Future Of XCOM

[podtech115]

In another topic, I posted the following below. But no one said anything. So I'll make a poll instead. Because I really think these are cool ideas.


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Maybe we would be encountering ghosts in XCOM 4. I know, that sounds like a crazy idea, but it doesn't need to be ghostbusters or anything like that. Just look at this video to see if you can think of something cool to do with ghosts:

Kara no Kyoukai:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XcxQmV6P8Y
When I see Kara no Kyoukai at 0:31-0:48, I think what if there was this Thief/Silent Hill-like city that was haunted by bad spirits. And like that in the Kara no Kyoukai video: You hunt them down. And.... that's all I have.

Other ghost ideas:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnE64DbnUzY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElaG6vIWEyM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21-QEHFhcac
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSpowoKqSzc

-------------
Maybe in XCOM 5 we would get Apocalypse 2, and show how human merged their Technology with that of the Dimension Aliens, and now everything in Mega-Primus looks like it has a face and teeth.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XnsrJ8l_1M
-----------------
Or maybe we would be Researching these things in XCOM 6:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeERyHB2hyE (Cencoroll)

(I already showed this in my other topic 'Something Like Apocalypse....')

------------------
Maybe in XCOM 7 can be like Evangelion:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ggCe3CgGmc
You know, I always thought Evangelion and Apocalypse had settings and plots near to each other. Both deals with defending a city from aliens.

http://www.pcmag.com/slideshow/story...-early-1990s/1

[AlphaCent]

Really pod, just quit it...suggesting what a XCOM 7 would you want is just silly. Connecting Anime and X-Com is just as silly as it gets and IMO should never be even contemplated (yeah, i don't like anime).

Let me put into perspective...there are four X-Com games and only one XCOM that has been delayed. If we take the average production time for one blockbuster game 2 years, then it would take about 12 years for the aditional XCOM sequels. Take into account that nowadays games are done in trilogies, so a 7th is borderline impossible.
And what's worse is the ideas you wish to put forward, that aside from being horrendously insane, can't even fit into a possible XCOM sequel.


Look...insulting you was my personal hobby, but this time around i'm honest, which i think is a testament to the seriousness of the situation. Please realize how silly your idea is and next time think it over before you post.

Yours sincerely,


condescending forum prick AlphaCent.

[BandofGypsies]

I fail to see how these examples encapsulate the soul of X-com..

You want to talk where it could/can/will go?

X-com needs a little kitch...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpTSy3ecxo8

Not that im in support of men in body suits.. but you can see where the initial ideas for X-com UFO Defense came from...
This is it's history.. and themtically where it should stay.

But all this aside.. story is less important than gameplay.
I could care less if X-com was based in the far/near future, on earth or beyond.. it doesnt matter.
What matters is my squad management, research... and hopefully timeunits.

[Nosmirc]

Yeah...I tried being nice about this when you made this suggestion before, but seriously, this is getting silly and old. X-Com will always be about fighting aliens. The fan outcry if they tried going away from that would put the resistance to XCOM to shame to be honest.

It'll never be about fighting ghosts or religious monsters (aka NGE).

[AlphaCent]

If X-com went anime like...i'd probably start killing people.

[nomotog]

Yeah...I tried being nice about this when you made this suggestion before, but seriously, this is getting silly and old. X-Com will always be about fighting aliens. The fan outcry if they tried going away from that would put the resistance to XCOM to shame to be honest.

It'll never be about fighting ghosts or religious monsters (aka NGE).

Dose it always have to be about aliens? Maybe the fans will go crazy, but ,you know, they already went crazy. I rather like the idea of XCOM having a negative story with each game sharing the tactical strategist elements, but little else. One game can be aliens, the other can be cold war black ops.

If you really love the x-com story, I understand, but there are so many settings you can use for XCOM. Limiting it to just space aliens isn't needed.

[Brian Damage]

Except that "X-Com" means the Extraterrestrial Combat Unit.

Other games can take the X-Com gameplay ideas into new genres of fiction - and they have. I'd prefer that X-Com itself stuck with the aliens.

[nomotog]

Except that "X-Com" means the Extraterrestrial Combat Unit.

Other games can take the X-Com gameplay ideas into new genres of fiction - and they have. I'd prefer that X-Com itself stuck with the aliens.

It can mean anything. eXecutive Combat Operations Mandate, for example.

