UFO: Aftermath

UFO: Aftermath
Developer(s)	ALTAR Interactive
Publisher(s)	Cenega \ Tri Synergy, Inc.
Platform(s)	Windows
Release date(s)	October 24,2003
Genre(s)	Real-time strategy, real-time tactics, turn-based strategy
Mode(s)	Single player
Distribution	CD-ROM

UFO: Aftermath is a 2003 real-time strategy game created by ALTAR Interactive. Originally, it was an abortive project (The Dreamland Chronicles: Freedom Ridge) by Mythos Games. In 2002, the project was bought by ALTAR and development restarted. It is a homage to the X-COM game series.

The game's concept is similar to the unreleased X-COM: Genesis. The player assumes the role of commander of the last humans left on Earth and guides the forces through the crisis to eventually overcome the alien threat. UFO: Aftermath combines global strategy with tactical missions, including an RPG-like approach to each soldier's attributes and skills.

ALTAR Interactive has released two sequels: UFO: Aftershock (2005) and UFO: Afterlight (2007).

Gameplay

With its roots deeply in the X-COM series, the game combines elements of strategy with squad-based tactics. The game, therefore, consists of two separate parts which are played simultaneously: a strategy phase in which the player controls and expands his organization, and a tactical phase in which player-controlled units battle alien enemies.

The strategic phase allows the player to outfit his/her troopers for action, acquire new equipment and personnel, and conduct research to enable the production of more advanced equipment. Mission markers pop up on the globe, indicating locations where a team can be dispatched to do battle. Winning or losing a battle may expand the player's territory, allowing more access to resources thereby enabling further expansion. This is much in line with the X-COM strategic mechanics.

A screenshot of the game (battle mode)

The tactical game can be described as real-time combat. All combatants on the tactical battle area move and act simultaneously, rather than using turns. A player can pause time or have the game set to automatically pause on certain events and issue orders to his/her troopers, which will only be carried out once time is resumed. Also, in deviation from the X-COM series, the battlefield is presented in fully rotatable 3D, and, as such, dispenses with the technical limitations of isometric view.

Plot

In May 2004, a giant spacecraft approaches Earth. It silently hovers ominously over the world, and begins to release great clouds of spores into the upper atmosphere. Rapidly multiplying, the spores soon darken the skies, and before long, obscure the sun completely. In later days, this period will be known as the "Twilight".

Having reached critical mass in the skies, the spores begin to rain down and over the course of several days, begin to clog the streets and bodies of water, smothering people in their homes and burying animals in the wild. During the "Nightfall", as it would come to be called, most of the higher life forms on the earth were wiped out.

During the Twilight, all human responses were futile. Choosing caution over aggression, the governments of the world don't realize how quickly the end could come, and were buried alongside those that they governed. A few, however, did survive, sealed in underground bases with stocks of food and oxygen. After several weeks, the spores seemed to have disintegrated, decomposing and settling into the soil. The world seemed safe again, for a time. This is where the player comes in: you must gather together the remaining peoples of the planet, find out what has happened, and, if possible, get your revenge.

The aliens the player encounters are known as the Reticulans, who are heavily based on Greys; in fact, Greys are also known as Reticulans.

Reception

UFO: Aftermath
Aggregate scores Aggregator Score GameRankings 71.29%[1] Metacritic 67/100[2] Review scores Publication Score GameSpot 6.4/10[3] GameSpy [4] IGN 7.5/10[5]

UFO: Aftermath received middling reviews. GameSpot gave it 6.4 out of 10 for some simplified and missing features, though seen in X-COM, would have allowed for more in-depth gameplay.^[3] IGN gave it 7.5 (Good), criticizing simplicity and lack of some features from the X-COM series.^[5] GameSpy noted "Cons: Bad AI and pathfinding; repetitive missions; shallow strategic gameplay; persistent inventory bugs," but praised some parts of the game.^[4]

Mods

UFO: Aftermath has modding support and some tools. Since the release of those tools, users have made skins, weapon models, and characters. The tools are also compatible with UFO: Aftershock. For UFO: Afterlight, they are still compatible, although, the game won't accept modded content or added content because of changes in its engine.

References

External links

• Official UFO:Aftermath homepage
• Cenega homepage
• UFO: Aftermath at MobyGames
• Wagf.org