Remember that XCOM game we never talk about?

[Doom972]

With the outrage about that game gone, and with XCOM 2 being announced, I think it's a good time to talk a bit about The Bureau.

Let me refresh the memory of those who might've forgotten: It was originally announced simply as XCOM and was supposed to be a tactical first person shooter about how XCOM originally started in the 50s. Fans of the franchise were outraged, which caused the developers to change it to a third-person shooter with more tactical elements, but that didn't do it any good. Once XCOM: Enemy Unknown was announced, people quickly forgot about XCOM (the shooter), which was later released as The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, only to receive mixed reviews and poor sales.

I was one of the people who dismissed it as an unnecessary dumbing-down of XCOM. I didn't even understand why they bothered calling it XCOM instead of making it a separate franchise. Eventually it ended up in a 2K Humble Bundle and I got it. I was actually impressed: It had a great atmosphere, I liked the story, and the tactical combat wasn't as deep as I would have liked it to be, but it was certainly more than what I had expected. I even realized that it had more to do with XCOM than the trailers showed. Even if they had never put the XCOM name on it, I probably would've thought about it as "The XCOM shooter in the 50s".

I think that the idea of XCOM as a tactical shooter could work better if they make it less like Mass Effect and more like SWAT 4, which had you giving various orders most of the time instead of using your weapons and it maintained a great ambience with believable AI.

What about the rest of you? Did you play it? Did you like it? Would you like to see more of it? Do you think that the game is crap and should be forgotten?

 

[theevilgenius60]

I liked it for what it was, a Mass Effect-lite game in Xcom's universe. Kinda grew attached to DaSilva, even though they telegraphed his end. The decision at the end over who to save and who to choose as the new host was pretty hard for me(believe I saved Dr Faulke and ended the game as Agent Weaver). Overall, a good game. Hell, I remember a good deal of the main cast so it had to be, plus it was a 2K Marin game. Love those guys, wish they were still active.

 

[Doom972]

I liked it for what it was, a Mass Effect-lite game in Xcom's universe. Kinda grew attached to DaSilva, even though they telegraphed his end. The decision at the end over who to save and who to choose as the new host was pretty hard for me(believe I saved Dr Faulke and ended the game as Agent Weaver). Overall, a good game. Hell, I remember a good deal of the main cast so it had to be, plus it was a 2K Marin game. Love those guys, wish they were still active.

Unfortunately, this game was the final nail in the coffin for 2K Marin.
I made the same choices in the end. I also would've liked to see more of the shared continuity between it and Enemy Unknown. Jon Bailey (trailer voice guy), who voiced the council guy in Enemy Unknown said he recorded several lines for The Bureau that were removed from the final version.

 

[Zontar]

The game was a conceptual mistake right from the start, and it was a brilliant act on Firaxis's part to make Enemy Unknown to calm the predictable backlash of yet another classic 90s PC game getting turned into a shooter (why do publishers keep making that mistake? It only worked a whole one time, and that was when the game in question was not primarily a shooter but faithful to its roots). The game in a vacuum isn't that bad, though it is forgettable and isn't particularly good. But it wasn't in a vacuum, though everyone ignores it so it may as well be at this point, which makes sense given that even sticking only to the lore it makes no sense in-universe, regardless of which of the two Xcom universes you're dealing with. It's a third universe separate from the other two, one which time has forgotten with good reason.

It was the Xcom Enforcer of its time, though thankfully it didn't kill the IP like Enforcer did.

 

[Zontar]

I also would've liked to see more of the shared continuity between it and Enemy Unknown. Jon Bailey (trailer voice guy), who voiced the council guy in Enemy Unknown said he recorded several lines for The Bureau that were removed from the final version.

It's probably because of a last minute case of discontinuity. Even ignoring the fact that the two games have mutually contradictory lore which makes it less of a headache to think of them as being in separate universes, 2k probably figured (correctly) that the overwhelmingly negative reaction it would get from fans coupled with poor sales would harm the IP as a whole if it was officially in the same universe.

A rare case of a wise decision on the part of a publisher if that is the case.

 

[Zontar]

It's probably because of a last minute case of discontinuity. Even ignoring the fact that the two games have mutually contradictory lore which makes it less of a headache to think of them as being in separate universes, 2k probably figured (correctly) that the overwhelmingly negative reaction it would get from fans coupled with poor sales would harm the IP as a whole if it was officially in the same universe.

There's technically a nod to it in Enemy Within, but its just that, a nod, and it could be easily missed, disregarded and forgotten. I think even most of the hardcore continuity nuts wouldn't die on that hill.

As a hardcore continuity nut myself, I think I've made my own position on the matter clear.