[ShanDaMan]

X-Com is about fighting aliens. Space Invaders is about fighting aliens. It would make as much sense to have a Space Invaders sequel where you fight gangsters, nazis, or ghosts. Now a Pac-Man sequel where you fight ghosts would be another story...

[ShanDaMan]

It can mean anything. eXecutive Combat Operations Mandate, for example.

It is true that we don't know for sure what XCOM stands for (despite repeatedly asking 2k), but in ALL of the previous games, including the 2 cancelled ones, X-Com stood for eXtraterrestrial COMbat unit (as Brian Damage already stated.) But since 2k has chosen to use the name (although de-hyphenated) they must be aware that people have certain expectations when they hear it.

Somewhat off topic, but did you see the new TV shows coming out next fall?

X-Files -- Follow the adventures of a Xerox machine repairman throughout his exciting workday.

CSI - LA -- Witness the zany antics of the Comedians Supporting International Leprosy Awareness as they travel the world for this important cause.

A-Team -- High school drama featuring stressed-out students under pressure to maintain high grade point averages.

[Nosmirc]

It can mean anything. eXecutive Combat Operations Mandate, for example.

Except it doesn't mean that. Here's the manual for the original. Page 13 of the pdf.

"This organization was named the Extraterrestrial Combat Unit."

If they changed it to mean something else, they'd be better off to say to the original fans "go cry in a corner, we're raping this franchise hardcore baby." Seriously.

Now stop enabling Pod. It's one thing to make suggestions about a game, but it's another to make outlandish and silly suggestions like this!

[nomotog]

Except it doesn't mean that. Here's the manual for the original. Page 13 of the pdf.

"This organization was named the Extraterrestrial Combat Unit."

If they changed it to mean something else, they'd be better off to say to the original fans "go cry in a corner, we're raping this franchise hardcore baby." Seriously.

Now stop enabling Pod. It's one thing to make suggestions about a game, but it's another to make outlandish and silly suggestions like this!

Yes we all know what X-com means. It dosen't actually make sense, but that's something for a different day.

I don't think you have to limit X-com to just space aliens any more then you have to limit it to just being in 2D.

[Nosmirc]

Oh please. If you can't figure out how they derived X-Com from EXtraterrestrial COMbat Unit, you're just not trying.

If you go away from aliens, it's not X-Com. It's pretty simple really. /topic.

[nomotog]

Oh please. If you can't figure out how they derived X-Com from Extraterrestrial Combat Unit, you're just not trying.

And if you go away from aliens, it's not X-Com. It's pretty simple really. /topic.

Story for a different time, but there is more to X-com then the aliens. I bet you can replace all the aliens with creatures from the sea and still make an X-com game about it. You wouldn't even have to change continuity. Who else would you call to deal with something new and scary then the people who just beat up the last thing that was new and scary.

[podtech115]

Story for a different time, but there is more to X-com then the aliens. I bet you can replace all the aliens with creatures from the sea and still make an X-com game about it. You wouldn't even have to change continuity. Who else would you call to deal with something new and scary then the people who just beat up the last thing that was new and scary.

Thank you, nomotog. You know what exactly where I'm going with this.

I'm still trying to think of a reply to give to these--so called--X-COM fans.

If it was up to them, Apocalypse would have never existed.

Now stop enabling Pod. It's one thing to make suggestions about a game, but it's another to make outlandish and silly suggestions like this!

So your trying to tell fans not to help each other when they don't agree with you? gee, how nice.

You know, one of my ideas was that maybe, just maybe, we can go back to *Sectoids and Whatever* in one or two games. But you (old fans) are so greedy and stingy, that you can't even stand any and all other future XCOM being different. At least, that's what I'm getting at here.

It'll never be about fighting ghosts or religious monsters (aka NGE).

Maybe you didn't notice, but, One, more then half of the Life Forms in TFTD aren't 'alien' (Triscene, Xarquid), and Two, the Angels ('religious monsters' ), are aliens too!

In fact, I would go so far to say that the Angels are something you can call: Enemy Unknown. And the only way to fight back, is to Research them, then Use that Research to fight them in the next Encounter .

Encounter, Research, Use.

[Nosmirc]

Story for a different time, but there is more to X-com then the aliens. I bet you can replace all the aliens with creatures from the sea and still make an X-com game about it. You wouldn't even have to change continuity. Who else would you call to deal with something new and scary then the people who just beat up the last thing that was new and scary.

