Skitso

I replied in discord to not clutter this thread with off-topic

I started a thread about the issues I have with the cover system few weeks ago where I wrote this: "While I think the cover system Xenonauts 2 currently has is elegant and works fine, there's one critical issue that really brings the tactical game down. The issue is that you don't need to use a cover to be in cover. It's completely irrelevant if you are hunkering behind a waist high concrete wall or if the said concrete wall just happens to be in between you and the shooter. It just doesn't make sense and makes tactical choises too easy. It just doesn't matter that much where you move your units, as there's almost always some cover in the line of fire (which means you are as good as in cover anyways) Proposition: kneeling next to a cover provides double kneeling buff, kneeling without a cover might also need to be debuffed so players really feel the need to find a cover." Any comment regarding this?

I agree. One step more in both directions would be welcomed.

Alt + mouse wheel up/down?

Related to this again, Fire (and presumably other transparent elements) break abduction tubes.

I do think @TrashMan has a valid point there though. While certain weapons do have unique traits, overall the game does play out quite samey regardless of how far in the game you are. The issue is that the game doesn't require to adapt and learn new tactics and I can keep playing almost exactly the same way from mission one to all the way through the game. This is a copy of my earlier post where I raised a similar concern: "Enemies are the same, they use same AI routines, tactics and weapons throughout the game, and the game only scales it's numbers up. Levels and UFOs get larger, there's more aliens with more health that cause more damage. Meanwhile I also get more units that have more health and cause more damage, so in the long run, everything stays pretty much the same. Even the maps are pretty homogenous layout wise regardless of the biome or how far in the game you are. In X1 each biome felt more distinct with their own unique traits. (Some being very open while some were really cramped etc.) To up the stakes, aliens need more than just higher numbers. They need new weapons (burst, aoe, incediary, poison, wall penetrating, long range grenades, slow seeker missiles etc.) new tactics and AI with new tricks and special skills (psi, flying, teleporting etc.) to really force me to adapt my playstyle and to keep me on my toes. Currently I already know pretty much what to expect, even when I raid a new UFO class or meet a new enemy type." EDIT: I understand the fact that I've played the game way more than most ever will, and that things do start to feel samey when you've put hunders of hours in it. But still, I do think that in general, painting things with broader brush strokes might make the game more fun - even if it means it's not always in perfect balance. Put random 5 mentarchs in some crash site and I'd definitely not anticipate it. And I'd love it!

@Kouki it was this map:

Nope. I'll get back to you when I see it again

Might be. I always try to aim as high as possible to achieve greatness - in every part of my life. Mediocrity is just not something I need or want. I just came back home from watching the new Alien Romulus movie and It was dog shit, just like most entertainment is today. Just a loud rollercoaster ride in a familiar setting with no greater ambitions than gaining maximum profit. Ridley Scott had ambition and vision back in 1979 and the first Alien is still regarded as one of the greatest scifi movies of all time. I love Xenonauts 2 as it's clearly a labor of love for Chris and the team and has insane potential to become a timeless classic. Just like the original alien, ie. something people will enjoy for years to come. With vision, ambition and will to do it, they can do it - and if I can help, even a tiny bit, achieving that greatness... of course I'll do it.

It also looks funny when a missed shot hits an obstacle. Currently the arc ends neatly and perfectly to the obstacle, looking like it was aimed there.

As seen in the image, back sides of the rock formation corners are not black as the middle piece correctly is.

If I imagine myself shooting with a grenade launcher, I'd probably manage to point it quite well in the right direction, but the vertical angle (distance) would probably provide to be a lot more difficult to estimate. So what I would propose would be to decrease the lateral deviation to maybe 10-15 degrees per direction and make it deviate more in way of distance (too short or too far)

Yeah, this is much better, but might need some cover value tweaking. I like that kneeling behind a 60% cover provides significant cover. This really add to the strategy and gameplay where choises matter. @Chris, any comments/opinion on this?

Then you need to make a bug report and provide saves where it happens

I'll get back to you when I see it again

Any hope for 3D geoscape still?

In Finland we have this proverb: "Niin metsä vastaa kuin sinne huudetaan", which roughly translates into "so the forest echoes as one shouts to it" which kinda means "what comes around goes around". I've been on these forums more than 10 years and you probably agree that I (almost) always strive for constructive feedback and polite critisism. Bernie's way of coversing there was rude and childish. So, "niin metsä vastaa kuin sinne huudetaan". *shrug*

Related to this, these alien (both horizontal and vertical variants) and cleaner tubes suffer from the same issues of shroud transparency and being too tall:

Yeah, and it warms my heart to see you've matured too, with having PMS and everything. Have a nice one, go touch some grass.

Now that I look at that image again, it seems it's the yellow part of the line of fire that is black if it's behind something.

Highest cover value (that is added into the hit calculation) is red. Other lower or same values are gray.

Ground inventory grid in ground combat should be shared with units in adjacent tiles to make moving items from one unit to another a bit easier. Either that, or add throwing/giving mechanic, which would be even better but probably way more difficult to implement.

As seen in the image, line of fire squares are black behind certain map elements. Another related issue that is not a bug, but probably worth mentioning: line of fire is displayed yellow to highlight cover items it crosses (also seen in the image attached). The same yellow color is also used when weapon's maximum range is reached, which can cause confusion. I suggest using a darker green or greenish yellow to highlight covers to differentiate it from the maximum range.

This. I was stoked to see the Cyberdrone for the first time, just to be let down when this huge floating tank just shot a single plasma bullet only to miss it's target. I was expecting for it to lob poison grenades, shoot with a huge AOE cannon or massive laser that penetrates walls, generate flame walls around it or something. But no. Just a single projectile with more damage. Just like all the other enemies in the game.

Making them more intelligent, giving them better and more varied tactics, surprising new special powers and weapons that are not just same old with bigger numbers... make them evolve as the game progresses and really challenge player to adapt.