notice any mouse lag or flickering others are talking about. Liking it so far, can't wait to get some free time to play it more!

 

[irishScott]

I just played the first couple tutorial missions so far. Did not notice any mouse lag or flickering others are talking about. Liking it so far, can't wait to get some free time to play it more!

The "flickering" many are mentioning is more of a logical bug than anything. The game is smart enough to know when you want to see through a wall, and it makes said walls transparent. For the most part it's extremely fluid, but occasionally you'll have units on multiple levels of the same building that can still see each other, and it'll get confused on which walls you want to see through. The practical issue is in such a scenario is you might go to move unit around and might click on the wrong level, causing the unit to waste its moves or worse. I've found simply rotating the camera usually eliminates it though.

And I'm glad you like the tutorial. I guess it's a necessity but I couldn't stand it. Here I am supposed to be the commander of an organization and all that happened was a bunch of my supposed underlings ordering me around, and the game locking me in. I only got about an hour in before I said fuck it and started a fresh game without the tutorial. Much more satisfying. Of course, I'd already played the demo and watched mucho gameplay fotage so I had a decent idea of how things worked.

 

[Martimus]

Firaxis (thanks to Sid) is the King of turn-based games. No one comes close.

I always liked Stardock turn based games more, but that is because they are usually less gamey, and have a much more realistic AI that gives it more replayability. The Civ games always seem to make the AI opponents work to make you lose, rather than try to win themselves. That always broke the immersion for me.

 

[datalink7]

Here's what impresses me about the new XCOM: For a turn-based strategy game, it's -incredibly- satisfying in a raw, visceral kind of way. No other strategy game has made me literally sit on the edge of my seat and yell "FUCK YEAH" after shooting an enemy in the face.

When you've taken the visceral satisfaction of a first-person-shooter and managed to implement it in a top-down squad combat game, you know you've done something right.

Or the other way around, when you yell "YOU FUCKING IDIOT!" when your soldier misses a 95% to hit shot and the alien proceeds to wreck you.

 

[irishScott]

Or the other way around, when you yell "YOU FUCKING IDIOT!" when your soldier misses a 95% to hit shot and the alien proceeds to wreck you.

This. One of my Lieutenants missed a close range, 85% shot and died for it. My neighbors probably heard me.

 

[QuantumPion]

The "flickering" many are mentioning is more of a logical bug than anything. The game is smart enough to know when you want to see through a wall, and it makes said walls transparent. For the most part it's extremely fluid, but occasionally you'll have units on multiple levels of the same building that can still see each other, and it'll get confused on which walls you want to see through. The practical issue is in such a scenario is you might go to move unit around and might click on the wrong level, causing the unit to waste its moves or worse. I've found simply rotating the camera usually eliminates it though.

And I'm glad you like the tutorial. I guess it's a necessity but I couldn't stand it. Here I am supposed to be the commander of an organization and all that happened was a bunch of my supposed underlings ordering me around, and the game locking me in. I only got about an hour in before I said fuck it and started a fresh game without the tutorial. Much more satisfying. Of course, I'd already played the demo and watched mucho gameplay fotage so I had a decent idea of how things worked.

You know there is an option to skip the tutorial, right? I chose to play through it anyway. Yes it is very noobish, but that doesn't bother me at all. It is designed to let completely new players get into the game.

 

[PowerYoga]

stayed up much later than I thought I would to play. France left me (figures!) because I chose an abduct mission in some other area, and now I know UFO abductions affect the whole region rather than the country... the abduction was in germany and not france. Then Russia went into panic mode, and I lose my north america satellite and THEY go into panic mode because I forgot to deploy interceptors there.

Also extremely strapped for cash to build anything, but I had salvaged 5 light plasma rifles which are awesome in comparison to the stupid inaccurate laser rifles.

 

[mizzou]

Having alot of fun.. Oh, and don't name your soldiers after your real friends, it makes it much more sucky when they die.

 

[PowerYoga]

Is there a way to change/order the gender of your soldiers or is it all random? I have 20 big burly men and no women on my team other than the one in the tutorial mission. Seems a bit sexist...

 

[sigurros81]

Is there a way to change/order the gender of your soldiers or is it all random? I have 20 big burly men and no women on my team other than the one in the tutorial mission. Seems a bit sexist...

Don't kid yourself, women can't be in front line combat.

