Forget crappy FPS "re-inventions" Firaxis are doing a full on turn based remake of the original! Some more details and concept art in the link.
I too wish this endeavour will yield bountiful results! Screw it.... OMGWTFBBQ YES PLEASE!!!!!!!!! Just, dont **** it up...
Fingers crossed that despite being multi-platform, that the gameplay is as deep as it was in the original. The turn-based approach will mean that it is viable to be be made identical on all platforms since there is no need for twitch reflexes, so a controller will work just fine. Great that you can make it accessible to younger generations, but make it true to the original. Of course it can't be *the* original, but they can at least try to make a good new iteration.
Have a look at the full video interview on this Game Informer page ("Why Firaxis Loves Xcom") ... http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2012/01/06/why-firaxis-loves-xcom.aspx I was going to post this on 'Videos of Awesome' but I fear people would label me as a fanatic...
very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very excited about this!
Whilst it is seemingly being "streamlined for consoles"... Here is a good video interview with Lead Designer, Producer and Art Director from Firaxis. http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2012/01/06/why-firaxis-loves-xcom.aspx
I'm also looking forward to 'Open Xcom' ; an open-source implementation of the original Xcom Enemy Unknown. Here is a video of the latest beta version (from a couple of weeks ago): .... They've added tanks ! For more info, plus a download of the lastest executable, go here: ....http://openxcom.org/ Well worth supporting.
Why not just play the original? Nothing excites me about all these remakes. These old games were good, but only the in the context of the 1980's / 1990's. For me to still want to play them three decades on, they would need to be improved so much that they would hardly resemble the originals anyway. I wish the games industry would leave my memories alone and start making some new stuff for a change.
Because there isn't any even remotely recent game like xcom (infact apart for laser squad nemesis I don't think there is another game like the xcoms) Xcoms biggest problem in my mind was always it's UI (partially due to the comparatively tiny resolution it has)and as much as I love the games, it is very hard to play now. The two best things a remake could bring to xcom are a tutorial and an updated UI + graphics, which are xcoms biggest weaknesses. (hell, just things like the fact everyone has a scroll wheel on their mouse should make the UI a lot cleaner)
Frozen synapse has a similar system to Apocalypse. UFO:aftermath anyone? A bit of a dissappointment. I just hope they change the story too while they are at it. Having to play indefinately to capture a commander (?) alive was a real challange/nightmare. The tricky little swine more often than not would be armed with a blaster launcher; I have to admit I would save/load an awful lot.
I still do occasionally. I think it has aged rather well which is always an advantage with 2D graphics.
Yeah, Jagged Alliance was pretty good. To this day I can remember the Russian mercenary (Bear ?) saying "growshaw, growshaw" <???>, but I've no idea what it meant. The open source original xcom is a definate winner for me, as it should run fine on any old laptop. I got the original working on XP a year or so ago, but only after a trick; I think you had to disable 'direct-draw'. So a new version which runs with no problems in win7 would be great. The open-source dev team are also looking at supporting modding via 'rulesets' which should help keep it fresh. And maybe someone will produce an in-game tutorial too. We can but dream.
I'm pretty sure I ran it through DOSbox and I think it's abandonware now. Just googled and here is the download location and the DOSbox compatibility page.
Despite it being a console-oriented website, here is a short article on some new material, including some decent resolution screenies from in-game. Liking the look of it so far New GeoScape looks very nice indeed. http://www.gameinformer.com/b/featu...you-should-care-about-xcom-enemy-unknown.aspx
wow those are some nice looking screenshots. and having played stuff like valkyria chronicles and the disgaea games, I can see the turn based combat working well enough on a console. Would imagine the build menus to be a bit fussy though.
