My biggest complaint about Phoenix Point is Mission Fatigue. There are so, so, so, so so sososososososososo many missions. I eventually get tired of it and drop the run mid way through, then look longingly at the game wishing I could finish it. Boot it up again, only to put it back down after another 20-30 hours in a single campaign
Yeah it evolves far too slowly to be satisfying and by the time stuff changes you have already seen all the cracks in the design and gotten sick of it.
I feel like it's a real ruff one to pick up and put down like that. When you have 5 or more different squads but 2 of them need to work together because they aren't leveled enough ...
One of mine - tech tree is too boring and gives you too small excitement on completion + kinda limited in changing the tactical combat. So the game overall is tiresome.
Same feeling for me. Skill tree is boring. The only thing worthy to chase is ancient tech and even this one is OP versions of available weapons. Missions are somewhat boring, after lots of hours i was enjoying only early city scilla, which is really challenging. And some recovery missions
Excellent quality. Everything was explained in a fun and easy way. I love this game i have recently found and you helped me understand a lot about whats going on. Thank you.
I was extremly frustrated with the game at first. Then I found the incredible Wiki and strategy guide. After that the game just clicked and became awesome. ❤️
I had a different first impression. I was blasting through the game without the ai putting up much of a fight. After I destroyed a hive base without any problems whatsoever, I was very confused why the game was so easy. And i'm someone who never beat xcom 2, veteran ironman, still playing every now and then to this day. Discovering my stuff was side grades, not upgrades, left me questioning what the point of buying anything or building facilities at all if i can blast through with mostly starter gear. To learn that this may have been a dlc overtuning player power, but also a massive mod that overhauls the experience, is a wonderful thing to hear. Lookin to give the game a second shot thanks to this vid 😊
Great Video. I've found that Phoenix Point, to me, is a lot of good ideas but that sometimes either don't quite gel, or sometimes actively oppose one another. "We want you to experiment with all those tools, but we'll also punish you if those experimentations don't pan out" "We want you to use these vast complex tools but their exact mechanics are often unexplained or counter-intuitive" "We want to avoid a vertical gear system where items just become strictly better versions of old items but at the same time enemies do improve and become spongier as the game goes on" Still I do find the game had something interesting going that maybe just needed a bit more time in the oven.
There are even starting options for TFTV campaigns so you can start with a squad that is more Anu focused. Really gives each run a little bit of extra spice!
Fantastic level of detail my man As someone who only just started playing recently there is a lot to take in, but as an XCOM veteran this is the game I always wished XCOM could be more like: More layers, more details, more combinations
It's such a weird recommendation to make I know. A huge part of PP is getting over the Xcom/OldCom mindset, it requires a pretty high amount of adaptation to how you think about an engagement as it isn't pod by pod any more, once bullets start flying that's kind of it, you're fighting now. It does make for some really dirty victories though, crushing lows and flying highs kinda thing.
This is THE single best piece of content for this game. Well structured, good and honest advice, very limited spoilers and most importantly it gets you excited to play the game. This video encapsulates very well why this game has surpassed XCOM for me.
This was so satisfying to listen through. I love Phoenix Point, although I definitely had that familiar initial frustration on the first two or three playthroughs. Once you get the knack though? Amazingly involving and immersive game. My one consistent gripe which I can't quite shake: I absolutely loathe the final mission to kill the Yuggothian Entity. It's such a beardy, finnicky, snotty, and aggravating process. Mark of the Void seems broken, the fact that the Entity seems to utterly break stealth and line of sight rules... urgh. And with the TFtV updates this has only gotten more frustrating. I really fucking hate it.
Should one skip DLC's in unmodded campaign? Half of them seem to just add extra trouble... Shame that game didn't explain clearly that player can equip armor from different classes. Especially heavies are useless with their minimum movement + low range weapons. Switching to berserker pants does wonders
I always rec starting your first game without any of the DLC turned on, get a feel for the movement, combat, enemy design, turn structure etc. You want the fundamentals clear and understood before turning on the DLC, they all add more challenging enemies, which can be fun when you know what to do to counter them, but amazingly frustrating as a new player. Even with my feelings towards Kaos Engines, I'd still say give all of the DLC a try because they all add at least something interesting, even if I don't use them on every campaign. Corrupted Horizons is top tier however, best additions to the game.
