After beta streams reactions

[WILDFIRE]

@Solaris_Wave: It is fairly simple. I think the best crosshair is from JA2 v1.13. With the cursor you can freely aim at the head, torso or legs and you click through the three aiming circles(stages). The smallest circle will be mostly a sure hit.(not always)

 

A good solution could be that the distance and the specific weapon/scope will decide if the merc can see the body part good enough for a save shot.

 

A professional soldier is absolutely capable of hitting different body parts, it just depends on different factors like distance, weather, weapon/scope. 

 

Right now we can aim at the whole body and can choose the different body parts(icons). But I want a crosshair where you can directly aim at the head, torso or legs with the three aiming circles(stages). I want the freedom of choice and not be restricted by a static menu and crosshair.

 

The JA2 v1.13 crosshair is also more dynamic and with it the aiming will be more natural than just clicking through a menu. Overall the current crosshair is good, I just want to aim with it freely and directly at the different body parts without the small icons.

[Solaris_Wave]

The XCOM reboot is going to be the comparison for JA3, purely because it is the most recent and successful of the turn-based squad games. I could see some UI influences there in the JA3 videos, such as the maximum movement range outline and the shield indicator for cover. It has almost…almost become the Call Of Duty of the turn-based squad genre.

I am hoping that with regards to killing or wounding either enemies or mercs, that there will be room to incapacitate them. There needs to be a middle ground between the eventual bullet sponges of the enemies in JA2 and being easy to kill. I would prefer the slant towards being easier to kill and then have things like incapacitation occurring just as often as an outright kill. They could then bleed out after a few turns if not medically seen to (which also happened in JA2).

Things that would 'toughen' enemies would be body armour and high constitution. Maybe adrenaline and African narcotics would increase the time before a wounded enemy would fall.

If the enemy AI is considered stupid by the reviewer, was he taking into account that he was in combat with basic level enemies? The same could be considered by their face paint. I am hoping that as well as fighting those guys, you will fight enemies in green battledress, berets and helmets. Those will be the regulars with better AI, appearance and equipment. The regulars shouldn't totally replace the gang-like enemies but areas considered as of significant military importance will have regular forces, plus any main attacks created by the antagonist will be using the regulars.

Elite troops will be closer to the antagonist but I would like to see the rare employment of enemy mercenaries or Private Military Contractors, who have the best AI, the best equipment and work almost separately to the enemy regulars and elites. That way, you have a variety of enemies depending on what part of the map you are in and what targets you are around. The gangers with the face paint will still be around their own sites and not be replaced, unless there was some stage of the game where the antagonist had enough regular forces and wanted to take over certain areas.

[Solaris_Wave]

@WILDFIRE I believe I understand what you mean now. Having a free floating crosshairs that you can point at an enemy body part, instead of it being a circle and then clicking on the body part icon to the side of that circle (the static menu). I was trying to figure out exactly what that was in the videos. I had a vague idea but without seeing any explanation of what those icons were and having not played the preview myself to quickly pick up on it, I wasn't precisely sure.

I wonder what the reason is for having the static menu, instead of a free crosshair? My assumption is that with the camera now being free moving, where you can zoom in and out, as well as change perspective, that trying to aim for a body part could be annoying unless you are zoomed right in and angled enough that you can choose that location. If your camera was right overhead, the pointer would find it easier to select the head, instead of the legs, regardless of what your selected merc sees. I am guessing that those icons mean that you can always choose what you want to aim at, because you will be able to do so regardless of where the camera is. Your camera view won't always be orientated in a way that your selected soldier will be looking at.

Edited April 21, 2023 by Solaris_Wave

[BossWeapons]

49 minutes ago, Solaris_Wave said:

I wonder what the reason is for having the static menu, instead of a free crosshair?

My guess would simply be that it's easier to avoid misclicks and the like when the target is moving around under the cursor. While the enemies aren't moving around too much, they're hardly static. I'd also hazard a guess it'll make it easier to play on a controller for the eventual console port, though I don't know if the game is about to be released on consoles as well.

