XCOM 2: Blogger Succession Game
“Try and look interested , everyone”
Here’s a fun idea. Take a single player game, preferably one that has clearly delineated missions or activities, then play for a designated period of time or until a round or task has been completed. Finally, save the game and pass on the save file to the next player. This is exactly what Naithin over at Time to Loot has done. This the second succession game he’s organised and the first that I’ve participated in. The original was a communal play through Civilisation VI. I passed on that because I am not au fait with this sub-genre of RTS games. However, this time round we’re playing XCOM 2 which is more to my liking. I played The Bureau: XCOM Declassified a few years ago and enjoyed it, so I was happy to give this succession game a try. Furthermore, the group playing are all fellow bloggers who hangout on the Blaugust Discord server, so that adds to the enjoyment. So today, I copied and installed Naithin’s save file and fired up XCOM 2.
I found the mission “Operation Bone Shriek” waiting for me. Mercifully it was not a time sensitive undertaking. I’m not a fan of timed missions as I find the constant nagging by the NPCs to be annoying. The objective was to secure and protect a transmitter and neutralise all enemy targets because of “reasons”. I didn’t change the existing squad and proceeded with the established line up which consisted of Unwise “UnwiseOwl” Owl, Rakuno “Three” Venmuel, Lizz “Magi” Winterfield and Easha “Silentdeath” Dustfeather. Yes the squad has been named to reflect those playing the game. On arrival in Kansas City, I deployed my squad around the area I surmised the enemy to be. I tried to follow the classic Zulu tactic of “impondo zenkomo” (Buffalo Horns). However it all went tits up quickly when my specialist ran straight into a Sectoid. He panicked after a psionic attack and my strategy rapidly changed from being proactive to reactive.
“The horror…”
To cut a long story short (insert Spandau Ballet gag here) I tried to place my sniper on a building top and the grandier inside the same structure to provide suppressing fire, while the specialist and ranger flanked the ADVENT reinforcements. Like so many plans, it was great on paper until reality decided to ruin everything. I guess it's either a game mechanic or due to the fact that the squad hasn’t that many skills at this stage but damn, they do seem to miss a lot of close range shots. Mind you so do the bad guys and I guess that is what saved my bacon. That and the judicious use of fragmentation grenades. Sadly, my specialist took cover behind a truck which caught alight during a firefight. Tragically, he was unable to withdraw in time and was killed in the resulting explosion. However, this marked a turning point in the proceeding as the squad, motivated by his untimely demise, proceeded to mop up all remaining enemies and secure the target.
“Man down”
With the mission over, the squad returned to base and I promoted those who had distinguished themselves in combat. Lizz “Magi” Winterfield and Easha “Silentdeath” Dustfeather both received promotions and new skills. Lizz “Magi” Winterfield also gained a laser sight weapon upgrade. Not that they’ll be using it any time soon as they were gravely wounded in the mission and need 8 days to recover. But such is war, so everyone then went to the bar to drink to the memory of their fallen comrade, Unwise “UnwiseOwl” Owl. I ensured that there was a fitting epitaph left under their memorial. I then started some research and undertook a scan which yielded some new recruits. A new mission then popped, so having completed my turn, I saved the game and breathed a sigh of relief. My first mission wasn’t a complete disaster but I was kind of disappointed that a squad member had died. I hope they didn’t have any library books that needed to be returned.
“Lest we forget”
I find that whenever I volunteer to participate in a group undertaking, at some point I always consider “have I done the right thing”? I had a key for XCOM 2 from some iffy bundle I bought from the online version of “a bloke in a pub”, so I was initially concerned that I may not be able to install the game. That proved not to be the case, although I only have the base version of the game and there were some minor issues surrounding that. My next worry was that I didn’t want to embarrass myself with a truly heinous play through. Naithin uploaded his session to YouTube. I could have done the same but decided not to. Never voluntarily give people a stick which they can then beat you with. However, my doubts proved irrelevant and really enjoyed this succession game. I shall be interested to see how everyone else fairs. Hopefully they’ll have as much fun as I did. Rumours that there’s a pool as to whose namesake dies next are totally unfounded.
