The sci-fi turn-based strategy and squad-based tactical game XCOM: Enemy Unknown is now available for digital download pre-orders. People who pre-order get access to a bonus add-on called “Elite Soldier Pack” that lets you customize the soldiers’ armor further, add helmets and special haircuts. From what I could understand by watching XCOM presentations at PAX the standard customization options are still available in the final game no matter if you pre-order or not. But, some armor outfits, helmets and the special haircuts, are only available to people who pre-order. Therefore, this is a cosmetic add-on most of all.
You can pre-order digitally from GamersGate, GreenManGaming, Gamestop/Impulse, Amazon or Steam. Steam is offering additional incentives on-top of the Elite Soldier Pack but only if certain sales objectives are met. If you want to pre-order retail/box you can do so here.
Together with the digital pre-orders announcement 2K also released the official system requirements:
Minimum Requirements:
OS: Windows Vista
Software: Steam Client
Processor: 2 GHz Dual Core
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Hard Drive: 20 GB free
Video Memory: 256 MB
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GT / ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT or greater
Sound Card: DirectX CompatibleRecommended Requirements:
OS: Windows 7
Processor: 2 GHz Dual Core (Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz or Athlon X2 2.7 GHz)
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Hard Drive: 20 GB free
Video Memory: 512+ MB
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 9000 series / ATI Radeon HD 3000 series or greater
Sound Card: DirectX Compatible
XCOM: Enemy Unknown is looking good, very good actually, and this said by an X-COM: UFO Defense and X-COM: Terror from the Deep fanatic. But to say 1 month from release that this is a must, even for strategy fans, and that you should buy now is too much to risk. So, our suggestion to people is to always play it on the safe side if you’re unsure about spending your hard earned money. The best is to always wait for the reviews. I’ll be reviewing this one and publish the outcome 1 week or so after release, which will be between Oct 9 2012 and Oct 12 2012 depending on where you live and if you buy box or digital.
Now, here’s the latest video (from today). A gameplay footage narrated by Jake Solomon, XCOM:EU lead designer. Great video, as always, and one you really won’t want to miss!
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Actually, I have already ordered this game – one reason why have broken my own rule of never buy until the reviews are in, is FIRAXIS. Civ 5 was playable when it came out but had need of a lot of fine tuning. This they did and still do.
I trust FIRAXIS to stand by their product, listen to their customers and patch, adjust, enhance accordingly.
I happily plunck down my dollars because I just know that even if there are bugs, play balances, etc., FIRAXIS will hang around and fix them, tune them, and even enhance them
Yea, I know what you mean. Even if things are shaky in the beginning we can trust that they will pull it together in the end. It’s like a long term investment safe bet. Although regarding Civ 5 I think they could have done a better job. Civ5:G&K however is a great update, although the tricky part is that we needed to pay for it to finally get all the right balancing. But, yes, old Sid doesn’t usually disappoints, at least not on the long run.
I have to agree about what happened to Civ V and G&K. I wouldnt think twice of purchasing the expansion however it feels quite unfair that religion and espionage were stripped off vanilla civ v when it should have been included in the first place since the previous civ game already had it.
I am worried about old games being revived nowadays. I mean I am still scared about something like Master of Orion 3 or Duke Nukem Forever
Everything points to a really kick-ass game here. They’ve had 3-4 years to work on it and I think the polish shows. The tactical side is wowing ’em but I think a lot of people are going to be surprised when they try to take on the strategic side…the game has depth and a lot of thought has gone into it.
What, you mean you haven’t pre-ordered already ? You mad ? :P
:)
Quite frankly I don’t know why people pre-order games these days. I can understand that pre-ordering games like XCOM developed by companies like Firaxis are less risky, and that if there are discounts or early beta access perks involved it can be attractive to pre-order. But that’s not the case here. The game costs the same if you pre-order or not and it will be available in the same day also.
So, why not just wait for the release and for a couple of reviews to come out? It can’t be because of the Soldiers Elite Pack or whatever the name is. And it’s not like the game will be out of stock either since the game is available for digital download.
