Replayability?

[The Renderer]

I didn't follow development of this so far. After reading on the store page that the maps are hand crafted and something as trivial (and irrelevant) as random agent names and backgrounds is named as a big thing for replayability, I am wondering how much replayability there actually is. Sounds like pretty minor randomization of clues and maps and not really worth more than one or two playthroughs.

So am I getting this right or is the info on the store page off?

[Warlord]

There are 3 factions you can play as.

[James]

Originally posted by Warlord:

There are 3 factions you can play as.

is that true? or do the agents you recruit just come from different faction backgrounds?

[Milliardo Von Drache]

3 factions CIA, KGB and a "hidden one" plus a extended mode

[Dwarf Floyd]

sounds good! Hope its as good as Xcom2!

[SemtexMan47]

Enemy patrol paths and loot will also be randomized.

[GeneralGonzo]

Originally posted by Milliardo Von Drache:

3 factions CIA, KGB and a "hidden one" plus a extended mode

The "hidden one" is not hidden, it will be Mossad. But first avaiable after completing one of the other two campaigns.

[The Renderer]

Is there any real difference between how the campaign for these factions plays out?
Still not convinced this is any better than Hard West regarding replayability. Which basically had none at all.

[xmd1997]

Originally posted by The Renderer:

Is there any real difference between how the campaign for these factions plays out?
Still not convinced this is any better than Hard West regarding replayability. Which basically had none at all.

What exactly are you looking for in terms of replayability? I've never played Hard West before so I can't compare but from what I've researched from this game the replayability will be akin to the XCOM series in which almost everything will be randomized and pre-generated including maps, agents, loot placement, enemy placement and patrols, map security measures, and randomized intel documents. The devs have also said that even if you run into the same map again there's a possible chance the player won't even recognize it.

The 3 different campaigns all affect the starting missions that the player goes through but will otherwise eventually have you going up against the conspiracy.

EDIT: Also the game will have a NG+.

[Grenyes]

Originally posted by GeneralGonzo:

Originally posted by Milliardo Von Drache:

3 factions CIA, KGB and a "hidden one" plus a extended mode

The "hidden one" is not hidden, it will be Mossad. But first avaiable after completing one of the other two campaigns.

Well, it was hidden until you told us. I've already knew it, but it really it's hidden in the game menu when you start a new game, so possibly some players don't want to be spoiled by comments like yours.

[GeneralGonzo]

Originally posted by Grenyes:

Originally posted by GeneralGonzo:

The "hidden one" is not hidden, it will be Mossad. But first avaiable after completing one of the other two campaigns.

Well, it was hidden until you told us. I've already knew it, but it really it's hidden in the game menu when you start a new game, so possibly some players don't want to be spoiled by comments like yours.

Lol, if it was hidden or secret, you or me wouldn´t know about it, or? Then the devs wouldn´t tell the third party to the preview magazines either, or ? So stop trolling me pls.

[The Renderer]

Originally posted by xmd1997:

What exactly are you looking for in terms of replayability? I've never played Hard West before so I can't compare but from what I've researched from this game the replayability will be akin to the XCOM series in which almost everything will be randomized and pre-generated including maps, agents, loot placement, enemy placement and patrols, map security measures, and randomized intel documents.

Well, XCOM is exactly the level of replayability I am looking for. XCOM2, to be precise, the first (new) one was pretty bad with a pretty small number of maps that always played the same (made a little better with the randomization introduced by the Long War mod).

This game seems more like XCOM1. There the devs also claimed that we wouldn't see the same map twice and then later apologized and said they underestimated how much people were playing the game. Which was BS, considering you couldn't even go one campaign without playing on the same maps over and over again.

But we'll see. I can always buy it later if it turns out better than it sounds so far. Thanks for the input.

[Grenyes]

Originally posted by GeneralGonzo:

Originally posted by Grenyes:

Well, it was hidden until you told us. I've already knew it, but it really it's hidden in the game menu when you start a new game, so possibly some players don't want to be spoiled by comments like yours.

Lol, if it was hidden or secret, you or me wouldn´t know about it, or? Then the devs wouldn´t tell the third party to the preview magazines either, or ? So stop trolling me pls.

I know because I choose to know it when unveiling a spoiler tag from reddit.

[holy-death]

All the maps are entirely handcrafted. What is, however, randomised based on presets (in order to keep the gameplay appealing during multiple playthroughs) are for example enemy patrol paths, usable items, loot containers, surveillance switchboards, etc.

Randomized agent names, backgrounds, and professional skills. Ever-changing codenames and case files to piece together using the Investigation Board. Last but not least: three different campaign backgrounds to choose from and an Expanded Playthrough feature which unlocks additional story information on subsequent playthroughs.

– Replayable, modular campaign with an array of mechanics to ensure unique and markedly different playthroughs: generated character names and backgrounds, modular and algorithmically populated maps, randomized intelligence snippets.

The "modular campaign" together with "randomized intelligence snippets" sounds very promising.

Randomization of agents' names and backgrounds is good news too, because you can hire new agents and it's entirely possible to hire a mole, so new/randomized agents should keep players' paranoia alive on each playthrough when deciding whom to hire.

[[ Rizno . 雨 ]]

It's a shame the maps can't be randomised, maybe the addition of a map editor and Workshop support could solve this issue. Otherwise this game looks great!

[CFG_Hitch]

Hey there!

In terms of replayability, on your first playtrough you will be able to choose one of two story backgrounds, namely the CIA or KGB. After the first playthrough, you will unlock a third background,which I don't want to spoil for some of you, and a New Game+ mode providing some more context for the events taking place throughout Phantom Doctrine, as well as an exclusive tactical mission.

Please note that the campaigns are not completely different from each other. The primary difference lies in the several initial hours of the game for each background, and some details later on. However, the fact that you gain access to additional story context and unique tactical content with each background, paired with the fact that throughout the game you will encounter a lot of randomised missions, makes us believe that multiple playthroughs will be appealing to you.

All the above is, of course, on top of all the other randomisation in the game, such as Investigation Board files, names, codenames, talent development, side-story events of individual agents, among others. This applies also to our hand-crafted levels, which give you the option to choose the deployment zone depending on the mission objectives, and have numerous presets for enemy spawn locations, loot placement, patrolling paths, etc.

With the campaign being estimated at 40+ hours, even if you encounter the same non-story tactical map (which might not even happen), the experience will certainly be different. We wanted to avoid complete randomisation of our maps, because we put a lot of emphasis on smart level design, which is necessary when stealth comes into play.