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X-COM could've had bunny monsters, Chryssalid was a happy accident
X-COM's cast of alien characters could have looked vastly different. During a postmortem at GDC, X-COM creator Julian Gollop showed some of the alien design mock-ups that were created by one of the game's artists, John Reitze. "This is the visual piece de la resistance of my entire presentation, because it is the only surviving concept work from the whole game," said Gollop. Many of the aliens are variations on the familiar X-COM enemies we all know today. There are different takes on Sectoids and Ethereals, for example. And then there's the giant bunny monster, which you can see in the first row of the image above. Probably for the best that one didn't make the cut. Another interesting tidbit is that Chryssalids, one of the toughest enemies in X-COM, was something of an accident. "You'll notice that the Chrysallid is right next to the zombie character," said Gollop (third row, far left). "John didn't really imagine them to be connected in any way, but I very quickly had this idea that a Chryssalid would infect your soldiers, and this would turn them into zombies, which would then sprout new Chryssalids, and probably created the most annoying monster in the entire game." We're not sure "annoying" is really the right word – we'd probably go with "terrifying." During the same panel, Gollop also revealed that X-COM was briefly canceled in 1993, when publisher Microprose was acquired by Spectrum Holobyte. See a larger version of the menagerie in the gallery below.%Gallery-184409%
The original X-COM was briefly canceled, boosted by X-Files
X-COM is a household name among many gamers now, but the 1994 original almost never came to be. During an X-COM postmortem at GDC, creator Julian Gollop revealed that the original X-COM: UFO Defense was actually canceled for a brief period during 1993. At the time, the game's UK publisher, Microprose, had been purchased by Spectrum Holobyte. Looking over Microprose's portolio, Spectrum Holobyte was unimpressed with the in-development X-COM and decided to pull the plug. "They took one look at X-COM and said, 'Nah, we don't like this. Cancel this project,'" said Gollop. "The project was actually officially canceled."Unbeknownst to Spectrum Holobyte, Microprose allowed development to continue. "What happened was, that in Christmas 1993 Spectrum Holobyte wanted a product from Microprose UK for the end of their financial quarter, which was in March 1994," said Gollop. "And [Microprose publisher] Pete Moreland said, 'Well, you know this project you told us to cancel? Well, we still got it." The final three months of development were grueling, with Julian and his brother Nick working 7 days a week and putting in 12 hour days.Another interesting tidbit: X-COM was helped by the TV show The X-Files, which began airing in the US in 1993 (It's on Netflix, kids!). "When The X-Files was aired for the first time in September 1993, there was a real benefit for the game because it drew on a lot of the same source material," said Gollop. "So the whole theme of the game had a real hook, and it was just luck, really, that we had the X-Files on TV shortly before the game was launched."X-COM was a hit, selling 470,000 units worldwide as of 2000, earning Julian and his brother $1.57 million in royalties (and significantly more for Microprose). The game cost $180,000 to develop. After the game achieved such great success, Spectrum Holobyte demanded a sequel within six months.
GDC 2013 classic postmortems: Myst, X-COM: UFO Defense, more
The classic postmortem sessions at GDC are always good for some fun, inside stories of old-school game development, including the likes of GoldenEye 007, Doom, Maniac Mansion and Out of this World. GDC 2013 will add a few more games to the list, with postmortem panels scheduled for Myst, X-COM: UFO Defense, Pinball Construction Set and Crystal Castles.Each panel will feature speakers involved with the development of each classic title, and plenty of secrets and anecdotes are bound to come up. You can bet we'll be attending as many of these as we can once GDC gets rolling in March. Who knows, maybe we'll get lucky and stumble upon another game designer's adorable, prescient childhood video.
Original X-COM games bundled for $5 on Steam today
Finding yourself with an undeniable pang of nostalgia now that Firaxis is working on a new XCOM strategy title? Maybe you've never heard of X-COM before and want to see what all the fuss is about? Perhaps you're confused because the original games were called "X-COM" and the new ones are called "XCOM"? Steam has you covered on the first two fronts, at least. Today only, the download service is offering all five of the original X-COM titles for a paltry $5.09. Alternately, if you're really trying to forget X-COM: Enforcer, you can pick up individual titles at $1.69 a pop.
X-Com: UFO Defense developer working on 3DS launch game
The internet is so cool, you guys. Check this out: Gamasutra recently did a feature on the XCOM first-person shooter reboot that's currently in development at 2K Marin. Julian Gollop, creator of the original X-Com: UFO Defense just happened to pop into the comments of said article to give his opinion on the current sorry state of the turn-based strategy genre, and revealing he's "now working on a turn-based tactical RPG which will be a 3DS launch title." Thanks, the internet! You're just full of surprises. According to some investigation from TinyCartridge, Gollop's LinkedIn profile states he's been at Ubisoft Bulgaria/Sofia the past three years -- and Ubisoft has a turn-based strategy game titled Ghost Recon: Lead The Ghosts in the works for Nintendo's three-dimensional handheld. We've contacted Ubisoft to see if this cyclically-titled Clancy jam is indeed Gollop's next opus.
Freedom Force and X-COM bundles $2 on Steam this weekend
Throughout the weekend, Steam is offering two special packages that include all games in the Freedom Force and X-COM franchises for the insanely low price of $2 for each bundle. That's right, kids! For a two-spot you could pick up a bundle with Freedom Force and Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich or an X-COM collection which includes Apocalypse, Enforcer, Interceptor, Terror from the Deep, and UFO Defense. That's a lot of game for some pocket change, so get on it. Shortcut - Freedom Force Steam bundle Shortcut - X-COM: Complete Steam bundle
Impulse adds The Saboteur and more to online store
Look, we know you've been waiting with bated breath for all those Hearts of Iron 3 content packs to arrive on Impulse, so we were glad to tell you that they've finally arrived. Sure, so did The Saboteur and X-COM, but we know you're not concerned. We suppose it's possible you'll tire yourself out with the new Hears of Iron 3 content to the point that you'll need a break, so we should probably point out that a mess of other games made it onto Stardock's digital distribution platform this week. Being the good friends we are, we've dropped the whole list just after the break, just for you!
GameTap Thursday: Painkiller Overdose, XIII Century Death or Glory
Oh, blargh. Writing this post last week was so much easier when it was about Syberia II. This week, GameTap gold subscribers gain access to a neo-DOOM game and an RTS that might be a good -- wait, no, we take that last bit back. Painkiller: Overdose (Windows) - The pseudo-sequel to the old school-embracing shooter where you continue to kill everything. XIII Century Death or Glory (Windows) - Um, really, we have no idea. It's apparently a "historically accurate" RTS set in Europe. No word if it's so accurate it has giant enemy crabs. X-Com UFO Defense will be available gratis for one week only. A full list of the service's recently downsized free-to-play offerings can be found after the break.