 

[Clinkster]

Is there a way to change/order the gender of your soldiers or is it all random? I have 20 big burly men and no women on my team other than the one in the tutorial mission. Seems a bit sexist...

Don't believe so, I wanted to change the gender for a few of my soldiers after my entire squad was completely comprised of women.

I coped.

 

[thespyder]

Don't believe so, I wanted to change the gender for a few of my soldiers after my entire squad was completely comprised of women.

I coped.

Your name wouldn't happen to be Charlie would it?

 

[Clinkster]

Your name wouldn't happen to be Charlie would it?

Sounds like an achievement.

Win a missions with all women ranking officers.

 

[sigurros81]

Sounds like an achievement.

Win a missions with all women ranking officers.

Impossible, they'd start arguing with each other before the mission even begins.

 

[irishScott]

You know there is an option to skip the tutorial, right? I chose to play through it anyway. Yes it is very noobish, but that doesn't bother me at all. It is designed to let completely new players get into the game.

Yeah, as I said in paragraph 2 I started a new game sans tutorial.

I have no issue with the concept of a tutorial, but IMO it should be less strict. You should be given "recommended" paths, the game mechanically locking you into a scripted one is just painful. But then again I guess it wouldn't be so painful to someone seeing XCOM for the first time.

 

[thespyder]

Impossible, they'd start arguing with each other before the mission even begins.

Not if their names were Kelly Garret, Kris Munroe, Jill Munroe, Sabrina Duncan, Tiffany Wells and Julie Rogers.

 

[irishScott]

Is there a way to change/order the gender of your soldiers or is it all random? I have 20 big burly men and no women on my team other than the one in the tutorial mission. Seems a bit sexist...

Heheh, my sniper is a hot all-American blonde Lieutenant (replaced some Egyptian fuckwad who couldn't hit shit) and is about the best US representative I could hope for on the team.

I've noticed that the game seems to favor male recruits, which makes sense considering the military nature of XCOM.

 

[irishScott]

Don't believe so, I wanted to change the gender for a few of my soldiers after my entire squad was completely comprised of women.

I coped.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazonian_Guard

 

[Dankk]

Oh, and don't name your soldiers after your real friends, it makes it much more sucky when they die.

Too late. Already have an entire squad named after my friends. Haven't lost any of them yet.

But when I do...

 

[Ganeedi]

What difficulty is everyone playing on? I was tempted to try Classic Ironman right off the bat, but sure glad i didnt. Classic difficulty and trying not to reload every two turns is still pretty rough. My first 5 missions or so had pretty severe losses.

And holy shit the first terror mission! Pretty awesome background sound effects.

Strangely enough, after 3 months i've only shot down 2 ufos... and raided one that was landed. Thought that was odd, as in the OG chasing UFOs was a huge part of the game.

 

[PowerYoga]

Playing the default difficulty, still got my ass handed to me in several missions. Sniping fsking thinman critted and killed one of my forward assault guys wearing carapace armor + microfiber vest, my heavy panicked and shot my medic, which caused my other medic to panic and run out into the open to get sniped by some sectoids.

sniper was cool as a cucumber off in the distance, too bad he can't hit jack shit. Yeah needless to say I reloaded.

 

[Dankk]

Normal difficulty here. I'm not big into strategy games, nor did I play any of the older XCOMs very extensively. So normal is still pretty challenging. Good thing I didn't pick classic difficulty, or else I'd probably be punching holes in the wall right now.

 

[Clinkster]

I went classic first, but my lack of Xcom experience coupled with it being hard as balls anyway prompted me to settle for normal ironman.

Only lost one guy in 15 missions...

 

[irishScott]

Just had a moment of sheer awesome. Was during the beginning of an abduction mission, I was taking it slow and moving from cover to cover, all my guys on overwatch every turn.

3 thin men walk straight into them, and are met with fire from 1 LMG, 2 Assault rifles and 2 snipers, at the same time. No misses. FUCK YEAH!

 

[sigurros81]

Just had a moment of sheer awesome. Was during the beginning of an abduction mission, I was taking it slow and moving from cover to cover, all my guys on overwatch every turn.

3 thin men walk straight into them, and are met with fire from 1 LMG, 2 Assault rifles and 2 snipers, at the same time. No misses. FUCK YEAH!

Simmer down there cowboy.