If I understand correctly pre-orders were used in the past to assure that you could get a game copy of a most anticipated game so that you don’t end up suffering from stock rupture. But with the advent of digital download games that doesn’t make sense anymore. So, why do people pre-order games? It’s really just the impulse thing?
People love to talk about consumer rights and the need to protect customers from faulty products. I hope that people understand that the only way to reduce risk of getting bad surprises is to wait for the game to be released and read a couple of reviews before buying. Those will be informed buys. Customers will be more protected and companies will think twice about putting faulty products on the market.
I’ll admit that I got badly burned of Dragon Age 2 (OMG WHY) and SOTS 2 (although they’re still working on it so it will get finished one day).
But if Firaxis fails me I’ll probably turn in my gamer’s badge.
Pre-ordering games nowadays are pretty risky. The only thing I pre-ordered was Assassins Creed 3 for their exclusive editions since I have the Black edition of AC 2, Codex Edition of AC brotherhood, and Animus edition of AC revelations and the exclusive editions are only up for pre-orders only for a limited time and I would hate to buy an overpriced one off ebay like the Collectors edition of Diablo 3 and Starcraft 2
Most PC games released nowadays are unplayable on release and requires months or years to get to the level where it was supposed to be on release date. Much worst if the devs would totally abandon it or release an expansion where you have to pay in order to get the balance that were supposed to be fixed in the vanilla game.
Would have pre-ordered, but for us germans it’s 50€, instead of, let’s say the very good 22,5 GBP from GMG. I’d really like to play that game, it looks great.
Well, now I’m gonna wait for a sale in a few months.
Amazon.de is having these requirements now for a while, but still they have no phrase like “internet connectivity required” or “approval of steam whatever license is required”. I wanted to ask the publisher if they use some DRM but there was no real german page with clear contact offerings.
So, a game having or not DRM is taboo these days. We know that digital download copies are all Steam, right? But, we don’t know if the box copies also require Steam? Firaxis and 2K seem to favor Steam if you look at what they did with Civ5 so my hunch is that all XCOM copies will require Steam. But, how can we confirm this?
Probably it’s not a taboo, it’s more like a “nothing to talk about as it is quite standard”. I think i will preorder the special edition and simply send it back if it requires steam. The only one who might loose something is Amazon.
Well, copy and paste from the article above:
Minimum Requirements:
OS: Windows Vista
Software: Steam Client
Processor: 2 GHz Dual Core
…
Right … was always there under our noses.
yep, how blind can people be ;)
Thanks for pointing out this.
I buy games off gamersgate or Steam and usually even games from gamersgate like Civ 5 and Xcom needs steam to be activated.
As for the information on DRMs it is important to double check a PC game’s DRM nowadays especially with Ubisoft titles. DRMs that require you to connect to the internet could be alright if you are staying at home but it is a pain if you are away on holidays, staying at college or you have a limited internet connection (unlimited internet plans are offered only by a couple of providers here in Australia and I know a friend of mine who only has a 5GB internet per month and that is shared with her whole family).
With companies like Ubisoft and Blizzard’s shift in making Diablo 3 and Starcraft 2 require constant internet connection is a pain and I hate to be treated like a thief when I payed for the product while the pirates enjoy a DRM free version.
Hmmm – what I am seeing here in the comments is interesting. Not to teach follow forum participants to suck eggs but it seems we have become a wary, nah, cynical lot.
So advertising hype and the need for more and more of the same is no longer what we desire? I think this is probably a betrayal of the trust or gullibility we once had when we took the developers/manufacturers word for things – but this attitude is not just in gaming of course – it is pervasive in most material things and too companies and political parties to boot. The Ubisofts, EA’s and Apple’s of this world represent unrestrained control over a product to the extend that you no longer own anything but are granted permission to use a product provided you meet increasingly tougher restrictions of use. In one way this was in response to pirating (which we where conditioned to believe was endemic) , in another it is another way of squeezing more money because of the Corporate desire to meet shareholder returns and have annual increasing profits.
I would like to think there are still developers, companies (and politicians) out there who continue to meet the public demand and give more, not less , than what we expect.
