XCOM 2 early reviews are very good

[DeadmanWalking]

What a cock tease. Don't even have any links in the post. You should be ashamed.

http://steamcommunity.com/games/2685...19461388851326

https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/201...A+Steam+RSS%29

After perusing the info I've found so far, I gotta say, I'm not impressed. We already have mods that add new aliens (sure, nobody has taken the time to make a UNIQUE alien yet, just modifiers of current ones), we already have mods that add new weapons and armor, as well as cosmetics. I'm pretty sure those unique weapons they mention, someone's already put at least a few of them into mods. And flying armor? After playing this game through so many times already, and never needing either the grappling armor or flying armor, I can't see any real use for this. Especially if it sounds like only one person will be able to have it? Or did I read that wrong?

Point being, we have mods out, for free, that are head and shoulders above what they're releasing for $10. When this Anarchy stuff came out last month or w/e, I looked at the crap they gave us, giggled, and went back to all of the stuff I've been using from mods. Which I got for free.

If you want to give us the ability to modify your game to the extent that XCOM 2 does, then you better make the DLCs you want to charge people for do something that modders can't do. Granted, that sets the bar extremely high, again, because of what we have access to.

Bring back fighter combat. Make assaulting grounded UFOs worth a damn. Expand the research tree. Let us build bases again - you know all of those resistance bases we help liberate or whatever? There you go.

I mean, I'm not saying taking out the fighter combat and world-wide base building ruined this game, I quite like the game as it is. But seriously, DLC needs something more unique to bring than stuff I'm getting from free mods.

I'm at work and using a shitty g4 mac computer to do graphic design because I work in a print shop that refuses to invest in modern tech, being able to use this site is a technological miracle. I found the article on on iphone so couldn't link it here since my boss would notice me playing with my phone. You will have to forgive my lack of links.

You are not going to get fighter tech back, the entire point is that aliens have world dominance and you don't have the airfields/supplies/landing pads and aliens have sky dominance. You have to hide your mothership and move around a lot. You are hit and run, not controling sectors of the earths crust to shore up your resources.

[endersblade]

I'm at work and using a shitty g4 mac computer to do graphic design because I work in a print shop that refuses to invest in modern tech, being able to use this site is a technological miracle. I found the article on on iphone so couldn't link it here since my boss would notice me playing with my phone. You will have to forgive my lack of links.

Heh it's ok, I was just teasing :-)

You are not going to get fighter tech back, the entire point is that aliens have world dominance and you don't have the airfields/supplies/landing pads and aliens have sky dominance. You have to hide your mothership and move around a lot. You are hit and run, not controling sectors of the earths crust to shore up your resources.

I was just using that as an example. As in, they need to add something mods can't - changing the basic fundamentals of the game, for example. Since bases and fighter combat aren't in the game, there is no code for it, so modders couldn't do it. That was my point. Like I said, I think the game is perfectly fine without them. I understand why, didn't need that explained.

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FINALLY got around to completely beating the game. I love that it sets itself up for a sequel! And in my desperate hope, an underwater one :-P I doubt that though. But I did really enjoy the ending. Unfortunately after the cinematics, my game is just sitting on a darkened screen of the last mission. I can vaguely make out a few of my soldiers. Nothing else is happening :-(

I got the achievements though, and I think I'm done playing until the new DLC comes out. Overall, this game wasn't all that bad...but that stupid Doom counter really killed it. I LIKE long XCOM games, I don't like being rushed, and that's ALL this game does is rush you. Even on missions. I also didn't like the fact that only a handful of missions actually let you bring aliens back, most of them are just evac missions where you don't get anything. There have been several times where, had it been a proper mission, I would've had access to a new alien research much earlier.

Thankfully there are mods to alleviate the rush issues. Made the game a lot more enjoyable. Though I have to say, I enjoyed the first one more. And now that I've beat the second one, I really am ready to wait for the DLC...no rush to start a new game. Was never the case with the first one, after I beat it, I'd start another. This one's replayability just isn't there for me.

[StrawberryZebra]

I got the achievements though, and I think I'm done playing until the new DLC comes out. Overall, this game wasn't all that bad...but that stupid Doom counter really killed it. I LIKE long XCOM games, I don't like being rushed, and that's ALL this game does is rush you. Even on missions. I also didn't like the fact that only a handful of missions actually let you bring aliens back, most of them are just evac missions where you don't get anything. There have been several times where, had it been a proper mission, I would've had access to a new alien research much earlier.

I actually really liked having the timer, it was just present enough to create a sense of urgency, but not invasive enough so you felt like you had to rush the important stuff and make a dash for the end. I've always found lots of ways to slow it down too, everything from finding facilties from hacking, to just doing the facilities that get revealed as you progress. Neverthelesss I found it creating some tense situations where you want to do one thing, but you should really do something about that counter thats awfully close to filling up. I never felt like I had to stop what I was doing to go knock the counter back however. Oh well, to each their own .

