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

[ValeVelKal]

So I finally got around to play it and... it is tactically really cool ? I really have the old "XCOM" vibe, way more than in the previous tactical I have played (Corruption 2029).

I am a bit puzzled by the art style indeed, and I understand there was a change of direction. The context/story is super Lovecraftian, as someone says above, but the colors and art used does not reflect this at all. For instance, the base arthrons is either a failure in art of a throwback to the multicolor enemies of the very first XCOM, except in poor 3D. But I am not a graphic-whore so I am OK with that.

So far I am playing IronMan, Medium difficulty and no DLC. At my first wipe I ll put the DLC (except if you advise not to), crank up the difficulty by one and probably Let's Play that somewhere - not on the Codex.

 

[ArchAngel]

So I finally got around to play it and... it is tactically really cool ? I really have the old "XCOM" vibe, way more than in the previous tactical I have played (Corruption 2029).

I am a bit puzzled by the art style indeed, and I understand there was a change of direction. The context/story is super Lovecraftian, as someone says above, but the colors and art used does not reflect this at all. For instance, the base arthrons is either a failure in art of a throwback to the multicolor enemies of the very first XCOM, except in poor 3D. But I am not a graphic-whore so I am OK with that.

So far I am playing IronMan, Medium difficulty and no DLC. At my first wipe I ll put the DLC (except if you advise not to), crank up the difficulty by one and probably Let's Play that somewhere - not on the Codex.

Medium difficulty is very easy. You can turn on DLC in any run because at worst they add more enemies and weapons/armor and at best a lot more missions and things to think about outside battles.

Tactical combat is more like old UFO, and yes art and maps don't give that horror vibe that lore alludes to.

 

[geno]

https://phoenixpoint.info/blog/2021/4/8/phoenix-point-roadmap-for-2021-dlc-console-release-and-more

PHOENIX POINT ROADMAP FOR 2021 - DLC, CONSOLE RELEASE AND MORE!
Attention Phoenix Operatives! We know you’ve been awaiting news about what’s next with Phoenix Point, and we’re excited to be able to share some details! Here’s what we have planned for Phoenix Point for the rest of 2021:

Right now, we’re playtesting and optimizing our next DLC, FESTERING SKIES, which features new missions and enemies, alongside an air combat interception mini-game that hearkens back to the original X-COM. FESTERING SKIES releases on May 25th. We can’t wait to see how the Behemoth, our largest enemy ever, shakes up your campaigns! We’ll have more to share on FESTERING SKIES soon; be sure to sign up for our Newsletter to be the first to know and get regular alerts.

We also are in the midst of designing and developing another DLC to release later this Summer. CORRUPTED HORIZONS, introduces a new class, enemy, and an even more dangerous threat. DLC 5, which is still in the early stages, will be more focused on vehicles and will release before the end of the year.

We also had to make the tough decision to move our console release to early Q4 2021, so that we can ensure we deliver the best possible experience for console players. We know many of you are eagerly awaiting console release, but the truth is: we just weren’t happy with the state of the ports at this time, and we know it’s going to take some more work to get them where we need them. The good news is that the console versions will include all of our available DLC prior to its release.

Please share your feedback with us as to how we can improve the game, and consider leaving us a review on Steam to share your experiences with Phoenix Point so far!

Thank you again for your continued support!

 

[razvedchiki]

No underwater bases?

 

[Alienman]

Circle of life. EPIC beta tested for the Steam release, and the Steam players beta test for the console release.

 

[PanteraNera]

No underwater bases?

Probably didn't fit the narrative setting anymore , I think at this point they don't even care enough to pull out any lame excuses.

Not wanting to nitpick but it actually was a floating base and it was superposed to be the first (free DLC).
There was another DLC that was planed to have underwater missions.

But yeah, seems like they scrapped everything from back than and also, I have such a hard time laughing at them planing DLC's for late summer and winter.
If I would care I would look for the original road map from 2020 they wanted to:

According to a developer post on the Snapshot Games discussion board again in November, there are 5 Phoenix Point DLCs within the works, to be launched at common intervals over the course of 2020

Phoenix Point DLC 3: Festering Skies
Festering Skies is the third deliberate DLC for Phoenix Point, and as Snapshot Games have mentioned that the 5 DLCs might be launched at common intervals all through 2020, we will doubtless anticipate Festering Skies to drop round July 2020. The DLC banner on the Epic Store had the discharge date pegged as July 1st 2020 earlier than it was eliminated and changed with the outdated acquainted “TBD”, however we will fairly anticipate a summer time launch for this DLC.

source

 

[holla_cabezas_de_mierda]

No underwater bases?