Curses, the /topic tag isn't working. Shame.

Anyways, let's put it in this context. Would Spider-man fans be happy if they got a Spidey title, that was actually an X-men story, where Spider-man does not appear? That is what this suggestion amounts to.

So your trying to tell fans not to help each other when they don't agree with you? gee, how nice.

You know, one of my ideas was that maybe, just maybe, we can go back to *Sectoids and Whatever* in one or two games. But you (old fans) are so greedy and stingy, that you can't even stand any and all other future XCOM being different. At least, that's what I'm getting at here.

I'm saying that these ideas would never fly, and that suggesting them is pointless, and encouraging you to make them is a bad idea. XCOM will never be about fighting ghosts or religious monsters. EVER. 2k isn't that crazy. They know what XCOM stands for, so it will be about friggin' aliens. Not ghosts, not giant monsters, but aliens.

Maybe you didn't notice, but, One, more then half of the Life Forms in TFTD aren't 'alien' (Triscene, Xarquid), and Two, the Angels ('religious monsters' ), are aliens too!

In fact, I would go so far to say that the Angels are something you can call: Enemy Unknown. And the only way to fight back, is to Research them, then Use that Research to fight them in the next Encounter .

Encounter, Research, Use.

The threat was still alien, even if they took creatures native to this world and twisted them into something else not of this world. This is a non argument.

I'd dispute NGE's Angels being alien, but I really don't want to get into the lore of that show because I hate it. Terrible stuff.

And that attempt to justify making an X-Com game about NGE's Angels...no. Just no. If your goal was to piss me off, congrats, you did it with that....ugh....there's no way to express myself that won't get me banned. It's THAT bad.

[ShanDaMan]

Yes, TFTD had sea creatures. But they were sea creatures that could pilot submersible/flying craft, that were more technologically advanced than humans, and that were trying to wake up their big-daddy spaceship.
It all goes back to outer space and that what keeps it interesting to me. Humans are out-classed, out gunned, and on the brink of extinction -- and it's on MY shoulders to direct things to ensure we somehow survive and beat back the immediate threat. But, with the infinite possibilites available from an unexplored universe, why not introduce the next threat from the cosmos instead of turning X-Com into a Freak of the Week Animal Control. Show me how lucky we got in the first alien wars by sending a new threat. The original enemies were part of a galatic empire. We did not crush them by destroying one base on Mars, a submerged colony ship, and an alien city on the other side of the looking glass. We gave them a bloody nose and they will be back. That is the story/mystery that I want to see and play.

[nomotog]

In another topic, I posted the following below. But no one said anything. So I'll make a poll instead. Because I really think these are cool ideas.


-------------
Maybe we would be encountering ghosts in XCOM 4. I know, that sounds like a crazy idea, but it doesn't need to be ghostbusters or anything like that. Just look at this video to see if you can think of something cool to do with ghosts:

Kara no Kyoukai:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XcxQmV6P8Y
When I see Kara no Kyoukai at 0:31-0:48, I think what if there was this Thief/Silent Hill-like city that was haunted by bad spirits. And like that in the Kara no Kyoukai video: You hunt them down. And.... that's all I have.

Other ghost ideas:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnE64DbnUzY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElaG6vIWEyM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21-QEHFhcac
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSpowoKqSzc

-------------
Maybe in XCOM 5 we would get Apocalypse 2, and show how human merged their Technology with that of the Dimension Aliens, and now everything in Mega-Primus looks like it has a face and teeth, like in this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XnsrJ8l_1M

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/g...0909091407.jpg

Frank Herbert's Chairdog!!!!
http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Scienc...p?NewsNum=1302
http://ringmasterbent.deviantart.com...994?fullview=1

-----------------
Or maybe we would be Researching these things in XCOM 6:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeERyHB2hyE (Cencoroll)

(I already showed this in my other topic 'Something Like Apocalypse....')

------------------
Maybe in XCOM 7 can be like Evangelion:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ggCe3CgGmc
You know, I always thought Evangelion and Apocalypse had settings and plots near to each other. Both deals with defending a city from aliens.

A tad late on commenting, but I had to get threw the idea that xcom can change. Now, I can comment on your ideas for how it should change.

