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[Grand Theft Scratchy]

I was playing it over the weekend since I have several classic XCOM games in my backlog. At first, it was a little difficult to get into and I think it's mostly because I haven't played an XCOM game since XCOM: Enemy Unknown when it released. I also have XCOM 2 but I need to upgrade my PC before I can play it.

I very much appreciate being able to dictate the passage of time to figure out what I need to research sooner, like upgrading to better weapons, expanding my base with the different facilities but having to pick and choose based on current available funds. And while the graphics might be primitive, the user interface and isometric point of view environments are nicely colored (reminiscent of a GBA title). Right now the terror missions are my favorite because they're set in urban locations and where I see more varied alien types - not just sectoids or floaters but cyberdisks, reapers, sectopods and more. I have restarted multiple times but I feel like you're meant to start over a couple times before you can really get any good. After 6 or 7 hours, I was getting the hang of playing this classic. It's still difficult but I think that adds to the realism of XCOM.

I also played a little bit of XCOM: Apocalypse which unfortunately suffers from having too large of a map to interact with and manage. It also doesn't look as good. XCOM: Enforcer is pretty decent if you can treat it as mindless arcadey fun. But I'm currently seeing how far I can get through XCOM: UFO Defense, how many alien bases there are to deal with before reaching an endgame.

 

[brap]

No.

 

[Marchiott]

One of my first games was XCom: Terror From The Deep, in floppy form. It was obtained from a dumpster dive after a local computer store had thrown it out.

I spent my childhood feeling incompetent, unable to halt the incursion by aquatoids.

Later in life, I learned that the difficulty in that game was just obscene by default.

 

[Bullet Club]

I remember it on the Amiga.

 

[Woo-Fu]

I played the demo level of this game probably 1000+ times before the game came out. Drop a wall with a grenade, Snakemen come boiling out of the smoke, epic shit.

 

[Slings and Arrows]

Yeah

 

[ljubomir]

Loved UFO Enemy Unknown and picked it again years later when it got re-released on Steam for like 2 euro. It was a second or third game I bought on Steam. Still my favorite xcom game. Haven't tried the modern remakes though.

 

[llien]

Hands down one of the best games I've ever played. (Terror From the Deep expansion was also great).
It was so ahead of its time, just think about it, most of the modern re-makes are not as sophisticated (not sims, but scripted, do not allow destruction, do not take into account various aspects) E.g. see big ship heading towards city X? Shoot it down? Nothing. let it fly? Terror in the city.

So many tiny details, your base layout when aliens attacked reflected what you have actually built.
Destruction in your base would lead to losing corresponding resources.

A masterpiece.

Out of modern remakes of that kind, "Xenonauts" comes somewhat close, although is a much much simpler game.

 

[EightBit Man]

Yes. I had that game as part of a (big box) budget bundle...together with another classic...Syndicate. I must admit that I barely played the game though as I was way more interested in the latter game.

 

[ZeroZeroQuatre]

"Excuse me sir, do you have a moment to talk about Jesus Christ... ?"

 

[Makariel]

Absolute masterpiece! I got it in a bundle together with Master of Orion, these two games together were responsible for my virtual disappearance for the better part of a year

Once you get plasma and power armor it gets very easy, that's one thing that all XCOM games have in common, including the most recent Firaxis games, that the first few months are the hardest. If you survive the first Chryssalid attack without losing all of your best soldiers you're usually fine.

Also spent much time with Terror from the Deep, which was more or less a reskin of the first game, but still fun. Apocalypse was quite fun as well but somehow hasn't aged as well as the other games. The weird turn-based/realtime hybrid didn't quite work out. I didn't even try that space combat game.

 

[DiscoJer]

Yes. I actually ordered it via import when I heard about it on GEnie. Really well done game and I don't think any of the sequels or remakes have equaled it in terms of depth, replayability, and even lore (which was mostly based on real UFO lore).

 

[llien]

"Excuse me sir, do you have a moment to talk about Jesus Christ... ?"

Erm, is that a mod? Never seen that many aliens packed like this in the actual game (which I played several times)

 

[ZeroZeroQuatre]

Erm, is that a mod? Never seen that many aliens packed like this in the actual game (which I played several times)

Either a mode or that player had the worst possible dice roll ever. Dunno, I simply picked the most nightmare-inducing Chryssalid picture I could find

 

[bhunachicken]

The original game shit all over the remakes. Really. The remakes are total and utter crap compared to the classic.

I'm not surprised that canonically the humans lost the war. They could only send one Skyranger from one base with a handful of soldiers! They're supposed to protect an entire planet like that? They're not the Thunderbirds or Team America, FFS.

The original UFO : Enemy Unknown allowed you to set up multiple bases, have multiple Skyrangers, undertake multiple missions and UFO interceptions at the same time ... Also, the combat was far superior. You had time units to spend per turn, allowing your soldiers to fire or move as much as time allowed. None of this move and fire, move twice, or just fire crap. If I wanted to move out of cover, fire two shots and then get back into cover, I could.

Yes, I was very disappointed with the reboots.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

I play it regularly. It still hasn't really been topped in its genre, except maybe by Jagged Alliance (personally, not as much of a fan of that franchise).

