Egosoft's X Series Takes Over the Humble Weekly Sale

[Andy Chalk]

Egosoft's X Series Takes Over the Humble Weekly Sale

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The Humble Weekly Sale has collected Egosoft's entire X franchise into the biggest bundle of free-roaming space exploration the world has ever seen.

I can't actually say as a matter of certainty that this is the biggest space exploration bundle the world has ever seen, but I'd be willing to bet on it. The X games are big - really big. Vast, even. And a little dense, too; I didn't get into the series until X2: The Threat, and it was quite the experience in learning to handle obtuse menus and arcane systems. X3: Reunion softens things considerably but it's still far from user friendly - although really, what do you expect from a sprawling simulation of a galaxy populated by multiple advanced, competing civilizations that allows you to do everything from engaging in petty piracy to building a massive trade empire?

The truth is that I've never made it very far in any of the X games I've played because I'm so easily distracted (and there's so very much in them to distract me), but I love them anyway and so I can't help but be impressed with the latest Humble Weekly Sale, which includes X: Beyond the Frontier, X-Tension, X2: The Threat and X3: Reunion plus the Bonus Package DLC, for any price you care to pay. Got a dollar? Then you, my friend, have access to a wealth of space exploration fun.

But if you have six dollars (or more) then even more fun awaits! Specifically X3: Terran Conflict, X3: Albion Prelude and the X Superbox Bonus Material, which includes artwork, music, videos, the 300-page X Universe encyclopedia and a whole bunch of other stuff. Soundtracks for X3: Albion Prelude and the upcoming X Rebirth are also included.

It is admittedly not for everyone, but if you think that roaming around in space doing whatever you want amidst gloriously-rendered planets, stars and ships of every shape and size sounds like a good time, then this is probably something you'll want to check out. As always, the Humble Weekly Sale runs for one week and one week only, so if you want it, don't dawdle.

Source: Humble Weekly Sale [https://www.humblebundle.com/weekly]


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[fix-the-spade]

Humblebundle.com, officially the only thing in the universe more deadly to wallets than Steam sales.

But I think I'll have to miss this one, had X2 and X3, loved them, but now I'd like to cling to my life a bit more...

 

[lacktheknack]

Guys.

I love the idea of a living universe, but I'm entirely new to the spaceship exploration/combat genre. I enjoy spreadsheet gameplay.

Should I try these?

 

[Aeshi]

Too bad I already have all the X games I'm interested in, though I might just get this to see what the first few X games were like compared to the modern ones.

Guys.

I love the idea of a living universe, but I'm entirely new to the spaceship exploration/combat genre. I enjoy spreadsheet gameplay.

Should I try these?

Egosoft's website [http://www.egosoft.com/download/index_en.php] has demos of X3 Reunion and X2, might want to check those out first and make your mind up based on your experience of those (although being older games in the series those two are harder and not quite as well-polished as the newer games)

 

[Elate]

Guys.

I love the idea of a living universe, but I'm entirely new to the spaceship exploration/combat genre. I enjoy spreadsheet gameplay.

Should I try these?

Probably not, the biggest downside of the X-games is the interface. Especially when you get to large fleets of ships, it turns into trying to drive a dead cat down a highway levels of frustration.

 

[IanDavis]

I've previously tried X2 and simply couldn't get into it, no matter how many hours I tried. I bought this hoping that X3 would be different. It is... just not in the way I was expecting. You know, with the whole "usability" thing. It's an odd game with a market, I'm just not sure that market's me.

 

[Fractral]

Guys.

I love the idea of a living universe, but I'm entirely new to the spaceship exploration/combat genre. I enjoy spreadsheet gameplay.

Should I try these?

Yes. If you pay the extra, Terran Conflict and Albion prelude are pretty easy to get into. Don't bother with the earlier games, the backstory is pretty easy to learn, and basically comes down to 'two alien races tried to kill everyone and then were defeated.'
Terran Conflicts' main story starts you off with an M4 class light fighter, and leaves you with a Heavy fighter, a corvette and a bomber- enough to take on more or less any enemy if you know how to fly. You could ignore the storyline and just trade if you wanted though, but it takes ~15 hours to get from trading with a small transport to a heavy fighter in X3:R, so it's not advisable. Albion prelude starts you off with a heavy fighter and gives you a corvette and a fleet of smaller ships by the end of the main story, allowing you to skip the early game hell if you want.
The actual fighting isn't hard, you just need to learn that strafing makes you more or less un-hittable because of the awful targeting AI. Random combat missions in TC and AP let you learn the basics and earn loads of money if you don't feel like trading, and trading is actually completely automatable later on. Endgame TC I flew around in my ~40mill frigate doing combat missions for ~10mill a pop, while a 100 station factory complex made weapons and missiles for my armada.
The living universe isn't as impressive as it sounds. AI traders fly around and restock factories, which is nice, but races don't do anything and beyond the occasional Xenon attack there isn't much random combat. Albion Prelude includes a war scenario, but systems can't be permanently taken and the ships spawn infinitely anyway so nothing you do ever affects it. The stock market is a nice change though, but very exploitable. The universe is huuuuge, with something like ~130 sectors in AP, many of which are hidden, and some of which are truly staggering in their size and contents- Aldrin and the Xenon Graveyard spring to mind.
TLR Take some time to learn (read FAQ's- they help a ton) and they're very rewarding games.