X-com with ghost. It sounds like a good idea and I would love to see a game where you investigate hunted houses and banish ghosts, but I can't think of a way to fit the concept with X-com game play.

Evangelion, I never watched the show, but I understand it's about fighting giant aliens with giant robots in between stuff that makes no sense. Don't take the setting out right, but I can see the idea working well with X-com game play.

[AlphaCent]

☺☺☺☺ you guys (by guys i mean...pod and his sidekick nomotog).

☺☺☺☺ YOU...and your ☺☺☺☺ty ghost ideas

☺☺☺☺ YOU...and your ☺☺☺☺ty Evangelion ideas

☺☺☺☺ YOU...for even mentioning anime on the same forum as X-Com


X-Com was about aliens since it was first created. We showed to you that not all X-Com fans want sectoids even if that would mean they had to sell their mother. You're just raping the corpse of X-Com that 2K is responsible for.


GO ☺☺☺☺ YOURSELVES and your disgusting, trollish and generally ☺☺☺☺ed up ideas.


Oh and one more thig...Dave Ellis did a lot more positive things for X-com than you Podtech, actually i'm relieved that he was in charge rather than you or somebody like you. Bless him and his work on Interceptor...i can't even imagine the nightmares i would have if podtech would be the designer. Thank god podtech, that you're just the regular hopeless troll nobody listens to.

[Nosmirc]

Heh. The breaking point some of us reached here reminds me of this.

[nomotog]

Heh. The breaking point some of us reached here reminds me of this.

That's cute.

[podtech115]

I'd dispute NGE's Angels being alien, but I really don't want to get into the lore of that show because I hate it. Terrible stuff.

And that attempt to justify making an X-Com game about NGE's Angels...no. Just no. If your goal was to piss me off, congrats, you did it with that....ugh....there's no way to express myself that won't get me banned. It's THAT bad.

"Terrible.... stuff"? You're the guy who defends Dave Ellis!!!! There is no way it can be that bad. To have someone telling me that Ellis is better then NGE, is like a ****** telling me his dog poop he got from the street taste better then a 3 star buffet.

It's like saying this is better:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pn1lEj-wyg

Then this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oui3kAkUqE

Tell me why you hate it. Give me 500 words--at least--of why you hate it. And it better not be because of one or two Episodes. In fact, if you can give me 5,000 words why you hate it, then do so.

This is so F***ing unbelievable!
--------------

[Nosmirc]

You could at least try to use links that are somewhat revelant to the discussion. I'm not saying Eat Lead is better then Jin Roh, or even necessarily the reverse. They're different. I laughed at the dialogue in Eat Lead, because that's the point of it: to be a joke. Would I laugh at Jin Roh? Probably not, since it's a serious series.

NGE...ugh. Typical anime setup with an insecure male lead, a bad ass female co lead, and they're teens who pilot giant mecha to save the world from giant monsters that are rampaging because they can. At least Godzilla was a cautionary tale of the dangers of nuclear power. And didn't have religious undertones (overtones? It was rather overt....)

I felt no need to feel invested in the characters. Shinji was so spineless, I could care less if he lived or got hit by a passing car. Their battles invoked no emotion because there was no real, tangible purpose for the angels to be rampaging across Japan (at least X-Com, the aliens have a purpose) Both of the endings to the series were so stupid, there's literally no words that I can think of to describe it.

Eat Lead? Yeah, cliched premise, but it's making fun of the premise to begin with, so that's fine. The bosses are amusing, and Matt's comments generally make me smile if not laugh. And how can you not love the achievement for PAUSING? So yes, even though I'm only basing it off let's play videos (as I cannot find it locally), I found Matt Hazard, Eat Lead, to be more enjoyable then NGE.

[podtech115]

Oh no! I got an infraction ;_; I'm becoming like AlphaCent! This is going to end up getting me banned, I just know it!! ;_;

And I lost 20 points! I don't even know how many points I have? And who's 2K David? What happen to Codex?

Well, at least AlphaCent got a infraction, too.
-------------------

....from giant monsters that are rampaging because they can.

....because there was no real, tangible purpose for the angels to be rampaging across Japan

..............................WTF?

Dude, the angels want to contact Adam/Lilith so they can 'reset all life', and create a world for angels. That's why they attack Nerv headquarters! Geez! Just, geez!

And if you didn't know that.... well, that's what we call when something has mysteriousness.