Personally I don't see this as an issue as long as the option I choose from the target column gives me enough feedback that I'm indeed taking a shot at the center mass and not, for example, the arms. Maybe the aiming reticule could just change locations on the target character while you mouse over the options instead of being glued to the chest area like it seems to be doing right now.

[Kordanor]

I doubt the AI is due to having low difficulty or untrained enemies. The latter makes a nice excuse but its not very realistic. Historically AI is almost never something which is "held back" by difficulty or scaled by it. Bots in FPS being an exception, because in that case its down to reaction time.

[Hendrix]

I watched some more gameplay and I reacted to the inventory system, it probably works fine when you have a squad of a maximum of 4 mercs but any more than that I would find it clumsy.

I would like (if you are in a clear/safe sector) to be able to drop everything from the mercs backpacks (preferably if you could either select 1 specific merc to drop all or all mercs to drop all) into the sector inventory so you can easily sort through loot and stack items.

[Solaris_Wave]

2 hours ago, BossWeapons said:

My guess would simply be that it's easier to avoid misclicks and the like when the target is moving around under the cursor. While the enemies aren't moving around too much, they're hardly static. I'd also hazard a guess it'll make it easier to play on a controller for the eventual console port, though I don't know if the game is about to be released on consoles as well.

Those are definite other reasons too. I was thinking about those, myself but thought mentioning the camera orientation would be enough. In some ways, having those icons might seem clunky. They do actually make more sense, considering the potential to miss your intended aimed location. Having that happen would cause frustration.

I'm still hoping that being able to freely aim at any location is restricted to close ranges and through telescopic sights, however.

[Solaris_Wave]

1 hour ago, Kordanor said:

I doubt the AI is due to having low difficulty or untrained enemies. The latter makes a nice excuse but its not very realistic. Historically AI is almost never something which is "held back" by difficulty or scaled by it. Bots in FPS being an exception, because in that case its down to reaction time.

Some games will use variable AI depending on your chosen difficulty but most games tend to just increase enemy hit points and the damage they mete out to you (and/or lower your health). I rarely play a game on the harder difficulties. Not because I can't handle it but because I find it silly to have to fight on such unbalanced terms. I would prefer more enemies or better AI. Also, when I say better AI, I don't mean god-like AI where you are instantly and repeatedly headshot as soon as an enemy spots one of your eyelashes stick out past the rock you were lying prone behind. Or, the entire inventory of hand grenades gets thrown precisely onto your location, no matter how far away you are and how difficult the throw might have been.

Edited April 21, 2023 by Solaris_Wave

[LoboNocturno]

I have also noticed the empty sectors are incredibly small sized, even smaller then in XCOM2 lol. Wished the sectors were a little bigger and also how the mercs running effortlessly here and there without getting tired kill the realism imo, even much slower mercs like Steroid have the same pace as other faster mercs.

 

Then again i also noticed what is so unrealistic is once you do headshots, most of the times the enemies survive a headshot even with a AK-47, back in JA2 headshots were very deadly, hope they can balance it better, headshots should harder to make but once they hit it should kill, if not bring you to critical status.

[Hongweibing]

4/10 - did not see Hamous in the game

 

Seriously, however, perhaps just due to years of (very) poor attempts at creating a worthy JA2 sequel, I'm not quite in the mood for rigorous criticism of each and every aspect, but I find that just about everything seems either good or very good to me:

 

- The level design is gorgeous and also provides for much more variation in combat than the flatlands (with occasional trees) of JA2. The weather is also a new and interesting factor. 

 

- The RPG element seems significantly deeper and richer, and there seem to be more side stories. 

 

- The mercs have much more dialogue (to think that in JA2 I thought they had a lot of dialogue compared to JA1...). They are also not just differently colored sprites.

 

- Combat maintains a high level of complexity.

 

- AI is not as dumb as it was in JA2 (but let's be honest, most of us don't want the AI to be too smart)

 

- The strategic element seems to be (at least) just as good as in JA2.

