Although I wouldn't expect Aliens Versus Humans to be very similar to the latest generation X-com reboot, Aliens Versus Humans definitively deserves a bump at this time for their dedication to quality turn based strategy alien bashing on iOS even before it was "cool".
Sold, thank you I never played the original, but I think it will cover my strategy game needs. UPDATE: I just finished my first mission. The game rocks, I suck Lost 5 out of 8 soldiers and was granted 1 star for the first mission in the easiest difficulty. Not bad for my first game
Hmmm, I may have to grab this later on when I'm ready for something xcom'ish (and have some $$ on my itunes account). I appreciate the fact that this is geared more like the old school games for both file size and focusing more energy on gameplay.
Question regarding iCloud: I see I can only access the iCloud option in the "onslaught", but not through the original 25 missions. What does exactly go to iCloud and what doesn't? i.e.: does everything sync to iCloud, or just the "onslaught" game? Thanks.
I'm not sure I could manage that "feat" even trying to get my guys killed on normal difficulty, so congrats!
I must be a "hero" (suicidal), because I finally got more time to spare with the game and I usually get killed 4-5 soldiers in each mission After playing 3 levels, this time on my iPad, I'm really enjoying the game. I hesitated a lot before buying it. Now I can say I don't regret at all. And I'm only into "v1" missions! Still have to try the management "v2" game. One request (if possible): full iCloud save support, even for the 25 original missions. I'd like to play indistinctly on my iPad and iPhone and try to get better results in the same missions. Not have two different games for those missions. Even if this doesn't get implemented, I really appreciate the work/effort put into this game. Thanks
Yeah we hadn't considered iCloud for the missions. Honestly, we didn't think people played the missions much anymore as with the Onslaught, the game is more free-form and has greater flexibility. Maybe this will fit in a future release but we can't commit yet. Al(ien)
Thanks for thinking about it. Missions are ideal as a training ground for people who, as me, never played the original X-Com. They are also better suited for a quick 5-minute game. And don't forget that their story links with onslaught, so you'd better do them if you want to follow the story
If you really want to know how to compare AvH to the New Xcom release, I'll paste this comparison I put together in the Xcom game thread. Fun fact: I've had at least two people tell me I've convinced them to get AvH after reading this! FROM XCOM THREAD I noticed a couple of members arguing that AvH was a better purchase than Xcom. And still others saying that AvH was "Interesting from an indie perspective, but Xcom is the real deal!" I disagree with both statements. They are both solid strategy gaming experiences with their own pros and cons. Strengths and weaknesses. Lets compare the two: Xcom Vs AvH SPACE REQUIREMENTS: XCOM : 1.86 Gb (Actually 3.2 Gb) AvH : 26.6 Mb Winner: AvH If your stuck with a 16 Gb device (like mine!) you'll need to carefully consider purchasing Xcom, as it is going to take up lots of room. I deleted almost all my other games. If you want an Xcom type game but don't have the free space, you might look to AvH as an alternative. PRESENTATION Winner: Xcom XCOM wins this in a landslide. Whether its the exciting music or the voice acting, the reinvented base management menu mechanics, or the cutscenes that seem ripped right from the console version, you really can feel the games universe oozing around your finger tips. The camera controls take some getting used to IMO, and I'm still learning to properly maneuver my soldiers, but I think that's more my being clumsy than a game flaw. AvH's presentation seems aimed more at recreating the feel and nostalgia of the original XCOM game. and production menus are at present, simple and (if a bit bland) but almost identical to the original Xcom interfaces. The battle map interface is easy to navigate, and while its not fancy, it's easy to figure out what the buttons mean. The music is creepy (I'm partly to blame for that as I provided some of it.) And suits the game well, but it doesn't have the same "Evil Aliens" phase theme, switching-next-turn to "Heroic XCOM" phase Theme feature, that really enhances the turn-based fighting action IMO. GAMEPLAY WINNER: Tie It really depends on what your looking for. Xcom is definitely STILL Xcom, but the game has been streamlined and made much more user friendly than its original incarnation, doing away with the "time units" in favor of a "two actions per soldier turn" system. This is great for people like me that don't want to have to keep up with things like movement cost, actions, etc. AvH uses the TU system, which give you a pool of "time units" to spend on performing all the currently selected soldiers actions. Intercepting UFOs was one feature the developers (of AvH) choose not to implement. Instead, the aliens have opted to use teleportation as a means of travel, and it becomes a game changing feature for your troops once you aquire the technology for yourself. Also missing (but currently being discussed) are the "Terror missions" and also the "capture live alien" gameplay mechanic. Xcom's soldiers are completly customizable male and female models. So far it doesn't seem possible to alter the color of their armor, which is kinda a bummer. AvH Has recently updated to include a simple selection of colors for customizing it's troops, and while there are no female soldiers as of yet, it is being discussed. Xcom reportedly had to drop a few of the console maps for one reason or other, but they still have more than enough for a single playthru, and the enemy placement is randomly generated. The environments are also destructible. AvH has randomly generated maps, that are also climate specific: (Meaning if you land on a mission set in Antarctica/Canada it will probably have arctic terrain.) Also, the environment is also completly destructible. Both games have aliens that are equally good at killing your men, and making your mission an utter failure before you realize it. AvH actually allows you to carry more soldiers into a mission, and that's good because sometimes it's better to send the new guy around that blind spot first, than risk your high ranking leveled up soldier. Speaking of leveling up... Xcom has the cooler leveling system. AvH's soldiers become