[TrashMan]

Reading trough the X-Encyclopedia, the moee I find out about the X universe, the less I like it. Ironic, given that I adored the original premise. The writers seem to add more metric tons of stupid and plot holes into the overal plot.
What is needed is not a re-birth, it's a re-boot.

[Belisarius]

The author of the story behind all X-games except for X: Beyond the Frontier is Helge Kautz, a german writer and author. He released 5 books covering the x universe. Being spotted by egosoft he got involved into story telling of the x universe, but while the story of X: Beyond the Frontier was really good, it got less attractive with every game coming after X:BtF. Having read all his books I'd say that it's the author's fault here that the story got less and less attractive. He already resigned from the x story, so the x-excyclopedia was his last project and he didn't seem to be that proud of what he's done with the story telling part of X. The story of X:R is built on the info of what you can read in the encyclopedia, so the gate network is gone, only a few are still working and there's been a wipe out due to the super ova caused by the xenon cpu ships #deff and #effa in the sector Black Hole Sun.

With these accidents egosoft is trying to make a new game and a complete new story. I wish them the best of luck, because they'll need it urgently after this big fail of X3: Reunion and X3: Terran Conflict. TC didn't even have a logical story at all, but just a few job-creation measures (Arbeitsbeschaffungsmaßnahme, as we call it here in Germany) for the player. The most ridiculous part of this was the HUB-plot, where you just had to deliver thousands over thousands of resources to that frog-jumping-straight-into-the-sun-like station. This showed to me that the makers didn't have much ambition for this game at all.

I'm done with this series. I'm playing games mostly for their plots and not such crap like this.

[PsychoLandlord]

Reunion was a bit of a let down, but I was actually okay with the lack of Story in TC. I was happy just loading it up and doing my own thing, whether that be the standard trade game or the military conquest of the game universe. I enjoyed the truly sandbox nature of the game. Not that this is excusing the truly bad 'plot' missions, but thats something I tend to overlook or circumvent when I play.

Admittedly I never did too much reading into X's backstory, specifically because I figured I wouldn't be too fond of it.

[TrashMan]

The author of the story behind all X-games except for X: Beyond the Frontier is Helge Kautz, a german writer and author. He released 5 books covering the x universe. Being spotted by egosoft he got involved into story telling of the x universe, but while the story of X: Beyond the Frontier was really good, it got less attractive with every game coming after X:BtF. Having read all his books I'd say that it's the author's fault here that the story got less and less attractive. He already resigned from the x story, so the x-excyclopedia was his last project and he didn't seem to be that proud of what he's done with the story telling part of X. The story of X:R is built on the info of what you can read in the encyclopedia, so the gate network is gone, only a few are still working and there's been a wipe out due to the super ova caused by the xenon cpu ships #deff and #effa in the sector Black Hole Sun.

As I said - te original premise was great for all the main plots (XBTF, threat, Reunion, TC), but the execution sucked. There's so many inconsistencies.

Up until X3: Reunion, I knew nothing about the Old Ones, and was happier about it. I didn't knew the detaisl of how the Argon came to be, and was happier about it (becasue the fluff suxorz). But the Second Xenon War was the worst offender.

Yes..Terrans..the same terrans that spent 800 years zelously protecting Earth. The same terrans that are the most technologicly advanced of all the X-races, the same terrans who's ship can eat anything in the universe for breakfest, the same terrans that fortified Earth with that Torus - those same terrans were surprised and beaten by the Terrafomers AGAIN (And their ship can butcher the Xenon). And the Xenon were AGAIN lured away to their doom. I though these guys were supposed to evolve, not devolve!!
And then the whole s*** about Terran-made gates suddenly not working..because...just because. And that friggin supernova. It seems every frigin Sci-Fi has supernova's these days.

It's the details that ruin the setting really.
Ironicly, the Terran Campaing in TC is actually good IMHO.

[Mikes]

TC didn't even have a logical story at all, but just a few job-creation measures (Arbeitsbeschaffungsmaßnahme, as we call it here in Germany) for the player. The most ridiculous part of this was the HUB-plot, where you just had to deliver thousands over thousands of resources to that frog-jumping-straight-into-the-sun-like station. This showed to me that the makers didn't have much ambition for this game at all.

I'm done with this series. I'm playing games mostly for their plots and not such crap like this.

Pretty much how I see it.

Egosoft has produced trainwreck after trainwreck and I really can't see that changing this time round, just because they promise what they have been promising before every other release as well...

... must resist the pretty graphics this time. (lol).

[Belisarius]

I love good graphics too, but that must not be all of what can change to the better. Freespace is the best prove for that.