As for the missions you get, I'm sure they're randomised. I've had some games where I ended up with a ton of alien corpses I couldn't find a use for and others where all I seem to get are escorts. But on the bright side. you can choose not to do escort Geurilla Ops missions, unfortunately escorting and rescuing VIP's comes up often too. I usually decide which one to do based on the rewards and dark events more than what mission type it is.

[frogger237]

Alien Hunters DLC is out today, has new bosses weapons and armor, not sure what else havent played it yet.

[DeadmanWalking]

This content just reminds me why I should always say no to 'Season Passes'. It's just a more acceptable way of saying 'Subscription'.

Not hating the new content but I don't think it was worth the wait or the cost of season pass even though the cost was pretty low all things considered.

It just reminds me not to pay for Battleborn 'season pass', I already feel I paid too much for Battleborn. Xcom2 was totally worth buying on day 1, just not season passes.

[endersblade]

Actually, of the two evils, I'm kinda glad I got the Season Pass, just in case one of the DLCs might be worth it. There's always a chance.

On top of that, they want $10 for this shit. Ten fucking dollars to do basically what mods have already done. What in the actual fuck are they smoking? This has to be a joke, or Firaxis has just fallen into the same hole that EA has and has no respect for their customers anymore.

[Arrashi]

Holy crap they shoot themselves in the foot. If this is quality of DLC they planned on releasing, they should not release modding tools with the game. As it stands, not going with proper expansion rather than set of paid mods was huge mistake. Glad i haven't bought season pass.

[endersblade]

Btw, what is the official retcon on why we lost in the first game, even though we won? And what's the speculation on the retcon of why we're going to lose the second one? If they're just going to make 'canon' endings that have nothing to do with how we actually played the game, I think I'm gonna bow out of this series. There are enough clones of the old games, plus of course the old games, that I can get my XCOM fix without having to waste money on shitty DLC and have my choices not fucking matter.

[Dorfadin]

Not gonna lie was expecting new area's to explore since the 1st dlc was just terrible mad max cosmetics 3 new mobs that spawn in random zones is no different to say the long war team adding new mobs for free

[DeadmanWalking]

Btw, what is the official retcon on why we lost in the first game, even though we won? And what's the speculation on the retcon of why we're going to lose the second one? If they're just going to make 'canon' endings that have nothing to do with how we actually played the game, I think I'm gonna bow out of this series. There are enough clones of the old games, plus of course the old games, that I can get my XCOM fix without having to waste money on shitty DLC and have my choices not fucking matter.

It really doesn't matter why we lost, they wanted to give us an interesting setting and you can't do that if we are coming out of the last game with plasma rifles and our own UFO's. It had to be stripped away so we could spend this game building it back. The only way that would of happened is if we ended up losing that war. It's not like we are the kind of people that say, "Well now that we beat the aliens we can get rid of all these plasma weapons..."

Its a fun game with an interesting story background and thats what is important, not that I won the first game or not.

[endersblade]

It really doesn't matter why we lost, they wanted to give us an interesting setting and you can't do that if we are coming out of the last game with plasma rifles and our own UFO's. It had to be stripped away so we could spend this game building it back. The only way that would of happened is if we ended up losing that war. It's not like we are the kind of people that say, "Well now that we beat the aliens we can get rid of all these plasma weapons..."

Its a fun game with an interesting story background and thats what is important, not that I won the first game or not.

And it is certainly cute and short-sighted of you to say such a thing.

But this was a direct sequel to the first one. I don't really care about the technological backslide, XCOM always does that. But this is a continuation of the first story. In the first story, presumably, we stomped the crap out of the aliens. But for some reason in this one, we clearly did not. That doesn't make any sense. Firaxis is just doing handwaving to make it make sense, and that's not right. You very obviously don't understand story continuity.

I am not saying it's a bad game. I've logged over 400 hours into it already, which is more than I did the first one. It isn't the game I have an issue with, it's the way the story is being handled. All it would've taken is a few seconds on the end of the first one's final cutscene to show WHY we lost. Was it all a simulation made up by the aliens? Then make a little snippet to show that. Did we just defeat the first wave, and then get swarmed with the rest later? They could've easily shown that - after the cathedral ship exploded, just pan out to space and show thousands of other ships.

They didn't do any of that. They lead us to believe we won, did some hand waving, and now we didn't win.

The ending to XCOM 2 actually opens itself up to a sequel. That isn't what the first one did. It seriously would've just taken expanding the last cutscene by like 10 seconds, and boom, there's your answer, all the people like me who complain about the story not making sense would be satisfied.

