X3: Terran Conflict

As much as I love, love, love space sims, the X series has never clicked for me, sadly. I've played them all (save for this new one), and after the intial "ooohing" and "aaahing" I find it kind of dull and empty. Why can't it be more like Privateer or Elite?

Yeah I'll be honest, it never really clicked for me, at least not for more than about 15 total game hours. I put both X and X2 away after that amount of time spent on each.

But...it looks so pretty. I'm feeling a compulsion to try it again, so I probably will end up doing so. Maybe this time I'll be in a better frame of mind to play it.
I'll probably wait until after Fallout 3 though, and whatever else PC-wise that is right around the corner. November looks to be busy for games dropping.
I'm such an idiot for wanting to try this again.

I hate to pontificate too much, but I suppose if you can't do it on an internet gaming forum, then you can't do it anywhere:

Folks have mentioned several of the drawbacks to the game. I think it's important to keep those in mind, because as Veloxi and Uberstein along with others have pointed out, it's not for everyone, and it also helps to keep expectations reasonable. Low expectations almost always mean a better gaming experience, especially if the game turns out to be amazing. But there's a reason this thread isn't already 20 pages long. I have been pleasantly surprised by the X series, mostly because I never paid attention to the games until they were on the store shelf and I took a chance based on the box.

Common complaints with X2 and X3:
-Massive scope can lead to burnout or "what do I do next?" syndrome.
-Lack of clearly defined plot points and missions leads to being lost and confused upon loading a save game
-Technical bugs These were improved between X2 and X3 but are still present
-Glitches, especially in storyline missions, including some wanky cut-scenes and dialogue
-Some awkward translations
-Simultaneously brilliant and obtuse UI and control scheme
-Common tasks are not entirely streamlined, leading to fatigue by repetition
-Menus within menus
-High system requirements (Shouldn’t be as much of an issue as far as I know, since Reunion was released a while ago now)
-Repetitive or scarce generic missions Help defend our base, go kill this group of pirates, transport these power cells to another system.
-Station building and supplying often a daunting task. Buy a station in one system, hire a ship to transport it to another system for you, lead that ship to the system, tell them to stop and place it, re-load a save game when you realize you placed it at a strange angle.
-Possibility for micromanagement needed as empire grows
-Need to "grind" reputation with other races before you can build bigger stations in their space
-Managing your fleet becomes a headache and can lead to unnecessary losses
-Pirates sometimes inexplicably refuse to leave their ships so that you can salvage them, even when you are clearly about to blow them to kingdom come

Many of these things are items the expansion claims to fix, so it's hard to guess if the UI issues, for example, have been improved or just changed to a new annoying style.

Gaining power and dominance ever so slowly and in a way guaranteed to be different for every player has its allure, but it can just as easily be seen as a negative.

Yea, I have to again agree w/ Montalban. This game is not for everyone and it can be very complex and frustrating at times. To play this game you have to have a complete open ended attitude towards your goals as it will take a long time to accomplish really anything. For me the rewards have always been worth it as I absolutely love space flight sims + empire building...

If youre looking for a quick space flight fighting simulator this is most likely not for you because to get to the really cool ships and equipment you have a lot of work to do.

PAR

-Simultaneously brilliant and obtuse UI and control scheme

That's the best way I've ever heard the X3 UI put.

I miss Star Fleet II: Krellan Commander. Sigh. Good times, good times....

Game is available to play despite what STEAM says. I just finished playing for a couple of hours.

Impressions?

I hate this time of year. Even if I had enough cash for all the games I want, I dont have nearly enough free time. And in June I'll be bored!

polypusher wrote:

And in June I'll be bored!

In June they'll have X3:TC all patched up and lots of great mods for it, so don't feel too bad.

Initial impressions - graphics are beautiful. Similar design to X3. No bugs yet - runs smooth as butter with Vista 64. Tutorial is ridiculously lacking - you definitely need to read the instructions. 4 "Story Characters" to start off with and then a "custom" which is essentially sandbox - no need to worry about story. Joystick setup was simple with the Cyboeg Evo and mouse flying wasnt all that bad either. You need the mouse for the plethora of menus. Very deep trading system - if you like the true feel of building up a ship, corporation, and then mega-conglomerate then this is the game for you. I only had one instance of combat as the Terran character (I tried all 4 initial startups) and it was with a single pirate who died badly. The Terran campaign gives you a high end fighter and thats where you make your money and the Argon campaign has both a fighter and trader setup, and then there is the down on your luck assassin. Let me put it this way - I rushed home so I could play a startup merchant and have Dead Space, Saints Row 2, Rock Band 2 and SOCOM also calling my name.

Just curious if you played the vanilla X3.

If so, were you able to jump right into this new one?
If not, hows the learning curve? X3 took 6-10 hours just to learn how to do enough to feel comfortable with the game.

Also, what rig are you running it on, Spy? And what graphical settings?

Montalban wrote:

Also, what rig are you running it on, Spy? And what graphical settings?

I think we might have lost him.

I too am curious to see how this sucker runs. X has been one of those things I've always been meaning to get into and now seems as good of a time as any.

I stopped at X2. It was a game that really surprised me. The space visuals were so amazingly beautifully rendered, but then as soon as you started the campaign and saw your first human model, the quality difference was so drastic in every aspect from the models themselves, to the marionette movements, to the voice-over. It was a real shock to see the disparity.