I think you’d get way more views if you made a phoenix point channel and broke this video into sections. I wasn’t going to even click on this video because of the length I just assumed it would be a watch me play. But all together very well done. Phoenix point should put you on the soldier memorial wall
@ProfessorLooney95 Much appreciated dude. This was a passion project waaay back when, I never expected it to get more than a couple of hundred views tbh. It was just a game I thought deserved a little more love. The video itself is unfortunately massively outdated in some areas, so I'd need to redo most of the sections before re-uploading them as individual parts. TftV has made some *huge* changes since I recorded this and deserves even more of a recommendation. Fixing a lot of the problems I've mentioned with Vehicles, Kaos Weapons, The Marketplace and Ancient Weapons.
Thank you for this vid. It's been 2y since i played, turns out i quit just before the tftv mod. Playd vanila wuth only the ancients and caos mods, as the rest were crap. Game was 100% broken, to the level i finished the last mission in minutes (mostly mind controlled everyone and terminator builds). Now doing a veteren lvl game to get used to the new machanics and having a blast. Got some cool ideas from ur vids, just shows how diff tactics are used in this game.
Great guide and thanks man! I was interested in mutoid already but you sold me on it for sure. I couldn't pick up complete edition so I'm gonna pick up that DLC. In a noobie at this game but it has been fun. I have some experience with turn based games and coming from xcom I love the non rng for a change.
Well shit. Im a hardcore xcom fan, dumped a lot of hours into thise games, and as much as i tried i couldn't get into pp. Looks like i was playing it wrong, time to reinstall and try again
Honestly, I just want more of the setting. I'd love to see an FPS out of this, especially if you can manage to give it that ethereal threathing feeling that the Zone can give off in STALKER, or how night time bounties in Hunt Showdown are just a different beast from daytime. I want to walk through an area so thick in ocean fog and wonder if that fliker I saw at the edge of sight was just a shadow, the early onset of delirium or a Triton sneaking up behind me.
Phoenix Point is something that lodges in my side like a mutated lobster claw. I wanted it to completely rock, but I was very disappointed on release. I had it on Epic Games Store and had it super early. Being that early adopter was a huge mistake. The game did improve dramatically as the game was further fleshed out (with DLC I had in the season pass, and huge numbers of patches), but there was still something missing. There are certain elements of the game I adore, but there are elements I hate with a passion in equal measure. It is a marmite game deep in its core, and that's not a good thing. I like the innovations but they fell short of the promise. If I were to pick Phoenix Point or X-Com 2 with WOTC, it would be the latter every time. The latter is superior in just about every way. That said, some of the mechanics in Phoenix point would have been epic in X-Com 2. I much prefer having transport ships, finite ammunition and bases. I really enjoy the tech build up, scavenging and theft in Phoenix Point. But its not enough. There are certain armour sets and art choices that make me gag with Phoenix point. Even where the story starts feels like a missed opportunity. I had a much better campaign, but that was more than two years ago now. I can't see myself going back to it, which is very unfortunate but oddly, I have finished X-Com 2 several times and can't see myself going back there either. The factions are cool. My favourite are the Disciples of Anu but Synedrion and New Jericho are memorable with Synedrion being my most likely real world solution, if I were to choose (oh, with New Jericho weapons). In addition, the development team for Phoenix Point really rubbed people the wrong way. They started out on a Kickstarter (Fig Crowdfound), took Epic blood money with a year exclusive (breaking their promise to the funders that this game would be released simultaneously on many platforms), then arrived on Steam after their 1 year exclusive. They did about everything they could do wrong in this regard. The creator comes from the original XCOM from the 90s, Julian Gollop.
