Ever since Crusty started doing his LP featuring BSN members, I've been wanting to do one of my own. I thought of my main gaming obsession at the time, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, but for various reasons I never got around to doing it.
However, the recent release of Xenonauts gave me an excuse to return to the idea. Xenonauts aims to effectively recreate the original X-COM: UFO Defense as faithfully as possible while adding some new features, like a cover system and a significantly overhauled and more robust air combat system, as well transposing the timeline from the then-near future of 1998 to 1979, in the heart of the Cold War. I also imagine it will be more to the tastes of certain crusty old grognards here on this very forum. 
For more information, visit the Xenonauts wiki at http://xenonauts.wik...Xenonauts_Wiki.
The 1958 Iceland Incident was our first contact with extraterrestrial life. An alien craft entered our atmosphere above the Atlantic in what we now believe was a scouting mission. It was detected and intercepted by NATO jets operating under the assumption it was an experimental Soviet aircraft.
Visual sighting of the UFO rapidly dispelled that myth - the craft was far larger than its radar signature suggested, more akin to an airborne warship than an aircraft. Attempts to communicate elicited a barrage of energy weapon fire that disintegrated half of the squadron and left the remaining jets limping back to base with severe damage. Several subsequent attempts were made by NATO fighter squadrons to intercept the alien vessel, costing them a number of aircraft but inflicting no appreciable damage on the target. When the UFO abruptly changed course and began heading for the eastern coast of the United States, the decision was made to deploy nuclear weapons.
Twenty minutes later, half a dozen nuclear-tipped ICBM ignited the sky above an uninhabited part of Iceland. Astonishingly, the UFO survived the blast - but it crash-landed, almost intact, shortly afterwards. At this point, the NATO forces made the decision to inform their Soviet counterparts about the alien vessel and seek their assistance in securing the vessel and the technology within. This decision was seemingly motivated more by self-preservation rather than altruism; the Soviets were furious at the large unexplained nuclear detonations and were apparently close to launching missiles of their own.
A joint ground operation was launched to capture the alien craft, but numerous extraterrestrials had survived the crash and put up stiff resistance. Human forces took significant losses during the operation, but slowly secured the area around the craft. What happened next is uncertain - all we know is that the alien craft was destroyed in an enormous explosion, almost certainly caused by the craft's power source. This explosion annihilated the UFO itself and wiped out all ground forces within a ten mile radius (the only survivors were those at the distant command post). There was nothing left; the UFO was gone and only a handful of those who had sighted an extraterrestrial were left alive.
The aftermath of the Incident involved a large scale cover-up. The official explanation was that of a Soviet invasion of Iceland thwarted by nuclear weapons, with heavy losses on both sides. But behind closed doors, the two superpowers were collaborating - a joint black ops organisation was formed, drawing from the resources of both. Unofficially dubbed the ""Xenonauts"", it was tasked with defending the planet against alien invasion. The absence of an obvious alien threat has made us look rather irrelevant for the past twenty years, Commander - but we had little doubt we would be needed some day. It seems that day has come.
And without further ado ...
CHAPTER ONE: SEPTEMBER 1ST, 1979
Prior to the events of September 1979, nobody in the world paid much attention to the thought of extraterrestrial life. The Iranian Revolution had occurred months before, and the eyes of the intelligence world were fixated on the nation. A secret Soviet biological weapons factory was under heavy suspicion due to an accidental anthrax leak months before. In America, the 1979 NFL season kicked off, which would see the Dallas Cowboys complete one of the most improbably comebacks in NFL history and the Pittsburgh Steelers win a record fourth Super Bowl over the Los Angeles Rams. Fox Mulder was a month away from turning 18 years old. But Pioneer 11, planned to be the first probe to visit Saturn with a flyby scheduled for the first of the month, abruptly ceased transmitting.
On the 1st September 1979, an alien fleet abruptly arrived in orbit and began to destroy the planet’s satellite network. Within a few hours, unidentified craft were scouting the upper atmosphere, none responding to any communication methods. Several nations made intercept attempts as the UFOs entered their airspace, but none were successful and most resulted in heavy losses. Surviving pilots told of beam weapons disintegrating whole squadrons in moments, of disrupted flight systems and an inability to acquire missile lock with any form of air-to-air missile. The only victory of the day occurred over the Bering Sea, where multiple radar stations tracked a single interceptor flying under classified call signs successfully engaging and destroying a high-flying scout craft.
As the burning wreckage sank into the depths of the Bering and the damaged aircraft limped back to base, governments across the world began to receive telephone calls from an organization that had spent the last twenty years hidden from view. The deal was simple – a monthly funding grant and authority to operate in a nation’s airspace and territory, in exchange for protection against extraterrestrial activity. Reluctantly, all the major powers agreed. The entire planet’s hour of need had come, its fate resting on the shoulders of the few dozen Xenonauts.
God help us all.
* * *
ON THE NEXT LET'S PLAY XENONAUTS:
THE LOBBYISTS PREPARE TO ENGAGE THE EXTRATERRESTRIAL FORCES THAT THREATEN THEIR BELOVED FORUM AND PLANET, MANO-Y-XENO.
Modifié par TheBlackBaron, 24 mars 2015 - 04:36 .
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: Hombres Lagarto! En todas partes! Tienes que ayudarnos!