more skilled, but they do not unlock any special abilities, their stats do, however, increase. LASTING APPEAL Winner: AvH (So far...) Xcom is incredibly addictive and the large number of maps, random enemy placement, and difficulty settings (iron man anyone?) means that you could play this for a very long time. BUT ... It doesn't have as much content as AvH, at least not yet. The console dlc is supposedly going to be released in the future. AvH on the other hand has technically become two games in one: -The original missions from the 1.0 release of AvH , now referred to as "Training Missions" in the Main Menu - AvH 2.0 "The Onslaught" , when AvH added the requested base building and research game mechanics. -A fairly robust mission generator that is contained inside "Training Missions" allows players to create and save their own missions, GRAPHICS Winner: XCOM (From a technological standpoint) Xcom is played in the unreal engine. AvH is a 2D game that was designed to resemble the "Classic" XCOM battlemap look. (And they must have succeeded, as on a certain particular forum the game was actually accused of using the originals resources.) XCOM is great if you want 3D graphics that look nice even if slightly scaled down for mobile devices. If your into retro graphics, you'll probably feel right at home with AvH, but it may not appeal to some other players simply because it looks "old" or "low budget" PRICE: Winner: depends on your budget. If you can afford to spend 3.2 gigs of IOS memory and twenty bucks on a Port of a game that used to cost more than twice that amount....do it. Xcom game is worth the price. But if you can't, you might consider waiting for a sale or something.... If its just not feasible, then you can consider AvH as a possible alternative, at a much lower cost. Or do what I did: You could buy BOTH, and play AvH while XCOM downloads its 3.2 gigs.of awesomeness. Both games are the best examples of the kind of gameplay Xcom fans are looking for on a mobile device. What's funny is, how each has some of the original games features, yet neither have all of them. This is partly due to game design, and also somewhat due to poor sales (on AvH's end) And if anyone is wondering, no I do not work for Leisurerules Inc, though I did make music for the AvH game, and I have been corresponding with them over the past year as a fan. (If you read all this your attention span is better than mine.)
I played the original UFO:Enemy Unknown in the early 90's and loved it, this is far more like the original game than what Xcom is, Xcom is okay (I bought the 360 version) but it is rather dumbed down in some respects. I can't recommend Aliens vs Humans enough, its what an Xcom game should be!
Absolutely loving XCOM at the moment. Kind of viewing it as a warm-up for this game (which I found a bit too daunting at first as a strategy novice). Excited to give this another go!
Two person?? Wow.. That's great! I picked this up yesterday and tried the first part and I have to say, it didn't really appeal to me. Then, I tried the newest mode... There is only one word for it. AWESOME. I love the base management aspect and troop recruiting. The combat is cool and really strategic. Very good purchase. This plus KD are both awesome deals at 2.99.
I'm excited to see the revolutionary release of a huge name next generation console game simply draw that much more attention to an indie development project. It's ironic in some ways but games like Aliens Versus Humans are what I enjoy so much about iOS gaming (versus console gaming with it's race towards more polished graphics and huge budged). It's a good thing to see Aliens Versus Humans, which I perceived to struggle initially, has had such a lasting appeal for some many people here. Maybe we'll even see an Aliens Versus Humans sequel
I'd suggest we are stilling starving indies If AvH made enough money for us to survive on, we could work on it full time. Sadly, we also have day jobs in order to pay the bills. This has been a project based first on passion. What Julian Gollop and his team originally pulled off was exceptionally good. We wrote AvH because I wanted X-Com on my phone simple as that. AvH still isn't as good as the original and we have lots still we'd like to do with this title. I think, undeadcow, you've been with us since our original post back in November 2011. Thanks for the continued support. Al(ien)
After reading all the posts and related webs, I think that AvH has to sell much more for a sequel to be created. The devs are husband and wife if I'm not mistaken, and with children according to the game credits, so I don't think they are making a living from their game. In fact, my guess is they added non-intrusive and fully optional IAP to try and find other sources of income from their game. Take into account that they are updating the original game rather than creating a new one, which would surely stop updates to the original. For me, updating the game after more than one year and a half of its release is a plus, a very big plus. This, along getting all the questions asked in the thread answered by them is admirable to say the least. What I really hope is that this game keeps receiving updates to create the best X-Com experience in the App Store. My opinion is that AvH hasn't received the hypes it deserved/deserves. It's a very nurtured game with much depth. Sure, visually it's not very impressive, but it's compensated by gameplay. Now that XCOM has been released and that AvH complements the App Store with traditional X-Com gameplay, maybe Al(ien) and Hu(man) could/should send out some codes to webs so that they review their game. TouchArcade hasn't reviewed it AFAIK. That would be a good start towards promoting the game. Just an idea. EDIT: funny, we were posting at the same time and read this after I posted my reply. I guess I wasn't too wrong in the end
Bought! Thanks for the comparison AvH s Xcom. I really dont have the space for Xcom and this looks like the perfect alternative!
If it's ever feasible, I'd love to see base invasions and terror missions added to the game. Those are the two things I remember most about the original X-Com. Those and the sudden screech of a laser weapon being fired and the subsequent scream as your soldiers crept around in the dark. Made me jump out of my chair every time.
I suggest that the developer makes IAP expansions to sell rather than gimicky resurrection consumable IAPs... The former I would buy. The latter, well. I have not updated AvH since the announcement.