Great vid. I own on PS5 and love it (Xcom is great but as you said it's about managing pods and getting that RNG in your favour). Going to try a legendary all DLC playthrough after watching your video
@nimrodlin streamed on twitch a long time ago now, so unfortunately all the vods are long gone. Highly recommend Etermes for insanely high level gameplay, or Pagan Horde if you want someone who is learning as they go. Both show the game off in different, but great ways.
Phoenix Point doesn't have enemy evolution. They say it does on their website but that's just a made up thing that doesn't exist. What the game in fact has is new variants of the same enemy but with better gear, appearing based on a hidden timer that depends on difficulty setting.
@Self-replicating_whatnot The mechanic is *literally* called evolution though. So it's hard to talk about it without using the word. Yes, they have preset species that they will develop at certain intervals, which I show in the video. In terms of the narrative to go along with the gameplay it is presented as the creatures evolving. I never claim in this video they adapt to your playstyle or evolve to counter the player directly, that's what the Revenants are there to do in TftV.
@@MysteriousFawx Please go to game's website and read "A Mutating World" blurb. Does it sound anything like what they actually have in game? Liars. That said, i love the game and payed it through multiple times, both with and without TFTW.
@Self-replicating_whatnot You're referencing the blurb on the promotional website that still features pre-beta Geoscape footage, right? The one that also says skills are developed via research and interaction with other factions? Just saying... it *might* be a bit outdated and going off what was originally planned when the game was being kickstarted. Weird thing to get upset over.
At around the three hour, forty eight minute mark and I just wanted to tell you I was not three minutes before looking for phoenix point in my epic library and making a kind of incredulous frown while I hovered over it, so you called that very well.
@gman6899 Haven't streamed it in a long time I'm afraid dude and Twitch vod's only last 3 months. Lollash is streaming the game currently and seems to be doing a solid job.
Nah to be honest i started this on the hardest difficulty past a month and a half before quitting it for awhile got into it again after i got bored of the other rts games on xbox so its fun but really hard and makes me think which i like
Is there any mods that speed things up when it comes to research & leveling?? Like maybe also research armors with just one armor piece, instead of all, etc.
There are a few mods on the Steam workshop that let you tweak values/straight up cheat to speed up research or unlock things more easily. The majority of them will not work if you're using TftV though. Honestly speaking, the game doesn't have the legs to rush through research. The tree looks big, but once you've got a few centres down you'll fly through all of it. Invest early in making a couple of bases that are solid all rounders, 2 or 3 labs + factories in both. Once you get past that 1 early hump everything else is a breeze. A lot of people make the mistake of spending a bunch of materials on extra weapons and hiring far more soldiers than they can use early on, your early economy should be feeding your bases almost exclusively.
i played it before i bought it.. i bought it after because i enjoyed it :) so i am one with only 3h playtime on steam .. it's fantastic game and i'm baffled with that it's not more popular i don't have experience with all dlc .. great info on that in video (planning to play it again with all enabled)
My biggest complaint about Phoenix Point is Mission Fatigue. There are so, so, so, so so sososososososososo many missions. I eventually get tired of it and drop the run mid way through, then look longingly at the game wishing I could finish it. Boot it up again, only to put it back down after another 20-30 hours in a single campaign
Yeah it evolves far too slowly to be satisfying and by the time stuff changes you have already seen all the cracks in the design and gotten sick of it.
I feel like it's a real ruff one to pick up and put down like that. When you have 5 or more different squads but 2 of them need to work together because they aren't leveled enough ...
One of mine - tech tree is too boring and gives you too small excitement on completion + kinda limited in changing the tactical combat.
So the game overall is tiresome.
Same feeling for me. Skill tree is boring. The only thing worthy to chase is ancient tech and even this one is OP versions of available weapons.
Missions are somewhat boring, after lots of hours i was enjoying only early city scilla, which is really challenging. And some recovery missions
Excellent quality. Everything was explained in a fun and easy way. I love this game i have recently found and you helped me understand a lot about whats going on. Thank you.
