August 4th, 2010
34 Comments
I’m in the process of creating some more alien concepts and I’d like to know what you guys would like to see in an alien horde that’s looking to wipe out every last human they can find.
Do you expect large(ish) hordes of swarming aliens? Perhaps a fewer high tech alien with a taste for vengeance is more your style? Stupid tanks? Brittle thinkers? Let me know what alien force you wouldn’t want to be knocking on your door..
And if you played X-Com, let us know what shocking experience you had with a new alien type that made you rethink your game. The introduction of Crysilids had me running..
July 23rd, 2010
10 Comments
Hey everyone.
Behold new Isochron weapons! The basic starting weapons have now been mostly finalised and the devastating power of the base weapons will probably only barely keep you alive 
Isochron Inventory Screenshot
One of the most exciting of the new weapons is the Gatling Gun. With a special fire mode that sweeps between two points to handle groups of enemies that are ‘sort of’ clusterd, it’ll be perfect for that awkward area between using explosives for very close groups and precision for very spread out groups.
Isochron Gatling Gun
You may have also noticed that the isometric unit is holding the weapon – while not 100% perfect just yet, the sprites have all been painstakingly split up and the weapons have been positioned so that you’ll be able to tell what weapon a unit is holding just by looking.
July 14th, 2010
10 Comments
Hey everyone.
Well, things are finally getting back on track. I’ve focussed in on what I’d like to deliver and I’m happy with the plan. I’ve also teamed up with a dude who used to work at Irrational (2K). Because of his connection with the new X-Com game by 2K, he can’t help on Isochron, but we’re working on a smaller scope turn based tactical game on the side called Lost Company. It’s turned out to be really good for Isochron as it’s using the exact same tactical engine which means I can progress things on Isochron even when design and management get in the way of things . I just finished a first cut of turn based AI for Lost Company – and that means a first cut of Isochron AI is just about done too.
So the next order of business for Isochron is to finally finish the top down view.
Isochron Top Down Floor Tiles
But I’m keen to hear from you guys – how often did you make your way to the top down view in UFO? A lot? Or was the isometric view enough? Personally I didn’t spend that much time in the top down view but I can see the tactical advantage of having one..
Anyway, keen to read all your comments!
June 27th, 2010
6 Comments
Hey everyone,
Sorry about the lack of updates over the last few weeks, but I’ve been on holiday in Spain with some other trips here and there too. I spent some time in London taking part in an interview (Thanks Ed for your hospitality) but otherwise had some time off to think about the direction on the project and I’m now all excited and ready to go!
Thanks for all the comments and the donations that came through while I was away – I’ll be responding to them over the next few days as I get settled in at home again.
Thanks!
May 24th, 2010
2 Comments
Thanks to everyone who made suggestions about the vehicle combat system and I’ve read them all and tried to come up with something that’ll please most of you.
Firstly, I’ve decided to go with the “We Go” system (Both players plan their move and then the game is played out for a few seconds). Having an I Go, You Go turn based system would make things too similar to the tactical part of the game. And full realtime didn’t fit with everything else.
As a basic concept, you’ll be positioning your ships around the target ship(s) in formations to optimise weapon ranges and damages. You’ll be managing your ships power levels so you’ll have to choose between moving in close to avoid a run away, or maximising your weapon damage. There will also be assist modules to help out friendly ships during the fight.
It’s a We Go version of the original with position as well as range for ships. The extra possibilities that this creates will allow some very unique customisations on your ships, and a whole heap of other strategies.
I’m still ironing out the finer points of the system, but once I do I’ll post up the plan here. So far it seems to handle most things well but I’ll put it under a bit more scrutiny first..
