Brutal AI for OpenXcom Extended

I have been following Brutal AI (version 6.6.3) by the user Xilmi over at OpenXcom for a couple of weeks now, and recently I decided to take the plunge myself with the mods from my own compilation The Ultimate X-com Experience. At first, not much is changed, as this modification only makes changes to the AI, mostly concentrated on battle tactics. However, as soon as I got my first ground battle, the AI improvements showed themselves very quickly.

While I find X-com and the OpenXcom mods fun, the AI has always been on the more “predictable” side (to be nice), and this is regardless of the mods I have tried. Brutal AI changes all this, and apparently, it works with all modifications from the get-go, which is very impressive.

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Miasma Chronicles – Quick Impressions

I was going to do a proper review of Miasma Chronicles since the combat and the world seemed interesting enough. However, the further I got into the game, the more apparent it becomes that it suffers from some seriously baffling design decisions. This cut my game time rather short as I just can’t be bothered with this type of gameplay anymore. I will explain.

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Solasta: Crown of the Magister [DLC] Palace of Ice – Soraks Forever

The evil Soraks are back, and they are meaner and greener than ever! Palace of Ice is another story DLC for Solasta: Crown of the Magister. Unlike Lost Valley, this one is a direct continuation of the original campaign instead of being a standalone adventure. This means that you get the chance to import your old dungeon-crawling crew if you still got the save file laying around. I had to start up an old computer of mine to find the save as it was a long time since I played it. And thank the Lord I found it. The thought of going through the main campaign again just to experience Palace of Ice would have been very demoralizing. Not that the main adventure is all bad, but one take was enough for me. And yes, you are allowed to create a new party, but my weird gaming autism would have prevented me from doing so.

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Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous [DLC] Through the Ashes – Quick Load Edition

Through the Ashes is a stand-alone story DLC for Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous, which I have not yet written a review for since I haven’t actually finished it. Trust me, I have tried many times with different kinds of characters. Everything from paladins to druids, but I always seem to hit a wall during my journey through the demon-infested lands. One day I will, probably when all expansions have been released for the game – for the complete experience! Some of the content does integrate with the main campaign, so the preferable thing is to experience it all in one glorious take. However, that is for another time, back to the key event.

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XCOM: Chimera Squad – Prepare for Anarchy

Chimera Squad is both a spin-off series of Xcom, and a continuation of the Firaxis Xcom storyline, and overall, I think it’s a great addition to the series, both from a gameplay and story perspective. It’s not without problems, though. While the setting, background lore, and plot of the game are interesting, the characters you play leave much to desire. You see, it suffers from something most modern writing suffers from nowadays – quirky Marvel humor. Yet, it’s tolerable by presenting the story as something serious, it’s just that the tone gets constantly shattered by the quippy and sarcastic characters you are forced to drag along.

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