Perraine Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 Everyone probably already knows, but for those that don't have automatic update for XCOM turned on, or run steam always in offline mod, Firaxis/2K released their first major patch today.So far it looks pretty good. XCOM 2 Patch Now LiveThe first major patch for XCOM 2 is live! This patch will automatically install when starting the Steam client. If it doesn’t install automatically, restart Steam.This patch introduces new fixes, balance tweaks, and several performance optimizations in the game that should improve framerates and in-game delays overall. Players can also opt into the new “Zip Mode” option by pausing the game at any time and activating it under gameplay options. Zip Mode will create a faster paced experience that speeds up animations and some delays in gameplay.After installing the patch, we recommend all players to go into the graphics tab under options and select “Auto Detect Graphic Settings.” Installing the patch will not rewrite your graphic settings. Players must do this manually.The XCOM team has been working hard to improve performance, balance, and stability issues reported by our fans. A big thank you to anyone who took the time to provide feedback and submit reports. We will continue to improve the XCOM 2 experience with additional updates and patches over the coming months.*Required User Action: If you have mods enabled after installing the patch, launch it once, close the game, and launch it again. Players will only have to do this once. After the restart, the game will have initialized the patch to work with mods. While the majority of mods will operate in harmony with the patch, some mods may conflict with patch updates and will need to be updated to take advantage of the patch improvements.Performance Added Zip Mode gameplay option. While Zip Mode is enabled animation (like step outs & gremlin movements) speeds are significantly increased. Normal movement animations are moderately increasedFixed an issue where shadow rendering during glam cam shot transitions was slowing down performanceSupport for nVidia SLI and AMD CrossfireRemoved MSAA options from default presets and adjusted autodetect to target 40FPS instead of 30FPSReworked Light Clipping ManagerParticle Vertex Buffer ReallocationOptimization to shadows in the AvengerEnable triple buffering to fix VSync performanceShadowed light fade out within Avenger; Disabled Post & Pre Mission cinematic lights not being usedDisabled shadow casting from character lights w/in AvengerReduced High Shadow Resolution - Reduce shadow resolution when set to HIGH to 1536, instead of 2048Reduces the impact count of the Avatar RifleRemoved a hitch that occurs when the camera enables/disables building visualizerDeferred profile saves to next tick. This prevents multiple calls within the same frame from creating multiple requests to save the profileAfter changing graphics settings, based on the selected preset, extra crew will be cappedCharacter head mesh optimizedBalanceMimic beacon rebalance: Price increased to 75Mimic beacons can no longer take cover, and are guaranteed to be hit by enemy shotsWet Work is no longer retroactiveGraze is no longer a chance for 100% shots. Targets being shot by a concealed attacker cannot dodgeGameplayAdded a new recommended Steam Controller configuration with support for additional actionsFixed an issue where VIP units would take damage when their origin location was damagedFixed an issue where Promotion Earned text appeared before action is seen on screenFixed an issue where civilians pathed to the base of ladders and blocked XCOM unitsFixed an issue where Character Pool choices like Class, Attitude, and props did not saveFixed an issue where weapons did not keep names and customizations upon tier bumpFixed an issue causing some scan timers to go into negative timeEngineering items that are full squad upgrades are now designated in the UIFixed an issue where strategy project timers reset if players started building a radio relay immediately after making contact with a regionFixed an issue with POIs not spawning when first visiting the Geoscape if Beginner VO is turned offRemoved start-of-turn hang during certain missions where enemy units had fallen out of the world. Auto-saves (and ironman saves) made in these situations should now be playableMinimized action camera obstructionsMinimized camera look-at hopping during AI abilitiesFixed an issue where Psi abilities did not trigger death camsKill Zone now respects concealment statusFixed an issue where the Ever Vigilant AWC perk did not work for SharpshootersBuildings don't cut down when tabbing through unitsFixed an exploit that skips the AI turn by spamming the END/BACKSPACE button while the Player's last action is being visualizedRapid Fire and Chain Shot visualization optimized to get the second shot to fire fasterFixed an issue where shot HUD wings would fail to re-open after taking an action that required the wings to closeFixed an issue where crit chance would be negatively affected by shots with a success chance greater than 100Optimized Return Fire hits causing long delaysOptimized AI reveals causing long hangsOptimized Wait actions causing long timeoutsOptimized falling unit visualization to timeout fasterUpdated the