What I would like to see if there's a sequel

[Accounting Troll]

After playing Aftershock, I've been wondering how Altar could top it if they feel that sales are strong enough to do a third game in the series.

 

I've come up with a scenario rather like the X-Com Alliance project that I would love to see Altar attempt. I'm only part way through Aftershock, so I apologise in advance if it is inconsistent with the ending of Aftershock.

 

In the early 22nd century, an agressive alien race uses the Qports to launch a blitzkreig invasion that subjugates the Reticulans and the other civilizations near Earth. The Commonwealth of Earth is spared from the initial attack because it is simply not important enough and the invaders are overstretched.

 

Representatives from neighbouring worlds advise humanity to immediately destroy all Qports in our solar system, thus buying us several decades before the invaders can attack Earth.

 

The Commonwealth of Earth knows that humanity cannot endure yet another alien invasion, so it tries to find a way to stop the new invaders before they can reach Earth. By using captured Reticulan warp and transporter technology, a new spaceship is created that is capable of instantaneous travel vetween solar systems without the use of the cumbersome Qports. It is equipped with a unique alien artifact - a cloaking device like what they have in Star Trek.

 

Although it is possible to build more ships capable of instantaneous travel, there is only one cloaking device and there is no possibility of manufacturing another. This ship can be used to transport a small squad to another world to conduct a covert mission and then return to Earth before the invaders can respond.

 

All missions would be set on various alien worlds, and their objectives would be things like obtaining alien artefacts for research, raiding a key military installation, or rescuing a local resistance fighter. Some missions could have your squad cooperating with the local resistance in an attack on a major enemy installation. The ultimate goal would be to organise and support a rebellion that defeats the evil aliens bfore they can attack Earth.

 

You would also be able to recruit soldiers from several different alien races, each of which has its stregnths and weaknesses, rather like the idea behind the cyborg and psionic soldiers in Aftershock.

[infael]

Good idea! I've been wondering if Altar would base the 3rd game on the flip side of the Ret's AM offer -- turning down their offer before kicking their butts. That would be an idea for the game.

[Xzarr]

Sounds a bit like stargate.

 

 

Mmm I like

[Preda]

I admire your idea, troll, but we must see the outcome of the wargot-staghost crisis.

 

I've just sent a probe to the wargot ship, they got fried, now what?

[Pete]

Preda - you have to give it a fair chunk of time (and don't destroy all the cultist bases - the territories yes, but the bases are a big no-no until the next scripted mission trigger).

 

It can seem like you're playing for what seems like weeks in the game but it's only actually a few days as the attacks from the Wargots and Cultists increase, but eventually you'll get an interesting bit of research or something that tells you to raid a cultist base.

 

I don't know whether it was a mission that cropped up with Wargots AND Cultists that did this or what, but I think that may be the trigger, so leave it a while and attack a few cultist provinces and make sure you do every cultist mission where they attack you or another faction

 

The scope of the game changes a lot later on, so I don't know whether Troll's suggestion is feasible unless a stop can be put to the guys I'm currently facing once and for all. I'll say no more except that you won't guess the ending in a million, billion years, and that every time you think you've figured out the underlying plot, something else crops up to confuse you

[Preda]

I don't know whether it was a mission that cropped up with Wargots AND Cultists that did this or what, but I think that may be the trigger, so leave it a while and attack a few cultist provinces and make sure you do every cultist mission where they attack you or another faction

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I'm in big trouble. I only took 1 cultist/Wg province lately and ignored all attacks on anyting other than my bases. Am I hopeless?

[greedo]

I'm in big trouble. I only took 1 cultist/Wg province lately and ignored all attacks on anyting other than my bases. Am I hopeless?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

dont think so.