 

[asdfen]

I couldn't bare to play that game past halfway or so mark as it was incredibly boring same generic third prson shooter game that has been around in different skins for what seems like forever.

 

[IamLEAM1983]

Why do publishers keep making that mistake?

Because shooters sell, and in the mind of the business exec who's never been a gamer and who comes from a similar position in an unrelated background, market analysis is a god in need of being worshipped. Call of Duty sells? Ergo anything with Call of Duty-esque factors will sell, because it has to. Wishful thinking is often confused with metrics, in management.

Then, invariably, Plucky Business Exec no. 2340 fails at his job of bringing in new shareholders and extra capital, and goes back to putting Captain America's face on a bag of Doritos to appease the gods of marketing.

As for The Bureau; I remember being left with the feeling that nobody knew what to do with the initial concept, once the Tactical FPS à la Band of Brothers was canned. Someone in 2K's offices looked at Bioshock and figured Irrational had stumbled on a cash fountain.

As ever, the execs misunderstood everything about the game's success and figured that Mad Men + First Person + Guns + XCOM franchise = KACHING! when we'd always made it clear we were more interested in a revival of the original formula. Once the initial pitch was killed in the egg, you could feel 2K only half-heartedly supporting it and 2K Marin being left with the baby and the proverbial bathwater. It felt like a stillborn project from Day One, considering.

Gamers are passionate folks. Publishers are concerned with metrics. These two things rarely converge.

 

[Mutant1988]

I think that the idea of XCOM as a tactical shooter could work better if they make it less like Mass Effect and more like SWAT 4, which had you giving various orders most of the time instead of using your weapons and it maintained a great ambience with believable AI.

I would, quite honestly, love that. I've actually thought that if they just took the assets of Enemy Unknown/Enemy Within and changed the gameplay and perspective to a first/third person shooter with that kind of gameplay, they would have an amazing game on their hands right there.

With a mix of survival horror (SWAT 4 certainly hits the same terror notes), tactical gameplay and co-op gameplay and you have something set up to create unforgettable gameplay moments. Imagine exploring a small town, knowing that somewhere inside those buildings lurk a Crysalid and as you search for it, you hear the panicked screams of civilians suddenly sound out, only to be immediately silenced.

Or for that matter, just starting out the game with standard earth equipment, fighting against technologically superior aliens that show up out of nowhere, with players dying in droves as they desperately try to secure a victory against the overwhelming odds.

Why yes, I've had this idea in my head for quite some time and often pondered how to design it to capture the desperate arms race and high casualty rate of the strategy games. I find brainstorming this sort of thing quite fun.

 

[Ambient_Malice]

If someone makes a strategy spinoff of an action series, nobody complains. (Halo Wars, anyone?) But make an action game spinoff of a strategy series, and you have VIOLATED SACRED THINGS THAT ARE SACRED.

Unfortunately, The Bureau was a bit of a muddled game that bears the marks of genre-shifts during development leading to something overall far blander than it should have been. I think Syndicate 2012 worked because it was a straight-up cyberpunk FPS game made by a team with members who had previously worked on cyperpunk FPS game(s). The Bureau lacked that sense of design focus.

 

[Doom972]

I think that the idea of XCOM as a tactical shooter could work better if they make it less like Mass Effect and more like SWAT 4, which had you giving various orders most of the time instead of using your weapons and it maintained a great ambience with believable AI.

I would, quite honestly, love that. I've actually thought that if they just took the assets of Enemy Unknown/Enemy Within and changed the gameplay and perspective to a first/third person shooter with that kind of gameplay, they would have an amazing game on their hands right there.

With a mix of survival horror (SWAT 4 certainly hits the same terror notes), tactical gameplay and co-op gameplay and you have something set up to create unforgettable gameplay moments. Imagine exploring a small town, knowing that somewhere inside those buildings lurk a Crysalid and as you search for it, you hear the panicked screams of civilians suddenly sound out, only to be immediately silenced.

Or for that matter, just starting out the game with standard earth equipment, fighting against technologically superior aliens that show up out of nowhere, with players dying in droves as they desperately try to secure a victory against the overwhelming odds.

Why yes, I've had this idea in my head for quite some time and often pondered how to design it to capture the desperate arms race and high casualty rate of the strategy games. I find brainstorming this sort of thing quite fun.

I'd prefer a single player experience, so that the focus of the game will be giving orders rather than fighting. I'd also prefer to have a small team of 5 people which includes the player (leader) and two fireteams, but still be able to hire people, have them level up as they gain experience, decide who goes on each mission, and, of course, permadeath.