 

- The weapon modification system looks very interesting.

 

Sure, there are some problematic, overall minor, aspects as well (and most, if not all have already been mentioned):

 

- The inventory management system chooses convenience over complexity, but I do wish that it could be more weight-based, rather than inventory space being magically created based on one's strength (especially since size does not always equal weight). Plus, the common ammo inventory doesn't make much sense. 

 

- The aiming system seems a bit clunky, but I don't think that the aim system of JA2 would work here, certainly when given the new option of aiming at the hands. I guess in the end, it's mostly a matter of getting used to it.

 

- My first impression was that everything, especially the characters, were a bit too cheerful and cartoonish, but the more gameplay I watched the less problematic it seemed (I think it's a bit related to the fact that JA2 was released at a time when many games seemed to be a mix of brown and gray, in large part due to technological limitations, so I may be imposing that standard on JA3). 

 

- The lack of animated portraits is noticeable, but I think that having proper unique and detailed 3D models for the characters compensates for that.

 

- The enemy scramble round seems a bit odd, and limits one's options, but honestly, I'm not quite sure whether it applies to all enemies in the sector, or just to those in your line of sight.

 

- There should be an option to enter turn-based mode whenever you wish, and make it the default once you spot an enemy.

 

- The animations could be a bit better streamlined - less fidgety movement of standing characters, and more responsiveness to getting hit, but that seems like simply an unfinished part of the game.

 

- It is unfortunate (though understandable, considering the significantly increased amount of dialogue each merc gets, and the need to create a unique model, not just to recolor a sprite) that they had to reduce the total number of available mercs to just 40 (there are 36 in AIM, so that means you can probably get 4 more in the game itself - still, you lose all the MERC mercs, and 10 AIM mercs, not to mention the Arulco-specific mercs). Maybe they can add a few more in later DLCs or something. By the way, I was surprised to see that they decided to bring back Mouse (of Deadly Games fame) of all pre-JA2 mercs - certainly not an obvious choice, though she was a decent character in DG.

 

And of all the above issues, the combat and animation issues might be addressed by the time of the release or after it (they explicitly said that they intend to adjust things based on post-release feedback), new mercs might appear via DLC, and a new inventory system might be added via modding - and well, for the rest, we'll just have to deal with it.

 

Overall, it seems like the developers managed to maintain the spirit of the franchise, while making some (often necessary) changes, so since that's just about what I wanted from a good sequel (I did not want it to be exactly JA2 but in 3D, but neither did I want it to become an X-COM variation), I'm quite optimistic and looking forward to the game's release. 

[votadc]

1 hour ago, Kordanor said:

I doubt the AI is due to having low difficulty or untrained enemies. The latter makes a nice excuse but its not very realistic. Historically AI is almost never something which is "held back" by difficulty or scaled by it. Bots in FPS being an exception, because in that case its down to reaction time.

Animals have different AI than human soldiers, It would be brillant of enemies with different training have different AI

[Hendrix]

Another thing I think could look alot better is the move-and-shoot mechanic. The merc running, then stop, then turn, then shoot, then run, then stop, then turn, then shoot and so on. It could be made looking alot more natural and professional if the merc would walk and shoot at the same time. I guess there would be a whole lot of animation work to get it to look right depending on where the enemies are and wich way the merc moves, but it would have a much better flow.

[WILDFIRE]

@BossWeapons: Yes I agree with you. I think the current crosshair is a fixed menu, because it has to work also on consoles and here is the problem for me. The game should feel more like a pc game and not the other way around. That is also a reason why it feels more like nuXCOM.

 

I know a console port is also important for sales and that is totally fine but JA3 right now feels a little bit simplified in some aspects like the inventory or aiming system.

 

Maybe the current crosshair is also there to avoid misclicks that is understandable. But if it will stay in the game like that the bare minimum I need is that the crosshair has to move over the head, torso, arms or legs when you click through the menu icons. Right now it just stays on the whole body.

 

Dont get me wrong the current crosshair is good but the inner JA2 hardcore fanboy in me wants more freedom and so I like the idea of the free aiming of JA2 v1.13 (including the three aiming circles).