Indeed Ubisoft has announced a step back from total DRM (perhaps because of a big drop in potential sales – perhaps they actually listened finally. I will not buy MMO’s like Diablo 3 despite the reviews of the game – and I guess (sigh) this is the death nell of the next Simcity as well. Maxis better rapidly change their stance or they may find all those years in development for this game will show as a fatal red on their accounting books
I’ve been playing UFO: Afterlight and think it’s great. A very unique combination of base-building, human resource management, RPG elements, and a real-time combat system that almost feels turn-based. I’d heard that this game is an XCOM clone, but I wouldn’t know as I’ve never played any of the XCOM series I would say though that if this latest XCOM game from Sid Meier’s company is anything like UFO: Afterlight, then we are indeed in for a real treat. :o)
The whole UFO:Aftermath, Aftershock (bugs and all) and Afterlight series is full of win. I still love Aftermath the most because it was so insanely hard and fun
Hey Adam Solo. I am not sure if it was the same Xcom or if I recall correctly. I have read from an Xbox magazine last year or sometime early this year about an Xcom that is an FPS. Was this the same Xcom and they just sticked close to the original and scrapped the FPS or was that a different Xcom?
This one is surely something like the original one right? I just want to confirm this because this is on my “to buy or not to buy” as of the moment
X-com is a first person shoother from 2k marine. It is releasing for pc/Ps3 and 360. It is described as a strategic and tactical shooter set in the “realm” of X-com universe. To speak for myslef, i dont have very high hopes on this game for a number of reasons.
1. Its FPS ( im a strategy kind of player )
2. Releases for Ps3 and 360 seems to “dumb” down alot of functions for pc users.
3. They have take some “dev” liberties to fit the game to more FPS friendly gameplay.
But by all means, whats off for me might be on for others :) So i dont want to warn anybody to stay away, go check it out. If you like FPS and X-COM ( rare combo ) then this game might be perfect for you.
X-com: Enemy unknown is a game released by Firaxis. This is also released on all “big” platforms. But this game is a reimagination of the classic x-com. So it will try and stay faithfull to the original game. There will offcourse be a few differences, but from what i seen so far its not a gamebreaking difference. Have high hopes for this one for several reasons.
1.Huge X-com fan ( Original/From the Deep/Afterlight )
2. Its a “remake” of original
3. Firaxis. ( I trust they will iron out any big flaws eventually )
4. Turnbased ( No big need to “dumb” down controls compared to a FPS )
5. ITS X-COM.. Need i say more..Lol.
Thanks for the clarification and if it is released on major consoles, I am crossing my fingers for a vita release. Heck it would be great to take it on the go.
Well I am a strategy and RPG person and the thing is that I wanted to clarify if this was a remake or something else. I tried to like the original but it was too much for me. It was both too brutal and the UI is killing me.
And this game moves on top of Borderlands 2 on my priority list. If preorders reach a certain level, Steam would give out a copy of Civ V along with your purchase, maybe I should pre-order this ASAP and give Civ V to a friend of mine so we could be Civ buddies.
XCOM-EU uses DirectX9, but requires Vista or Win 7 to run. Hmm… I thought the main reasons to upgrade to Vista or Win 7 was DirectX 10 or 11. Silly me!
I’ll keep my Win XP until my MB or HD dies, then upgrade. You can improve XCOM-EU in the interim, and I’ll buy the game at a discount in a year hence.
Thanks (in advance) for all your work!
You’re welcome Jeff.
I’m also very resistant to switching operating systems but I’m 100% happy with Win7. It’s like having XP and Vista best features combined, namely speed, robustness and looks. Moreover I didn’t have a single crash in Win7, and I already used it in two different machines, both the 32bits and 64bits versions. Go ahead and take the plunge. It will take you a day between backups and SW re-installs but it’s worth it.
About the DirectX and OS requirements it’s not clear to me if the game will support XP or not. Steam DirectX 9.0 requirement is not listed in the official 2K system reqs (the ones I have above). I couldn’t find any satisfactory answer to if XP will be supported yet. I guess it will “run” although probably not officially supported (in the sense of fully tested, optimal experience, etc) but don’t quote me on that :)
I doubt you’ll wait for the discount If the game gets >9 scores ;) Unless you’re not a fan and then you could wait of course.
