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Adobe lightroom photo editing8/12/2023 There’s no recognizable melodies or hooks or worthwhile tracks to highlight here the anxious, ambient leanings, a fair aspiration to hit, just never really add anything to the tone of the game. ![]() Even with the notable jump-cuts signifying where the start and end of a particular loop happens. Particularly the soundtrack which, in all honesty, is not exactly forgettable, but rather simply feels non-existent. The only real wish you can harbor as to how Phoenix Point could have been improved is notably in the sound department. That’s in no way a criticism against the visuals or the lore that Phoenix Point drip-feeds its players, despite the frequent return to unseen voices narrating some hefty, expository dialogue. Outside of some stock, introductory cutscenes of your designated Manticore ships touching down pre-mission, most of the story is told through expository dialogue complimented by mere illustrations and character profiles. A rapid change in the environment and the establishment of three major polarizing factions later, you are tasked with combating the creeping viral threat and as a result deciding on which faction - which ideology - will get a big-enough say on humanity’s fate thereafter. ![]() ![]() What starts as increased mutation and violence in the sea life soon sweeps to the land - infecting humanity, and as you may have guessed, leaving us on the brink of extinction. A long-dormant virus known simply as the Pandoravirus has been let loose after years of the Antarctic polar ice melting. The premise behind the story isn’t hard to grasp. For those who, begrudgingly, bear with the plentiful missed shots and some wonky AI mannerism (both with the enemy and even with your own accrued band of soldiers and units), Phoenix Point does eventually open up mechanically but also, pleasingly, on the lore and role-playing front too. Phoenix Point’s technical limitations and questionable motivations on what constitutes as “challenging” amidst the heat of turn-based encounters/missions is a frustration players will need to convince themselves they want to toil with. Beyond the decent show of destructible environments, the opportune pockets of cover amidst its battle-laden environments, even the variety of enemy designs - ranging from rival humanoid factions, to abominable crustaceans, to anything in-between the two. Whether it’s down to the budget, the time-frame or something else we may never get insight on is beside the point. Something that, arguably, introduces a few genuinely interesting ideas into the fold and yet still shows its own share of apprehension on making this the best stand-alone release it can be. It’s still an annoying factor to accept, let alone counter - like a game of Battleships where your previous five turns can often go the way of: MISS MISS MISS HIT MISS - but Phoenix Point clearly wants to appease the crowd anxious on ditching such a staple brand for something new. On matching Firaxis/2K’s recent rendition of arguably the most famous top-down/turn-based strategy title not published by Nintendo as of recent. Naturally for a game built up as the spiritual successor to XCOM, the sight of a point-blank shot missing time after time would almost seem like an ironic point off when it came to the “aesthetic” department. ![]() For all the frustrations afoot in the down-and-gritty tactics of Phoenix Point, it’s assuring to know that the latest top-down strategy title, led by XCOM creator Julian Lollop himself, doesn’t end up defined more so by its back-end workings.
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