Chris England [Goldhawk Interactive] (Xenonauts) – Interview

Merry Christmas to us all, because here is the legendary Chris England to answer a few questions for us about the development of the Xenonauts franchise. As probably most of you know, Chris England with his company Goldhawk Interactive created the great X-com inspired Xenonauts (read my review here). The sequel Xenonauts 2 is currently under full production in Early Access over at Steam & GOG, and it’s looking good too. It’s expected to be released sometime next year (read my latest impressions here).

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Last Train Home – Go East, to go West

The Christmas game is here, if you don’t mind the blood, the civilian casualties, and the general horrors of war. Beyond that, it has snow and that is good enough for me! Last Train Home is somewhat of an X-com title, in that you control a “base”, build it up, and equip your men in wait for harder tasks—with the mix of Men of War inspired real-time combat when it comes to the fighting. Does it work, and is it fun? Well, let’s get into that, but first a bit about the story.

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Gates of Hell – Is it hell?

I have been playing Gates of Hel l : Ostfront again, thinking that I might not have given it a fair shake, but damn – the single-player campaign missions can easiest be described as a bonafide medic simulator. The majority of the gameplay consists of me babysitting my men and making sure they are actually fighting instead of dreaming of a happier place in heaven while red stuff is leaking out of them. Especially so since I use the mod Simple Damage Increase. To be fair, blaming the game for problems when using mods isn’t exactly nice, but to my defense Gates of Hell: Ostfront really needs it! The damage is so low, it’s like the men are shooting with pellet guns otherwise. That mod reminds me of my own that I made for Men of War: Assault Squad 2 called Equality of Men. It addresses the same type of issues I had with that game.

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Starship Troopers: Terran Command [DLC] Raising Hell – The Gehenna Rumble

The bugs are back with a vengeance and this time they are harassing humanity on the volcanic planet of Gehenna. Raising Hell is more of the same, however with the killing now taking place in an extremely hostile environment – for both man and bug. There is more than just the mobile infantry fighting the crawly critters this time around, as private money-seeking mercenaries join in on the fun. With money being their primary concern, these units come with a different flavor. They are as good at destroying bugs as their brothers in the Marines, making the case that the promise of coin can be a potent motivator indeed.

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Xenonauts 2 [Early Access] – Round Three

We are back at it boys! It’s time for round three of the Xenonauts 2 Early Access Beta. The game is now feature complete according to the developers. We have also entered milestone 2, which has extended Xenonauts 2 in several ways. I’m a bit unsure about the 180-day limit since I haven’t reached that far yet in my current playthrough. Hopefully, that block is now also gone.

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