Tag: X-Mercs: Invasion »

X-Mercs: Invasion is a game about saving the world from evil aliens. And from evil mercenaries. You shoot lots of evil stuff in the face, really. You’ll slowly start to unlock new things to do as you progress, but your activities are mostly divided between four tasks: sending squads on missions, researching new technologies, manufacturing items and equipment, and building up your base of operations. If you’re looking around and thinking this sounds like a free-to-play XCOM, well, you’re not wrong. That’s totally what it is. Don’t write it off yet, however.

What really struck me is how much thought was put into these tasks and wait timers - yes, there are wait timers. Manufacturing items takes varying amounts of time, resources, and money, depending on what you’re putting together. Research follows a similar pattern, although you can only ever research something once so the initial cost is a bit higher. Of course building new structures and clearing out space also takes a certain amount of real time to finish, and should be familiar to anyone who’s played a free town builder before. Lastly there are the soldiers, who will take time to heal up if they’re wounded in combat.

I found that I really didn’t mind the waiting in this case. It’s not all that far removed from having to wait for wounded soldiers to heal or for new tech to be researched in XCOM, and in an weird way it actually works really well on a thematic level. I mean, if my shotgunner was inches from death when I extracted the team, it kind of makes sense that he’d need some time to get back into fighting shape. Severity is a factor, but in my experience heal times can take anywhere from a minute to 20. Fortunately you can also have soldiers waiting in the barracks, then put them on the team to fill any gaps and get back to fighting.

The tactical combat is also reminiscent of that other game I keep referencing, however there are only three main soldier classes and you won’t have to deal with figuring out what the rookies will eventually specialize in (although there’s technically a fourth class since any soldiers that have been KIA can be brought back as a cyborg, complete with a unique skill tree). Another key difference is that the items (just items, not equipment) you manufacture are consumable, so any one of your soldiers can chuck a grenade or two during a mission but you’ll need to remember to make more. Or you could just stockpile them like I tend to do, sine they’re really cheap to make. What’s also really interesting is that the items you need to speed up production (nanites) can be purchased using in-game currency. I’m curious to see how people will respond to such an approach.

I do have a few concerns about repetitive missions, PvP elements (I haven’t been able to try it out yet), tiny text, having trouble telling what can be tapped on in the menu and what’s just set dressing (it took me days to figure out what to tap on to access the Shop), and the ridiculous outfits and physical dimensions of the female characters, but I am currently messing around with a beta build. So who knows how much any of that may change for the final release?

Game Insight has released the official X-Mercs: Invasion website. The site will be releasing information about the upcoming game as it becomes available, and gives you a chance to learn about the storyline, units, and tactics.

A well informed Merc will have a leg up on the competition. X-Mercs: Invasion will be a turn-based strategy game that puts you at the head of your own military corporation fighting an invading alien force - much like XCOM.

X-Mercs: Invasion will be available for iPad and iPhone devices later this year.

GameInsight's X-Mercs: Invasion and The Running Shadow are both coming along rather nicely. They're still a ways off, but it was nice to get some hands-on time with the two titles yesterday and I came away mostly impressed.

X-Mercs: Invasion

It's difficult not to draw comparisons between X-Mercs and a certain other strategy game that involves aliens, and after messing around with the game a bit it's actually more difficult to avoid it. The game wears its inspiration on its sleeve, there's no doubt about that. However it does show promise.

Players act as a neutral party in the middle of a war between opposing factions. They'll be taking on missions for both sides, as well as unlocking more missions and more regions to fight in as they level-up their profile. Multiple soldier classes are available (Sniper, Scout, and Heavy Trooper), tech trees can be researches, all sorts of weapons and armors can be manufactured, and alongside the 200+ missions it will also be possible (and encouraged) to raid other player's bases.

Of course a few things are different, aside from the color palette. The initial squad of three can be upgraded to four or five, for a price. Wounded soldiers heal in real-time, with cooldown timers and everything. However the most interesting twist is how it's possible to turn deceased soldiers into cyborgs - complete with a special skill tree and everything. If nothing else, it might lessen the pain of loss.

We'll be sure to have a full review of X-Mercs: Invasion once it's available later this summer.

The Running Shadow

The Running Shadow is a very different beast. Rather than being a strategy game, it's actually a runner (not endless) with some RPG elements and character customization.

What truly struck me about it was the use of special parkour tricks and stealth kills (yes, stealth kills in a runner). Occasionally the main character will encounter special "pads" on the ground that will trigger a timed swiping QTE, which will see him nimbly leap over obstacles and run along walls if performed correctly. And if he manages to get close enough to an enemy that doesn't see him coming, a similar mini-game will trigger. If nothing else, it's nice to see a runner doing something a little different.

We'll also have a full review of The Running Shadow when it releases this summer.

Game Insight has revealed the alien enemies players will encounter in their upcoming free-to-play turn-based strategy game X-Mercs: Invasion. In defeating these enemies, players will both continue to defend their homeworld from these invaders and gather further resources to continue development of their underground military base.

X-Mercs: Invasion is set to invade the App Store sometime soon.

Game Insight has released the first gameplay clip of X-Mercs: Invasion.

The game itself is about managing a military group, and - according to the release from Game Insight - players will be able to build a team of professional fighters, study alien tech, and use their research to turn the invaders’ formidable weapons against them.

The developer promises more updates as X-Mercs: Invasion is readied for iPads.

Games Insight, the development studio behind a plethora of iOS free-to-play games such as Tank Domination and Dragon Eternity, has announced X-Mercs: Invasion; its upcoming turn-based strategy game. The story sounds familiar (fighting aliens and saving the human race), but this iPad-only free-to-play game might just the refreshing change we need to see in the realm of turn-based shooters if the game lives up to the quality and fun-factor of its siblings.

The details are scant at this point; it's not yet clear when the game will be released nor what kinds of in-app purchases you will inevitably need to buy to get the full experience. But, as is the case with all Games Insight games, the game will at least be free to download. Be on the lookout for X-Mercs: Invasion later this year.