Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Mouse and Keyboard Warriors
User avatar
Maturin
Posts: 1568
Joined: Fri Aug 10, 2018 8:48 am

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by Maturin » Tue Jan 28, 2020 9:01 am

Sly Boots wrote:
Tue Jan 28, 2020 8:14 am
- the AP system where you can move, shoot, move or do whatever you want to until you've used up all your points
This is one of the main reasons I thought Xenonauts was a way more fun game than XCOM1 + 2. Plus line of sight and hit probabilities felt much more reasonable too.

User avatar
Sly Boots
Bar Staff
Posts: 6277
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:34 am
Location: Hampshire
Contact:

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by Sly Boots » Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:19 am

Reinstalling this (it's still on Game Pass), as I've read that a number of big updates and patches have made a big difference, and it's almost a different game now.

It definitely had the kernel of something good when I played it before, so will be interesting to see how it's improved.

User avatar
DjchunKfunK
Bar Staff
Posts: 2197
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 9:02 am

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by DjchunKfunK » Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:37 am

Sly Boots wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:19 am
Reinstalling this (it's still on Game Pass), as I've read that a number of big updates and patches have made a big difference, and it's almost a different game now.

It definitely had the kernel of something good when I played it before, so will be interesting to see how it's improved.
Have they fixed the animation issue?

User avatar
Sly Boots
Bar Staff
Posts: 6277
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:34 am
Location: Hampshire
Contact:

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by Sly Boots » Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:38 am

DjchunKfunK wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:37 am
Sly Boots wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:19 am
Reinstalling this (it's still on Game Pass), as I've read that a number of big updates and patches have made a big difference, and it's almost a different game now.

It definitely had the kernel of something good when I played it before, so will be interesting to see how it's improved.
Have they fixed the animation issue?
Which issue was that? I'll keep an eye out for it (haven't played it again yet).

User avatar
DjchunKfunK
Bar Staff
Posts: 2197
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 9:02 am

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by DjchunKfunK » Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:39 am

Sly Boots wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:38 am
DjchunKfunK wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:37 am
Sly Boots wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:19 am
Reinstalling this (it's still on Game Pass), as I've read that a number of big updates and patches have made a big difference, and it's almost a different game now.

It definitely had the kernel of something good when I played it before, so will be interesting to see how it's improved.
Have they fixed the animation issue?
Which issue was that? I'll keep an eye out for it (haven't played it again yet).
The enemies would move after you had taken a shot due to idle animations and your shots could end up missing.

User avatar
Sly Boots
Bar Staff
Posts: 6277
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:34 am
Location: Hampshire
Contact:

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by Sly Boots » Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:57 am

DjchunKfunK wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:39 am
Sly Boots wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:38 am
DjchunKfunK wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 9:37 am


Have they fixed the animation issue?
Which issue was that? I'll keep an eye out for it (haven't played it again yet).
The enemies would move after you had taken a shot due to idle animations and your shots could end up missing.
Wow, ok, probably won't get to play it until this evening, but I'll keep an eye out for that.

User avatar
Sly Boots
Bar Staff
Posts: 6277
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:34 am
Location: Hampshire
Contact:

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by Sly Boots » Tue Sep 08, 2020 10:08 am

A quick google shows that there's a player-made mod available to sort that issue.

I've no idea if it is present in this version yet, and not sure if it's exactly the same issue but from the sound of it it's a feature rather than a bug (the one I read about was more to do with the aliens flinching after being hit by one bullet, which may cause subsequent bullets to miss) and so may possibly have not been addressed.

But I'll have a look later.

User avatar
Sly Boots
Bar Staff
Posts: 6277
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:34 am
Location: Hampshire
Contact:

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by Sly Boots » Tue Sep 08, 2020 10:09 am

Also, here's a list of the updates/fixes:

https://forums.snapshotgames.com/t/phoe ... 2020/11075

User avatar
DjchunKfunK
Bar Staff
Posts: 2197
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 9:02 am

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by DjchunKfunK » Tue Sep 08, 2020 1:51 pm

Sly Boots wrote:
Tue Sep 08, 2020 10:08 am
A quick google shows that there's a player-made mod available to sort that issue.