Do you know what I fear the most? That Egosoft feels the need to send me a free copy of X Rebirth, because of my work for the previous games. Wouldn't be the first time.

[Ravenholme]

So, I'm the only one here who loves the X series for the sandboxy Elite-esque-ness of it then? The plots were never anything but incentive to go someplace I hadn't been before. In the case of Operation Final Fury, to provide some set piece battles for my new fleet to own in (Especially with Cadius Ship Mod <3)

[PsychoLandlord]

So, I'm the only one here who loves the X series for the sandboxy Elite-esque-ness of it then? The plots were never anything but incentive to go someplace I hadn't been before. In the case of Operation Final Fury, to provide some set piece battles for my new fleet to own in (Especially with Cadius Ship Mod <3)

No, you most certainly are not. We even appear to have similar taste in mods.

[Mikes]

So, I'm the only one here who loves the X series for the sandboxy Elite-esque-ness of it then? The plots were never anything but incentive to go someplace I hadn't been before. In the case of Operation Final Fury, to provide some set piece battles for my new fleet to own in (Especially with Cadius Ship Mod <3)

As a sandbox game it feels less than half finished.

No matter what career or "style" you specialize in, gameplay quickly stagnates the longer you play and/or runs headlong into engine limitations.

That was my impression anyways.

[Flipside]

The problem was it sort of went through a phase of 'neither fish nor fowl', where it couldn't make up its mind. X3: Reunion was the worst for this, since the main plot had nothing whatsoever to do with your performance in the game, and once complete (and this is a problem with many sandbox games) there seems to be very little you can do other than make more money, buy more ships and then rinse and repeat. Even invading a Xenon sector is of limited use, because in order to defend it, you'll lose ships faster than the sector makes any money.

X tries to fix this by having several loosely connected or unconnected plots (whereas Eve, for example, does it by using the MMO aspect to create a vibrant Universe, a lot easier if it's humans defining it), but doesn't always succeed. I've never completed the Xenon Hub missions without cheating, not because it's hard, but because it takes weeks in real time to produce all the goods, and whilst I like longevity, I'm not so fond of having it forced upon me by grinding.

What is needed is something not unakin to Asimov's Psychohistory, where the game can progress continually, but like the trading engine, there's always the possibility of things going rampant and polarising or stagnating.

[asyikarea51]

I think the first thing that struck me reading the X-pedia was me getting confused with the sudden rearranging of dates and years and the like. The number 768 kept ringing in my head but I don't remember seeing a 768 anywhere for some reason.

And I get this nagging feeling for some reason that certain parts of the Xenon war storyline weren't that consistent at all. Even all those events surrounding the Earth gate destruction event.

And I didn't like the Pirate races brokering their way into Earth for some reason... killed their prowess for me even after all that fancy presentation of spacecraft and technology that simply screams a big "**** YOU LOSERS WE CAN WIN YOU OTAS AND PARANID AND EVERYONE ELSE 1000 TIMES OVER" to all the other races in the series...

And some characters running amok... umm... errr... meh. Oh well. No comment.

I'll just wait and see what happens...

[TrashMan]

ATM I'm enjoying the game immensly.
It has bugs, and quite a few things that could have been done better.

And Terrans? The best thing that happened to the X universe! Getting a Tyr or Odin and starting an unstoppable rampage across the galaxy is .... satisfying

M7M's? Broken...very much broken

[Akalabeth Angel]

Never played any of these games, but always thought the last game looked cool. Here's a trailer for the latest one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNs1rdSkUi8

[Beskargam]

Haven't played any of them, but looks awesome like you said. Also the visuals remind me of mass effect somewhat, moreso the second one

[Lorric]

I've never heard of these before, there's a ton of them!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X_(game_series)#The_X_Series

It's pretty...

[AdmiralRalwood]

Love these games; actually friends with a beta-tester for Rebirth, and everything he said made me want it even more. Now this trailer?

Gaaaah. I want this now, damn it!

[Hobbie]

As a firm fan of the entire X series (X2 is still my favourite to this day) I have one thing to say and one thing only.

My pants.

[docfu]

I can wait. That's mostly what you do in X anyway:

Buy. Wait. Trade. Wait. Fly. Wait. Think. Wait.

Eventually you get an empire so big (in X2 for me) the only thing to do was to kill other races in order to expand.

(Also with X, watch your power bill since it sucks up a TON of CPU when you leave it running.)

[Ghostavo]

It seems they are trying to recreate X - Beyond the Frontier's atmosphere, when the X universe actually felt new and interesting to explore.

[Klaustrophobia]

trying to play the original(s) now, but not getting anywhere.  finally made beyond the frontier stop crashing, but still can't get it to work with a joystick properly.  i am not flying with a damn keyboard.