Regarding IAP expansions, off the top of my head, it could be: New campaign with new storyline. Alternate history campaign with interceptors instead of teleporters. The interceptors were fun in that other game, because it was just like playing a computer version of that UFO tv series where Sky One shoots down the aliens... If you go with that, you could later add a moonbase expansion for Skydiver to intercept the aliens before they reach the Earth too. Scripted maps pack which the developer had tweaked for fun and suspense. Local same device multiplayer for skirmish mode. I like these as it lets me test out tactics as I play both sides of the game. Also let both players field both alien troops or soldiers, to test out their capabilities. Out of the three above, I think the first few will sell better, and the third will probably only sell to a few, like me... I don't really play online multiplayer, so someone else could chip in with suggestions for those...
Actually, I don't think the devs were particularly big fans of the interception gameplay mechanic. But here's an idea: what if you could build missile turrets/ anti aircraft Energy weapons that could shoot down random UFOs that strayed too close into range. CAN WE GET A ACTUAL LITTLE PLANE ICON INSTEAD OF A GREEN X? Scripted mission packs would be neat, especially if they could be triggered in the onslaught game mode. Like a three or four mission side story or something. That's basically what firesaxis did with their "SLINGSHOT" Dlc addon. Set them in interesting and unique locations, like the oil rig map I mentioned in a earlier post or other places, heck, what if the aliens tried to cause a nuclear meltdown at a power plant and you had to disarm the explosives or stop the computer from melting down or whatever. What about a alien base hidden near the ruins of an old European castle! Or even a mission on a moon base, like ipadisGreat suggested. The best game expansions, IMO are those that enrich the overall amount of gameplay. Give us terror missions! And maybe some sort of vehicle or armored drone unit...something like this maybe?
Is it acceptable to implement PvP in the original AvH: Onslaught? I'm not entirely sure if making it available only through the missions app is a good idea. I don't like having several apps which are more or less the same. My suggestion is: make AvH: missions with 5 free missions and an IAP of, let's say, $2, for the PvP AND the 20 remaining missions. And on another side, set an IAP of $1 in the original AvH: Onslaught for the PvP option. This way, someone who spends $2 has AvH v1.0 (missions) + PvP and another one who spends $4 has AvH v1.0 (missions) + AvH v2.0 (onslaught) + PvP. And in the end, all the people can buy PvP in any of the two games. I've been playing Onslaught a bit now and I can say it's a very different game from the original 25 missions, worth having too. I understand that if it doesn't break through in the end, you stop investing in it. It will be very sad if it doesn't break through in the end, though.
One question reg Onslaught: how do you make money? I've read that you can research and produce items for benefit (by selling them). Do you also get monthly pays, or you just obtain money by selling items? I'm playing Noob difficulty and it's still not too easy. Games last a lot, because I have to send soldiers around and I have to do it very slowly. Equipping soldiers with more than one grenade helps a lot though.
You get funded at the end of the month. Make sure you don't miss missions. Being Canadian, I typically choose my first base in the middle of North America. I then add a base in South America with a small detector and one base in Africa or Europe again, with a small detector. The first thing I buy is 6 pairs of night vision goggles and a sky raptor. I then ditch the sky hopper and move my soldiers to the raptor. It is must faster and can service anything you detect. You should research laser weapons as soon as you can. There are some weapons you can manufacture for a profit. That will help with cash. For the first little while, you should sell all but one of everything. Keeping 1 of each in your stores will allow research to occur. Keep up with research and as you unlock better weapons, sell all inferior weapons for cash. I run with 6 soldiers and will occasionally swap one out to get new rookies experience. So I'll run 5 experienced soldiers and a n00b. I make sure that the n00b shoots and throws in order to get their stats to improve. Al(ien)
Fantastic, thanks for the tips! I'll try them. At least with the grenades you can kill aliens easily at the beginning (first mission).
Not the answer your looking for, but all this talk about adding IAP content is probably going to have me skip being a customer. The only solution that would work for me is if there was a second version of the game with all of the content and then add the new content through IAP for the existing customers. But really I like the way some other devs have handle new content. They use that not to reap more from existing fans but rather give out the content for free to entice new people to buy the game. Xcom has proven there's a market. So make the best xcom like game out there at a fixed cost and let the fans help drive sales. I mean, thanks to xcom there was a resurgence if interest in this game to begin with. Ride that wave with new content and customers will follow. Especially if people mention this game in their iTunes reviews for Xcom. Granted its a riskier way to go, but its also risky to pump up the IAP as the presence of it alone can drive people away. Especially when for $20 they can get an official xcom game with guaranteed free updates including multiplayer.
I seriously doubt fireaxis are going to give us free dlc. And the people who bought AvH got the all the updates and new content free of charge. The PROBLEM is that they simply aren't making enough money to make further improvements a good financial decision. That's why they are watching the sales so closely during this Xcom release.
Boomwolf, you hit the nail on the head. We've done a lot of updates and have supported this title for over a year and a half. All for $1.99 or $2.99 depending on when you bought AvH. We think we've delivered pretty good value. We also don't know how many people out there actually want a retro X-Com game. Before Firaxis ported, we were the only option for an X-Com fix on an Apple device. And I should add that we're just testing the waters with the notion of IAP. We haven't made up our mind what we're going to do. Al(ien)
Didn't Sid Meier just charge for multiplayer on Civilization Revolution? Perhaps you might be a bit optimistic...
