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XCOM: Enemy Unknown |OT| Neo GAF is Under Alien Control

M

MrCompletely

Member
for anyone who started post tutorial, where does the game start exactly? I've done 3 or 4 missions and the game is still "teaching" me stuff and forcing decisions - but it is helpful!
 
R

red731

Member
So Steam in offline will not count my time and achievements?

im-okay-with-this.png
 
D

Derrick01

Banned
MrCompletely said:
for anyone who started post tutorial, where does the game start exactly? I've done 3 or 4 missions and the game is still "teaching" me stuff and forcing decisions - but it is helpful!
Click to expand...

Well when I got the objective to capture an alien I had everything at my base un-blocked so I assume I'm done with the tutorial. The last mission I did didn't have any help stuff in it either which is probably why I almost got everyone killed.
 
W

Wes

venison crêpe
My sniper panicked and critical hit and killed a VIP. The guy next to the VIP panicked in response and shot the sniper. Haha!
 
N

Nocebo

Member
MasLegio said:
So why can I only select US or EU for my base?

Is there not just one base in the game?
Click to expand...
Sounds like it's a thing that happens when you do the tutorial oddly enough. I skipped the tutorial in the settings and could select the other regions as well.
 
F

F!ReW!Re

Member
Nocebo said:
Sounds like it's a thing that happens when you do the tutorial oddly enough. I skipped the tutorial in the settings and could select the other regions as well.
Click to expand...

Posted these tips and tricks from PC gamer yesterday:
http://www.pcgamer.com/2012/10/08/xcom-enemy-unknown-guide/

Appearantly skipping the tutorial has multiple benefits;

Building your Base
Restart after the tutorial – The XCOM tutorial is very handy for learning the basics of the game, but it’s also very linear. Starting again after you’ve finished it will give you the freedom to plan your base how you like, and ensure you don’t lose three men on the first mission.
Click to expand...

Also let's you choose any region for your base. (You can only build one base during a game)


Basileus777 said:
Nothing I do will unlock my preload/download that last 1%. I guess it's time to redownload the whole thing.
Click to expand...

If you're not located in NA, your game will unlock this Friday (hence the 1% missing)
 
G

garath

Member
Ugh. I can't decide how to start.

I want to play Ironman to limit my save abuse tenancies but I also want to start Classic because I want the strategy layer to mean something. I don't think Classic Ironman is the way to start for me though.

I'm torn between Ironman normal and regular Classic. Sigh.

And what does the tutorial show that wasn't in the demo? Someone mentioned it covers more stuff than it did in the demo. I'd rather skip it from the get go but I don't want to miss crucial info.
 
S

Sinatar

Official GAF Bottom Feeder
garath said:
And what does the tutorial show that wasn't in the demo? Someone mentioned it covers more stuff than it did in the demo. I'd rather skip it from the get go but I don't want to miss crucial info.
Click to expand...

The demo tutorial only covered combat, the full game tutorial covers base building, research, manufacturing as well as giving you more guidance during missions and the like. I put in a bit over an hour last night and was still in the tutorial.
 
P

Protein

Banned
Is the tense-scary music still in on some missions? The tense-actiony music is fine and dandy, but I remember seeing LP vids of X-COM and the music seemed alot more eerie than in this game.
 
T

Twiccan

Neo Member
Sinatar said:
The demo tutorial only covered combat, the full game tutorial covers base building, research, manufacturing as well as giving you more guidance during missions and the like. I put in a bit over an hour last night and was still in the tutorial.
Click to expand...

I think it's awesome that they have such a detailed tutorial for this game. The original X-Com was the only game I've ever played where I had to go out and buy a guide to figure out how to even start and the basic strategies involved. Before the guide I played game after aimless game just randomly buying stuff and going out on missions for the fun of it, not really even trying to win because I had no idea what was required.

The guide for that game was HUGE, too.
 
Oppo

Oppo

Member
1.5 GB on 360 demo vs 5 GB on PC demo. Do you think they crushed down the video assets like crazy, or what? Textures?

I'm playing on PC but I'm curious. Got a buddy who's on the fence w/r/t versions. I told him probably PC was the way to go but he values his couch, which I don't blame him for. We both use standing desks so it's nice to flop down at the end of the work day. Me, I'm Iron Man, so I stand regardless :)

edit - so if I were to redo the tutorial, I could place my base in Canada (or any country)? is that right?
 
M

Mupod

Member
Protein said:
Is the tense-scary music still in on some missions? The tense-actiony music is fine and dandy, but I remember seeing LP vids of X-COM and the music seemed alot more eerie than in this game.
Click to expand...

I was doing a crashed UFO mission last night and there was some seriously creepy-ass ambient music going on. However once an alien is spotted it switches to the 'actiony' battle music, at least until everything in sight is dead.
 
C

Cheech

Member
electricpirate said:
Xcom's demo was neither meaty, nor good.