 

[ClanOfNone]

The original game shit all over the remakes. Really. The remakes are total and utter crap compared to the classic.

I'm not surprised that canonically the humans lost the war. They could only send one Skyranger from one base with a handful of soldiers! They're supposed to protect an entire planet like that? They're not the Thunderbirds or Team America, FFS.

The original UFO : Enemy Unknown allowed you to set up multiple bases, have multiple Skyrangers, undertake multiple missions and UFO interceptions at the same time ... Also, the combat was far superior. You had time units to spend per turn, allowing your soldiers to fire or move as much as time allowed. None of this move and fire, move twice, or just fire crap. If I wanted to move out of cover, fire two shots and then get back into cover, I could.

Yes, I was very disappointed with the reboots.

While I enjoyed the reboots, this post is correct. The original 2 games had TONS more base and tactical options. Apocalypse was crap though, and I never played Interceptor.

 

[Liftplus]

I never played original versions, but i always enjoyed the remakes. Should i try playing the originals too?

 

[ClanOfNone]

Absolutely, if you don't mind the retro aesthetic of the older games they are definitely worth playing. They are WAY tougher than the remakes though!

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

My faithful strategy is to develop Laser tech as early as possible, then start churning them out to sell. It is rare for a country to leave the XCOM org within the first few "performance reviews", so if you can take advantage of that time and (oops) skip a few early missions it can give you a huge financial leg up for the time when some countries inevitably leave you for the alien scum.

Give the manual a read, plus the ufopaedia guide, L Liftplus and try it out.

 

[Grand Theft Scratchy]

What is usually the best time to build the second base? I guess the idea is that you eventually take the fight to Mars but there's quite a lot of ground to cover on Earth and the really large UFOs are difficult to shoot down.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

What is usually the best time to build the second base? I guess the idea is that you eventually take the fight to Mars but there's quite a lot of ground to cover on Earth and the really large UFOs are difficult to shoot down.

If you can push your luck, bases that become manufacturing hubs will quickly pay themselves off. Be careful about transferring supplies back and forth, though, since this can bite you in the butt. Buy a new base with enough surplus cash to build manufacturing facilities, living quarters, and enough personnel immediately.

The extra map coverage is nice, too, but this adds some juggling to make sure your bases are equipped across the globe with comparable equipment and enough skilled soldiers. Again, transferring supplies and personnel fixes this issue but beware the delay, since those resources will be unavailable while in transit.

 

[Grand Theft Scratchy]

Once you get plasma and power armor it gets very easy, that's one thing that all XCOM games have in common, including the most recent Firaxis games, that the first few months are the hardest. If you survive the first Chryssalid attack without losing all of your best soldiers you're usually fine.

I will have to research the power suit next. I want to stand a chance against the chryssalids. I have the plasma rifle and plasma rifle clip researched and manufactured but only upgraded to personal armor at the moment even though I have the UFO power source and other alien stuff in my inventory to research.

I think researching the mind probe unlocks the psi lab and if you train soldiers with high enough psi stats they will prove invaluable, right?

 

[Makariel]

What is usually the best time to build the second base? I guess the idea is that you eventually take the fight to Mars but there's quite a lot of ground to cover on Earth and the really large UFOs are difficult to shoot down.

I typically have one "main base" and one that's a manufacturing hub for things I'm planning to sell. As been written by DunDunDunpachi above, building and selling lasers is a great way of generating cash.

Most of my other bases usually just consist of a bare minimum: radar (and later tech that makes conventional radar obsolete), mind shield some storage and a hangar for an interceptor. My usual MO is that my satellite bases are just there to detect and shoot down UFO and the infantry flies in from the one or later two main bases. If one of my satellite bases is taken down by aliens all I lose is an interceptor, so usually not too much of a problem. Just make sure you cover the countries that pay the most efficiently. You don't want to wake up to half of Europe turning traitor.

I have the plasma rifle and plasma rifle clip researched and manufactured but only upgraded to personal armor at the moment even though I have the UFO power source and other alien stuff in my inventory to research.

I don't think I've ever spent manufacturing time building plasma clips, by the time I have them researched I typically have enough. Also, sell the extra bodies, you usually only need one dead alien per species for autopsy, the rest is good for cash. I imagine some rich folks grind them to powder for sexual pleasure or something. I'm not judging.

I think researching the mind probe unlocks the psi lab and if you train soldiers with high enough psi stats they will prove invaluable, right?

Yes, later in the game a really powerful psi soldier can really turn the tide of battle. Also, getting the psi lab early lets you identify the psychic potential of your soldiers. I'm afraid you have to let go any soldier who is weak in the psi department, they are just a liability later in the game. You don't want your power armored and plasma-armed soldiers being taken over at will by the grey ones and stronger psykers later in the game. They tend to drop grenades in the middle of your group. Not fun. From experience the AI always goes for your weakest soldiers first when trying any psi-shenanigans.

 

[amigastar]

Anyone still playing the game? Currently playing Phoenix Point which is from X-Com creator Julian Gollop (i love it)
Is there a good Discord channel on X-Com Ufo Defense?

 

[Gp1]

One of the best games of all time.

 

[Labadal]

A great game, that makes nu-XCOM look like a poor imitation.