Valmont

It is a cool concept but would be better if this behavior is triggered after XX amount of turns rather than from the get go.

Xenonauts 3 UI spotted in the wild: Sleek UI and Graphics of Thunder Tier One

I am 100% behind this part... The bright color palette and lack of real time shadows despite using a 3D engine means that Xenonauts 2 currently feels and looks like a polished Xenonauts 1 mod. It is really sad... because in its current stage Xenonauts 2 would have worked perhaps in 2016 at most. I mean the original fallout games look way more gory, realistic and with better lightning despite being 2D.

For some reason the look of Xenonauts 2 takes me out of the immersion far more than the original one or even XCOM 1. Perhaps the times have changed and I have been spoiled by newer games... But the issue is not a blurry filter is the shadows and the models.... these models (the current Xenonauts 2 ones) somehow manage to look 2D even if they are 3D... The best example is how Borderlands 2 looks compared to Dark Souls etc... I know many players like the style of Borderlands 2 but I pretty much prefer the gritty look of the old fallout games specially fallout 2 that at least tried to look gory and realistic... Xenonauts 2 seems like it is not even trying to look and feel realistic just like Borderlands.. but Borderlands is a comedy RPG and not a spooky cold war aliens invade the earth like Xenonauts is trying to be. It is funny because the music and ambience (sound wise) is completely the opposite of what the current graphics portray and it is shame because everything else from the lore to the time setting is just perfect in Xenonauts.

Should the game keep the Cartoony Graphics it currently has or go full realistic? Like this but turn based: The thing is... the music is very spooky and immersive but then you look at the current graphics and all that goes down the drain. I feel that Xenonauts 2 is currently like playing Stalker on the Boderlands 2 engine. It wants to be immersive and scary but ends up being funny.

There is a new XCOM inspired game out and it focuses on immersion while going strong on the shadows, volumetric fog and photorealistic graphics. I am sharing this video with you guys because previously shadows and other immersion visual features where deemed "unnecessary" by some forum members and I had no example back then... of the importance of it all. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBAUJLgzwl0&feature=emb_logo

On GoG the only Channel I get is "Default", no option to select "Experimental/Legacy". The only other option is: Add private channels but that requires a password.

I agree that X2 tried to keep X1 aesthetics while going full 3D does require a different approach to many mechanics, specially the visual ones. I would suggest going for units, physics and lightning looking as realistic as possible while going minimalist with UI.

Thank you Chris! I totally agree with you... Graphics aren't what made Xcom 1 so scary but still graphics can definitely help increase the immersion and horror of the unknown... but perhaps sounds and gamplay do play a greater role in that department like you very well said. All I know is that the magic that games like fallout, diablo 1 and other isometric games had has somehow been lost on our transition into 3D engines. Anyhow, I do hope you get the formula right so we can all experience the terror we are used to from 1994! By the way a very minimalistic UI really helps with immersion so if possible make everything UI, even the blocks that appear on the ground when moving units, as minimalist and unintrusive as possible. The more UI we have the more we are reminded we are playing a game and no really exploring a crashed UFO. Keep it up Devs!

We all love Xenonauts and we all love Xcom none of the new iterations could get something right... something that the original had... and that was the Horror and Immersion it had. Even with its dated graphics Xcom 1 and 2 manage to scare the hell out of you. Anything moving in the shadows and about to kill you... you felt hopeless but exited. Of course few games manage to get the sound, lightning and shadows right to induce this feelings in their players. One of the latest of a similar perspective being Darkwood. This week I had the opportunity to try a new game that manages just that with the same isometric view our beloved Xenontauts use. The game is HellSign and here is a gameplay video of the game so you guys can see what I am talking about. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBXWIFsTmgk So, my question to the devs goes like this: Do we still have time the shadows and lightning working something like this? The volumetric fog and the sounds really add to the immersion and ambiance and this game really have me the same feel that the first Xcom did. Anyways, I hope this serves as inspiration for the Devs to get the most of their investment and also get a part of the original Xcom soul back into these modern times.