Xcom 2 is a disaster due to the arbitrary time (or turn, for the nitpickers) limits in all missions.
If you don't rush via the shortest path or if you do the unthinkable and explore the map a bit you'll run out of time and die.
And if you install a mod that removes the turn limits it becomes way too easy because it's balanced for rushing blindly ahead and it's like taking candy from a baby if you have time to scout and position yourself.
Chimera squad... what's chimera squad? Didn't look at anything after xcom 2.
To continue whining, the current Firaxis ruined Civilization as well. They tried to 'improve' religion and ended up adding another tactical layer. You're fighting the military war and the religious war. But with the military war you can make peace now and then, or simply not attack. The religious war never ends. Which means that every single turn you have to take care of umpteenth religious units making the game full of pointless busywork.
War of the Chosen fleshed out the turn limit mechanics quite a bit and made them more palatable.
I understand why they added the turn limits, but I think the execution could have been handled better.
'Invisible Inc.' did a much better job of getting you to hurry up.
Another interesting take on the squad level tactical game is Into the Breach. They solve the design problem of getting you to hurry up, by inverting the game compared to X-Com: in Into the Breach the player squad has to hold out for 4 turns per mission and hold of the aliens.
Heh. There's a textbook example on how you put time pressure on the player without something as peasant as turn limits in the original x-com.
Terror missions. Having to save your civilians (and trying to not get overwhelmed by chrysalids that spawn from the corpses) is excellent time pressure. Move or lose.
But whoever designed the "new" x-coms didn't notice that. The days of subtlety are gone.
Btw, the reason overwatch turtling is the preferred strategy in the "new" x-com 1 is because, especially in the beginning, being surprised costs too much. Another way to encourage the player to move faster would have been to give them more recovery options. Or even something as simple as more than two hitpoints for rookies.
Though the terror missions are still there in XCOM 2.
Regarding the overwatch turtling, another issue is the pod system, as the player will always meet a group of aliens, which, so activating a pod is more dangerous than just sighting an alien in the old game. But trying to play without the Overwatch crawl makes for an interesting challenge.
I enjoyed xcom2 much more than the reboot. Constraints of all kinds ($$$ and other resources) made much more sense for a resistance fighter of a humanity that had lost the war. It added the sense of urgency and danger.
What do you need to explore the map for? (there might be mission in the WotC expansion where you might need to, but I think those don't have timers, I think)
I only play through XCOM 2 once (my laptop's too potato to stomach another time at minimum graphics and slowdowns), but I felt that the timers weren't so bad, it pushed to move fast (agressive scouting) and not waste any time (no more overwatch crawl). Though there are missions with no timers or some where you can stop the timer partway through, so it's not always like that.
Well, they had a free weekend once and in the very first mission I thought "let's see what's around this corner". There were no aliens, the landscape was pretty, but it meant I lost 2 turns and the mission. I promptly uninstalled it and bought it a couple years later when it was 90% off. Never bought any expansion.
Maybe you like crap like that but I find it insulting. See my other answer for how to push players to move fast without introducing arbitrary limits.
> Xcom 2 is a disaster due to the arbitrary time (or turn, for the nitpickers) limits in all missions.
You know, I hated it at first too but after a while I really began to appreciate how it changes the way you play the game. So I have to disagree there. Ditto the Alien Rulers.
Chimera squad is the latest Xcom game. It's a bit simplified and you jump straight into position. It's nice to not have to spend 50 hours moving around but not everybody likes the change in gameplay.
Yes. If you want to have a quicker tactics game that's a tiny bit like some aspects of X-Com, then 'Into the Breach' is probably a better use of your time than Chimera Squad.
Chimera Squad is an OK game, and good if you like the (rebooted) X-Com universe.
If you don't rush via the shortest path or if you do the unthinkable and explore the map a bit you'll run out of time and die.
And if you install a mod that removes the turn limits it becomes way too easy because it's balanced for rushing blindly ahead and it's like taking candy from a baby if you have time to scout and position yourself.
Chimera squad... what's chimera squad? Didn't look at anything after xcom 2.
To continue whining, the current Firaxis ruined Civilization as well. They tried to 'improve' religion and ended up adding another tactical layer. You're fighting the military war and the religious war. But with the military war you can make peace now and then, or simply not attack. The religious war never ends. Which means that every single turn you have to take care of umpteenth religious units making the game full of pointless busywork.