Jeff, there are a lot of people running Windows 7 that have video cards that are only DirectX 9. Also, perhaps XCOM: Enemy Unknown does what Civ 5 does, and lets you choose between DirectX 9 or DirectX 10/11.
One of the very few “big” titles left for me to purchase this year. After seeing all the footage they’ve shown so far, I’m very optimistic about this one.
Adam makes a good point though, the pre-order bonuses aren’t anything fantastic. Unless I get a good sale price that entices me to pre-order, I’m not risking anything I’m concerned about by waiting. I’ll have plenty of other games to play by the week it comes out.
My gut feeling is that coming from Sid Meier and Firaxis, this one is probably a pretty safe bet. Discretion being the better part of valor though, I will wait a week or two for the reviews and the general ‘buzz’. After all, I was sensing a pretty good pre-release buzz for Endless Space and ended up hating it.
On the negative side, one strike against Enemy Unknown is the Earth soldiers that look like Tychus Findlay and the dreadful Starcraft 2 ilk; big-booted soldiers shouting ‘Freeze!’ at the top of their lungs and shooting anything that moves. In the immortal words of Doctor Who, “guns and bombs aren’t the answer to everything”. Of course, I guess if there were no wars then there would be no games. ;o)
Reviews should only come out in 4 to 5 weeks since the game only releases on the 9th of October.
I also have some reserves about the art style, which looks a bit too cartoony to me. But, comparing that with the original graphics it’s still a great leap in quality. Moreover, as someone said, it looks like all units drag themselves a bit like animals (gorillas and such). Will all that be believable and immersive?
Sometimes more graphical detail is better other times is worse. I can’t say not to miss the days where we needed to fill the gaps with our own imagination. Well, I’m rambling, let’s wait and see. Only then we’ll know. Gameplay videos are nice but nothing replaces the feeling of actually playing the thing.
But there seems to be more than guns and bombs. There’s the psionic powers (psychic powers). Heck, you can’t negotiate with Aliens that are just interested in taking us down right? With no war you could still have an alien invasion game but probably not a tactical one but more RPGish/Adventure perhaps.
Adam, I pre-ordered XCOM: Enemy Unknown when Amazon was selling pre-orders of the Deluxe edition for only $49.99. So I saved $10. This is the first game I’ve pre-ordered since Kingdoms of Amalur (wish I hadn’t done that), and it was because I got the $10 savings and it’s from Firaxis, who I trust.
Well, I guess I should consider all those Kickstarter projects I’ve backed to be pre-orders, LOL! :) I’m still looking forward to Xenonauts, too.
BTW, this newest XCOM video is AWESOME! :)
I was not aware of a Deluxe edition. What does it offer on top of the standard version? You say you saved $10 and paid $49.99. $49.99 is the pre-order standard price.
Yea, kickstarter backing also counts ;) But it’s a bit different. With kickstarter you’re supporting a project you believe in while when you pre-order you’re looking for perks on games from respectable companies, although in these digital download days that counts for too little in my opinion.
If the people wouldn’t be so fond the more exclusive rewards, they would only take “get the game” reward and ignore the more expensive (and often silly) ones. But for that there are too many bargain hunters.
And personally i share Gary’s view of kickstarter backing are more of preorders. With computer games this is less obvious, but if you think of physical things like board games, you will possibly regard this as preorders as it is hard for the “seller” to make more profit of your pre-order as he can sell the game only once. I am the principal and the other the contractor. I order him too deliver me one unit, paid in advance.
If you want to decouple the funding from the pre-ordering, i think projects should offer monetary rewards so it really becomes an investor-venture relationship. For investing money into a risky project the simple product is not rewarding enough. I am still waiting for some fails..
While I agree that preorders and crowdsource funding both share the paid-in-advance scheme to get goods, in this case games, I think the similarities really end there.
With crowdsource, games need your investment to eventually see the daylight.
With pre-orders, games don’t need your investment to eventually see the daylight.
Kickstarter “pre-orders”: We will make you the game you want and nobody else can give you. You decide to bet or not. Risk: Game takes more time and isn’t exactly what you expected. Potential reward: The game you wanted to play.