The developer centered marketing blitz has been great though. THey've focussed on long, in depth previews of the game, and talking with the developers and things like that, which has led to a really well timed marketing and hype blitz.
Click to expand...

Well, the demo sure sold me. Too many games have "console-port-itis", and I wanted to make sure that it controlled perfectly with KB/M before throwing down.

I probably would have still bought it with no demo, but not as a preorder, only after user impressions from PC buyers cleared it first.

Every game should have a demo... well, except the crappy ones. A few times, and recently I'm thinking of Resident Evil 6, the demo completely destroyed any interest I had in the game.
 
Oppo

Oppo

Member
Mupod said:
I was doing a crashed UFO mission last night and there was some seriously creepy-ass ambient music going on. However once an alien is spotted it switches to the 'actiony' battle music, at least until everything in sight is dead.
Click to expand...

there are some little throwback style audio cues though. I love the jumbled off key piano thing that happens when you spot some sectoids, so campy.
 
Alboreo

Alboreo

Member
Cheech said:
Well, the demo sure sold me. Too many games have "console-port-itis", and I wanted to make sure that it controlled perfectly with KB/M before throwing down.

I probably would have still bought it with no demo, but not as a preorder, only after user impressions from PC buyers cleared it first.

Every game should have a demo... well, except the crappy ones. A few times, and recently I'm thinking of Resident Evil 6, the demo completely destroyed any interest I had in the game.
Click to expand...

Similarly, the demo also sold me. I wasn't even interested in the game before playing said demo because I was under the impression that it would have poor PC controls or lack depth (don't ask me why, I hadn't actually done any research). After running through the demo two or three times and handling the missions a bit differently each time, I decided it was definitely for me and jumped on a physical copy from Amazon.
 
L

Lombax

Banned
Good Morning GAFCOM
I have a few questions about the game please bare with me as I was playing late last night and may have missed some obvious stuff.

1. I was reading the XCOM guide from PC Gamer last night. On the subject of
"Restart after the tutorial – The XCOM tutorial is very handy for learning the basics of the game, but it’s also very linear. Starting again after you’ve finished it will give you the freedom to plan your base how you like, and ensure you don’t lose three men on the first mission."
was anyone able to do this? every time I restarted I was playing the tutorial all over again and still only ended up with 1 squad member after the mission was over.
Can anyone explaine what the guide is talking about?

2. I believe I picked casual difficulty so when it came time to pick my base location I only had 2 choices? Are the others only allowed in classic and above?

3. At what point can you give a squad member a nickname?

sorry I know they are lame questions but I'm sleepy, and I was working on my own "Shiv" prior to the game unlock last night.

12_1.jpg
 
M

Mupod

Member
After some thought (because thinking about this game is all I can do at work) I think I'm gonna restart again and try out a different base setup and research path, on normal this time. If it works out well that'll be my next strategy I'll throw at Classic this weekend.

Haven't been naming anybody yet, nobody is getting customized until they earn a nickname anyways. I've got a few friends who will be in my core squad, and I want a Muv-Luv team who will probably all die horribly.

I definitely want to have an Ed Crossett at one point, who was my legendary commander in my first successful playthrough of the original. The guy's stats were through the roof and he single handedly cleared battleships full of Ethereals. I later found out this was because he had a maxed out psionic rating too. I'm hoping his namesake can channel his ability to take 3-4 plasma blasts to the face without a scratch.
 
D

Derrick01

Banned
Man this game can be intense. After my last botched mission all I had for my next was a squad of rookies and we pulled it off without any real trouble, though one of them ended up in the med bay with slight injuries. It was tougher not having any abilities but med packs and grenades though.

I also spent my last $60 for the month on a generator when I could have unlocked a 5th member slot. I thought it was $100 and not $50.
 
K

KO Traveling Hobo

Member
Mupod said:
After some thought (because thinking about this game is all I can do at work) I think I'm gonna restart again and try out a different base setup and research path, on normal this time. If it works out well that'll be my next strategy I'll throw at Classic this weekend.

Haven't been naming anybody yet, nobody is getting customized until they earn a nickname anyways. I've got a few friends who will be in my core squad, and I want a Muv-Luv team who will probably all die horribly.

I definitely want to have an Ed Crossett at one point, who was my legendary commander in my first successful playthrough of the original. The guy's stats were through the roof and he single handedly cleared battleships full of Ethereals. I later found out this was because he had a maxed out psionic rating too. I'm hoping his namesake can channel his ability to take 3-4 plasma blasts to the face without a scratch.
Click to expand...
jbgW77FxMDcKO6.jpg
 
R

red731

Member
JaseC said:
Steam won't keep track of your time played, but the achievements should still unlock.
Click to expand...

Okay. Thanks.

Spotflux on! Extracting!
If I would like to play lets say Borderlands 2 or use Steam as I do normaly, then the game would auto lock again or lock when I click play?
Can I just use Spotflux again to unlock it again?
Also - better to run Spotflux or go to offline mode for time being?