[DeadmanWalking]

And it is certainly cute and short-sighted of you to say such a thing.

But this was a direct sequel to the first one. I don't really care about the technological backslide, XCOM always does that. But this is a continuation of the first story. In the first story, presumably, we stomped the crap out of the aliens. But for some reason in this one, we clearly did not. That doesn't make any sense. Firaxis is just doing handwaving to make it make sense, and that's not right. You very obviously don't understand story continuity.

I am not saying it's a bad game. I've logged over 400 hours into it already, which is more than I did the first one. It isn't the game I have an issue with, it's the way the story is being handled. All it would've taken is a few seconds on the end of the first one's final cutscene to show WHY we lost. Was it all a simulation made up by the aliens? Then make a little snippet to show that. Did we just defeat the first wave, and then get swarmed with the rest later? They could've easily shown that - after the cathedral ship exploded, just pan out to space and show thousands of other ships.

They didn't do any of that. They lead us to believe we won, did some hand waving, and now we didn't win.

The ending to XCOM 2 actually opens itself up to a sequel. That isn't what the first one did. It seriously would've just taken expanding the last cutscene by like 10 seconds, and boom, there's your answer, all the people like me who complain about the story not making sense would be satisfied.

As much as I appreciate being called cute and shortsighted if you actually had any intentions of carrying on an intellectual discussion about this game you should of left your mindless insults at home. I treated your opinion with respect and the least you can do is to dedicate some brain cells to doing the same. Good day to you sir and welcome to the blocked list.

[endersblade]

Not gonna lie was expecting new area's to explore since the 1st dlc was just terrible mad max cosmetics 3 new mobs that spawn in random zones is no different to say the long war team adding new mobs for free

That's exactly the issue. They really shot themselves in the foot when they created the modding kit, it doesn't leave them a lot of room for trying to milk us for as much money as possible with DLC, because it's all stuff that could be done in the mod kit.

Anarchy's children got absolutely panned by reviews. Most of the gear it adds is fucking ridiculous (leather hotpants? Postman shorts? WTF?) and the fact that there are already many mods out there that add BETTER content for FREE just makes this DLC worthless. If I didn't have the season pass, I never would've paid for it. I don't use any of the cosmetic options it gives you. And seeing the random VIPs and whatnot with giant purple mohawks is just silly.

Alien Hunters is no different. They added 'boss' monsters, like you said something that the Long War team could've easily done (and something they technically did day one). The gear that is added from them is already coded in the game, someone could've made a mod for it. Nobody was interested in any of it though. THe armor itself looks absolutely silly, your helm basically becomes the head of the enemy whose body you used to make the armor. I haven't tested the weapons out yet, so I can't comment on those. I actually think the coolest part of this DLC is the 'trophy' room, and you can't even do anything with it, just look at it.

The first game's DLC wasn't AS bad. EW was a true to life expansion, not just DLC, and to me was well worth the $30 pricetag. However, Slingshot was what, three missions, and a unique soldier? For $7? I don't think so. I got the Elite Gear pack with my copy of the game, but $5 for 3 new bonus items is just EA levels of stupid.

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As much as I appreciate being called cute and shortsighted if you actually had any intentions of carrying on an intellectual discussion about this game you should of left your mindless insults at home. I treated your opinion with respect and the least you can do is to dedicate some brain cells to doing the same. Good day to you sir and welcome to the blocked list.

Bye :-) I just wrote out an entire post explaining my point, but again, you're too short-sighted to get it. I will happily enjoy your ignore list, thanks!

[StrawberryZebra]

Btw, what is the official retcon on why we lost in the first game, even though we won? And what's the speculation on the retcon of why we're going to lose the second one? If they're just going to make 'canon' endings that have nothing to do with how we actually played the game, I think I'm gonna bow out of this series.

From the short cutscenes, I gather than the Canon story is that you lost the Base Defense mission, got punched in the face by a Muton, then dragged off to have you process tactical data as a part of the ADVENT Neural Network. The rest of the missions from that point in the game are implied to be the Commander acting out the battles for ADVENT's benefit in a simulation. Tygan does hint that the Commander may have been responsible for controling ADVENT troops while in this simulation, but its not known for certain if that is the case. As cliche as it sounds, you winning was all just a dream .

I don't think we're going to get a retcon and lose XCOM 2 though, the ending cutscene set up Terror from the Deep as being the next XCOM game.

[Gorsameth]

Btw, what is the official retcon on why we lost in the first game, even though we won? And what's the speculation on the retcon of why we're going to lose the second one? If they're just going to make 'canon' endings that have nothing to do with how we actually played the game, I think I'm gonna bow out of this series. There are enough clones of the old games, plus of course the old games, that I can get my XCOM fix without having to waste money on shitty DLC and have my choices not fucking matter.