Maybe, I'm just going by what has been reported by many sites out there.. that multiplayer would be included as a free update. If they go back on this, then there will be a massive backlash against the game. Granted I'm more than used to devs doing boneheaded stuff like this as a way to nickle and dime their existing customers. It's always a shame when you find out too that a feature was developed along side a game and they release it later for an additional cost or that the content was always in the game just locked behind a payment scheme. But... often devs do what they say. Look at Rovio... expansion after expansion with free levels on their games at no additional cost. Really they've gone way beyond anything I'd ever expect from a dev. Yeah, and I hope the sales of AVH are good enough with Xcom out there to help promote it, that it'll pay for the expense of updating the game. Then again, if the funding is there, why not just consider making a sequel. They could even re-use some art/engine/sound assets to keep costs down or opt to do a profit sharing deal in lieu of up front payment. It's a good way to tap into the existing userbase, preserve the original game as not requiring IAP to get all the content (for future customers), and elevate the series to new heights. Sort of like the way it's always been in the handheld world before iOS. Advance Wars 2 for example... great sequel to a great game. It took a couple more games before online multiplayer was added. I think user levels being able to be uploaded/downloaded was in the middle. The way The Quest handled expansions works pretty well. I don't know the numbers behind it but it gives me a good feeling to know I can buy an expansion and play it as a standalone game or through an unlock feature in the main The Quest or The Quest Gold. It would be cool if they made a single system multiplayer mode with a level editor and a bunch of pre-made maps and sold it separately (or whatever everyone is wanting added) but let owners of the main game unlock it. That could also make it possible to give out a Free expansion with some short story tied to it that can also be unlocked (or imported) in the main game, so people can try out the game and get a good sample of it while existing customers get something cool for free. There are so many ways to handle it... but I can guarantee as a customer I just wont buy a game knowing that anything new is going to be locked behind IAP. Again, not that I matter as an individual customer... but I have been more than happy to support devs that went that extra step to provide non-iap versions of their games. Star Traders Elite for instance. I asked for that edition, they made it, I bought it day one. It cost them a couple lines of code to make the non-IAP version.
I've been following this thread for a while and am interested in buying this game shortly! I love the story of a husband & wife combination creating what clearly is an amazing game. My only concern on purchasing the game is that I don't want to buy it to find out a newer version is coming soon??? While I am not going to rant about IAP or not I do believe it is important that new or existing customers clearly understand what the founders of this game are going to do...? Reading about the missions section possibly not being part of the existing version?
No no, what they are CONSIDERING (because of low profit/purchases)IS: An stand-alone re-release of the original game mode (before base building and other "XCOM-ISH" features that were heavily requested ) Which is a set of 25 story driven missions. Plus a new Asynchronous multiplayer mode. They haven't decided how they should release it. Should they release it for free, and make the multiplayer mode a optional purchase? Should they make the multiplayer free, and missions 1-5 with an option to purchase the rest of the missions for IAP? Should they just give up on the Aliens Versus Humans game altogether? (Noooooo.......) That's what they are trying to figure out. If you purchase Aliens Versus Humans NOW, You will get (and now I sound like an infomercial) The original version of AvH + "the Onslaught" Original 1.0 : -The 25 missions mentioned above - A really deep Random mission generator, basically infinite missions. 2.0 AvH : The Onslaught -Geoscape/Basebuilding/Research gameplay - My awful music (XD) FREE Future updates (Hopefully) TO THE DEVS: How about you release a free version Of AvH that includes everything, the multiplayer, the Onslaught campaign, the Original Missions, your firstborn, (WAIT, WHAT?) Everything! The only thing is, only the first couple of missions are playable, free of charge and the Onslaught Campaign is also locked. Now raise the price about a dollar. People can download the app and play the first four or five original missions. For a single purchase (every time you add a new feature maybe another dollar to the price...?) they Unlock EVERYTHING. All future game features free (OR) optional IAPs Come up with planned features, and advertise them on touch arcade. Maybe buy some ad space...? Free bug fixes and code updates. Too harsh? Well....maybe you should just release the Multiplayer mode for free with a main menu ad to the full game If you decide to continue to update the main game with expansions/ updates you can advertise the in-progress work in the free game.
I agree with nightc1 & boomwolf. It is quite disappointing that this game hasn't received the attention from the public and their suggested pricing strategy makes sense! Finding the delicate balance of attracting new users but not harming your current fan base. I am very impressed and pleased with the way the developers have handled their updates and truly appreciate the amount if work they have put into this game especially with their constant interaction with their fans and on forums! I'm on old school gamer who unfortunately have very limited time to play games with waaaaay to many games on my iPhone & iPad to play. I'll look into purchasing AVH in the coming days!
I think the Aliens versus Humans user interface could be improved. I played the original UFO a lot, but never really got into AvH. I suspect it is the interface.
It is not the graphics. It was, well if you have access to UFO (XCom), the interface was more intuitively laid out and whatever I wanted my squad to do, I could, so every tactical mistake was mine and not due to a misclick. In contrast, I just fired up the latest patched Aliens versus Humans after reading your post, and I think it the interface is sort of clunky. I click on the isometric scene and a cube appears. Then I click the crosshairs and then somehow, it doesn't shoot, then the cube moves elsewhere and when I select a less accurate shot, then I have to move the cube back to the alien and repeat again. In other words, I am fighting the interface more than I am fighting the aliens. I don't recall having such interface problems with UFO. True my squads were so frequently annihilated that the aliens probably gave me a medal for being an unwitting sympathiser...