I've no idea if it is present in this version yet, and not sure if it's exactly the same issue but from the sound of it it's a feature rather than a bug (the one I read about was more to do with the aliens flinching after being hit by one bullet, which may cause subsequent bullets to miss) and so may possibly have not been addressed.

But I'll have a look later.
Yeah that was another one, combined with the animation issue it meant combat is/was broken.

User avatar
Sly Boots
Bar Staff
Posts: 6277
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:34 am
Location: Hampshire
Contact:

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by Sly Boots » Tue Sep 22, 2020 7:01 am

Been playing a fair bit of this over the past week.

Headline news is, I'm enjoying it. I can't say that it's an amazing game, but put it in the same bracket as those other worthy 7/10 games that are worth a play.

I've played enough, Dj, to confirm those animation issues you asked about are still present. I've had instances where some of my bullets have missed the target due to an enemy still moving in slo-mo while I'm firing, and also their flinch after being hit. It's a bit annoying I guess, but it is what it is.

But otherwise I think the update has streamlined things. It's much easier to find points of interest without having to ping everything to reveal those nearby. You also can see where all your bases are from the off, and can unlock them remotely providing you have the resources to do so... this helps make it easier to traverse the globe.

I've recently got a B team up and running in their own craft to cover the Americas while my A team covers Europe, Asia and Africa.

Last night I took down one of those big buggers that appears in the previews and marketing, and it was a pretty tense experience. It kept producing aliens that can mind-control your soldiers, hitting them with green goo that poisons them and sticks them in place, so they were getting sniped by other aliens hiding in the fog the big bugger was also producing. Gave an audible cheer when I finally brought it down, which turned to horror when I realised that it didn't end the mission, I also needed to get my beaten-up troop across the map to extract, with new enemies spawning every couple of turns.

By the time we extracted my guys had run out of ammo and health kits, most very low on hp, and it felt very satisfying to get it down with zero casualties.

User avatar
DjchunKfunK
Bar Staff
Posts: 2197
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 9:02 am

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by DjchunKfunK » Tue Sep 22, 2020 9:03 am

Sly Boots wrote:
Tue Sep 22, 2020 7:01 am
I've played enough, Dj, to confirm those animation issues you asked about are still present. I've had instances where some of my bullets have missed the target due to an enemy still moving in slo-mo while I'm firing, and also their flinch after being hit. It's a bit annoying I guess, but it is what it is.
That's a shame, I was really hoping this was something they would fix. I guess it's either not possible to fix or they intend it to work like that. Guess I wont bother giving it another try, in a game with percentage shots I don't want to also be able to miss because the game decided to play an animation.

User avatar
Sly Boots
Bar Staff
Posts: 6277
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:34 am
Location: Hampshire
Contact:

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by Sly Boots » Mon Sep 28, 2020 4:09 pm

I think I've hit a bit of a wall with this, and doubtful I'll finish the campaign. Everything has just become a bit too attritional - not in terms of soldier deaths (I've only lost a couple) - but resources. After each tactical mission it costs a certain amount of tech and resources to restock all your ammo etc, which is the same pool of stuff you need to build more facilities, unlock bases, build armour and weapons and so on.

The problem is at a certain point haven after haven is being attacked, and as the campaign fail-state is letting too many of the world's population die, you're pretty much forced to respond to each one. So instead of tackling main story missions or destroying alien bases, both of which are also on my to-do list, I'm going from haven to haven. By the time I've done a couple of those my squad is so beat-up I have to let them recover at a base for a day or two, by which time another couple of havens are being attacked and its rinse and repeat. Meanwhile, my valuable resources are constantly depleting and I'm now at the point where I literally can't reload my guns, let alone build any of the things I need to be building to turn the tide against the alien menace. This is not helped by the fact that late-game the enemies are massive bullet-sponges and require a lot of ammo to bring down.

I went to load it up this morning to continue, and even before my save was loaded I sighed and hit Alt-F4 to quit out.

