Fuel concerns in Xenonauts, also escorts

[Anon_Spartan]

I only played the Kickstarted demo, and have not had a chance to really test out this new one. However, a detail that gets me is how far you can patrol and protect at the early stages. You can barely send a F17 outside your radar range, forcing you to immediately create a new base and wait half a month for it to be operational just to protect another small sphere of influence, unless you want to risk an area giving up funding before the first month is over.

I haven't played X-Com in a while (I bet I didn't notice the Alien attacks outside my radar range because that game didn't have those nifty news bulletins) but it just seemed that you could cover a good part of the world without problem. And your transports could reach just about anywhere!

Would there be some way to increase flight time and coverage while balancing remaining combat fuel when the fighting actually starts? Or perhaps even have the increased fuel be a research upgrade, so a player could choose between having two bases or one better equipped base. I enjoy the thrill of fighting off UFOs on nothing but fumes, but I want to get there first.

Perhaps a patrolling mechanism could be added, where an interceptor would follow a set path and return to base with barely no fuel, refuel, and set out again? It gets tiresome to keep being told "Interceptor low on fuel, return to base?" over and over, and it breaks the flow of the game.

Also, on the subject of aircraft; escorts. It's getting sad seeing a group of fighters shoot down a transport plane. Can escorts be assigned to them, like I escort my chinooks? Right now, the best I can do is send an interceptor squadron as far as I can along the transport route, then have the second base's interceptors meet them. I LOVE the idea of UFOs shooting your transports down (maybe now people won't move their scientists and engineers between bases at the end of the month) but you need a fair way to defend against it. At least until a battleship drops into the atmosphere to blow your transport apart.

[Gorlom]

unless you want to risk an area giving up funding before the first month is over.

That is very odd. A country shouldn't be able to cut off it's funding that fast. It's a balance issue. You are expected to lose a bit of funding from some countries in the start, you aren't supposed to be able to play a "perfect game".

I haven't played X-Com in a while (I bet I didn't notice the Alien attacks outside my radar range because that game didn't have those nifty news bulletins) but it just seemed that you could cover a good part of the world without problem. And your transports could reach just about anywhere!

True but that game was also set in the slight future with more advanced tech. Xenonauts is set in 1979 and the planes already reach far longer then they should. I believe it is also Goldhawks intent to make you feel weak and overwhelmed in the face of this alien invasion.

There are other things that the developers can do to balance things to make up for the lack of range and still make the gameplay work.

Would there be some way to increase flight time and coverage while balancing remaining combat fuel when the fighting actually starts? Or perhaps even have the increased fuel be a research upgrade, so a player could choose between having two bases or one better equipped base. I enjoy the thrill of fighting off UFOs on nothing but fumes, but I want to get there first.

There will be more transports unlocked by research later on in the game. I am confident that these ill have greater range etc.

[thothkins]

I think the limited range has a lot to do with the advanced fighters that come later. If the initial F0-17 is that good, then there will only be incremental changes. Since the advanced fighters use alien technology the jump will be a decent sized one, and will presumably make a noticeable difference to the range.

It has come up previously to have a fuel pod replace one of the weapon pod. Longer range for less effective combat.

I do as you do when transporting things. It's a bit frustrating when it seems that the fighters pop out of nowhere to attack. An escort would be a decent solution, and certainly easier than it is now. Like you though, it was a good surprise to see it happen.

[Anon_Spartan]

I've played the original x-com, so I have no illusions of a "perfect game." My first terror mission in the new demo was a huge success with only an 80% mortality rate (except that half of the KIA came back at 1%). I suppose the one thing about the KS demo was it only covered the first three months or so, which in the original X-Com was the theme of humanity getting its butt kicked until it can turn around with some amazing tech and level the playing field. So, after using the same lower human tech over and over without a chance to get the better stuff (because the demo was over at that point), I could see the humans looking screwed. Hopefully the new alien/human jets won't have that 50% fuel penalty like EU had.

Does v13 go past the time (or ticker) limit that the KS demo had?

[Gauddlike]

Also, on the subject of aircraft; escorts. It's getting sad seeing a group of fighters shoot down a transport plane. Can escorts be assigned to them, like I escort my chinooks? Right now, the best I can do is send an interceptor squadron as far as I can along the transport route, then have the second base's interceptors meet them. I LOVE the idea of UFOs shooting your transports down (maybe now people won't move their scientists and engineers between bases at the end of the month) but you need a fair way to defend against it. At least until a battleship drops into the atmosphere to blow your transport apart.

I am sure Chris said a while back that he was considering allowing escorts for transport planes.

I think it was at the same time he said he wanted to allow three escorts with a Chinook so you weren't always outnumbered by the the air superiority fighters.