Normal pre-orders: We don’t need your money to develop and publish our game but we could use some money now for printing and to secure you a copy (ONLY MAKES SENSE IN RETAIL/BOX world!!). OR, we give you some perks, or a marginal discount if you buy now, before release (why? don’t know). Risk: Game takes more time and isn’t exactly what you expected. Potential reward: Some nice perks and a marginal discount for the same game that gets released. Is it worth it? Depends. On amount of information available.
In both cases you don’t have guarantee of having enough quality in the end but in kickstarter people need the money to start, while with pre-orders people don’t need the money to publish.
Which type of “pre-order” would you be willing to invest on? It’s up to you and depends on each case.
What I tried to show is that there’s risk involved in both approaches, you may not get the game you thought you would. But, pre-ordering in kickstarter gives a chance to a developer that doesn’t get support from a publisher to develop the game you want while with normal pre-ordering the game will be released anyway so you must weight if the rewards outweigh the risk.
Crowdsource investor-venture with money rewards could be nice but maybe that’s not the idea behind these crowdsource platforms. The objective for the backer is not to make money, is to get a product they want and that they can’t get any other way. For the developer they have the opportunity to develop a game they dream/want, have a chance to make profit and all that without a middle man, namely a publisher. And, in our days publishers aren’t as crucial as they used to be.
Crowdsource is therefore a way of not being hostage of what publishes think it’s worth to bet on or not. That only leads to games for the masses. Crowdsource helps us keep non-mass genres alive.
Adam, the retail box for XCOM: Enemy Unknown in the United States is ONLY the Special Edition. This is the edition I pre-ordered. The list price on Amazon is $59.99 and it is currently selling for $59.96: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006WQR3OM . The Special Edition includes:
* Fold out poster of the XCOM base
* Art book detailing the conceptual journey of re-imagining the classic
* Patch of the XCOM “Vigilo/Confido” insignia
* Digital bonus items including multi-monitor desktops, soundtrack, and more
You can not buy the standard edition in the US as a retail box, it’s only available as a digital download. The Steam version will include the Elite Soldier Pack, which is part of the Digital bonus items in the Special Edition: http://store.steampowered.com/app/200510/ . There are posts that say any pre-order will get the Elite Soldier Pack, so I’m not sure why Steam did it the way they did.
IGN explanation of Special Editions: http://www.ign.com/wikis/xcom-enemy-unknown/Special_Editions
There was a post somewhere that explained all of the editions that would be available for the US and the rest of the world, but I can’t find it now. For example, the standard edition will be available outside the US as a retail box, but I don’t know which countries.
I should also mention that I’m an Amazon Prime member, so I don’t pay for the shipping, and will receive the game the day it’s released, although it won’t be until the afternoon when the delivery guy shows up, hehe. So I won’t be playing it at 3:00am on Oct 9 when Steam unlocks it, but I’ll be sleeping anyway :)
Right, retail box is $59.99. So, it’s $10 for the poster, art book, the patch and some other extras. And you got all that for $49.99. It’s almost 17% off from what you would pay in the end anyway.
17% off is a significant discount if you would always going to pre-order box yes. Seems like a good deal. But, why pre-order if you wouldn’t get the Amazon discount (not your case but almost everybody else that pre-order box in the US)? Would you pre-order without that discount? If you couldn’t make it on store you would always have the digital version right there waiting for you.
My point is, why pre-order a game that offers no pre-order discount and is also available digitally (no risk of running out of copies)? And, the box only gives steam code and you need to download anyway. Why not just wait and buy when it comes out, or 1 week after? It’s all about the “need to play NOW” thing? :) If that’s so be careful because as we know there aren’t only quality developers and publishers out there … You’re warned. I would advise to only pre-order games that have been highly analysed and played before release (e.g. hands-on previews and full gameplay sessions, which seems to be the case with XCOM: EU).
Adam, no, I wouldn’t have pre-ordered “XCOM: Enemy Unknown” if I hadn’t gotten the discount. And if I was going to buy the game at the normal price, I would have gotten it from Steam. I pre-ordered because I got all the extra goodies for the same price as the standard game.