[Solaris_Wave]

9 hours ago, LoboNocturno said:

Then again i also noticed what is so unrealistic is once you do headshots, most of the times the enemies survive a headshot even with a AK-47, back in JA2 headshots were very deadly, hope they can balance it better, headshots should harder to make but once they hit it should kill, if not bring you to critical status.

Headshots in JA2 could be deadly but the tougher enemies still needed many bullets to the head to kill them. The helmets, particularly the top tier ones that had been treated, could absorb a lot of damage. It was because of that, that aimed semi-auto shots to the head were the best way to kill the later enemies. While the helmets absorbed a lot of damage, the body armour was even greater. I remember detecting three enemies behind a wall of a building, blowing the wall apart with a charge, wounding them and then needing two 40mm HE grenades to incapacitate them. I still had to finish two of them off with bullets, while the third one bled out.

 

9 hours ago, Hongweibing said:

The inventory management system chooses convenience over complexity, but I do wish that it could be more weight-based, rather than inventory space being magically created based on one's strength (especially since size does not always equal weight). Plus, the common ammo inventory doesn't make much sense.

That's the thing. Just because someone is stronger, doesn't mean they can always carry lots more. It depends on the bags or pouches being worn/carried. While a stronger person can carry more weight, if they are carrying the same size backpack as a weaker person, they are not going to fit more in the backpack. They will just be able to move with less encumbrance.

I really liked Silent Storm's inventory system. Having an object needing to fit inside a grid (so it was based on weight and available space). That meant that you could carry lots of slim items, providing you could still carry that weight, compared to large items. You could carry more 9mm magazines than you could carry landmines. Not just because the mines were heavier but because they were larger.

 

9 hours ago, Hongweibing said:

The enemy scramble round seems a bit odd, and limits one's options, but honestly, I'm not quite sure whether it applies to all enemies in the sector, or just to those in your line of sight.

You are adding to a growing number of us who really don't like the free enemy movement when combat starts! Hopefully, Haemimont will alter or remove it entirely.

 

9 hours ago, Hongweibing said:

There should be an option to enter turn-based mode whenever you wish, and make it the default once you spot an enemy.

This was suggested earlier too and I think it is a great idea. Also, I like what you said about having turn-based mode activated, once an enemy is spotted.

 

9 hours ago, Hongweibing said:

The animations could be a bit better streamlined - less fidgety movement of standing characters, and more responsiveness to getting hit, but that seems like simply an unfinished part of the game.

I thought that was noticeable with the idle animations. Acting as if they have had too much booze to drink. The animations are fine but they need slowing down or spacing out the frequency.

Regarding reactions and responsiveness to being shot or hit by explosives, hopefully that will be added to, before release, along with audio reaction as well, such as expressions of pain.

[LoboNocturno]

@Solaris_Wave Yes you could kill almost all enemies with a single headshot with a high damage weapon. May the black mercs needed 2 or sometimes 3 headshots. Am currently playing JA2 Wildfire and i really like the weapons stats (range & damage) there.

If a 50 calibre sniper exist in JA3 i dont know but a 50 calibre would easily penetrate against any helmet, so 1 shot should be enough.

Edited April 21, 2023 by LoboNocturno

[scope112]

Another serious area for improvement is the inventory system. The inventory system is a mess if you have many items. It could really use some basic sorting options: weapons, ammo, grenades, medical, miscellaneous items

[Claudius33]

First of all, I am very pleased by what I have seen and read so far. JA2 has always been my all over favorite.

 

I’m pretty sure I will thoroughly enjoy your game and have a lot of fun. That’s the main point as far as I am concerned. Congrats Haenimont. For me The Boians and the team have captured the essence of its beloved predecessor.

 

I don’t know if it will become another tactical game standard as XCOM and have  the same commercial success. I wish you so.

 

Maybe once used to some new mechanisms, old JA2 (1.13) worshippers will eventually reckon it as a true spiritual successor.