[Pete]

You should be alright, but really, don't ignore attacks. You're a LONG way from completing the game and can't afford to lose any allies

 

It's actually in your best interest to have everyone love you, as when you ask for personnel and a faction likes you to the very top of the scale on the diplomacy screen, you can get some nice level 12 soldiers

[Huggy_Monster]

For the time being all i really want is the same game (bug free) with much bigger maps, more hostiles, and the maps to be randomly genrated so you can never fight the same battle twice (game tactics biggest influence eveolves mostly around terrian)

 

 

 

Only other feature i would add is a pre-recon before you equip the squad (so you can judge best equipment based on the map)

[Martian base commander]

AT.

 

That was a great idea you proposed for a sequel.Naturally you would want larger more furious battles too?,being able to possibly deploy long range artillery pieces?maybe even call in air strikes to support the assault on alien strong points and bunkers.Human craft would be very vulnerable to the Alien AA batteries,but alien based would fare better and be able to dodge the tracer fire more effectively.

 

Just imagine WWII,only swap the German forces with a supremely aggressive alien force

 

I understand my ideas would be steering the game more away from turn based combat and more into real time combat,but I think it would be interesting nonetheless.It is very rare I use the turn based combat in AS anyhow,only time I set the game up to pause is when a new enemy is spotted,keeps the game flowing better I find.

 

I think this thread will be very active from now,as it could inspire the developers if they are watching it

[Accounting Troll]

Air strikes and artillery would REALLY make things interesting.

 

Aftermath and Aftershock contain things like grenade launchers, heavy weapons that can only be deployed with power armour and drones, so sort of field artillery would not be too hard for Altar to put into the game. Maybe a primitive high explosive version, an advanced plasma version, or even a version that lobs poison gas shells or napalm at the enemy

 

Air strikes would be a little harder to implement. I suspect that Altar would limit it to some sort of small drone aircraft, but even that would be a great way of softening up an enemy position before sending in your squad. Of course, the enemy would have to have access to the same sort of goodies, and they would have to have a chance of shooting down your aircraft.

 

Maybe a single piece of field artillery or aircraft could take up a single slot on your squad, and you could take no more than one on a mission? That way you would only be able to soften up the enemy before you send in your squad to deal with the survivors.

 

Altar did pay a LOT of attention to what fans of Aftermath were saying when they developed Aftershock, so if they decide to do a third game in the series they will be interested in what people say in threads like this

[infael]

In AM, you could click on the words "New mission available" to take you to the spot of the new mission. AS doesn't seem to have this and I would really like to see this back.

[Martian base commander]

Thanks AT.

 

Its a comforting thought to know that the developers pay careful heed to our thoughts,and even implement our ideas in their games,after all we rely on each other really

 

Going back to the idea of Artillery and airstrikes,they would definitely have to be limited as you mentioned,as it would probably create an unfair bias to either side,like alien craft would naturally be far more superior than any earth based craft.1 piece per squad is a better option as you said.The aliens would again have a full assortment of high tech equipment,just to keep the humans/alien allies on their feet.

 

We could even go into demolitions equipment here,devices that go way beyond localised damage,and cause a far wider area of devastation,devices that can bring even the toughest structures crashing to the ground.The reason I mention this is that in AS the Rockets and other explosives didnt seem to do as much damage to buildings as I would have liked.I like the idea of firing a shell into a building and completely eradicating the room and the contents behind that room,instead of simply removing a few bricks from the wall.Tactical Nuclear grenades are a nice idea for a sequel,or even Neutron grenades.As more and more enemies would be attacking us naturally we would need armaments that could cope with these overwhelming odds.Napalm would be VERY VERY nice too,bunker buster type munitions,the lot!.Did anyone play Sid Meirs' Alpha Centauri?,well in that there was a very nice bomb in that called a 'planet buster', a name that requires no explanation

 

This sequel could be the mother of all wars,the battle to save universal life as we know it,from a genocidal race of aliens,that see only themselves as the master race,and have no allies or friends.They would be bred for one thing...war!.The developers could bring all their knowledge on sci fi,experiences from the undying X-COM games,and of course the UFO series,to create quite simply the greatest tactical battle game ever!.They would need many years for such a project though.