Geoscape save description to use the localized HQ time, instead of previously used GMT game timeFixed an issue with an invalid spawn point on a specific Retaliation mission plotDestroyed cover does not take reduce % to-hit on enemiesSystemsNew option to only use Character Pool creations until the pool is exhaustedBulletproofing bad saves from causing main menu crashesFixed an issue causing hitches in strategyFixed an issue where armor customizations did not saveGraphicsUnit Highlighting Flash when targeting unitsMultiplayerMULTIPLAYER: Fixes slow communications with internet players resulting in delays between actions, turns, and end-of-game screen.Added camera rotation to MP... Even running it on my crappy old GTX570 I get 40+FPS @ 1920 x 1200 in most areas, and can even ue "High" quality Textures, 'Medium" draw distance and 'Some Decals". *** Just remember to follow the instructions in "Required User Action part"! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Antioche Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 Literally SO unimpressed with Xcom2 I could spit nails. Then entire game, minus the graphic splendor, seems hammered out in an attempt to make good on the popularity of Long War...& yet completely misses the mark when it comes to being anything like it. In my opinion, Xcom2 is just as unplayable (waste of time) in its current state, as Xcom was (is) vanilla. The slow dumbing down of your forces through the entire game series has had me pitching a *censored* since we were reduced to a single base; now to have the entire game based on a timer system? (Oh here you go, mission start...you have 8 turns to complete your objective...not eight before we start dropping in more foes.. eight turns period, every map...just..treat them all like the train transponder mission in Xcom!" "hey how about you sit on this & spin instead..." The entirety of these games is like the consistent fight vs. devs & their insistence on reinventing the wheel. Not unlike the consistent change in gameplay type Mass effect has (failed) to impress us with as they years go by. Sometimes ALL we want is a new story, & new graphics, & MORE options... Fewer options? ...never goes over well with gamers, nor for my part does "forced anxiety" when it comes to gameplay. THAT was the entire draw in the beginning months of LW development, it took a game & steeeeeetched it out by making you not ALWAYS with your back against the wall... Where are my second wave options? Commanders' choice? Aiming angles? "Oh well, mod those in, the game is moddable.." That's a Bethesda answer...one casually tossed at a modding community, who they know has more skill in their pinky fingers than your entire team has under their collective hats. WTF happened to a re-release of TFTD? How many people would have LOVED an xcom that came out in the shadows of the original, which took us to the underwater fight INSTEAD of 20 years into the future, instead of a 'you've lost, & you have a stopwatch shoved up your ass to boot.' The game is a failure in my book. At this point, a waste of time & resources in a life I can already see more time behind than ahead in....& I won't waste the one thing I value on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon32 Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 I really like it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucubration Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 (edited) Literally SO unimpressed with Xcom2 I could spit nails. Then entire game, minus the graphic splendor, seems hammered out in an attempt to make good on the popularity of Long War...& yet completely misses the mark when it comes to being anything like it. TBH, this is basically how I feel about the Xcom 2 base game, myself. Totally missed the mark on how I want my campaign to run. Longer, with more strategy (ironically in both the strategic and tactical gameplay modes). I have no idea why they thought throwing mission timers at everything would be a good mechanic; I didn't enjoy it in EW, but I accepted it. Used in such high frequency, though, it's just a completely trashy mechanic. A soft timer with extra alien reinforcements or something - as suggested by just about, oh, everyone who's played the game since launch - would've been about 10x better. No half-hearted air game, though, so at least we can skip past all that. On the other hand, I am going to throw a lot of my attention at modding it to try to recapture the LW feel. As for this patch, the QoL improvements are nice. I'm also enjoying SLI support and performance gains. I hope they don't make a habit of changing the core game scripts too much, or if they do to make the changes to increase flexibility while not breaking backward-compatibility. Breaking a plethora of client applications (mods in this case) with each patch becomes some developer decided to remove or redefine an existing interface is really poor practice in API design, and I'm going to hold them to the same standards. Edited March 11, 2016 by Lucubration Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidlallen Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 I agree with Jake Solomon's comments on why they designed in the turn