Thanks. I know this is asked everytime everywhere. Stupid rules(different times of unlocking).
 
G

GooeyHeat

Member
Lombax said:
Good Morning GAFCOM
I have a few questions about the game please bare with me as I was playing late last night and may have missed some obvious stuff.

1. I was reading the XCOM guide from PC Gamer last night. On the subject of
"Restart after the tutorial – The XCOM tutorial is very handy for learning the basics of the game, but it’s also very linear. Starting again after you’ve finished it will give you the freedom to plan your base how you like, and ensure you don’t lose three men on the first mission."
was anyone able to do this? every time I restarted I was playing the tutorial all over again and still only ended up with 1 squad member after the mission was over.
Can anyone explaine what the guide is talking about?

2. I believe I picked casual difficulty so when it came time to pick my base location I only had 2 choices? Are the others only allowed in classic and above?

3. At what point can you give a squad member a nickname?

sorry I know they are lame questions but I'm sleepy, and I was working on my own "Shiv" prior to the game unlock last night.

12_1.jpg
Click to expand...
1. When you restart, there's a check-box thing that says "tutorial", so uncheck that.
2. You can pick more locations if you don't do the tutorial.
I don't know about the nickname thing.
 
F

FlutterPuffs

Member
I think my only problem with the game is that it doesn't let you use both kbm and gamepad when you want. I love the gamepad during missions, but its so much easier to use the mouse at the base.

If any of the developers are reading this, can we have that please? :D
 
T

Twiccan

Neo Member
GooeyHeat said:
1. When you restart, there's a check-box thing that says "tutorial", so uncheck that.
2. You can pick more locations if you don't do the tutorial.
I don't know about the nickname thing.
Click to expand...

How do you know when the tutorial is over? Is there an official "Hand holding disengaged, wipe your own ass from now on, cowboy!" type message?
 
J

JaseC

gave away the keys to the kingdom.
red731 said:
Okay. Thanks.

Spotflux on! Extracting!
If I would like to play lets say Borderlands 2 or use Steam as I do normaly, then the game would auto lock again or lock when I click play?
Can I just use Spotflux again to unlock it again?
Also - better to run Spotflux or go to offline mode for time being?

Thanks. I know this is asked everytime everywhere. Stupid rules(different times of unlocking).
Click to expand...

The game will revert back to its previous state when you disable the VPN, and if you wish to load it again, you'll need to re-enable the VPN and restart Steam. I typically just leave Spotflux enabled, disabling it only when I need to download or purchase something, while others, as you've noticed, prefer to unlock a game and switch to Offline Mode until it has released locally (this leaves the game in its unlocked state regardless of the VPN).
 
R

RealDeadOne

Member
To turn off the tutorial: When you select the difficulty, there is a submenu that you access by pressing X (I think). This will show the toggles for Ironman and Tutorial.


Started the game on Ironman Classic last night, never played much of X-COM before this. I LOVE THE GAME! I was getting absolutely slaughtered the first couple of missions, but it was ok because that's XCOM. I finally ran into a couple missions in a row I managed to get almost everyone out of, and started upgrading my troops, feeling like I could finally do this.

I get a call for abductions in SA, Canada, and France, two of which were Difficult in highly panicked areas, and the other Moderate with only one bar on the panic meter. I figured I should just play it safe with my newly upgraded strike team and try for a routine mission.

So I get in, have my Assault and Support troops move forward and go into Overwatch, and have a Sniper at the back covering them. The next turn the Sectoids come into the shot along with some kind of jetpack looking thing I hadn't seen before. All three miss their Overwatch shots, then on the next turn all three miss their shots, even the guy who had a 70% chance, and even the guy who was shooting an alien just one tile away. Of course that alien was then close enough to kill one of the Support troops, causing both the other Support and the Sniper to panic and not be able to cover the Assault guy who was further up, who then missed two 70% shots in a row again and was killed.

So now down 2 of my best troops, I sent the other two back near the entrance of the site to take a defensive stance, but they missed every single shot they took both in turns and in Overwatch, before being killed at point blank. That's right, I literally missed every single shot I took in this mission.

I really like this game, and I know it's designed to be this way and I don't fault it, but it just really isn't fun to lose everything, regardless of your tactical ability, just because you lost a series of dice rolls. I'm not complaining about the game itself, I mean, I did choose Ironman. I'm just pretty upset I lose all my dudes :(
 
Mattdaddy

Mattdaddy

Gold Member
Can you select what type of soldier your soldiers get promoted to (sniper, support, etc) or is that always automatic? I've had 3 people get promoted so far and the game has always picked for me.
 
C

Corky

Nine out of ten orphans can't tell the difference.
RealDeadOne said:
I'm not complaining about the game itself, I mean, I did choose Ironman. I'm just pretty upset I lose all my dudes :(
Click to expand...

Imagine... just imagine the bonds you'll form to the guys who'll actually survive and triumph! They will be your virtual family. No other game will have you clamoring for the safety of 1's and 0's like xcom.
 
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