Tech hacking and dll request.

[Terradive]

As an opposite of psi's how about a tech psi that could hack into weapons platforms?

Could we also eventually get a full release of a .dll so we could add new ai behaviors, completely modify environments, and mess with about anything in the game?

[GizmoGomez]

So, you're suggesting the ability to hack into alien machines? Androns and Drones would be the candidates for that.

We can modify the environment, kinda. There's a map editor. Also, I heard about modders being able to mod the AI eventually, though I dunno if we can currently.

[Max_Caine]

You can mess about with most things in the game already. A great deal of Xenonauts is easily accessable as it's done through XML. There are hardcoded things - the only really unaccessable thing is the Xenoauts .exe

[thothkins]

Yeah, skills would have been nice such as bypassing closed electronic locks, remote controlling drones and hacking into alien systems. But the training system is going.

It could always be an item I suppose, and you could assign mind control to it. But the trick would be to ensure that it only worked against electronic targets.

I do worry that it veers pretty close to the aliens combat edge of mind control though.

[EchoFourDelta]

Hey now. You know better than to ask for something that the Xenonauts would be interested in and smart to develop. That sort of thing makes it unfair for the aliens. It's too difficult to balance! You know darn well the only way humanity can fight the alien threat is two missiles and one aimed shot from sabotaged rifles at a time.

Pfffft. Electronic warfare, tanks that work, aircraft that make sense, training your troops, air support... Good lord, what kind of organization would want anything like that.

Edited August 13, 2013 by EchoFourDelta

[Chris]

If the aliens are going to go through logical contortions in order to generate a smooth invasion that allows the humans just enough time to unlock their secrets and defeat them, I think it's only fair that the Xenonauts return the favour!

I don't see us adding a hacking ability and I don't think we'll release the source of the game either, but a lot of the stuff will be moddable using only text editors (and possibly LUA scripts). The AI is one of them; the stats of everything in the game is already accessible and easily modifiable.

[EchoFourDelta]

Hey man, I'm just saying.

The "aliens taking some time" makes sense, both with your own in-story justification and in a realistic perspective; you need recon - both ground and aerial - on an area before you make a big push in. The complete and total lack of other stuff that Larry, Curly, and Moe would be looking into is what's jarring.