Some Quick Impression on the Early Game Thus Far (Early June)

[marceror]

I started my LW2 journey around 6 days ago and have been captivated by my experience thus far. I particularly love the infiltration mechanics; they are just about as close to perfect as I could imagine within the context of the existing game framework.

I loved how LW1 made it necessary to have a large roster, vs. relying on around 12 soldiers exclusively in vanilla XCOM, with a barracks filled with, presumably, fat and well-rested would-be soldiers. But honestly, the fatigue mechanic required some suspension of disbelief to fully buy into it. Okay, right, my top officer, MVP soldier goes on a mission, then gets a full week off to go visit the sights in whatever Advent’s equivalent of Disneyland is. For a soldier’s job, it sounds rather cushy.

Not so in LW2! Your soldiers are, uh, soldiering pretty much 24/7 – all of them. This mechanic just works really, really well, and makes total sense.

Missions are a lot more exciting, and keep me on the edge of my seat, every time. The fact that it is now viable to run full on stealth missions is SUCH a win!

I could go on and on. Haven management adds a great new dynamic to the game. The quality of Pavonis’ work is absolutely top notch! The world is truly fortunate to have LW2 in it, and the fact that we can get it free of charge is almost criminal.

My helmet is off to Mr. Lumpkins and team!

[trihero]

Missions are a lot more exciting, and keep me on the edge of my seat, every time. The fact that it is now viable to run full on stealth missions is SUCH a win!

I don't want to poop on your party too soon, but you will eventually realize that missions are either best done with stealth or 10+ men, with no middle ground thus making it a jarring experience of james bond vs civ 5 invasion. This is especially true on harder difficulties and the longer the game goes on.

But it is an exceptionally fun mod nonetheless. The more complex a game gets the more potential it has to implode upon itself, but LW2 hasn't quite imploded yet despite the polarized squad sizes.

[marceror]

Missions are a lot more exciting, and keep me on the edge of my seat, every time. The fact that it is now viable to run full on stealth missions is SUCH a win!

I don't want to poop on your party too soon, but you will eventually realize that missions are either best done with stealth or 10+ men, with no middle ground thus making it a jarring experience of james bond vs civ 5 invasion. This is especially true on harder difficulties and the longer the game goes on.

But it is an exceptionally fun mod nonetheless. The more complex a game gets the more potential it has to implode upon itself, but LW2 hasn't quite imploded yet despite the polarized squad sizes.

Part of the reason I was clear to state that these are early impressions, is because I have no idea what to expect later in the game. My mid or late game impressions might be very different. Though what you describe doesn't necessarily sound like a major issue to me. I will hopefully have a large enough roster to fill out those larger squads, and the idea that I can regularly take 1 of each class on a mission has a certain appeal.

[trihero]

and the fact that we can get it free of charge is almost criminal.

Oh ho ho, it's not free. They've trapped our souls so we'll feel more inclined to spread word of their talents and buy into their stand-alone product when it's ready

Trapping the soul is the highest price to pay, because how do you get a refund?

Part of the reason I was clear to state that these are early impressions, is because I have no idea what to expect later in the game. My mid or late game impressions might be very different. Though what you describe doesn't necessarily sound like a major issue to me. I will hopefully have a large enough roster to fill out those larger squads, and the idea that I can regularly take 1 of each class on a mission has a certain appeal.

I honestly hope you enjoy the mod for a while, it is good indeed. I miss the base 5-6 man squad xcom 2 experience after a while though. It's not just that they made stealth viable, but they made it like...mandatory.

[marceror]

My soul? That was sold off loooong ago. Pavonis may have a hard time collecting on that, but more power to them if they can!

[trihero]

My soul? That was sold off loooong ago. Pavonis may have a hard time collecting on that, but more power to them if they can!

I'm reminded of the movie "Bedazzled."

"You sold your soul? Did you get anything good for it?"

".....I.......no."

"Sounds like a bad deal to me!"