The only times I have pre-ordered are because the pre-order offered something that waiting to buy the game did not, whether that’s a lower price or extra goodies, or I wanted a Special Edition of which there were only a limited number available.
New awesome preview on RPS.
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2012/09/13/hands-on-forty-hours-with-xcom/#more-124165
My feeling that this is will be the best strategy game of the year is sounding a good bet.
Adam, can you or any other confirm any of the following:
Only 4 team members to start, with a maximum of 6 in later stages.
Human weapons only have one type of ammo, no AP/HE.
Soldiers can NOT pick up/place down ANYTHING, be it ammo, bodies, guns, medkits…
Much smaller maps.
No Fog of War (and so no hidden movement).
Only one main base allowed, and this is never attacked apart from one scripted event during end-game period!!! You are allowed additional interceptor bases but cannot garrison them and these never get attacked…
And lastly, the worst part… they have done away with TIME UNITS, so that now each soldier gets one move and one fire ‘point’ per turn, and if you fire before you move you then cannot move.
All this I’ve gathered through Rock Paper Shotgun, PC Gamer, the game forum and the steam forum, and it it’s true I will not be buying the game as it’s not a remake its a butchering…
Xenonauts and Xtraterrestrials 2 look to be winners in comparison.
Anyone have anything to add or clarify?
The 4 team members max 6 is correct I think.
Fog of war is in somehow I think.
Only one main base yes. Never attacked? Don’t know.
No time units no, I can confirm that one. Now, it’s like MOVE -> MOVE or MOVE -> FIRE or in special cases, MOVE -> FIRE -> MOVE or other combinations but there are no time units or points no. 4 points to duck, etc? No more. This is probably one of the hottest topics. People don’t agree which system was best. We’ll need to wait and play to know. In one way you don’t need to do math with points and hope you have enough points left, etc, etc. Others say that people only moved and attacked or moved and moved anyway so there was no point in using time units. It’s obvious that this was heavily debated in Firaxis and I know that Jake the lead designer was in favor of time units but they scrapped it in the end.
I’m frustrated for not being able to satisfy your questions and the other readers more but I was not given access to a XCOM:EU preview no matter how many times I’ve tried (and I tried many times). Yea, it’s sad. Apparently SpaceSector is not yet big enough for 2K. They always replied to me saying that they didn’t have any preview copies available although we see RPS and other guys in top sites playing the game. Maybe in a couple of years … :(
Adam, I’m impressed that you replied A) so quickly, and B) at all. Thank you kindly.
It’s a shame Space Sector is not higher on the radar for 2K, as it’s the only website I use for any space related strategy, as PC Gamer and RPShotgun are too broad. In fact, since stumbling upon your site a month or so ago I’ve bought at least 3 titles based upon the reviews and user commentary…
Anyway I digress, back to UFO. I got heavily burned on my last 3 SC-FI pre-orders (SOTS2, Endless Space and Legends of Pegasus) so I won’t be pre-ordering XCOM, and probably won’t even touch it for a while as Xenonauts and Xtraterrestrials 2 look more promising in my opinion.
Shame as I’ve been a lifelong fan of XCOM and even play the original and TFTD occasionally. Oh the days of editing hexadecimal files to get 255 time units and such!
Am looking forward to many other titles and appreciate the previews, reviews and assorted articles Space Sector do.
Cheers!
I have watched the latest build of Xenonauts on youtube and it looked pretty rough putting it kindly and has next to no A.I with static aliens doing nothing.A worry considering the long development time.Xtraterrestrials was nothing more than a mediocre game by most peoples standards.Good luck with those.
Busy work like time unit math,micromanging ammo types and having 10 bases was never what made X-Com great or I would agrue makes the game suffer from very slow pacing in todays standards.
It was the games atmosphere mixed with important strategic and tactical choice which are still included.Fog of War,Panic,Cover,line of sight,heat rounds,capturing aliens and weapons are all in.
I saw the static aliens in Xenonauts back in April when I wrote the alpha preview. Having static aliens at the moment after such a successful kickstarter was not what I had in mind. Are you sure the build was recent? They are releasing a beta on Oct 9th 2012 by the way (yes…).