TFTV 1.0 is officially out, for what it's worth. An absolute must
I was extremly frustrated with the game at first. Then I found the incredible Wiki and strategy guide. After that the game just clicked and became awesome. ❤️
Your format of narrating is really good.
Thank you! I was trying a few different things when writing the script and trying to find my flow for voice over.
I had a different first impression. I was blasting through the game without the ai putting up much of a fight. After I destroyed a hive base without any problems whatsoever, I was very confused why the game was so easy. And i'm someone who never beat xcom 2, veteran ironman, still playing every now and then to this day.
Discovering my stuff was side grades, not upgrades, left me questioning what the point of buying anything or building facilities at all if i can blast through with mostly starter gear.
To learn that this may have been a dlc overtuning player power, but also a massive mod that overhauls the experience, is a wonderful thing to hear. Lookin to give the game a second shot thanks to this vid 😊
Great Video.
I've found that Phoenix Point, to me, is a lot of good ideas but that sometimes either don't quite gel, or sometimes actively oppose one another.
"We want you to experiment with all those tools, but we'll also punish you if those experimentations don't pan out"
"We want you to use these vast complex tools but their exact mechanics are often unexplained or counter-intuitive"
"We want to avoid a vertical gear system where items just become strictly better versions of old items but at the same time enemies do improve and become spongier as the game goes on"
Still I do find the game had something interesting going that maybe just needed a bit more time in the oven.
Thank you for bringing the mod to my attention, willing to give it a second go now
A very thorough retrospective. I might actually pick this game up!
Amazing! Time to try terror from the void. And recreate my most fun run Anu + mutoid only
There are even starting options for TFTV campaigns so you can start with a squad that is more Anu focused. Really gives each run a little bit of extra spice!
Fantastic level of detail my man
As someone who only just started playing recently there is a lot to take in, but as an XCOM veteran this is the game I always wished XCOM could be more like:
More layers, more details, more combinations
Thank you for this video.
Phoenix Point is such a great game!
Just fed up with Phoenix Point after 40h of gaming. Installed XCOM2 (again), but after Your intro here i think, i'll give Phoenix Point third chance.
It's such a weird recommendation to make I know. A huge part of PP is getting over the Xcom/OldCom mindset, it requires a pretty high amount of adaptation to how you think about an engagement as it isn't pod by pod any more, once bullets start flying that's kind of it, you're fighting now.
It does make for some really dirty victories though, crushing lows and flying highs kinda thing.
Havent played in 3yrs now you're gonna make me rise from the ashes!!!!
the first vid that convinced me to try Phonix point ;) good job!
Damn did I really just watch almost 4 hour video about a game I've booted up maybe twice? I guess I HAVE to play it with the mod now
This is THE single best piece of content for this game. Well structured, good and honest advice, very limited spoilers and most importantly it gets you excited to play the game. This video encapsulates very well why this game has surpassed XCOM for me.
Holy shit, the effort this man put in. Thanks for the video LOTS of information I didn’t know and very digestible
This was so satisfying to listen through. I love Phoenix Point, although I definitely had that familiar initial frustration on the first two or three playthroughs. Once you get the knack though? Amazingly involving and immersive game.
My one consistent gripe which I can't quite shake: I absolutely loathe the final mission to kill the Yuggothian Entity. It's such a beardy, finnicky, snotty, and aggravating process. Mark of the Void seems broken, the fact that the Entity seems to utterly break stealth and line of sight rules... urgh. And with the TFtV updates this has only gotten more frustrating. I really fucking hate it.
I know its old video. But you made me buy phoenix point and try it. Thanks my friend.
Got me to reinstall PP and try TftV so that’s something. Good video.
Should one skip DLC's in unmodded campaign? Half of them seem to just add extra trouble...
Shame that game didn't explain clearly that player can equip armor from different classes. Especially heavies are useless with their minimum movement + low range weapons. Switching to berserker pants does wonders
I always rec starting your first game without any of the DLC turned on, get a feel for the movement, combat, enemy design, turn structure etc. You want the fundamentals clear and understood before turning on the DLC, they all add more challenging enemies, which can be fun when you know what to do to counter them, but amazingly frustrating as a new player.