timers:https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/02/25/making-of-xcom-2/4/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucubration Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 I agree with Jake Solomon's comments on why they designed in the turn timers:https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/02/25/making-of-xcom-2/4/ I understand his reasoning, but it doesn't mean I agree that it's a worthwhile mechanic. It's exactly the opposite of what I enjoyed about LW, which was IMO a huge improvement over vanilla EW and extended the lifespan of the game - for me - by orders or magnitude. Instead of risk vs. reward, Xcom 2 places you squarely between, "you must blindly rush the objective to beat the God timer" and "you shouldn't blindly rush the objective because aliens". That's just not great.You lose the option to have strategic engagements, fights just occurring whenever you and the aliens stumble into each other during your mad rush to beat the God timer.You lose the option to have extended firefights; aliens must die on contact so you can beat the God timer.You lose the option to play it safe with your C-team and disengage or occupy better ground for engagements; you must rush into fights to beat the God timer.You lose the option... you know what? You just lose options. The whole game becomes a rush to beat the stupid God timer.That's not enjoyable. Rather than capitalizing on the most enjoyable parts of its predecessor, Xcom 2 accentuates some of the worst parts. (Again, though, I point out that at least we don't have an air game). Ultimately, knowing that there were good intentions behind making it a bad experience doesn't change the nature of the experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidlallen Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 (edited) YMMV. I did not like overwatch creeping every fight in EU. It's too slow, and I got bored. I liked having the meld timers in EW. Edited March 11, 2016 by davidlallen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perraine Posted March 12, 2016 Author Share Posted March 12, 2016 Although it's a bit off topic really ... I'm of two minds about the times. On one hand, I do like the added sense of intensity that the timer brings to the Tactical portion of the game, as mentioned by davidlallen, it stops you from doing the old "Overwatch creep" ... But, I do they think they over did it and it became just annoying. A better idea would have been the random, hidden spawns as mentioned, plus perhaps they could also have incorporated something similar to the "Bomb Disposal" missions in EU/EW where you CAN reset or extend the timer quite easily. In XC2 perhaps having the "golden idol" closer to the drop point, so you can remove the timer fairly quickly, but have the "escape plane" further away, and have to fight your way through the enemy to get to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marceror Posted March 12, 2016 Share Posted March 12, 2016 (edited) & yet completely misses the mark when it comes to being anything like it. Sorry bud, but I fear YOU have completely missed the mark of this thread. This thread is about the new patch, and since you've failed to talk about that in any way, YOU are off topic. (EDIT: Reply was directed at Antioche = clarifying since the quoting functionality on the site is acting wonky for me) So... how about that new patch guys? Has it improved your game? My download just completed. Edited March 12, 2016 by marceror Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perraine Posted March 12, 2016 Author Share Posted March 12, 2016 <snip>So... how about that new patch guys? Has it improved your game? My download just completed. It did improve performance over all for me, and the QoL improvements are definitely in the right direction. They still have a ways to go in the stability and performance area, as the game still seems to have a bad resource leak. After about 2-3 hours of gameplay, my GPU temp starts to creep up, and the game starts to get very choppy and stuttery. Some however are claiming a huge drop in performance, though I think that may be more due to custom configurations (i.e .ini shenanigans they've used to try an improve things) and certain mods that may need updating, than an actual fault of the patch. I think Firaxis did genuinely try to improve the engine optimization, maybe they just need to dig a little deeper. and find that memory/resource leak. As far as the QoL improvements, again it's a step in the right direction, but they still didn't even come close to what even the 'Stop Wasting my Time" mod does and there are still way too many pauses, drawn out actions, focus steals, and just plain annoying repetitive actions from NPC's. The game REALLY needs to recognize if you've played through the campaign before and not keep bothering you with the dramatic pauses, and interruptions (as a toggle option, like the newly implemented "Zip Mode") Gameplay mechanics wise ... It depends on your play style. Some like, or don't even care about, the buffs and nerfs and others are screaming that Firaxis have ruined the game ... So nothing new there really. And still no "Second Wave" options either, which the game REALLY needs once you've beaten it on L/I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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