KickStarter Phoenix Point - the new game from X-COM creator Julian Gollop

[MuffinBun]

You just build "magical bases" and magical "research centers" and they are staffed by invisible "magical personals". For a game that is claiming to be deep, there is zero sense in any of behind the scenes logistics. Who are occupying those bases you build? Who are the researchers studying the anomalies? Nothing is shown. They really should have shown the non fighting branch of PP/logistic division. Scientists, engineers even specialized workers who work the hydroponics you build in the bases, should have been acquirable personal, specially in this post apocalyptic world where humanity is down to 1% of its total population. But nope, you just build hundreds of bases around the globe, but who is operating or reside in them? You never know. Unfinished garbage.

That was something I liked in UFO: Afterlight. The scientists and engineers were characters with stats, and not just a number.

I'll risk an opinion that most of the progress in game design is achieved by smart people with background in humanities(philosophy, history, literature) taking the numbers hard science-nerds created, and turning them into characters and stories that can be related to. But we don't get much of these types nowadays, and the field is viewed with suspicion(rightly so).

Holy shit I had no idea it was like that at the beginning, what the hell happened? They even cut what I was complaining about "lack of presence of Engineers and scientists and other logistic support at base".

Great question. It certainly wasn't the costs, the art assets they made were of higher quality than in that demo. Awful design decisions are the culprit. My guess is this: at some point, the idea came to make the game more streamlined and accessible, also visually, under the wrong impression that this would somehow widen the audience(generic != more appealing, even in the mainstream). Then, even though that clearly was a mistake, they decided to go along with it, because people in charge were instrumental about the project and did not care enough. That the development process was already funded at that point, and that they were receiving epic money certainly did not help. One of the rare cases of under-ambition.

 

[luj1]

It certainly wasn't the costs, the art assets they made were of higher quality than in that demo. Awful design decisions are the culprit. My guess is this: at some point, the idea came to make the game more streamlined and accessible, also visually, under the wrong impression that this would somehow widen the audience(generic != more appealing, even in the mainstream).

Some idiot appeared

 

[robinox]

That was something I liked in UFO: Afterlight. The scientists and engineers were characters with stats, and not just a number.

X-Com Apocalypse had this too.

 

[holla_cabezas_de_mierda]

Exactly this. The pitch was full of soul and years ahead of the final product.

I documented some of the changes here,

https://rpgcodex.net/forums/threads...or-julian-gollop.107625/page-176#post-6165217

https://rpgcodex.net/forums/threads...or-julian-gollop.107625/page-176#post-6163008

This game could have been good. I would have played it, if not for this dramatic change of direction. It had an interesting Hellgate London/XCOM vibe going on.

Holy shit I had no idea it was like that at the beginning, what the hell happened? They even cut what I was complaining about "lack of presence of Engineers and scientists and other logistic support at base".

its really hard for me to play the game with the art change, and how bland it is..the 'apple' for resources just gives off a vibe like I am looking at a 4th grade workbook of some sort, or some phone app..I was hoping someone would have modded back in better art, but looks like it will never happen

 

[Humanity has risen!]

I just feel really sorry for Julian Gollop, being pressured over and over again to remake the one game he did really right, and every time he does a new reimagining of X-Com, having fans get upset at him and saying he screwed up and just made an underwhelming mess of a game.

He should just move on at this point.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

I just feel really sorry for Julian Gollop, being pressured over and over again to remake the one game he did really right, and every time he does a new reimagining of X-Com, having fans get upset at him and saying he screwed up and just made an underwhelming mess of a game.

He should just move on at this point.

what?
people just want the game he pitched

 

[luj1]

lol his fault for caving under pressure

people dont have balls to carry out their vision

 

[Darkozric]

This game could have been good. I would have played it, if not for this dramatic change of direction

That was the reason Gollop blocked both of my accounts on FB a few years back. But hell, it was worth it! I lost any interest since then and never actually followed any update.
Reading the 2 last pages here seems that it was a good decision, and while it seems to be better than nuxcoms combat-wise, it still remains a pointless slog without the pitched ambiance I was craving for.

