9 replies to this topic

[Astyanax]

Didn't happen to see this during a cursory search, but how about UFOs pursuing and intercepting X-Corps craft, especially later in the game?

For instance, your "Avenger" just took out a "Dreadnaught" and sustained heavy damage, but another "Dreadnaught" is nearby.

In the original X-Corps, you could just fly your "Avenger" back home safely, iirc. What I propose is that the second "Dreadnaught" be able to initiate aerial combat, possibly destroying your mortally wounded "Avenger".

It'd make dogfights against multiple UFOs much more risky and be a bit more realistic, imho.

Edited by Astyanax, 11 April 2005 - 04:24 PM.

[I AM ROBOT]

Good idea, or they could have a carrier hanging around waiting to ambush your craft around the planet, AND what about fighter craft that do strafing runs in the battles and stuff......hmmmm

[GARAK]

Yeah, that might be cool. Or it could really suck. Like most things, it depends on how it is implemented. I am inclined to say that xenocide should stay very close to the original to avoid unnessessary problems and conflicts. But it would be pretty cool to get shot down by aliens. I wouldn't like micromanaging the flight patterns to evade ufo interception everytime I launched. That would be a pain.

[Snakeman]

Yeah, that might be cool. Or it could really suck. Like most things, it depends on how it is implemented. I am inclined to say that xenocide should stay very close to the original to avoid unnessessary problems and conflicts. But it would be pretty cool to get shot down by aliens. I wouldn't like micromanaging the flight patterns to evade ufo interception everytime I launched. That would be a pain.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Games like this shouldn't depend on my dexterity to click my mouse button. I think its safe to say it won't be like this if its anything like the first game. What I understand what this method would present is greator than usual possibility of interception window popups than before. Not only are you monitoring your offensive actions, the alien's offensive actions to your craft would trigger them too.

It may become annoying when your focused on one, you get one of theirs and you can't center on that action until you've dealt with the first.

I think the key with this sort of addition shouldn't happen that liberally, if just to cut down the stress level between various Geoscape actions taking place. i.e. once or twice a month Geoscape time, the aliens would go after one of your ships in flight to or from wherever it was going.

[sir_schwick]

Personally I always thought the air war in X-COM was lacking. The aliens let you b**** slap them around constantly. Also, fighter and interception control could use an update.

Your interceptors should fly out in sorties and work as a team. You can set the tactics used, etc. Instead of individual pop-ups, there would be a 'sortie command' pop-up with listed options similar to the first one. On the geoscape you would see a circle which showed the operational zone(which moves with the interceptors). On both the geoscape and the SC screen you would see enemy units(more graphic than dots please).

The Aliens would probably have a few fighter flights around the Earth in high-orbit, waiting for trouble. This means they will come and back up their Harvester or whatever you are attacking. Major operations would probably have a wing or two with them. If a ship goes down, they will get a recovery team and security team to the site, so you better respond quickly.

[Astyanax]

To be honest, I hadn't considered the "fast reactions" required for dodging UFOs, but sir_schwick's "tactics" approach might be a solution.

I didn't intend for there to be "ambushes", but rather if UFOs happen to be in close proximity, they might move to intercept. Still, having extra UFOs around would make the game considerably more difficult (fun and more realistic for some people, unwanted for others, though).

Alternatively, additional options might be added to X-Corps aircraft behavior (Aggressive: attack UFOs along the way, Neutral: stay on the flight path, only initiate combat with the target, or Cautious: change flight paths to avoid UFOs at all costs). Some of these will be more effective than others; if UFOs are faster, they can still initiate combat whether you like it or not?

When I first thought of this concept of UFOs attacking X-Corps craft, I thought it ironic that so much strategy was involved in the battlescape, yet dogfights were so simplistic.

Edited by Astyanax, 12 April 2005 - 01:43 PM.

[sir_schwick]

When I first thought of this concept of UFOs attacking X-Corps craft, I thought it ironic that so much strategy was involved in the battlescape, yet dogfights were so simplistic.

Exactly, the air war is half if not more of the war effort. Tactics probably would be along the line of 'aggressive', 'cautious', etc. I do not know enough about modern air warfare to say anything more concrete. Any experts are welcome to post.

[Snakeman]

In a way I think the air war should still remain simplistic. I think the peformance of the craft and how they fight could be improved in terms of what's selected and what's shown to you. I mean, I realize the player, as the commander here, just gives orders and by definition sits back to watch. But that doesn't mean we can't see clips of the fight by the pilots involved.

Even if the footage is grainy, it still might be neat to see things from their point of view, how ever limited that might be. It might be a refreshing change from time to time, of just staring at radar/proximity screens.

Perhaps your earlier interceptors can get these grainy cameras, then over time, your newer ships get clearer pictures of what's in front/behind them and relay that to you with better camera systems. Besides the standard options of aggressive attack (all weapons get within range to fire), standard attack (ship is far enough back just to shoot long range), and evasive...which are general orders to begin with; Mix up how the vid footage would look if you could also target specific points on the enemy.

i.e. Aggressive Attack is selected, but then you also click a part of the ship system on the vid screen you want to go for. Now its not an ad hoc aggressive attack to hit any 'ol part of the enemy, you've got the ship doing everything it can on the way to the enemy to nail that specific system (which could also include a mix of evading enemy fire while its still in a technically offensive stance).

The further idea of having aft view cameras though would only make sense if you had any weapons or countermeasures you could launch aft. If you didn't have any guns or missiles capabable, but you had bits of chaff to fling at mach speeds, you won't have ability to precisely target, but at least try to slow the thing down enough to flee. Smoke screens might also work, if your pilots have decent enough Psi Defense.

I figure with something like smoke, Aliens that are Psi capable can easily see past it to get to their mind - whether or not they take control of the pilot. Anyway, I thought some means of enhancing the intercept interface might be fun. To gradually get the benefit of precise targetting sure by selecting a ship's subsystems, but something more than just general orders to make the fights seem different every time.

I like the thought too of lumping interceptors into flight groups that work together. I think having this ability could counter the game's choice whether to send aliens at your ships to fight.

[dipstick]

These are all good ideas, and I agree with the topic, but I remember another thread about this?

I will take a search for it when I get home, but I am sure j'ordos will beat me

[Adun_Toridas]

what about lots of little ufos intercepting an avenger? well, but that will not be feasible by the way that nothing is faster than this one... althought sounds cool.