Probably didn't fit the narrative setting anymore , I think at this point they don't even care enough to pull out any lame excuses.

Not wanting to nitpick but it actually was a floating base and it was superposed to be the first (free DLC).
There was another DLC that was planed to have underwater missions.

But yeah, seems like they scrapped everything from back than and also, I have such a hard time laughing at them planing DLC's for late summer and winter.
If I would care I would look for the original road map from 2020 they wanted to:

According to a developer post on the Snapshot Games discussion board again in November, there are 5 Phoenix Point DLCs within the works, to be launched at common intervals over the course of 2020

Phoenix Point DLC 3: Festering Skies
Festering Skies is the third deliberate DLC for Phoenix Point, and as Snapshot Games have mentioned that the 5 DLCs might be launched at common intervals all through 2020, we will doubtless anticipate Festering Skies to drop round July 2020. The DLC banner on the Epic Store had the discharge date pegged as July 1st 2020 earlier than it was eliminated and changed with the outdated acquainted “TBD”, however we will fairly anticipate a summer time launch for this DLC.

source

yeah I will be surprised if they release anything other than DLC #3 this year. They have been extremely slow at releasing shit.

The game would be so much more fun to play if the world did not look so fucking clean and modern..the choice of colors for the soldiers uniforms are terrible and bright like a skittles rainbow virus infected a super advanced boring ass technocratic world of neat freaks. Its very jarring compared to the apocalyptic mist story line and honestly makes it hard to play for me. The art direction is really awful, I just can't imagine what they were thinking when they decided to change the original vision for the world and how it would look, and how anyone would somehow think that what they settled on was in any way superior to their original concept.

 

[Shog-goth]

In Italy we have a saying: "the mountain gave birth to a mouse" (dead in this case, too).

 

[rusty_shackleford]

oh, they're still releasing DLC?
I was going to buy this but I guess I'll wait for them to actually finish making the game first

 

[Cyberarmy]

In Italy we have a saying: "the mountain gave birth to a mouse" (dead in this case, too).

Lol we had the same saying too and yeah very appropriate.

 

[razvedchiki]

https://phoenixpoint.info/blog/2021/4/30/phoenix-point-festering-skies-dlc-meet-the-behemoth

PHOENIX POINT: FESTERING SKIES DLC - MEET THE BEHEMOTH
The skies darken with alien vessels and Phoenix Point must rise to the challenge in the new downloadable expansion: FESTERING SKIES - coming May 25th.

The Behemoth looms large over Havens… but to what end?

In Festering Skies, Phoenix forces will encounter a new threat on the Geoscape: the Behemoth, our biggest enemy yet, complete with its share of surprises. The Behemoth is a horrific, lumbering force of nature that appears early in a campaign, introducing new gameplay mechanics, creatures to fight, and missions.

Intercept flying Pandorans dispatched by the Behemoth to wreak havoc on the Geoscape!

Larger than anything Phoenix has seen to date, the Behemoth seems unstoppable at the outset. But rest assured, all-new story missions and research projects will reveal the secret to overcoming the threat — if Phoenix can survive that long. Time is of the essence as the Behemoth targets nearby havens, and it doesn’t come alone.

Nesting on the back of this gigantic monstrosity is a swarm of Pandoran flyers; frightening creatures that terrorize the countryside and create new problems for Phoenix. Acting as a mobile Pandoran colony, the Behemoth launches aerial raids against nearby havens, exploration sites, and even Phoenix bases as it seeks out resources, bombs colonies into oblivion or converts them into something worse. After its reign of destruction, the Behemoth withdraws to the ocean where it lies dormant until hungry once more.