 

Watch the videos, it’s Jagged Alliance :

 

- It’s definitely not XCOM : AP system, free usage of AP  (not the XCOM’s move then shoot), aiming …

- Differentiated ammo checked (standard, Armor Piercing, Hollow Point,tracers …) 

- Humor : checked

- Strategic layer checked, improved :  militia , doctoring, weapon maintenance, but also scouting areas …

- Mercs personality and relations : checked

- RPG : checked, improved, for instance a high leadership opens new conversations nodes.

- New Intel system : gathering or finding intel on unknown sectors may provide tactical advantages.

- Elevation points provide new tactical opportunities as compared to JA2

- Stealth kills.

- Destructions.

-Day/Night, Weather conditions

- Improved weapons modifications

- IMP : checked

- M.E.R.C. : it seems there is something ...

- Bobby Ray, let's see what is offered before grieving.

…

Graphics are really gorgeous, and the maps detailed.

 

Just my two cent about 2 controversial points, I don’t think that implies major code modifications:

 

CTH : while it’s the way vanilla JA2 implemented it, not showing the percentage is too controversial. Influencers or journalists might kill the game, just because of it. So offer the option:

- That’s the way : Do not show the percentage

- You know nothing, Jon Snow : Show the percentage

 

1st turn repositioning of foes. It’s ok for me, but some are complaining, perhaps they haven’t seen the stealth kill feature. Again give the option 

- I’m ready for anything : foes are allowed to reposition.

- I love it when a plan comes together! : foes are not allowed to reposition.

 

And if not yet done, add a hotkey to force turn based mode, especially for a stealth approach when you come close.

 

I won't comment too much about artistic choices or portaits, I's your game not mine. Let's just say that I like some I prefer outfits that reflect the personlaity rather than military ugly gears (it's Jagged Alliance not yet another military simulator).

Edited April 21, 2023 by Claudius33

[WILDFIRE]

Thought about the current crosshair with the body part icons again and maybe one big crosshair on the whole body looks and works better than moving the camera to the specific body part while you choose the icons. 

 

Either the devs integrate a crosshair where you can freely aim at the different body parts or they use the current crosshair with the icons. 

 

I am afraid a mix between both could feel and look cheap, because clicking on a body part icon and than the crosshair/camera moves to the body part would not feel natural I guess. But maybe I am wrong.

 

I hope a crosshair where you can freely aim is maybe working and the devs rethink the whole system and choose what feels really natural and good. I guess that is something you can only test when you directly play the game. We do not know how the game mechanics feel right now, because we can not test it.

[Lunokhod]

6 hours ago, WILDFIRE said:

I am afraid a mix between both could feel and look cheap

Bro everything feel and look cheap at all.

10 hours ago, Claudius33 said:

Congrats Haenimont. For me The Boians and the team have captured the essence of its beloved predecessor.

Are u kidding me? Boian, is it u?

10 hours ago, LoboNocturno said:

If a 50 calibre sniper exist in JA3 i dont know but a 50 calibre would easily penetrate against any helmet, so 1 shot should be enough.

50 cal destroys everything. Must have in JA.

11 hours ago, Solaris_Wave said:

Regarding reactions and responsiveness to being shot or hit by explosives, hopefully that will be added to, before release, along with audio reaction as well, such as expressions of pain.

Do you hope for it? They have to do it, they get paid for it. And they better try hard.

21 hours ago, Hongweibing said:

4/10 - did not see Hamous in the game

Yes, something like that. Best case scenario, if they fix everything. Shame.

[Claudius33]

1 hour ago, Lunokhod said:

Are u kidding me? Boian, is it u?

Nope. Just my feeling, I mean it. You have another, your call. To me, you just want a JA2 1.13 remastered, not a JA3. Would you even consider a map rotation?

Personally I don't want a "perfect" game that 100% suits to my taste. I want a game I will have fun with and that hopefully revives the franchise. I'm too old to wait for another 25 years.

You do not help the game just writing harsh criticisms.

