Bay 12 Games Forum

Every time I return to this thread I attempt to mentally pronounce the game's title.

"Xat-Com?"

Well, I just ignore the '@' and call it "X COM." The '@' is there just to inject the RL meaning when you look at it (I can't do it in text, but you'll notice on the blog that I intentionally flattened the '@' in the title image to make it resemble a hyphen.). Obviously people will still need to try and say it some other way to distinguish it, but I hadn't really thought of it yet.

Didn't originally spend any time thinking about the name--it just popped into my head and seemed quite appropriate, though there is the apparent problem of web searches, which ignore '@' characters... For now I sometimes refer to it with the string "XCOMRL". I might need a new/alternate name eventually, though I rather like "X@COM". Maybe I could at least add a subtitle to solve the searches problem and create an alternate name associated with the game, one which is actually pronounceable.

If the current name has to have a pronunciation, "Xat-Com" ("zat-com") sounds like the best option. Maybe I need to add an "official" pronunciation guide to the FAQ


And sorry to everyone out there who's having to change their pants! Maybe in addition to the subtitle I can add a catchphrase like "one million pairs of underwear soiled"

Well, *very little* optimization is necessary with standard map sizes.

The "last alien" (or two) thing won't really be an issue since I'll make it easier to dispatch them--probably rush you or something. The real AI won't come until v0.4...

Don't worry, if I wasn't dying I'd accuse it of being not enough like the X-Com games.

True, but the demo takes that unfairness to the extreme since I didn't even proportion appearance of alien races or ranks, so you could end up fighting against huge groups of commanders and Mutons. Even in X-COM you wouldn't face those odds with rifles and rookies

Kyzrati, what are your goals re: moddability?  That's one of the things that REALLY gets our attention here, and gives games tons of life.  Though of course it's pretty hard to get right, tons of effort and stuff.

I'd humbly request that you at least put stubs in to make it moddable later, even if you don't do it now.  Bigger maps is one of those things, because seriously, even if they don't make the base game as much fun...well, everyone's definition of fun is different!

(then again I haven't played it yet, so chances are good that you're right anyway <3)

Modding will be entirely done through the data, which is/will be extensive. Parts of the interface will probably be handled through text files as well, same with almost every game setting and a good chunk of the mechanics. I'll eventually write a map editor for making maps, but for now they're just loaded from text files, too.

About bigger maps... now that Farce has offered up all his money in support, I've put it on the alpha list for reconsideration.

Though yeah, I don't think oversized maps will necessarily work all that well with the core game I have planned.

I'm not working on maps yet, but one thing to consider when revisiting this issue later is that the original X-COM maps are made of 10x10 and 20x20 map areas, but because walls take up space in ASCII, the same map designs from X-COM will take an extra few tiles to implement, meaning a 60x60 X-COM map that could fit 6x6 areas won't be able to pack quite so many. The demo, for example, uses 15x15 areas temporarily. I thought about 12x12, but to fit I'd have to cut a few things out of the original maps.

I like the game, but I am casual, no sprites, no funny 

There'll never be sprites in X@COM--it's going to be an "immersive console experience." However, there can and will be support for an unlimited number of alternate images. The game representation doesn't have to be ASCII--you can replace the ASCII representations in X@COM by modding the bitmap and assigning objects like terrain, aliens, etc a new image. They'd have to be tiny images (like 12x12), but they can be anything you want, and there'll be no limit to the number. (I just wrote the image mapping code a few days ago.)

I await the inclusion of DF-style hit messages...

I'd like that myself, and there will be a small message window with very simple messages, but the console is going to be pretty cramped because I want the map area to take up most of it, so there's no room for a persistent proper message window. There will be a full message window you could call up, and maybe it could flash new messages over the map while things are happening, but it probably won't get very detailed until much later. In fact, I haven't even written it yet!

Quote from: Kyzrati on September 27, 2011, 01:10:35 am

[Not coding]

>:I
I jest, but man this game is made of exciting.

You're right, I totally need to go get something done. I already spent enough time today dreaming about the 3x3 units which can smash through buildings, and I don't even have the 2x2 units started yet.

That's what I'm working on next, btw. You can get your soldiers killed by them in the next release.

Hello, X@COM guy!
Question: Couldn't you just increase the size of the console, thus the map, or is that not really a possible thing?

People with smaller screens would then require either scrolling or a reduced font size, neither of which are desirable. The standard I've been working with now is a 80x60 console with 12x12 font, and possibly a 10x10 font as well for a smaller window.