It was fun for a while, but has reached the point where I simply can't be bothered to continue with it. There's potential there for sure and I'll keep an interested eye on any Phoenix Point 2, but I feel like my issues with this one are beyond the ability of a patch to resolve.

arqueturus
Posts: 240
Joined: Tue Sep 04, 2018 6:02 pm

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by arqueturus » Mon Sep 28, 2020 4:15 pm

Sly Boots wrote:
Mon Sep 28, 2020 4:09 pm
I think I've hit a bit of a wall with this, and doubtful I'll finish the campaign. Everything has just become a bit too attritional - not in terms of soldier deaths (I've only lost a couple) - but resources. After each tactical mission it costs a certain amount of tech and resources to restock all your ammo etc, which is the same pool of stuff you need to build more facilities, unlock bases, build armour and weapons and so on.

The problem is at a certain point haven after haven is being attacked, and as the campaign fail-state is letting too many of the world's population die, you're pretty much forced to respond to each one. So instead of tackling main story missions or destroying alien bases, both of which are also on my to-do list, I'm going from haven to haven. By the time I've done a couple of those my squad is so beat-up I have to let them recover at a base for a day or two, by which time another couple of havens are being attacked and its rinse and repeat. Meanwhile, my valuable resources are constantly depleting and I'm now at the point where I literally can't reload my guns, let alone build any of the things I need to be building to turn the tide against the alien menace. This is not helped by the fact that late-game the enemies are massive bullet-sponges and require a lot of ammo to bring down.

I went to load it up this morning to continue, and even before my save was loaded I sighed and hit Alt-F4 to quit out.

It was fun for a while, but has reached the point where I simply can't be bothered to continue with it. There's potential there for sure and I'll keep an interested eye on any Phoenix Point 2, but I feel like my issues with this one are beyond the ability of a patch to resolve.
I had troubles with the mid game becoming too grindy (see post on page 2) and it sounds like they still haven't fixed that. What a shame. I don't think it rewards careful play enough. The more you take your time, the harder it becomes to progress.

User avatar
Sly Boots
Bar Staff
Posts: 6277
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:34 am
Location: Hampshire
Contact:

Re: Phoenix Point - new tactical strategy from original XCOM devs

Post by Sly Boots » Mon Sep 28, 2020 9:01 pm

arqueturus wrote:
Mon Sep 28, 2020 4:15 pm
Sly Boots wrote:
Mon Sep 28, 2020 4:09 pm
I think I've hit a bit of a wall with this, and doubtful I'll finish the campaign. Everything has just become a bit too attritional - not in terms of soldier deaths (I've only lost a couple) - but resources. After each tactical mission it costs a certain amount of tech and resources to restock all your ammo etc, which is the same pool of stuff you need to build more facilities, unlock bases, build armour and weapons and so on.

The problem is at a certain point haven after haven is being attacked, and as the campaign fail-state is letting too many of the world's population die, you're pretty much forced to respond to each one. So instead of tackling main story missions or destroying alien bases, both of which are also on my to-do list, I'm going from haven to haven. By the time I've done a couple of those my squad is so beat-up I have to let them recover at a base for a day or two, by which time another couple of havens are being attacked and its rinse and repeat. Meanwhile, my valuable resources are constantly depleting and I'm now at the point where I literally can't reload my guns, let alone build any of the things I need to be building to turn the tide against the alien menace. This is not helped by the fact that late-game the enemies are massive bullet-sponges and require a lot of ammo to bring down.

I went to load it up this morning to continue, and even before my save was loaded I sighed and hit Alt-F4 to quit out.

It was fun for a while, but has reached the point where I simply can't be bothered to continue with it. There's potential there for sure and I'll keep an interested eye on any Phoenix Point 2, but I feel like my issues with this one are beyond the ability of a patch to resolve.
I had troubles with the mid game becoming too grindy (see post on page 2) and it sounds like they still haven't fixed that. What a shame. I don't think it rewards careful play enough. The more you take your time, the harder it becomes to progress.
Yeah, in addition to what I said above I think your misgivings then still apply also, it did feel like the evolutions ramped up exceedingly quickly, which definitely accentuates the lack of resources.

Post Reply