Wed, Feb 29, 2012 | 21:54 GMT
“No reason” XCOM: Enemy Unknown would be toned down for consoles
Calming the fears of the PC elite, lead designer Jake Solomon has said XCOM: Enemy Unknown doesn’t need to be altered for consoles.
“There’s no reason to pull any punches with any platform, because, when it comes to input, XCOM is not particularly complicated,” Solomon told PC Gamer of the game’s multi-platform release.’
Developer Firaxis has a history of releasing titles tailored to one platform or another, specifically the PC-exclusive Civilization, and it’s gamepad and touch friendly spin-off Civilization Revolution – but Solomon doesn’t feel that’s necessary with XCOM: Enemy Unknown.
“I don’t feel the need to streamline any aspects of gameplay because the player’s interaction with the game experience is still simple,” he said.
In the same interview, Solomon gave an account of how he and legendary designer Sid Meier collaborate on the game.
“He and I interact on an almost daily basis. I say ‘Look, I have this problem. What do you think I should do?’ and he’s a very gifted designer. He can look at a situation and he can say ‘have you tried this?’ And I’ll be like, ‘oh, that’s really good,’” he said.
“I claim all the credit for it, but I rely on him so much. I’m now to the point where I can basically hear his voice in my head, which is probably not healthy.”
XCOM: Enemy Unknown is expected on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in norther autumn. It combines real time and turn-based strategy with RPG elements and action-flavoured combat.
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Posted in: 2K, PC, PS3, RPG, Strategy, Xbox 360
Tags: firaxis, Jake Solomon, XCOM: Enemy Unknown
7 comments
#1
DSB
29/02/12, 9:57 pm
That’s because it’s already toned down. Duh!
#2
LOLshock94
29/02/12, 10:17 pm
@1 Did you just rate the game before seeing gameplay…
#3
Edo
29/02/12, 10:20 pm
“Calming the fears of the PC elite” yeah…
#4
DSB
29/02/12, 10:23 pm
@2 I’m tempering my expectations
Really though, the whole “This sure works dandy on consoles and PC alike” is just another way of saying “Yeah, we Halo Wars’ed it”.
I don’t think there’s much of a shot of getting a detailed strategy game on consoles. It has to be “lite” to work. Which really seems to be what he’s saying as well.
I’ve heard that Firaxis did a great job on Civ Revolutions, but that was still a seperate game from the PC series. This ain’t.
#5
TheWulf
29/02/12, 10:32 pm
But there have been a number of great games that have been multi-platform without sacrificing any complexity. I’d like to cite Shadow Era, which is a wonderful TCG that far surpasses the fun of M:tG (in my opinion) and is available on PC and mobile devices without sacrificing any core complexities.
#6
DSB
29/02/12, 10:57 pm
Playing cards compares to commanding a squad of soldiers in a 3D environment how?
You can put these games on OS X and Android, as many have, but a gamepad really isn’t very useful for any kind of fast micro management.
Say you have to move your cursor 13 tiles, selecting one soldier, choosing between two weapons, each with 4 individual fire modes, and you’re looking at targeting an alien another 20 tiles away.
That takes maybe 3 seconds with a mouse. A gamepad has to pass through 40 different objects, provided you move the stick with 100% efficiency.
And you have to do that for 14 soldiers every round.
I’m not saying that’s the only design, that’s just using the original X-Com as an example, and I’m sure that Firaxis are going to come up with something that’s functional and still stimulating, but they still aren’t going to be able to provide the same functionality as we had with these games circa 1994. Something will have to be cut.
#7
endgame
01/03/12, 8:21 am
LOL! News like this make my day!