We need to give the benefit of the doubt to Firaxis on the time units issue. Sid was involved in the first games and the lead designer was a major fan, or at least that’s what it looks like.
Totally agree with the atmosphere being a key aspect of the original X-COM’s success. The suspense, fear, capturing aliens, bringing stuff from battle to research. But above all the atmosphere, the immersion was just phenomenal.
Thanks for your reply.
I agree that the atmosphere was one important element of the games success, but disagree that time unit, soldier and base management did not contribute to the game in terms of “what made X-com great” or in terms of pacing.
With so much less choice in the remake there at least will not be any more “busy work like time unit math” or micro-management for you to do.
It’s a shame it just appears to be so diluted from the original when they had such great potential.
Hopefully the full Space Sector review may allay my fears…
The latest video I found for Xenonauts was an Alpha 14 gameplay video from Sept 3, 2012: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJUbQmM_Xjg
The narrator said that one of them moved, and the ones I saw were shooting, anyway. That’s not doing nothing :) Anyway, I think the October 9 beta release will give us the best idea of how close the game is to release.
Amazing tactical combat.You search a bland map for an 1 hour look for an alien standing on the spot and shoot them.I suppose the great gameplay comes from being able to change the 7.76 ammo in inventory :).
Worryingly Xenonauts is ment to be out soon and needs a vast improvement in tactical A.I reactively to even make a game worth looking at.
It is not just about copying game mechanics to get immersion anyway.X-com clones like Xtraterrestrials and UFO were bland as hell.
Xenonauts is till in alpha. It won’t be in beta until October. I’m not sure how you get from that to “meant to be out soon?” Chill :)
Not sure if it was mentioned before or not but I will say it here.
To anyone who has a steam and gamersgate account, it is better to pre-order it off gamersgate since its 10$ less and you could activate it on steam so its just like pre-ordering from steam but you payed 10$ less plus you get blue coins which you could save to spend on gamersgate.
I am so excited for this game and I fear that I will not open my freedom edition of AC 3 because of this game and it is Skyrim and AC revelations all over again :'(
Would it require steam only for activation, or every time I launch game it would require connection to server, like skyrim?
Not sure how steam really works. I mean I am uncertain that it requires net connection all the time. I remember being able to play in offline mode once when I went on holidays (that was with napoleon total war) and some of my steam games when we moved last year and was waiting for our provider to re-connect our internet
To my knowledge you can play all Steam games while offline, however you must setup steam to offline mode when online. Meaning that if you forget to do this and go for a vacation on the desert, then no steam games for you :) At least that’s my experience.
I’m not aware of Steam games needing to always check a server in order to play (again, if you set up steam to offline mode). You say that Steam-Skyrim absolutely needs you to be online in order to play?
I didn’t even new there is off-line mode. Thanks.
I am not sure if they changed it or not but I didn’t do that offline mode first while online and I think when I booted up my laptop it says something like unable to connect to steam and it gives me the choice to start in offline mode.
I guess the best thing to do is try it like lets say you disconnect from your internet and try starting steam and if it will enable you to play offline mode then I guess there is no problem.
Good idea. Better experiment with internet off first to see if you can launch Steam in offline mode. In my case I could not. I forgot to set offline mode while online and then when I launched Steam it gave me the offline mode option, but when I clicked I got a blocking error.
So, better play it on the safe side and set offline mode while online. But, after you experiment simulating no access to the internet you will know. Just don’t do that experiment when you don’t have internet access.
The more I look at this one the more jazzed I get. It seems very much like an updated UFO: Afterlight, and this is by no means a bad thing as UFO: Afterlight is a great game. Though I’m not convinced pre-order is necessary, baring any seriously bad reviews I expect I’ll be picking it up a few days after release. In fact it might be worth getting hardcopy as a collector’s item.
I wonder how much (if any) input the great one Sid Meier has had on it?
What worry me is XCOM trademark – destructible environment. There is some in XCOM:EU, but what’s shown in the video is not quite dramatic – glass wall shattering and small objects destruction.
Nothing like partial building demolishing in XCOM-3. Fingers crossed.