(at least X-Com, the aliens have a purpose)

(sigh)

What purpose?

In the first game, they just wanted to destroy the humans:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEGJWrjP8mI

In Interceptor, they make an overpower Death Star to destroy the surface of the planet. which mean there was nothing on the surface they wanted:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CRp5RSa-H0

In Genesis, we ""discovers that the aliens are terraforming Earth to make it more suitable to their purposes."":
http://www.thelastoutpost.co.uk/game...-ellis-genesis

And if you believe the BS Dave Ellis said,the same aliens ""created"" the Apocalypse aliens to.... to.... to do this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmbHti5FxlA

Sooo..... If they wanted a dead planet.... then why terraform the Earth? Or move it? I guess the aliens' motivation can change to whatever the plot needs them to be.

[podtech115]

I bet you can replace all the aliens with creatures from the sea and still make an X-com game about it. You wouldn't even have to change continuity. Who else would you call to deal with something new and scary then the people who just beat up the last thing that was new and scary.

For those who don't know, he was hinting about TFTD; a game were all the aliens were replaced by 'creatures from the sea'.

Anyways, let's put it in this context. Would Spider-man fans be happy if they got a Spidey title, that was actually an X-men story, where Spider-man does not appear? That is what this suggestion amounts to.

Facepalm

Spider-man is loved by millions of fans. X-COM is not. But most of all: Spider-man IS A CHARACTER. X-COM does not have any characters in which to love.


You like that creep ZP, right?

Well, he thinks your a fanboy at 3:30, because he thinks Yoda was pointlessly added to get more fans to buy the game. And when a game pointlessly does that, it means they think the game can't stand on it's own.


Also he hates sequels, and gives a great idea in dealing with them:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdPLD...ailpage#t=236s
Maybe that's what 2K is going for? Why remake the first game, when we know it's the best? Just look at Final Fantasy​: if they--somehow--continued the story of the first game, then we would have never gotten 6 and 7! And, yes, it's sad to see Kefka and Cloud go, but that's what a good story should do: Leaving you wanting more.

Also:
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...eSameSoItSucks

[Nosmirc]

For those who don't know, he was hinting about TFTD; a game were all the aliens were replaced by 'creatures from the sea'.

WHOAH. No way. I had no idea....Thanks for clearing that up.

Spider-man is loved by millions of fans. X-COM is not. But most of all: Spider-man IS A CHARACTER. X-COM does not have any characters in which to love.

You facepalmed that? You completely missed the point. Had nothing to do with 'characters to love' or how many fans it had.

Just that Spidey fans would be pissed if they got an X-Men story under the Spidey title. Which is basically what happens when you have X-Com fighting non aliens.

You like that creep ZP, right?

Well, he thinks your a fanboy at 3:30, because he thinks Yoda was pointlessly added to get more fans to buy the game. And when a game pointlessly does that, it means they think the game can't stand on it's own.

You should try having a point before saying stuff. Yahtzee was completely right about that scene. Yoda WAS added pointlessly. Seriously, the scene basically plays out with Starkiller going "sup man", and Yoda going "nuthin' much. Watching game, drinking bud I am."

Can Yoda enhance a Jedi story? Of course, he's one of the greatest Jedis in Star Wars history, and also one who had to face one of the greatest losses the Jedi order had ever suffered (at the hands of one of their own no less). But when you use him like that, he doesn't contribute anything to the story. And then there's Boba Fett. What the hell was that about?

So yeah...stop rambling and actually have a point please.

Also he hates sequels, and gives <insert sequel rage comments>

You know, just because I find his reviews amusing, doesn't mean I worship him, and follow his words like he's some sort of friggin' prophet. While games should have closure to their stories, there's nothing wrong with having sequels. The wrongness comes when they're done wrong. And speaking of closure, if a story leaves me wanting more, then the story failed to give me closure, which is bad.

Sure, the first X-Com was the best. But that doesn't mean it couldn't be improved with a remake. People WANT to experience what they did with the first game, but they also want improvements made. You're well aware of that, so stop being williful ignorant of that.

..............................WTF?

Dude, the angels <snip>And if you didn't know that.... well, that's what we call when something has mysteriousness.

No, I just didn't give a damn. That's called 'boring story'.

What purpose?