 

[Horuta]

Never played a game like this before, where should I start?

 

[newwiseman]

This is great, I was looking at the X series during the steam summer sale but was broke beyond comprehension. Everything for $6 or more is awesome!

 

[LetalisK]

Bleh! You couldn't pay me to take this deal. I bought the first couple and found them absolutely dreadful. I heard they made the latest ones much better, but my previous experience was just too much saltpeter in my water.

 

[blackrave]

While I love the concept of these games, using the GUI of these games is like cuddling the cactus- it is possible, and for some even enjoyable, but not for me

 

[Andy Chalk]

The absolute truth about X games: You either love 'em, or you hate 'em.

 

[gigastar]

Never played a game like this before, where should I start?

Terran Conflict. I cant say for certain that youll like it, because...

The absolute truth about X games: You either love 'em, or you hate 'em.

Also the modding community for theese games puts Elder Scrolls modders to shame.

And now, some OSTs.

Spoiler

 

[Xan Krieger]

The problem with the games is that the in game tutorial sucks balls. I love the concept of the games (even got the X Superbox on a steam sale) but the learning curve is so steep it curves over backwards and stabs you in the eye. If I could learn how to play it I'm sure I'd love it but till then I'm boned.

 

[gigastar]

Found these games a bit hard to get into, but they've been resting in my steam library for some time now.

Any advice on where I should start?

Well assuming you have Terran Conflict then theres a mildly gamebreaking exploit you can use to get money by the shipload.

Do combat missions. Early game they give a decent payout for next to no effort.

Use that money to buy a Vulture in Seizewell outfitted with an ore collector and special command software, leave the sector then have it collect rocks while youre gone. Leave the game on fast forward for about half an hour then send the ship back to the shipyard and sell for profitss.

After that, buy more Vultures and when you have enough buy a Panther (do missions in nearby Split territory to earn the right to buy one) in Patriarchs Conclusion, send it to Queens Harbour and dock it at the Astreus headquarters where you can equip it with a jumpdrive and some frieghter drones. You can drop the frieghter drones from the ship and have them buy things from stations for you, usually energy cells. Weapons should be all Ion Shard Railguns except for the left and right turrets which support flak cannons instead.

After that youre basically ready to take on anything in combat, just keep in mind the Panther in TC can outrun anything it doesnt outgun, which is basically most other M7 vessels and M2/M1 vessels. It can also dock up to 32 fighters, so you dont need to sell off your starting ship.

Overall thats about 8 hours of work.

Yeah theese games are slow-paced.

Some additional advice, do not start Operation Final Fury until you have a fully equipped M2-class vessel, never enter a Xenon sector if you can avoid it, and never pick a fight with an M7M.

 

[Nuclear_Suspect]

Guys.

I love the idea of a living universe, but I'm entirely new to the spaceship exploration/combat genre. I enjoy spreadsheet gameplay.

Should I try these?

For this price I'd say you should.. nay you must!

Granted I've only really played X3: Reunion and before I knew it I had a whole notebook of scribbled notes on prices and traderoutes and where to get what, before long I had my own fleet of tradeships going around making me dosh while I did the.. well... less than legal trades.

The X games are VERY VERY good if you're the sort of person who can spend an hour (Or more) reading up on tidbits of information and sometimes think outside the box (The price on Delorean Wheat will rise if you shoot down the supply ships), that and you can fly a ship so large that it has ships inside it.. and those ships have ships inside them.. and those ships have drones inside them.

As for the living universe, yeah, very much so new stations pop up, sectors can get utterly destroyed by pirates/aliens/warring factions.

Sorry, went on a rant there, bottom line: Great game if you can get over the insanely steep learning curve

 

[Stryc9]

Guys.

I love the idea of a living universe, but I'm entirely new to the spaceship exploration/combat genre. I enjoy spreadsheet gameplay.

Should I try these?

Yes. It can be very spreadsheet-y if you want it to be. You can start a custom game and not have to do any missions at all, you can just fly around and trade goods all day long. I've lost many many hours to just that in X3: Reunion.

Also everything the guy above me says, I've done all of that.