I wasn't actually trying to support save-scumming (I tend to play plenty of rogue-likes, so the perma-death idea is fine with me). But it makes you wonder if this was the best choice. Especially with people saying that AI decisions are made completely determinately off either squad positioning/actions, the RNG seed, or both.
It does make it a very good strategy game in the sense that it's learnable. You can create strategies, with an effective outcome, due to your positioning and tactics. But you could probably only learn these things by replaying a turn over and over again, to see how the computer player reacts. Games like openCiv (I think it may have been that, something similar anyway) made this choice, and it made for a good game.
Anyway, it's a horribly meta-gaming way of looking at it, that you could gain at least a little bit of an idea of the alien's actions due to experience of such things, but I wonder why it was designed this way?
Maybe it tended to form more cohesive enemy groups? Maybe if the RNG was updated on other levels, in other ways, the AI couldn't form an effective strategy? Not that it's impossible to have several variables that are random going at once, for firing/soldier-enemy stats/AI choices. But maybe this gave the best and easiest to program game, that gave players a good challenge, whilst not being unfair?
Anyway, I hope that there's a DLC AI update at some point. I'd buy that. Shitloads more multiplayer maps, more techs, more playstyles, and some different AI types.
Maybe not as one DLC. But different AI types would be interesting, regardless of turn-based RNG seeding. Fighting against a close range horde, or a bunch of stealthy runners, or suppressive-max, would all make for very interesting and different play-throughs. Even having it vs-alien-types as campaigns. Vs sectoids? The floater/muton elite invasion? Holy-F-robotic-invasion?
I'd rather buy something like that, which is kind-of-easy-to-program, than buy a few armour baubles and a few one-off-missions.
Hell, I hope they milk it that way. It makes better cheese.