For those who stand French, these videos are well done and explanatory. The guy is enthusiastic. His only concern is the CTH. It's why I have suggested the option. And yes he has played JA2.

First Episode 

(Sorry I don't know how to directly attach the video, born earlier than the net, even earlier than ARPANET)

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 22, 2023 by Claudius33
Syntax

[Lunokhod]

16 minutes ago, Claudius33 said:

To me, you just want a JA2 1.13 remastered

no, I dont necessarily need a remastered version, I need something great, i need something very professional, something at least technically "well done". And Im ready to pay for it how much they say. But i can tell u that alot of fans want JA2 remastered. And JA2 remastered would be more successful. Much more successful then this project.

24 minutes ago, Claudius33 said:

You do not help the game just writing harsh criticisms.

I dont want to help money grabbers who f*cked one of my favorite games. But they better listen to me, because Im a costumer, i want to pay for this brand. So listen what your costumers want to see from this brand if u want to get some money.

[Claudius33]

Well, I think we can agree we disagree.

Not sure a JA2 remastered would be more successful. You are forgetting all the players who were not born when JA1 and even JA2 were relased. All the players who got used to a 3D environment, and like it or not to XCOM standards (show cover, show hit percentage ...).

Personally, I like it the old way. However, even I still can use a map, well GPS is much more convenient.

From the videos I saw, I don't understand why you think they f..d the game that much.

Of course lowering your expectations is the best way to not get disappointed.

 

[Hongweibing]

12 hours ago, Claudius33 said:

Maybe once used to some new mechanisms, old JA2 (1.13) worshippers will eventually reckon it as a true spiritual successor.

 

Just my two cent about 2 controversial points, I don’t think that implies major code modifications:

 

CTH : while it’s the way vanilla JA2 implemented it, not showing the percentage is too controversial. Influencers or journalists might kill the game, just because of it. So offer the option:

- That’s the way : Do not show the percentage

- You know nothing, Jon Snow : Show the percentage

 

1st turn repositioning of foes. It’s ok for me, but some are complaining, perhaps they haven’t seen the stealth kill feature. Again give the option 

- I’m ready for anything : foes are allowed to reposition.

- I love it when a plan comes together! : foes are not allowed to reposition.

 

And if not yet done, add a hotkey to force turn based mode, especially for a stealth approach when you come close.

 

 

1 hour ago, Claudius33 said:

Personally I don't want a "perfect" game that 100% suits to my taste. I want a game I will have fun with and that hopefully revives the franchise. I'm too old to wait for another 25 years.

You do not help the game just writing harsh criticisms.

You took the words out of my, eh, keyboard. Exactly, while I feel that most of the criticism is important and constructive (and at the very least, it seems that the developers are reading, and trying to act upon it to the extent it is viable), one should not overlook the larger picture. Put simply, had I been an evil game corporation, I would not even look in the general direction of JA - it has seemed cursed, and the expectations of much of the hardcore fanbase were raised to such a seemingly impossible standard (sometimes quite justifiably - it is, after all, a very good game, but sometimes, it seems to me, just to revel in the feeling that JA2 is so unique and nobody could possibly create a worthy successor - in a word, to elevate one's own self-esteem as a fan of JA2 by elevating JA2), that it's just not worth the trouble. Remember the famous quote by Thomas Dunning? "Capital eschews no profit, or very small profit, just as Nature was formerly said to abhor a vacuum" - I'm convinced that had it been profitable to do something like many here want, it would have been done - alas, it probably wasn't. In that sense, it is quite possible that having JA3 created in the "image and likeness" of JA2 (as each and every one of us saw/imagined it) was little more than a pipe dream.

 

The developers have no chance of really making everyone happy - if they make it exactly like JA2 (whether vanilla or 1.13), then it would appeal only to a rather limited and I'd venture to say, shrinking, demographic (my estimate is that the vast majority is at least in their 30s, and quite a few are 40+, this means that many people stop having the time, interest, and patience to play games), which would never justify the costs of a serious project (such as the current JA3). They could also just use the IP to do something different altogether, which would look and feel like most other recent games in the increasingly popular genre (to me this is what happened to the Fallout franchise, mutatis mutandis, starting from Fallout 3, which made it just uninteresting for me, despite preserving some elements from the original two games) - it could potentially make it quite popular with a wider and younger audience, and would enable them to make more money, but would kill the franchise for most of the original fans.

