UFO: Aftermath

"Good game, but not THE classic (watch out for minor spoiler)"

Introduction

Let's face it, when there's a game like this out there, there's noway you can just close your eyes and say, ''X-com never existed''. Unless you have never played X-com of course. So comparing the two games is definitely going to happen. (Even the team behind UFO: Aftermath admitted that they were ''inspired'' by X-com) However, while UFO: Aftermath is definitely no X-com or even close to X-com in some areas, it does carry some new elements that surpass X-com.

Story (9/10)

One of the better areas of UFO:Aftermath resides with its story. While still under the ''Earth being attacked by aliens'' story, UFO:Aftermath suggested a greater crisis as the world you'll be playing in is at a point where human beings are close to extinction. That sense of danger not only comes from the story itself but also the fact that there isn't any governments to assist you, and the fact that there isn't such a thing called ''money'' in this game world. The game shows a world that has collapsed and constantly facing the treat of extinction under alien attacks through the biomass -- a spore-like substance that killed most living creature and mutating the rest.

Gameplay (6/10)

However, the game itself basically failed to push this great sense of threat. The biggest flaw in this game is the fact that none of the missions really gives that sense of pressing danger. Certainly there are ufos flying around all the time, but they seemed more of annoyance than real threat. This is due to the fact that you can only have one squad under control and the fact that you have unlimited fighter jets but you can only send out 3 jets at a time to fight each ufo. Well, at least one good thing is that missions tend of resolve themselves by the help of ''other'' squads that you don't see at all. But without a video clip or a battle summary to state the importance of each ''auto-resolved'' mission, you can basically have messages popping up that don’t feel important at all.

One of the biggest differences between X-com and UFO: Aftermath is the game's flexibility. Many may say that UFO: Aftermath is a wash down version of X-com and that is in some ways true. Most of the game aspects of X-com has been simplified. There's no ''blasting through the wall'' tactic in this game. All buildings are created as solids and all ufos or bases are treated as a separate map in this game. While it provides challenges, as you may be tempted to do a series of missions before a mission completes, the lack of flexibility during a battle really restricted how the game played out.

On the other hand, UFO: Aftermath made a noble attempt in making this game a cross between a turn-base game and a real-time game. The idea of setting waypoints and assigning missions in a pause mode while still calculating the movement points is a great feature. It certainly speed up the game and made some of the battles very intense. (Although the game AI often make your soldiers go the long way around a narrow area rather than moving the squad through the tight area accordingly) Another nice point about the mission is that there are a little more variety of mission goals that ranges from ''kill'em all'' to ''investigate the area'' and ''rescue the stranded pilot''.

Graphics/Sound (6/10)

Everybody is probably be happy that the game is now in full 3D. You can spin the camera around and zoom close to the action. (Even though the characters tend to be a little too small still, it would be great if we can zoom in a little more closer) Maps for battles are nicely rendered and different areas in the world actually have different types of buildings now. But due to the fact that most humans are already dead, you won't be seeing people running across the map screaming anymore in this game. Everything is deadly quiet, so if you see anything that moves on the map and you're not rescuing someone, don't hesitate, just fire at them. (You can't shoot at your own guys anyways)

Replayability (7/10)

Since all the maps are random, it is possible to play this game a few more times with different starting continent (not cities). But like X-Com, there's only one goal in this game, so basically you'll only see two endings. (Either you die, or they die).

Final comment

Many years has passed after X-Com has been released. While others has placed efforts to make something similar but with their own unique aspects, it seems that the classic has not been exceeded at this point. UFO-Aftermath carries a great story, and some great elements of its own, but the lack of flexibility and interaction between players and the game world (both in battle or outside battle) really dropped the game from being a milestone to being just a great game to play.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 10/15/03