Even with my feelings towards Kaos Engines, I'd still say give all of the DLC a try because they all add at least something interesting, even if I don't use them on every campaign. Corrupted Horizons is top tier however, best additions to the game.
Fuck yeah this is amazing thank you so much for this, keep up the wonderful work man. :)
I think you’d get way more views if you made a phoenix point channel and broke this video into sections.
I wasn’t going to even click on this video because of the length I just assumed it would be a watch me play. But all together very well done. Phoenix point should put you on the soldier memorial wall
@ProfessorLooney95 Much appreciated dude. This was a passion project waaay back when, I never expected it to get more than a couple of hundred views tbh. It was just a game I thought deserved a little more love.
The video itself is unfortunately massively outdated in some areas, so I'd need to redo most of the sections before re-uploading them as individual parts. TftV has made some *huge* changes since I recorded this and deserves even more of a recommendation. Fixing a lot of the problems I've mentioned with Vehicles, Kaos Weapons, The Marketplace and Ancient Weapons.
1,000 hours into just under 4 hours is pretty good compression
Thank you for this vid. It's been 2y since i played, turns out i quit just before the tftv mod. Playd vanila wuth only the ancients and caos mods, as the rest were crap. Game was 100% broken, to the level i finished the last mission in minutes (mostly mind controlled everyone and terminator builds). Now doing a veteren lvl game to get used to the new machanics and having a blast. Got some cool ideas from ur vids, just shows how diff tactics are used in this game.
Great guide and thanks man! I was interested in mutoid already but you sold me on it for sure. I couldn't pick up complete edition so I'm gonna pick up that DLC. In a noobie at this game but it has been fun. I have some experience with turn based games and coming from xcom I love the non rng for a change.
Well shit. Im a hardcore xcom fan, dumped a lot of hours into thise games, and as much as i tried i couldn't get into pp. Looks like i was playing it wrong, time to reinstall and try again
Honestly, I just want more of the setting.
I'd love to see an FPS out of this, especially if you can manage to give it that ethereal threathing feeling that the Zone can give off in STALKER, or how night time bounties in Hunt Showdown are just a different beast from daytime.
I want to walk through an area so thick in ocean fog and wonder if that fliker I saw at the edge of sight was just a shadow, the early onset of delirium or a Triton sneaking up behind me.
Phoenix Point is something that lodges in my side like a mutated lobster claw. I wanted it to completely rock, but I was very disappointed on release. I had it on Epic Games Store and had it super early. Being that early adopter was a huge mistake. The game did improve dramatically as the game was further fleshed out (with DLC I had in the season pass, and huge numbers of patches), but there was still something missing. There are certain elements of the game I adore, but there are elements I hate with a passion in equal measure. It is a marmite game deep in its core, and that's not a good thing. I like the innovations but they fell short of the promise. If I were to pick Phoenix Point or X-Com 2 with WOTC, it would be the latter every time. The latter is superior in just about every way. That said, some of the mechanics in Phoenix point would have been epic in X-Com 2. I much prefer having transport ships, finite ammunition and bases. I really enjoy the tech build up, scavenging and theft in Phoenix Point. But its not enough. There are certain armour sets and art choices that make me gag with Phoenix point. Even where the story starts feels like a missed opportunity. I had a much better campaign, but that was more than two years ago now. I can't see myself going back to it, which is very unfortunate but oddly, I have finished X-Com 2 several times and can't see myself going back there either.
The factions are cool. My favourite are the Disciples of Anu but Synedrion and New Jericho are memorable with Synedrion being my most likely real world solution, if I were to choose (oh, with New Jericho weapons).
In addition, the development team for Phoenix Point really rubbed people the wrong way. They started out on a Kickstarter (Fig Crowdfound), took Epic blood money with a year exclusive (breaking their promise to the funders that this game would be released simultaneously on many platforms), then arrived on Steam after their 1 year exclusive. They did about everything they could do wrong in this regard. The creator comes from the original XCOM from the 90s, Julian Gollop.