 

As far as graphics were concerned we would naturally want more diverse environments,and as you mentioned AT many planets,the more hostile and inhospitable the better.We would like to see weather effects,swirling gaseous winds that would be found on planets like Jupiter,flowing lava rivers,violent electrical storms ect ect,just to create a mood.The troops would also need special respiratory equipment to operate in these conditions.Some planets would even lack gravity,and so special suits may need to be worn to maintain accuracy for example.Some planets have a very dense pressure too,and so troops may even start to endure health loss due to the severe cramping conditions,unless they wear some sort of pressurized suit for that particular planet.

 

How about indigenous life exclusive to that particular planet?,after all we arent talking about OUR solar system here,who knows whats out there!

 

Keep the ideas rolling in chaps.

[cduke]

I'd like to have better graphics next time - the engine is really disappointing except for the infrared (and whatever views are available...) - they really look cool! The rest of the graphics are outdated by far. The interface is, uhm, designed kind of loveless. Yes, I know it's a tactical game - but why does it have to look like chess?

 

Other features I'd like to see are vehicles - drivin' around with small tanks or something alike. Maybe helicopters. And satellite scans of the area.

 

greets cduke

[Martian base commander]

As far as the graphics are concerned in AS I would say they are above average,maybe bordering on good,with the strong points being the actual detail,the detail in areas is very good I think.Naturally the better graphics card you have the richer your graphics,guess I am fairly lucky to have a good card.The reason the graphics arent in the upper echelons for me is the lack of advanced effects that some of the other games today now use.Having said that though,these games were never about supreme graphics anyway,its about a fully immersive plot and proper tactical decisions,in other words GAMEPLAY!.THIS is what makes the UFO series.One scene I DID enjoy early in this game was the training mission,where you get the rather panoramic view of earth below you,that was a good touch I thought.

 

Vehicles you say,not so much vehicles to DRIVE in but some sort of remote control tank would be great.I dont know though,an APC of some sort to get your squad right into the heat of battle for a tactical advantage could be an interesting idea.

 

Satellite scanning of a mission prior to landing could be a good idea too,possibly aiding in the equipment selection.

[cduke]

Don't want to dig my heels in too much on that graphics stuff, but things like those grass bunches really hurt my eyes. Since I am using a GeForce 6800 GT I'm sure that it can't be blamed on the video card. I think it would be great if they just buy a graphics engine for their next title - eg. Battlefield 2 had some serious eyecandy!

 

Anyway - more thigs that would be great in future UFO titles: I'm not sure - maybe I have not advanced far enough in the story, but one thing that would greatly enhance gameplay (imho) is if aliens would actually DO something. A little tricky to explain. In UFO as is they're just running around spread over the map, without any goal or purpose. I'd really look forward to see them do something that makes sense, like two aliens guarding - I don't know - a broken spaceship, aliens who have occupied an old facility building and who handle their daily duties: guarding strange looking devices, cooking the alien-meals, cleaning alien floors and toilets (ok, this one's ironical ) or building some alien stuff - repairing their broken spacecraft for example. Hope you guys get what I mean.

 

regards cduke

[Martian base commander]

I think what you are trying to say is that you want the Aliens to have a greater AI?.I think I have to agree there myself.I believe the Reticulans early on are in no way a threat,and get gunned down like flies.I would expect them to be very cunning and use sophisticated tactics.Good point.

 

Not too sure about Alien house chores though,who wants to see them cooking dinner?,maybe cooking the humans yes,but dinner?,and washing the toilets?,dont even say you want to see them hoovering too!

[Pete]

RA later research item explains the lack of AI in the Reticulans left behind on earth... but that's in a later research item

 

Play on, you'll get the bigger picture. You might think "WTF?" but you'll get the bigger picture

[Martian base commander]

I certainly hope so Pete,I am pretty fond of the little guys