Developer: new XCOM game-Like/dislike?

My first post announcing X@COM on Rogue Temple a few months back states that we need more X-COM remakes to combat the new crap! Sure it could be a fun FPS, but it's not X-COM... They should've called it something else.

Kyzrati, thanks for coming and answering everything. I am excited for this game, too. But I guess someone had to make it eventually.

Totally. Some have tried, but no one's ever finished. Hopefully X@COM will change that.

Kyzrati, I'm glad to see the work you are doing on the interpretation of the classic X-COM series. I'm also glad to help an indie devs I can in my own way. I heard some rumors about the project... possibly on the openxcom forums so when I saw a link appear I was pretty intrigued. I read you will add sound to mix, which combined with the snazzy effects you put in (delicious ASCII plasma), should be quite nice. Any plans for bgm later down the road?

Yeah, michal at OpenXCom was nice enough to put a link on their sidebar (I didn't even ask .

Sfx are scheduled for one of the alpha releases, and bgm, if it happens, would be optional and probably nothing more than ambient like the original. The game engine will definitely support bgm, but I'm not sure using it will work well with the theme I've got planned. It's supposed to be an immersive console experience.

Quote from: Kyzrati on September 26, 2011, 08:26:34 pm

Right now the architecture doesn't support scrolling maps or x/y-dim > 60. And if I don't add it soon/early, it'll probably never be.

NOooooo! Don't crush my dreams!
Add it soon! :p

Well, I actually scratched that from a note on my desk very recently ("Add support for larger maps")... I think it would really slow battles and change the experience to require scrolling. I'll reconsider it. It's true that I could add it as an optional thing and not be a part of the game proper, but it'll add extra annoying requirements to the code base. I'm all for adding optional features, but one like that impacts quite a lot of the interface (internally).

Quote from: Reiina on September 26, 2011, 11:59:26 pm

Quote from: Kyzrati on September 26, 2011, 08:26:34 pm

Right now the architecture doesn't support scrolling maps or x/y-dim > 60. And if I don't add it soon/early, it'll probably never be.

NOooooo! Don't crush my dreams!
Add it soon! :p

Just posting to suggest this as well. Having to scroll would make life a bit more complicated, but increased map sizes would be worth it. (And 60x60 seems pretty small...  )
Heck, if manual scrolling is the issue (limited number of keys or what-not), why not fix the camera on the active unit? Shrink the display to 59x59 so you have a one-tile centre, then display a square region centred on the currently-selected soldier. You'd still have to re-draw the display when a unit moves, of course, but that's pretty much a given anyways.

Other than that, I'm really excited for this. Destructible terrain + support for modded aliens? Count me in! 

Sheesh, another one right while I was replying--I can see this is not going to go away

Quote from: Thexor on September 27, 2011, 12:11:37 am

Quote from: Reiina on September 26, 2011, 11:59:26 pm

Quote from: Kyzrati on September 26, 2011, 08:26:34 pm

Right now the architecture doesn't support scrolling maps or x/y-dim > 60. And if I don't add it soon/early, it'll probably never be.

NOooooo! Don't crush my dreams!
Add it soon! :p

Just posting to suggest this as well. Having to scroll would make life a bit more complicated, but increased map sizes would be worth it.

This. Large maps are more fun.

Anyway, watching this. Sounds very interesting.

And another...

Implementation of large maps isn't really an issue, and neither is control. I just wanted to keep X@COM's code simple, and, more importantly, make the battles quicker. Not having to scroll around and being able to see everything at a glance contributes to that, and sort of makes up for the fact that you can only effectively see one z-level at a time (since some things are blocked in roof view). There will also be numerous battlefield overlays that give you quick information about the map, and those would be less useful if you can't see the entire map at once. I'll think about it.

Kyzrati, actually arriving here will provide a nice boost of popularity to your game. I mean look at the Cataclysm thread, it started off as a thread about a small game in development then the developer came on and now its over 400+ pages.

I know, and Bay 12 was actually on my list as one of the main places to announce X@COM once it got more playable. (I like Dwarf Fortress, so I'm no stranger to Bay 12.)
I didn't want to jump into the scene too early precisely *because* it could lead to lots of feedback, and way too early--Feeling obliged to monitor and respond to 400+ pages could really slow down development, though, and it would be all you fans' fault!

So I want you all to stop posting... NOW!

Just kidding. Everyone knows you can't stop an avid X-COM fan from professing his loves, hopes and dreams.