You really try to hard, or maybe not hard enough?

They remade X-com. it was a success so they wanted to make a sequel. During a brainstorm session someone came up with the idea of the player losing the first war and people thought it was interesting so they ran with it.

This is not a movie or book series. A sequal does not need to seamlessly continue the story from the previous game. Xcom 2 is a mechanical successor.

"If my ending isn't cannon its a shit game that I don't want to play" is the attitude of a 5 year old taking his ball and going home, no one is going to miss you.

[Faldric]

If you play the DLC get the mod to make the ruler aliens immune to instakill. Its really anticlimatic to kill them in one blow.

The DLC seems to make the fundamental problem of XCOM 2 even worse. It makes the mid game slightly harder, while making you even more op at the endgame. A sniper that can teleport around the map without spending a single action for it, being able to use his gun in the same turn while still having 2 slots for items? Absolutly not op at all.....

[Vespian]

You really try to hard, or maybe not hard enough?

They remade X-com. it was a success so they wanted to make a sequel. During a brainstorm session someone came up with the idea of the player losing the first war and people thought it was interesting so they ran with it.

This is not a movie or book series. A sequal does not need to seamlessly continue the story from the previous game. Xcom 2 is a mechanical successor.

"If my ending isn't cannon its a shit game that I don't want to play" is the attitude of a 5 year old taking his ball and going home, no one is going to miss you.

Unless it was the only ball

To append your story; The statistics show that most started games were lost or never finished, so they came up with the idea that every player was simply a part of the war against the invasion, rather than the only player against the invasion. That gave them the canon conclusion, that the fight might have been won by some players, but the war had been lost.

It's a pity that @endersblade is making such a huge fuzz, because if he had tried to read this thread (*shocker; the storyline was mentioned from pages 1 onward a couple (dzn) times), he would've known what had happened and no, it's not ridiculous.

[Gorsameth]

If you play the DLC get the mod to make the ruler aliens immune to instakill. Its really anticlimatic to kill them in one blow.

The DLC seems to make the fundamental problem of XCOM 2 even worse. It makes the mid game slightly harder, while making you even more op at the endgame. A sniper that can teleport around the map without spending a single action for it, being able to use his gun in the same turn while still having 2 slots for items? Absolutly not op at all.....

I havn't played the dlc yet (to busy with stellaris) but your telling me the alien so tough you need multiple missions to down them is not immune to a Repeater? christ...

And I thought they were supposed to be end game encounters, something to add a challenge when your already running around with full plasma and armor, not mid-game Oo

[endersblade]

Unless it was the only ball

To append your story; The statistics show that most started games were lost or never finished, so they came up with the idea that every player was simply a part of the war against the invasion, rather than the only player against the invasion. That gave them the canon conclusion, that the fight might have been won by some players, but the war had been lost.

It's a pity that @endersblade is making such a huge fuzz, because if he had tried to read this thread (*shocker; the storyline was mentioned from pages 1 onward a couple (dzn) times), he would've known what had happened and no, it's not ridiculous.

I have been following this thread since the start (lol I swear I have a post on at least the first 10 pages). I know what their excuse is, but I don't accept it because it doesn't make sense. It breaks the story. It breaks the immersion. I just want them to come up with something more valid, in a way that they could actually SHOW it, rather than, as I said, hand waving "so this is what REALLY took place! Tada!"

I didn't mean to get all up in arms with Deadmanloser, but he was completely missing my point, and continued to do so. I'm a huge XCOM buff, I love this series to absolute death. I will defend it with my last breath. It's just really jarring what they did between these two new ones, and it really stuck home. They're ruining my favorite series.

There was even a sort of novella for XCOM back in the day, as well as for TFTD. THE LORE, OH GOD THE LORE. It was just so sweeeeet. Fanfics of course sprung up occasionally. I loved how things flowed between the original games. Then this reboot comes along. I really enjoyed the first one, I did. I understand where they got the idea for the jump between the two, but basing it off of "too many noobs failed to complete it" is just dumb. And again, if the overall war had been lost, they could've SHOWN it somehow in the first one! It would've been completely acceptable.

I enjoyed two. It just felt tainted because of the connection to the first one not being done properly. If that connection had been solid, my god, I would praise this series as the new messiah. They're such great games. Almost 1,000 hours between the two I have logged on Steam.

[Vespian]

.

Alright, so let's call it a disagreement then. I think it's a pretty logical conclusion, but it does sort of break the 4th wall, because it includes player statistic within the story, which technically can't happen if we'd puritanically follow the storyline of game, since we're clearly the only leftover party.

That said, it's not that terribly jarring to me and let's be fair, XCOM2 is a better game, so I'm happy there is an XCOM2, regardless of storyline.