So I checked my blog stats this morning and see this not-so-tiny spike. Someone apparently posted to a more popular forum... Check details... Yep, there it is--on Bay 12 already. I haven't been doing any publicity since the game is just a tech demo right now, but X@COM is probably just going to advertise itself, being what it is
From what I read the creatures, items, and equipment have a DF-like raw setup allowing modders to add what ever they can think of. This opens the possibility for 1700's era X-COM romps against sentient waffles and the like. I personally love the terrain destruction which is key to any X-COM-like tactical squad command game. I am interested into how a geoscape would work... mmm 3D ASCII planet? Yes please!
@ Itnetlolor: If the final/ beta-level product of the game is anything like the demo I will be in heaven. The move to ascii apparently will allow him to have a multitude if unique, different environments and situations if I read the devlogs right. So far he has some different creatures with things like the cyborg which were not in the original X-COM to my knowledge.
X@COM is completely data driven--the game draws everything from the text files which you can see in their current limited state in the tech demo's "xcomdat/objects" directory. (The extension is .xt, which I did so I can view them with syntax highlighting by default in Notepad++.) It will be possible to create an entirely different setting using your own terrain, creatures, items, etc... even particle effects (though I wouldn't recommend any serious editing with the tech demo).
Geoscape: Won't be coming until at least another 6-8 months, probably. Hadn't decided on flat or 3D yet, but will most likely implement both just to compare. I'm not sure I should bother with flat, though, since everyone wants 3D ASCII, of course.
The cyborg in the tech demo is an RL joke/Easter egg. It's Sigmund from DCSS.
my guys wont get off the dropship...
I had this problem until I read the Readme. Numpad "+" & "-" change z-levels. You can move your guys by either clicking with the mouse or view the array keys on the ground floor/ where they can path too/see. Down arrow key kneels, tab cycles your squadmates and space ends your turn. That should cover you till you find the readme which is inside the instillation folder. I still need to remember the reload key... damn those empty rocket launchers.
Ya, press F1 in game for the command help. Mouse wheel support for z-level changes is already in the next unreleased version.
Sorry about the rockets--No way to reload your weapons at the moment since inventory management is pretty much nonexistent
You'll just have to abandon any empty weapons for now, thus making any rocket launchers one-use weapons.
Just think what kind of terrain gen people can write. Massive places like Apocalypse!
This might not be possible, since the plan is to limit maps to 60x60 so they always entirely fit in the console. Seeing the entire map at once makes the game play much faster. There is, however, theoretically no limit to how *tall* a map can be. So you could have very high buildings and such if the map ceiling is raised. Could be fun to have a skyscraper-type map.
Right now the architecture doesn't support scrolling maps or x/y-dim > 60. And if I don't add it soon/early, it'll probably never be.
If the final/ beta-level product of the game is anything like the demo I will be in heaven.
It's going to be far, far better. The content will be what everyone knows and loves, and much of the "tech" in tech demo isn't even in there yet. The game will probably start to resemble what it'll really be in another few months.
Oh yeah, forgot to mention... In case it's not obvious: I'm the X@COM dev
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Topic: X@COM - Where ASCII and X-COM Collide! (Read 122615 times)