Great vid. I own on PS5 and love it (Xcom is great but as you said it's about managing pods and getting that RNG in your favour). Going to try a legendary all DLC playthrough after watching your video
I love how comprehensive this is! You mentioned that you streamed the game. Is there a way to watch these streams?
@nimrodlin streamed on twitch a long time ago now, so unfortunately all the vods are long gone. Highly recommend Etermes for insanely high level gameplay, or Pagan Horde if you want someone who is learning as they go. Both show the game off in different, but great ways.
Amazing Video.Very useful
I've played over 1k hrs too, but I never beat it, I always start over
Phoenix Point doesn't have enemy evolution. They say it does on their website but that's just a made up thing that doesn't exist.
What the game in fact has is new variants of the same enemy but with better gear, appearing based on a hidden timer that depends on difficulty setting.
@Self-replicating_whatnot The mechanic is *literally* called evolution though. So it's hard to talk about it without using the word. Yes, they have preset species that they will develop at certain intervals, which I show in the video. In terms of the narrative to go along with the gameplay it is presented as the creatures evolving.
I never claim in this video they adapt to your playstyle or evolve to counter the player directly, that's what the Revenants are there to do in TftV.
@@MysteriousFawx Please go to game's website and read "A Mutating World" blurb. Does it sound anything like what they actually have in game? Liars.
That said, i love the game and payed it through multiple times, both with and without TFTW.
@Self-replicating_whatnot You're referencing the blurb on the promotional website that still features pre-beta Geoscape footage, right? The one that also says skills are developed via research and interaction with other factions? Just saying... it *might* be a bit outdated and going off what was originally planned when the game was being kickstarted.
Weird thing to get upset over.
Well you just inspired me to reinstall the game. Thanks and well done!
At around the three hour, forty eight minute mark and I just wanted to tell you I was not three minutes before looking for phoenix point in my epic library and making a kind of incredulous frown while I hovered over it, so you called that very well.
Hey man...where can i find your streams on pheonix point ?
@gman6899 Haven't streamed it in a long time I'm afraid dude and Twitch vod's only last 3 months. Lollash is streaming the game currently and seems to be doing a solid job.
Nah to be honest i started this on the hardest difficulty past a month and a half before quitting it for awhile got into it again after i got bored of the other rts games on xbox so its fun but really hard and makes me think which i like
Started on normal and having a blast coming from rng gambling xcom hah
Is there any mods that speed things up when it comes to research & leveling?? Like maybe also research armors with just one armor piece, instead of all, etc.
There are a few mods on the Steam workshop that let you tweak values/straight up cheat to speed up research or unlock things more easily. The majority of them will not work if you're using TftV though.
Honestly speaking, the game doesn't have the legs to rush through research. The tree looks big, but once you've got a few centres down you'll fly through all of it. Invest early in making a couple of bases that are solid all rounders, 2 or 3 labs + factories in both. Once you get past that 1 early hump everything else is a breeze.
A lot of people make the mistake of spending a bunch of materials on extra weapons and hiring far more soldiers than they can use early on, your early economy should be feeding your bases almost exclusively.
@@MysteriousFawx thank you, I'll keep that in mind.
Video games are meant to be enjoyed not endured ! I have this game but will never play it - sad - give me XCOM any day
@AgrippaMarcus endured for about 30 or so, enjoyed for 1000 more. Just about changing how you approach the game and breaking the Xcom turn logic.
Great video except for the difficult to read font choice.
I watched the whole video with full attention. In multiple viewings, and at 1.5 speed. Great job.
BTW missing stealth feature here... did You mention this
Stealth is in there, I think it's covered with the infiltrator class.
i played it before i bought it.. i bought it after because i enjoyed it :) so i am one with only 3h playtime on steam .. it's fantastic game and i'm baffled with that it's not more popular
i don't have experience with all dlc .. great info on that in video (planning to play it again with all enabled)
video is great, but damn the font you used is awful!
Style over substance as it was my first real project. I've learned since then!
Are you reading some book?
:D