I ended up putting X2 down, not so much from the rendered scenes from the campaign, but more due to the high tech requirements and a questionable copy protection scheme if I am recalling right.

I have a quad core with 4GB RAM and a 9800X2. Yes, I played X3 vanilla and it is very similar. The game rewards time put in - also if you want instant combat - play the fighter vice trader - it takes a lonnngggg time for the trader to make enough money to get a fighter that will hold its own with more then one ship. If you like the idea of setting up trade runs and building your own corporation then trader is the way to go. Also - dont take "retrieve ship" missions unless you are in a fast ship. The time limits are pretty ridiculous. Also, dont forget you can eject from your ship and your space suit has a repair laser - much cheaper then having your shipped repaired at the shipyard. Also explore early on - and get the trader software upgrades as soon as possible. Also the jump drive helps immensely.

- Spy

Edit: Graphics - 1920x1200, Antialias and the anisotropic filtering both at 4x. I tried higher, but I started getting framerate skips I didnt try tweaking I just went back to defaults - all other settings at high. EAX also on.

Edit 2: Steam tab works for chat in game - so if you have questions or want to chat - IM me.

SpyNavy wrote:

I have a quad core with 4GB RAM and a 9800X2. Yes, I played X3 vanilla and it is very similar. The game rewards time put in - also if you want instant combat - play the fighter vice trader - it takes a lonnngggg time for the trader to make enough money to get a fighter that will hold its own with more then one ship. If you like the idea of setting up trade runs and building your own corporation then trader is the way to go. Also - dont take "retrieve ship" missions unless you are in a fast ship. The time limits are pretty ridiculous. Also, dont forget you can eject from your ship and your space suit has a repair laser - much cheaper then having your shipped repaired at the shipyard. Also explore early on - and get the trader software upgrades as soon as possible. Also the jump drive helps immensely.

- Spy

Edit: Graphics - 1920x1200, Antialias and the anisotropic filtering both at 4x. I tried higher, but I started getting framerate skips I didnt try tweaking I just went back to defaults - all other settings at high. EAX also on.

Edit 2: Steam tab works for chat in game - so if you have questions or want to chat - IM me.

Are you talking Reunion or Terran Conflict? I loved the trader software and maps for Reunion but havent been able to find anything for Terran Conflict yet.

PAR

Talking purely TC. - Maps or a spreadhseet of trade items and station needs would be awesome.

Just got this puppy last night. Fired it up. Looks absolutely amazing. It's been a while since I played the original X3, so the control scheme was almost completely alien. Tried doing some training missions and the game might as well hit me with a brick wall itself. That's how steep the learning curve is. For crying out loud, I'm doing a 'how do I do basic flying' mission, and the guy says "I dropped a crate; target it now." No mention of how I find things, select things, target things... nothing! I'm doing the most basic flying instruction tutorial because I do not know how to fly forward, let alone target damn things.

But anyways, got over some initial tutorials. Flew over from earth to Neptune and kicked some enemy butt. Before jumping out of the system, I docked with the station for an autosave. Then undocked and engaged the autopilot to get me to the jump gate. It promptly turns the ship around and drives me full thrust into a station wall. Naturally, moving your joystick does not disengage the autopilot. For that, you need to actually steer with your mouse. *sigh*

But I think the game may actually have more legs for me than the original X3. I'm certainly going to put a bit extra time into it.

Military side is definitely "easier" to jump into. I went ahead and went to the Trader side and it has its rewards as well. The key is early upgrading of the trade software available at the Argon Equipment Dock and at Terracorps HQ.

Interview with the company founder here.

So any updated impressions? Is anyone who got it at launch still playing?

If you enjoyed X3, is X3: TC just as fun, or more or less fun?

I guess not

I'm hoping for more impressions too. I'm a big X3 fan just waiting to take the jump

I'm somewhat interested in this too. As a rather big Eve player, is there much this game has to offer I don't already get? For instance, does the twitch spaceship fighting last for a while or do you pretty much have to upgrade yourself to something like capital ships early on?

I imagine I'll pick this up at some point. I love the concept of these big open-ended space games. So far, though, the execution has been lacking. Yes, I played X3...got all the way to the point where I had an automated cargo ship or two making runs for me.

I probably sunk around 150 hours into X3: Reunion, but I'm hesitant to pick this up. I came nowhere near building up the empire or fleet I wanted to, and I became very burnt out. I was rolling in money, but setting up sector/universal traders, running manual remote trade routes, and running missions etc... just became extremely repetitive. Add to that the lack of variety in scenery, and I got pretty bored. Don't get me wrong, the visuals are beautiful, but I started taking the beautiful backdrops for granted after visiting them many times. I had explored the entire map.

If I see this a few months from now on the "weekend deal" on Steam, I'll definitely pick it up. Not really feeling it right now due to the above reasons, though. Don't let that stop you from getting it, because it is a very fun and rewarding game, but my attention span is too short for it.

If anyone is interested X3:reunion is available on amazon for $10 or less depending if you go used or not. That has at least pushed it onto my wish list. For some reason I just havent made the plunge yet. I really dont want to have to deal with joystick combat either.

I would caution against getting any boxed version, those may have copy protection on them. I know for a fact that Reunion did have DRM but it was since removed. TC has Tages which is AFAIK stable and not destructive but I am still going to wait on this one until they remove it. I figure by that point the game will have been well and truly patched up to spec.

If you are starving for a tactical space sim I would recommend Starshatter.

What's the word on the mouse/keyboard controls? workable?