 

[dangoball]

If someone makes a strategy spinoff of an action series, nobody complains. (Halo Wars, anyone?) But make an action game spinoff of a strategy series, and you have VIOLATED SACRED THINGS THAT ARE SACRED.

That might be because good action games are dime a dozen. I don't even play the genre much and I can name: CoD, Battlefield, Uncharted, Tomb Raider, Halo. Is Unreal still going?
For strategy games you've got basically StarCraft, Civilization and HoMM series. I don't really play those much either, I'm more of an RPG person. I do own and play a few older titles from time to time.

Considering XCOM was almost dead and waiting for a revival (X-COM Interceptor is from 1997, XCOM: EU is from 2012), you might understand why fans of the series were ever so slightly upset that the first mention of an XCOM in over ten years was a shooter. Had they first released, or at least announced, Enemy Unknown and established the core game as back in business, people might be more welcoming of a shooter spin-off. After all, no one lost their shooty Halo, but there was no mention Enemy Unknown for two years after announcing Bureau so people feared for their tacticy XCOM.

I think Bureau had potential, but there were many factors playing against it. What Mutant1988 has in mind would make for an interesting XCOM shooter if pulled of correctly, but people would still be outraged by the idea if it were announced before a classic XCOM revival. Timing and all.

 

[Xeorm]

If someone makes a strategy spinoff of an action series, nobody complains. (Halo Wars, anyone?) But make an action game spinoff of a strategy series, and you have VIOLATED SACRED THINGS THAT ARE SACRED.

Unfortunately, The Bureau was a bit of a muddled game that bears the marks of genre-shifts during development leading to something overall far blander than it should have been. I think Syndicate 2012 worked because it was a straight-up cyberpunk FPS game made by a team with members who had previously worked on cyperpunk FPS game(s). The Bureau lacked that sense of design focus.

Nothing wrong with a good spinoff. It's had happened and it occasionally makes for actually good games. But in this case, two things were worrying:

It had been a long time since the last XCOM game, or anything really like it. This wasn't looking like a spinoff, but a replacement. The old squad based strategy combat was being replaced by yet another shooter, and that's terribly disappointing.

Secondly, every sign pointed to it flopping. For good reason, given how things ended up working out. A spinoff of a popular franchise that divebombs can be shoved to the side easily enough, but for a smaller franchise like XCOM, a bad spinoff would likely kill the franchise. Which means no further XCOM games, and so people went nuts about it.

I do think I could have gone for something like it, but it would need to be good, and not just spinoff quality. Apparently, it was only spinoff quality, when it needed to be better.

 

[Muspelheim]

I'd like the idea better still if they just made a new Tactical First Person Alien Shooting IP, instead of lashing it to an established one. If done right, it'd serve them much better in the long run. And it gives them more freedom to shape the setting around the shooter they have in mind, to boot.

 

[TranshumanistG]

I expected this to be about X-Com Enforcer, the arcade third-person shooter. Apart from the name and, alien invasion theme and a very vague resemblance of the enemy alien species to their original counterparts, it has nothing to do with with the series. Not to say I didn't enjoy it on its own, though, it may be related to the fact that most of the 3D games on my computer back then ran with a weird graphical glitch that caused all textures to either be replaced with colorful neon patterns or be covered in constantly shifting black spots.

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

The Bureau was an ok game. Though was limiting when compared to the original same as the last Xcom was limited. Though i think if they went more Ghost Recon then it would have been better.I remember years ago the team that made the original game started making The Dreamland Chronicles which was a Ghost Recon/Xcom game. But cancelled.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

I remember years ago the team that made the original game started making The Dreamland Chronicles which was a Ghost Recon/Xcom game. But cancelled.

Actually, the gameplay originally planned for Dreamland Chronicles sounds a lot more similar to Valkyria Chronicles than Ghost Recon.

"We had a third-person camera view behind your character with a bar representing your Action Points, which went down as you moved. When you went into shooting mode it went into a first-person view and you could select snap shots or aimed shots, which altered the size of an aiming circle on screen."

It's not exactly the same, but still, makes you wonder if the idea for Dreamland Chronicles inspired Valkyria Chronicles gameplay.

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

I remember years ago the team that made the original game started making The Dreamland Chronicles which was a Ghost Recon/Xcom game. But cancelled.

Actually, the gameplay originally planned for Dreamland Chronicles sounds a lot more similar to Valkyria Chronicles than Ghost Recon.

Yeah dont remember to much about it apart form one screenshot of a group of 4 guys hiding behind a wall near a base. Was a game I was really excited about it and it never appeared. Talking of Valkyria Chronicles, i just bought that off Steam today. ;-)Hoping at some point they will Steam will have Front Mission 3 and Vandal Hearts 1 and 2 - love those.