While it may be up for debate what it was, (these are aliens we're fighting here afterall) they had a purpose. From the snippets we get, it seems to be based around forming a colony on Earth, and changing it to suit their biological purposes. Could this be expanded on? Heck yes. One could even...using a remake to do so.

[podtech115]

No, I just didn't give a damn. That's called 'boring story'.

What's the matter? Too DEEP for you?



---------------
Look, there is two things I want to say, and they could be for this topic or the Apocaplyse/Interceptor Topic! It has to do with NGE and Battle: los angeles.

So where should I say it? Here or there?

[Shrike]

I've spent 6-7 years of my life researching UFOs. I have a stack of books that covers various aspects of the phenomena including the two very awesome volumes by Richard Dolan that covers the history from 1941-1991 so far. The amount of material they could pull from is deep and rich with just a little bit of research, not to mention it'd make the game feel more realistic and relevant by referencing "real world" events and conspiracies.

We don't need to bring anime into this to make an awesome X-COM game. X-COM was originally based on UFO conspiracy theories (Bob Lazar, Roswell, Betty Hill's abuduction by Zeta Reticulan Greys, etc). It's how I'd like it to remain.

[Nosmirc]

Yes. Because insulting me will make me like the show. Brillant tactic. No, it was not too deep. I found it cliched, shallow, and woefully uninteresting. Not to mention that I'm not huge on religion. Now get over the fact that not everyone loved NGE.

Shrike: That's the crux of it isn't it? X-Com scratched the whole what if scenario around "UFO sightings", in a way that litereally no other game has accomplished.

[Shrike]

Shrike: That's the crux of it isn't it? X-Com scratched the whole what if scenario around "UFO sightings", in a way that litereally no other game has accomplished.

X-COM got me interesting in UFOs in the first place and really made me appreciate all the little nods to the real life phenomena that was in the game, as subtle as it was sometimes. It's probably why I hold the lore more than the gameplay as more valuable to myself. It accomplished so much with so little, and ends up being really interesting if you know the background.

UFO Aftermath did ok with it in all fairness, but you're right, X-COM still did it better.

Which comes to one of my primary concerns about 2K's X-COM. UFO Defense, for all intents and purposes, did its research and presented some of the more popular conspiracies and theories in a serious tone. Considering the slip up concerning responding to 911 calls when 911 didn't exist in the 50s, I seriously have to ask how seriously the subject matter is being taken in 2K's XCOM. If they're not doing their research and taking it seriously but instead presenting the sort of cartoon 50s comic book representation of alien invasion without checking their facts, it's just not going to interest me at all. There's nothing dark or sinister about that, it's just comical. I don't have to bring up blobatovs again I don't think to prove my point... but I did so anyways, so there you go. :P

[Brian Damage]

Their research for the game seems to have consisted of watching "Pleasantville" and looking briefly at a bunch of advertising posters from that era.

Shrike, considering you've made a study of this stuff, am I right in recalling an incident, possibly in France, where a bunch of purple giants not dissimilar to mutons were sigted (on a playground, I think)? I used to have a load of books from the lowest end of the dewy decimal system when I was younger.

The floaters remind me faintly of a case I've read about, too, but I can't quite bring to mind the details.

[Shrike]

Oddly, there's been no mention of that in any of the books I've ready. Of course, that isn't to say it isn't possible, merely overlooked... I'd say there's easily dozens, if not hundreds of cases that are barely more than a passing mention that most people never see. Of course, I'd also argue that 90% of the stuff you find on the internet is made up by overactive minds. For example, I pretty much pass over anything that tries to pitch any sort of "galactic space federation" as unreliable. :P So it pretty much depends on the source.

I've heard rumor too about the floaters being based off an actual case, too, but again, I haven't personally read it. Most of the stuff I've read that did involve actual aliens usually can be classified under Greys or some variation thereof. Short humanoids with large, slanted eyes, diminutive noses, etc., though not always with grey skin or solid black eyes. Some abduction cases though have involved humanoids that could pass as humans save for slightly larger than normal or oddly slanted eyes, too. Then there's some of the odder ones like small, hairy, dwarf-like creatures gathered around a landed UFO. The description almost made them out to be like miniature bigfoots (bigfeet?). Ones like that, however, seem to only show up once and never again, making them very strange and hard to verify.

