Convenience on ground combat suggestions

[Anthony]

Just had a go today. An excellent update overall which over time will succeed because people like me keep playing the original x-com game which is a complicated affair now to do. So anything that is up to date, deeper and works on our modern systems will be a hit. Hope you will carry on with terror from the deep, but that is a question for another day.

In the original game during a ground combat mission, you were able to press a button which centred on the selected soldier. The advantage with that button, is that you pick your guy, browse around the screen and hit a quick button to centre of him. This is a convenience feature I miss.

Secondly, after you fire at an alien and miss. The screen and target should centre back on the alien, ready for the next action.

Thirdly, When your turn arrives. You need some kind of message displayed. On a couple of occasions, after the aliens and civilians moved it was my turn. Although I thought it was still the civilians turn. Makes me look like a fool, if someone was watching of course. But you get my meaning.

I would like to think these suggestions help in making the combat part of the game more convenient, and convenience makes the game more fun.

[IceVamp]

Welcome to the forums! I agree with your points, however you can return to the soldier, or switch to a new one with the number keys. Double tapping it will centre the camera on that soldier.

[Belmakor]

I agree with the centering on alien thing.

[Anthony]

Welcome to the forums! I agree with your points, however you can return to the soldier, or switch to a new one with the number keys. Double tapping it will centre the camera on that soldier.

I didn't know that. However, on most games I play I tend not to use hotkeys.

Instead, I lay back in the chair, mouse in 1 hand and beer in the other. I can't give up the beer hand to press a key. lol I reckon a centre on soldier button would be a useful tool for the many similar slightly lazy gamers like me. Then you can choose which best suits you.

[IceVamp]

I didn't know that. However, on most games I play I tend not to use hotkeys.

Instead, I lay back in the chair, mouse in 1 hand and beer in the other. I can't give up the beer hand to press a key. lol I reckon a centre on soldier button would be a useful tool for the many similar slightly lazy gamers like me. Then you can choose which best suits you.

Your logic is hard to argue against good man. It comes down to the UI and how cluttered it's going to be. A solution is to have a key for centring the camera on the current active unit, and map this to one of the mouse buttons. ^^

[Gorlom]

what about double clicking the soldiers tab? doesn't that center the camera?

[IceVamp]

what about double clicking the soldiers tab? doesn't that center the camera?

Moving the pointer all the way down there? Ugh.. sounds like a lot of work man.

[Gorlom]

Moving the pointer all the way down there? Ugh.. sounds like a lot of work man.

Silly me, should have known that wasn't an option.

[Anthony]

I have also noticed using the scroll on the mouse switches between your soldiers. Which is helpful apart from having to scroll through soliders who have run out of AP. If like me, you partly move a soldier and then another and switch back etc... Then it is annoying when you have to scroll through soldiers that have exhausted their moves.

In the original xcom you could close a soldier moves allowing switching and management of the other soldiers without going back to exhausted AP soldiers. Could Xenonauts auto bypass soldiers either set for reserve AP's or any soldier less than 5 AP's when using the mouse scroll. Or have a close button. Makes movement management a little easier.

Edited May 7, 2012 by Anthony
spelling

[crusherven]

I don't see the issue with the first point (you can just click on that soldier's number to center), but I agree with the other two. It's a little annoying having to scroll back over to take another shot at the alien. I know what you mean on the third point, too. I don't know that we need a message, but the game could probably center on your first soldier or do something to make it a little more clear that it's your turn.

[Bibidibop]

I have also noticed using the scroll on the mouse switches between your soldiers. Which is helpful apart from having to scroll through soliders who have run out of AP. If like me, you partly move a soldier and then another and switch back etc... Then it is annoying when you have to scroll through soldiers that have exhausted their moves.

In the original xcom you could close a soldier moves allowing switching and management of the other soldiers without going back to exhausted AP soldiers. Could Xenonauts auto bypass soldiers either set for reserve AP's or any soldier less than 5 AP's when using the mouse scroll. Or have a close button. Makes movement management a little easier.

I like this a lot. It also wouldn't prevent a player from selecting the zero AP soldiers, because their tabs still work. It only makes scrolling faster, which would be a huge benefit.

On the same matter of moving things along, I think the AP reserve needs to block only movement, not manual weapons fire. I actively use the reserve to make sure I don't over walk, and lose out on a shot during my turn. I generally don't use it defensively for between-turn activity, but occasionally I do use it that way. So, without switching the reserve off, I think I should still be able to fire whatever I want, and if it messes with reaction fire, so be it.

[Gauddlike]

I don't use reaction fire that way so your system wouldn't work for me.

You already have the option to turn off your reserve to fire a shot but if it was changed to not reserve when firing it would be next to useless to me.

The compromise is to have a modifier key that temporarily ignores your reserve status while held down.

You could easily choose to move or fire without having to turn reserve off and remember to put it back on next turn then.