Koinsky

Sorry. i'm not that Koynski. For those interested he keeps a very good playthrough in french. I've been using this nickname since i took to the internet back in the 90's, but i keep my activities to forums and such. Only found out about him after signing for this community a few weeks ago. Had i known, i would have picked another name, as i think the french Koyinski deserves his own place in JA3.

Agaim, i have yet to play JA3, but as some have outlined, JA2 was similar. The compounded effect of leveling you mercs, getting better weapons and getting better knowledge of the game, made it increasingly easier as you played more, with only a few rough spots here and there. In JA2 i think i finnished the story two or three times. Most of the other many runs were about trying different teams, different tactics, differente progression paths, and getting the squad up to a point where i could confidently face anything. Mind you, in JA2 the harder difficulty actually made the game easier, once you were proficient, by throwing at you enemies with better equipment to loot. As the online store inventory was tied to your progression, there was not much available early on, and you could get much better stuff from dead enemies.

As a mere observer (i'm aching to get the game running but still away from may computer for another week) i think the game reminds me a lot of my experience with JA2. Getting my ass kicked very soon, (that's probably what is happening with the people who didn't know the series, or go in blind (i have seen quite a few videos already so i know more or less what to expect when my turn comes. Then there are those like you, who go into the game fairly prepared, adjust to the changes and move on. I'm hoping to fit this category once i play. There is a third kind of player i have only hints from, those who only want to play on ironman top difficulty. Those will find the game also imbalanced because they will find one or two optimal mechanics to abuse and will say the others are useless. I'm taking all opinions with a grain of salt, but i am glad most people seem to be enjoying the game, and finding in it the playsttyle that they find fun.

I think i can answer that: yes, but not for long. Games like xcom, laser squad (for those old like me), felt soulless after i experienced JA2. The fun factor was just a lot bigger. To me it's like my appreciation of music. I can listen to some avantgarde composer making music with a door and the wind and i think, hmm "Interesting", but it is an intellectual exercise, while the music i end up hearing repeatedly is the one that besides being intellectually stimulating also stirrs my emotions. JA2 is challenging (at least at first) and FUN. I hope JA3 is that too.

Being that the mod now seems to get the issue out of the way, i always felt comfortable playing the old JA2 game (missed the first one), and never got too confident on numbers. 80% chance to hit seems like a large number, and still means you miss one fifth of your shots, on average. Not sure how it's gonna be in JA3 but i always felt pretty confident about shooting and chances after upgrading from the early pistols (an SKS on the first fight was a God send), and once the bigger ranges and the higher marksmanships started to click in, things always went smoothly. Always found the system quite organic and intuitive.

I have yet to explore the starting options but in JA2 i used to run something like: Barry Igor Wolf/Ice IMP (marksman, leader) I would later get Ira as a medic. In some runs i might go with Lynx, as i believe he was the fastest way to get a 5.56 weapon, that made all the difference early on. Some others i would run an early two men team of IMP and an elite merc like Shadow or similar. Then, when the firt mine was captured, i would dismiss the expensive merc and bring on the cheap promissing ones.

Greetings all Still waiting for initial reviews to jump in. Still, from all i've seen this may be as good as it gets regarding an update on the JA franchise. I have played a lot of JA2 in all it's incarnations, so that's where i come from. I don't know how much i will enjoy or not JA3, but one thing that stood out for me from the devs live streams was a focus on balance. I understand that need. JA2 was however never about balance. Actually the opposite. So much so that this was the only game i ever played on the hardest difficulty. Because it made the game easyer, once you had some insights on things. And the same happened with all the mods and such. So i completely understand a modern game designer to produce a balanced game that is not about exploiting primitive or questionable AI, and loot systems, to mention those i exploited most. Maybe those who complain are better men than me and can discipline themselves in order to have the experience they desire, regardless of the game flaws. More power to them. For me JA2 was mostly about the character, the personality, of the mercs. X-Com (both old and new, and also Phoenix Point, if this means anything to you), feel generic. I dont really care for the soldiers, no matter the fancy hats and costumizable camo. So, if that personality is there and i can find a way to become the battlefield god i once became, i'm good.