There was also a description that reminded me of an Ethereal at the time I read it, but I can't remember the specific details. There's a definite pattern though of humanoids ranging from 3-5 feet tall with enlarged craniums and eyes being the standard.

I think his theories are totally bogus and the man's cashing in on sensationalism, but something that would certainly fit X-COM would be David Icke's conspiracy theories of shape-shifting reptilians. Would be -perfect- to explain alien infiltration within world governments, not to mention add a little paranoia to the game if some of your own people had the potential to be double agents for the aliens.

Of course, now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure that's where 2K is probably going with the blobs. The execution is... still largely unimpressive though, if only for the fact I'd rather fight something that had form and figure. If I was totally objective, I might say that was nitpicking, but then again, I've definitely never read anything to say that UFOs are piloted by or the result of black, oily blobs from space.

[Brian Damage]

I actually ended up regarding the once- or twice-off cases (like that two in the US with those frog creatures, or the aforementioned hairy dwarves, or even those one-off cases where the aliens have a weird description and you get the impression they've basically landed, gone "Aaargh, natives! This is no spot for a picnic!" and buggered off again) as being more likely to represent some sort of actual event as opposed to what I increasingly feel are imaginings shaped by what I can't help seeing as a pop-culture-saturating "aliens are greys" meme (which, as with Icke's stuff, works much better in its natural environment: fiction).

If the Ethereals had always looked how they were depicted in Interceptor and hadn't gone through their original "skinny pink dude" phase, I would swear blind they were based wholesale off a rather famous case that "happened" not a kilometer from where I'm sitting right now, in Australia. Big floating "tall grey"-type aliens with bulging red eyes, IIRC. Abducted a religious nut and basically asked her to stop bible-bashing. Maybe the Interceptor Ethereals were inspired by the description anyway.

[podtech115]

To Shrike/Brian Damage:

I heard there was going to be MIB in UFO Defense, but was cut out because of time. Do you know anything about it?
---------------

Also, I would like to thank the two people who voted for my XCOM ideas ("XCOM: Ghosts", and"XCOM: Apocalypse 2"). It makes me feel better that some fans don't think all my ideas are stupid.

---------------------

About Spider-man:

I don't give a BEEP about Spider-man. If you told me he finally died in the comics, I wouldn't even give a shrug. Why? Because I know he is going to come back somehow, and he's still alive in another timeline. Spider-man has thousands of books, and Marvel Comics isn't about to stop milking the dead cow. Spider-man has been in comics, cartoons, movies, games, playcards, novels, radio, toys, toilet paper, and lord knows what else.

Nosmirc, I know you *Love* comics, but I think they are BEEP! They just don't know when to stop. They give nerds a bad name. They never know when to end a story! And I never want to see X-COM like that, *EVER*!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just look at Transformers:

In the cartoon movie, optimus prime died, and it was really sad.

In the comics, optimus dies so often, it's now a huge joke! And he comes back everytime! I don't even look at comic books, and I still knew about that! Think about it.

I don't want X-COM to be like that, because it would mean all the games are pointless.

Who cares if the Aliens makes a death star-- they'll just make something bigger in the next game, and the next game after that, and the next game after that, and the next game after that.... Forever, and ever.

[AlphaCent]

I doubt those are "fans" in the first place.

[Shrike]

I admit, I voted Apocalypse 2 simply because I would have preferred a continuation of the storyline. I didn't even read the ideas behind the vote option. Sorry podtech. >.>

@BrianDamage: Yeah, definitely. The one-off cases always catch my attention too and intrigue me. Quite often they're very, very strange, to the point of making it hard to imagine it's made up. So I'm right with you there. However, it still makes it hard to tell just exactly what the heck was going on at the time.

Also considering there's strong evidence that pretty much all "leaks" that came out of the 80s and possibly before that concerning Greys, underground bases, alien implants, etc. that are the sort of popular thing to buy into now are actually disinfo... the less known stuff actually becomes more reliable, too. Still, it makes for a great X-COM game.

@podtech115: I've read a lot about cut content from X-COM from various sources, but never came across anything like that. Most of what I've seen was just a few cut weapons, a screen about alien reproduction, and that's about all. The idea's interesting though. One of the things I always thought would be cool is if one could continue playing after all funding for X-COM is officially cut. Governments that have signed with the aliens would actively hound you and try attacking your bases along with the aliens. Your only source of income would be selling equipment to the black market. Would make it tough, but having that "underground resistance" feel going would be pretty awesome.