 

[luj1]

That was the reason Gollop blocked both of my accounts on FB a few years back.

what do you mean

 

[Darkozric]

what do you mean

His Facebook moderator didn't like my comments about their stupidity, change of direction, console release, and they blocked me. Brotherhood of Butthurts.

 

[luj1]

what do you mean

His Facebook moderator didn't like my comments about their stupidity, the change of direction and the console release and they blocked me. Brotherhood of Butthurts.

thankfully it bombed hard on steam

 

[Darkozric]

thankfully it bombed hard on steam

Yup, mfuckers found their Nemesis.

 

[Daedalos]

Is this good yet

 

[gurugeorge]

Shows you how important and integral art design is to a game, and how incredibly difficult it is to get the UI right.

The core idea (of bullet physics and real aiming) is great. It does work pretty well in PP (enough to distinguish the gameplay quite a lot from actual nuXCOM), and there are moments playing PP when it's really very absorbing, a gameplay style all of its own.

I'm really curious to see how Project Haven (which will have the same basic system) turns out. Hopefully their team will have learned a lot from observing PP.

But yeah, one feels really wistful about what could have been, looking at the original art design and demo pics for PP

 

[Morblot]

Is this good yet

Didn't the devs basically abandon it already?

 

[ArchAngel]

Is this good yet

Didn't the devs basically abandon it already?

They "abandoned" it after 3 years of patching, 5 (+1) DLC and mod support.

 

[Morblot]

They "abandoned" it after 3 years of patching, 5 (+1) DLC and mod support.

So, then, the answer is yes.

I know you like it but, based on both this thread and the reviews, the consensus is not quite as positive.

 

[InD_ImaginE]

Is this good yet

Didn't the devs basically abandon it already?

They "abandoned" it after 3 years of patching, 5 (+1) DLC and mod support.

how is the mod going?

 

[ArchAngel]

Is this good yet

Didn't the devs basically abandon it already?

They "abandoned" it after 3 years of patching, 5 (+1) DLC and mod support.

how is the mod going?

It is being playtested and bug hunted. Unfortunatelly mod author comes up with new feature every week that he wants to add so it is going slower than expected. I think details about all features should be out "soon".

 

[ArchAngel]

They "abandoned" it after 3 years of patching, 5 (+1) DLC and mod support.

So, then, the answer is yes.

I know you like it but, based on both this thread and the reviews, the consensus is not quite as positive.

This thread is still buthurt about whole Epic thing and Steam is because people from Xcom came to PP expecting same mindless easy gameplay but got something more hardcore.

 

[ValeVelKal]

PP is one of the best tactical game of the last 10 years, but between
- the people who won't forgive the Epic exclusive,
- the people who anchored on the admittedly beta-ish first release,
- the people who don't want any innovation to the old XCOM formula,
- the people who wanted an easy gameplay like the new XCOM,
- and finally the many people here who thrash any game released after their own teenager years

there is a lot of heat here.

 

[InD_ImaginE]

Taken on its own and ignoring the Fig campaign, PP is very decent on tactical level, probably the best from nu-XCOM has to offer.

The problem is big on strategic and DLC level. All the feature aren't meshing well with each other.

 

[ValeVelKal]

Taken on its own and ignoring the Fig campaign, PP is very decent on tactical level, probably the best from nu-XCOM has to offer.

The problem is big on strategic and DLC level. All the feature aren't meshing well with each other.

I agree with that, and I also agree that the art direction is meh and the game pitched in the KS looked even better than what PP ended up to be. It moves the game from "outstanding potential" to "great".

 

[ArchAngel]

Taken on its own and ignoring the Fig campaign, PP is very decent on tactical level, probably the best from nu-XCOM has to offer.

The problem is big on strategic and DLC level. All the feature aren't meshing well with each other.

I agree with that, and I also agree that the art direction is meh and the game pitched in the KS looked even better than what PP ended up to be. It moves the game from "outstanding potential" to "great".

Upcoming mod will fix stuff not meshing with each other but little can be done about the art style.

 

[Visperas]

Upcoming mod will fix stuff not meshing with each other but little can be done about the art style.

I got a bit scared when you said that the author comes up with a new feature every week. How confident are you that this mod will improve on the base game?