by c0mc0 » 25 May 12, 7:05 pm
It's interesting...I wonder what they're planning to do with it? 2014 is a very long way off and, if they were inclined to do so, would be enough time for them to completely rework the game. I wonder if, after seeing just how popular the original and the new 2K game are becoming, they have decided to go back and re-do all the aliens to something a little less...odd than what they had come up with.
I personally loved the setting and thought it had a lot of promise. But I disliked the aliens themselves - the "oil" thing looked pretty interesting, but the blue guys and the cubical shapes etc was so far from X-Com that it left you scratching your head. If they went back to Greys (The "Roswell" looking guys from the original Enemy Unknown) running around in 1950, that would be pretty neat and hit the whole UFO pop culture mark so much better.
A few more things that, if they can implement them properly, would make this so much more than just another FPS -
- Squad-based tactics (think more Rainbow 6 that CoD, with careful covering of team mates, deployment of troops to different entry points etc
- RPG-like elements of collecting alien gear and taking it back for research. You could have interesting choices to make like do you take along a tech who is less capable as a soldier but is able to extract more useful intel from alien tech so you can research new weapons faster etc)
- RPG-like concepts of leveling up soldiers/agents, making you care more about putting them in harms way without backup etc
Combine that with powerful, unpredictable enemies that need a coordinated approach to taking down (you can't just loan wolf a level with a single guy), a creepy, tense atmosphere where you don't know what's going to jump out at you next...You'd have an absolutely cracking game on your hands, and something totally unique in a market full of military shooters.
I just hope they're taking this extra time to improve the game, not just shelving it.