 

I think that the current project is, roughly, 70% JA2, and 30% new elements (not necessarily bad ones, by the way) - and, honestly, I believe this should not be taken for granted, since it is quite a risk commercially. Indeed, as we have seen in the preview-reviews of some of the larger websites, many might not understand/appreciate the JA2 elements as much as we do. I do believe that this is just about the right balance that could keep much of the original fanbase by maintaining the essential legacy of the franchise, while also attracting new demographics (likewise, JA2 was not 100% like JA1 or DG, it was better because it changed some elements, while keeping others - and let's be honest, many of us here wouldn't have become fans of the franchise had it been exactly like the older games). Sure, there will always be malcontents on both extremes of the spectrum - for some it's not going to be close enough to JA2 (1.13), while for others it's not going to be X-COM - and some may like it more than others. I do think that this is, realistically, the best deal we were ever going to get.

 

In the end, as Claudius33 has suggested above, I think the key to making more players happy is to lean into customization of gameplay - e.g., allow people to choose for themselves what kind of gameplay they want - something very similar to JA2 (minimalistic aiming, classic turn management, limited information etc.), or something that is closer to the more recent standard in the genre (a more simplified system etc. that would be easier for new players to grasp, and maybe later they can try the other one), and of course anything in-between. Of course, one should still address some of the real issues mentioned in this thread, but sometimes, the best choice is to just let people choose, rather to force a single standard upon them.

[WILDFIRE]

For me I like many aspects of JA3. I want a modernized and advanced version of JA2. But the more elements they use from JA2 the better, because JA2 was nearly perfect so they can not go wrong if they copy some stuff from the past. But surely not everything works in 2023.

 

I think what JA3 does very well is the world building. The maps look great and there are so many details there. Maybe I am wrong but I saw new gameplay and I noticed that the mercs even get dirty if they crawl across the ground and the dirt is also diversified depending on how the weather is (muddy or dusty). In the water you can see fish or an anchor and we have wild animals like hyenas that can attack enemy soldiers. Lovely details!

 

But I do not like the nuXCOM games (compared to JA2) and JA3 sometimes feels a little bit like that. The nuXCOM games have this console feeling where many stuff is simplified or just clean so that it works also on console.(UI, inventory, aiming system) So the more JA3 gets its own identity and the less it tries to be the next XCOM the better.

[Claudius33]

From the videos I saw :

• Aiming system works by right clicking as in JA2, the choice of body parts is made by clicking on different icons, shooting on hands is now possible. If the shot is successful, the effects applied if any, depend on the targeted body part. JA2 crosshair was more elegant IMO. However there new are possibilities. Bottomline : less elegant but effective and somewhat enhanced.
• Not a big fan of the UI inventory as it is. It seems filters (weapons, ammo, armors ...) are missing, maybe still on the todo list or perhaps I missed something. Drag and drop is ok. Looks effective though.
• I might have got it wrong but Sector inventories look replaced by a squad inventory that follows the squad (as an invisible pack of mules, or a cart or whatever you may imagine). Not sure but I think you can't access it in combat mode. You have to pick items, otherwise they stay in the sector. Only nice to have but that could be improved by an inventory sector as in JA2.
• UI in general looks ok, many options, keys binding, enhanced conversation system.

I encourage people to have a look at the serie of videos in French I mentionned above. They show a lot of things including 2 intense battles on large maps that definitely show the combat has nothing to do with XCOM. Nevertheless when a merc changes position the UI shows thru a 'ghost' image of the merc if the projected location provides cover, lines of sight, and what will be the remaining AP. Some will love it, some less. For me it's fine.

 

Edited April 22, 2023 by Claudius33
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