Also, I'd just like to go on a limb and say, it's not necessarily comics that are bad at storytelling, it's the writers. Get a good writer, and it's entirely possible to have a comic book style without the now-stereotyped silliness.

[Nosmirc]

I don't give a BEEP about Spider-man. If you told me he finally died in the comics, I wouldn't even give a shrug. Why? Because I know he is going to come back somehow, and he's still alive in another timeline. Spider-man has thousands of books, and Marvel Comics isn't about to stop milking the dead cow. Spider-man has been in comics, cartoons, movies, games, playcards, novels, radio, toys, toilet paper, and lord knows what else.

Nosmirc, I know you *Love* comics, but I think they are BEEP! They just don't know when to stop. They give nerds a bad name. They never know when to end a story! And I never want to see X-COM like that, *EVER*!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*blinks*

Really? Are you kidding me? How the heck did you...ugh...

I wasn't asking for your opinion on comics, I wasn't asking if you liked them or anything, I was making a point using them as a reference! Neither Spider-man nor the X-Men fit into X-Com, so why would you even think I was making any sort of suggestion remotely like that? I implore you, reading my friggin' posts FIRST before commenting on them! Seriously...

And Prime only dies at most twice in any different continunity, but usually just once, if at all. Just FYI. (when you can make a top ten list of deaths of a single character, you might have too many continunities....)

[Codex]

Ooookay. Things are starting to get rather off topic/aggressive with all this talk of spiderman/transformers. Can we try to meander back to topic?

[podtech115]

You should try having a point before saying stuff. Yahtzee was completely right about that scene. Yoda WAS added pointlessly. Seriously, the scene basically plays out with Starkiller going "sup man", and Yoda going "nuthin' much. Watching game, drinking bud I am."

Can Yoda enhance a Jedi story? Of course, he's one of the greatest Jedis in Star Wars history, and also one who had to face one of the greatest losses the Jedi order had ever suffered (at the hands of one of their own no less). But when you use him like that, he doesn't contribute anything to the story. And then there's Boba Fett. What the hell was that about?

So yeah...stop rambling and actually have a point please.

I have to explain EVERYTHING to you. :_: [cry]


The point I was making is a strong game/story doesn't need to.... oy.... doesn't need to have character appearance from other stories.

In other words, Apocalypse was strong, because it said: I don't need the old aliens. I, X-COM: Apocalypse, can stand on my own!

But Interceptor/Dave was so weak, that it said: I'm a littie emo cry baby, that I need to use the nostalgia of the old aliens to make people buy this awful game. (Interceptor only sold less then 30,000 copies)

To me, 2K is strong, because they don't need nostalgia to sell their XCOM. That takes some Balls to do That! HUGE BALLS!

Of course, they may give in to you cry babies, and make the next 50 games all about the Sectoids. Which I think is a really, really, really bad idea. Sure, 1 or 2 games with Sectoids, but no more.

You know, just because I find his reviews amusing, doesn't mean I worship him, and follow his words like he's some sort of friggin' prophet.

(could have fooled me)

Then please let's never talk about him again. I hate that SOB BEEPhead. He gives gamers a bad name.

I admit, I voted Apocalypse 2 simply because I would have preferred a continuation of the storyline. I didn't even read the ideas behind the vote option. Sorry podtech. >.>

Oh

Still, thanks. Not many fans like Apocalypse that much.

Ooookay. Things are starting to get rather off topic/aggressive with all this talk of spiderman/transformers. Can we try to meander back to topic?

Welcome back! We missed you.

Can you tell me what you voted for? I bet you voted for 'None of the Above'. [sad sigh]

[Codex]

I haven't voted. I'm still reserving judgement on the game as it is, and there are other IP's that 2K has control over that need sequels (IMO) before we jump the gun and decide where we (the game players) want the XCOM franchise to go. We haven't had a shred of info shown to us about XCOM since E3 last year (which is nearly 365 days ago now!) and, as such, I don't even want to think beyond this game.

As such, I don't think that the "franchise" should have a future direction just yet unless there is something in the story that can tie them together over time. And then, there has to be some similarities.

So, no. I haven't voted for "none of the above." I haven't even voted because I honestly feel that looking to the future when we don't even know what is going on with the present is, tbh, a futile effort at best.