Thankfully, Phoenix can now leverage its own air power to fight back against these flying foes through an all-new aerial minigame: Interception. A throwback to creator Julian Gollop’s original UFO, Festering Skies transforms your transport aircraft into air-to-air combat machines. Through a new story mission, players will receive their first armed Manticore, with which they can take on Pandoran fliers in the skies above havens, POIs, and Phoenix bases. Later, players can unlock the ability to research and manufacture new weapons and modules for their air force.

Interception combat consists of a quick, automated duel between two aircraft, each firing weapons and using abilities continuously. Players gain the advantage by upgrading to faster, more powerful, or longer-range weapons. Players can also equip defensive modules to avoid incoming attacks, and at any time a player can choose to disengage; don’t forget: your operatives are on board your fighting aircraft! Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor. Of course, if you’d prefer to focus on other areas of Festering Skies’ new content, auto-battle is also available.

Be sure to bring the right weapons to the fight or you could lose your precious operatives.

Watch the Range indicator to see when your different weapons can hit the enemy… and vice versa!

Winning the Interception is key, not just for stopping the Pandoran raids but in pushing back the Behemoth’s rampage. Kill enough flying Pandorans and the Behemoth will have no choice but to retreat beneath the sea. But if left unchecked, the Behemoth and its infesting flyers can change the last refuges on the planet into something truly terrifying...

Next #FesteringFriday: Learn about the new enemies and missions you’ll encounter in Festering Skies!

those were supposed to be in the game on release.

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

 

[Trithne]

Same energy.

 

[Daedalos]

Is this good yet

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

Is this good yet

Yes, but tacking aerial combat in may change that.

 

[ArchAngel]

Same energy.

This below image is more interactive then the above one..

 

[Shog-goth]

 

[PanteraNera]

I thought this was fake ... wow ... just wow.
I am so glad I do not care for this piece of shit anymore.

My four year old said "This looks disgusting, with a little of ugly" .
One day she will become a great Codexer

 

[lightbane]

So, that's the interception combat at long last? 5 years for a seemingly suckier version of Xenonauts' own? Perhaps it is turn-based at least, but I don't believe it will be so.

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

So, that's the interception combat at long last? 5 years for a seemingly suckier version of Xenonauts' own? Perhaps it is turn-based at least, but I don't believe it will be so.

Any info how Xenonauts 2 will handle interception?
Initial description from kickstarter looked much simplified compared to Xeno 1.

 

[Galdred]

So, that's the interception combat at long last? 5 years for a seemingly suckier version of Xenonauts' own? Perhaps it is turn-based at least, but I don't believe it will be so.

I wonder whether adding something like X-Wing: the miniature game or Pacific Aces as interception combat could work, or whether it would kill the pace too much.

One day she will become a great Codexer

Don't!

 

[geno]

So, that's the interception combat at long last? 5 years for a seemingly suckier version of Xenonauts' own? Perhaps it is turn-based at least, but I don't believe it will be so.

Any info how Xenonauts 2 will handle interception?
Initial description from kickstarter looked much simplified compared to Xeno 1.

Current build is the one from the first game and I doubt it will change. You can check a let's play on YouTube if you want.

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

So, that's the interception combat at long last? 5 years for a seemingly suckier version of Xenonauts' own? Perhaps it is turn-based at least, but I don't believe it will be so.

Any info how Xenonauts 2 will handle interception?
Initial description from kickstarter looked much simplified compared to Xeno 1.

Current build is the one from the first game and I doubt it will change. You can check a let's play on YouTube if you want.

Closed beta v17 is current build?
Looks like there's massive there.

 

[Shog-goth]

I thought this was fake ... wow ... just wow.
I am so glad I do not care for this piece of shit anymore.

This isn't the first time (in nearly 40 years of gaming) that a game hugely disappoints my expectations, and I usually don't care and step over. This time, however, it is different, because is Gollop who created some of the immortal masterpieces of the genre and I cannot accept that I contributed personally to the creation of this crap "game", which should have instead been a moment of joy after so many years since the original X-COM. I consider this a sort of personal betrayal, even though I realize I should just give it a damn this time too, but I can't.

 

[ArchAngel]

So, that's the interception combat at long last? 5 years for a seemingly suckier version of Xenonauts' own? Perhaps it is turn-based at least, but I don't believe it will be so.

It is a version of 1994 Xcom interception, at least that is how I understand it. They wanted to expand on that and made this..