Duck and Cover

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 5:53 am**

Is now a first person shooter from 2k studios. Hooray for all my childhood favorites being turned into shit. Discuss.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 6:05 am**

WHAT.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 6:06 am**

X-Com, the classic 90's turn-based strategy game pitting mankind against alien invaders, is set to make a comeback as a first-person shooter, courtesy of the 2K studios behind BioShock 2.

The game, which is actually called XCOM, is in development for the Xbox 360 and PC at 2K Australia and 2K Marin, and makes substantial changes to the original series, combining research and planning elements not with overhead, turn-based strategy sections, but with first-person shooter action.

"With BioShock 2, the team at 2K Marin proved themselves as masters of first-person, suspenseful storytelling, and with XCOM they will re-imagine and expand the rich lore of this revered franchise," said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. "Players will explore the world of XCOM from an immersive new perspective and experience firsthand the fear and tension of this gripping narrative ride."

It's funny, for years, people kept repeating the same rumour, that 2K Boston and Ken Levine would be making a new X-Com game. Don't think anyone expected it to come from 2K's other BioShock studio. Actually, I don't know if anyone honestly expected this at all.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 6:42 am**

X-COM Apocalypse was the only X-COM game I got a chance to play - I still even have the CD and dosbox it form time to time.

If they made it a tactical, squad-based first-person shooter with a strategic overhead view like Apocalypse, it could work. However, given the general shittiness of titles they're raising from the head, it's going to be a stock shooter. And I bet the research is going to be nothing but weapon upgrades, either driven by amount of kills or pre-determined pacing.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 6:58 am**

Just like first person can work with Fallout.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 7:00 am**

Wolfman Walt wrote:Just like first person can work with Fallout.

I think that it is a viable road. I think a quality game development studio, say, Bethesda, could they somehow acquire rights to the Fallout brand, could make Fallout into an exceptional first person game. Given their strong game background and equally strong financial footing, I think they could edge out weak competitors such as Obsidian, Troika, or any others who might be after the game.

P.S.

Here's to the continued efforts of modern gaming to exhume and aggressively rape the corpses of all that was once good and noble and pure.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 7:07 am**

At the least THEY cannot (yet ?) take your memories.

The last bastion of privacy is the mind. When that is compromised . . .

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 7:21 am**

Okay, I've been looking around the internet since the first post, and it seems like everyone is pissed off about it. Why the hell weren't people up in arms about Fallout 3? I feel betrayed, now not only by the industry, but by its fan base. Jesus H. Christ.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 8:02 am**

Yeah.. only Jagged Alliance left. Please dont fuck it up the ass. Thank you.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 8:33 am**

Retlaw83 wrote:X-COM Apocalypse was the only X-COM game I got a chance to play - I still even have the CD and dosbox it form time to time.

The original X-COM has aged pretty well and is still a blast to play. I recommend you acquire it. On the flipside though, you'll probably end up hating the new XCOM even more.

Some games just never grow old on you.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 9:15 am**

http://www.xcom.com/img/screenshot_01_xl.jpg

i can feel the tension and gripping narrative already

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 9:57 am**

VasikkA wrote:
Retlaw83 wrote:X-COM Apocalypse was the only X-COM game I got a chance to play - I still even have the CD and dosbox it form time to time.
The original X-COM has aged pretty well and is still a blast to play. I recommend you acquire it. On the flipside though, you'll probably end up hating the new XCOM even more.

Some games just never grow old on you.

I played them on my dad's pc back when all we had was MS-DOS, I found X-Com on steam, on sale of course, that had all the games in a pack being sold for 2 bucks so I had to buy it.

I'm still bad at it.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 4:06 pm**

Wolfman Walt wrote:Just like first person can work with Fallout.

First person could work with Fallout. Fallout's about story line and feel. First person shooters are about not being clunky and having satisfying weapons. Bethesda did both wrong.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 4:35 pm**

I could work, but I reckon I'd rather agree with Chris Avallone and say that third person is probably better for RPGs.
Problem with Fallout 3's third person was that it sucked. Fuck, could they get anything right? The third person felt like it was out of an alpha tech demo.
First person works well in action RPGs with half-decent combat, i.e. Deus Ex. Fallout 3 managed to fuck that up as well.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 7:23 pm**

Retlaw83 wrote:
Wolfman Walt wrote:Just like first person can work with Fallout.
First person could work with Fallout. Fallout's about story line and feel. First person shooters are about not being clunky and having satisfying weapons. Bethesda did both wrong.

Ok. In some bizzare theory, I guess it could work for Fallout. It doesn't and can't in MY opinion without changing the basis of what Fallout is, but whatever.

X-Com is a squad strategy game, not an rpg. It's hard to set up squad level strategy if you only control one guy from a very limited perspective - especially in a game that one or two hits can kill you (or worse). It just doesn't work, in my opinion. It'd be like taking Star Craft and making it a first person shooter and saying that THATS what the next level of evolution for the series is, fuck you fans.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 7:41 pm**

Really, the only way to prevent your precious mind baby from inevitably being unflinchingly violated by well meaning dogs for the consumption and preoccupation of the subaverage is for it to not exist outside your own mind.

Either way, further entrenching the mediocracy. Huzzah.

Posted: **Wed Apr 14, 2010 11:38 pm**

have you played raven shields that does squad based combat in a whole other dimension

+

WOWEL ZSOWNDS

Posted: **Thu Apr 15, 2010 12:37 am**

At the very least, I hope its better then Enforcer...

Megs, Incubation is pretty awesome

Posted: **Thu Apr 15, 2010 1:07 am**

SenisterDenister wrote:Okay, I've been looking around the internet since the first post, and it seems like everyone is pissed off about it. Why the hell weren't people up in arms about Fallout 3? I feel betrayed, now not only by the industry, but by its fan base. Jesus H. Christ.

I think partly because this is like completely different from what the original was in like all levels. Original was a tactical squad based thing I guess and this is a shooter with almost no relation. With Fo3 it was atleast still an RPG even though all of it sucked compared. Also Enforcer for Xcom was used as our example when fighting Fallout: BOS. Remember when it was called Fallout Enforcer?

Posted: **Thu Apr 15, 2010 2:27 am**

Wolfman Walt wrote:X-Com is a squad strategy game, not an rpg. It's hard to set up squad level strategy if you only control one guy from a very limited perspective - especially in a game that one or two hits can kill you (or worse). It just doesn't work, in my opinion. It'd be like taking Star Craft and making it a first person shooter and saying that THATS what the next level of evolution for the series is, fuck you fans.

I'm not defending the decision to make it a first person shooter. I just mentioned what they would have to do to make it work as one. Of course, they won't put forth the effort and it'll be complete shit.

I never played X-COM before Apocalypse, but I remember hardcore fans bitching about it. Then that retarded third-person action game with the X-COM stamp came out.

The franchise is doing a headlong slide down a greased ramp into a pit full of shit and whining on an internet forum about how much it makes your butt hurt isn't going to change that.

Instead of complaining about classic games of the 90s getting forcibly face-fucked as a cash grab, focus on the good game designs of this decade. You'll save yourself a lot of grief.