X³: Terran Conflict (n°5)

📰 Title:	X³: Terran Conflict (n°5)	🕹️ / 🛠️ Type:	Game
🗃️ Genre:	Simulation	👁️ Visual:	3D
🏷️ Category:	Simulation ➤ Space ➤ Space Flight ➤ Space Trading & Combat	🏝️ Perspective:	Third & First person
🔖 Tags:	Space Trading; Space Combat; Space; Flight; Action; Adventure; Exploration; Strategy; Economy; 4X; Trading; Sci-fi; Open World; Atmospheric; Sandbox; Moddable; Controller	⏱️ Pacing:	Real Time
🐣️ Approx. start:	2008-10-16	👫️ Played:	Single
🐓️ Latest:	2017-05-15	🚦 Status:	04. Released (status)
📍️ Version:	Latest: 20170515	❤️ Like it:	9. ⏳️
🏛️ License type:	💰 Commercial	🎀️ Quality:	7. ⏳️
🏛️ License:	Commercial	✨️ (temporary):
🐛️ Created:	2013-10-04	🐜️ Updated:	2024-06-22

📰 What's new?:		👻️ Temporary:
💡 Lights on:		🎨️ Significant improvement:
👔️ Already shown:		💭️ New version published (to be updated):
🎖️ This work:		🚧️ Some work remains to be done:
👫️ Contrib.:	goupildb & Louis	🦺️ Work in progress:
🎰️ ID:	13950

📜️[en]:	X³: Terran Conflict is the 5th installment (2008, the 4th is X³: Reunion) of a space epic, mixing space combat simulation and trade, with for this episode, a grand finale that brings the player on the way back to the solar system of the Earth. He can be one of the protagonists of the X universe, a trader, a mercenary, a pirate or an Earth military pilot, and discover a multitude of stories in the largest universe of the series, and offering the most missions, composed of sectors linked by Jumpgates allowing travel over vast distances. The sequel to the game is X Rebirth (2013).	📜️[fr]:	X³: Terran Conflict est le 5ème volet (2008, le 4ème est X³: Reunion) d'une épopée spatiale, mixant simulation de combats spatiaux et commerce, avec pour cet épisode, une grande finale qui amène le joueur sur le chemin du retour vers le système solaire de la Terre. Il peut être l'un des protagonistes de l'univers de X, un commerçant, un mercenaire, un pirate ou un pilote militaire Terrien, et découvrir une multitude d'histoires dans l'univers le plus grand de la série, et offrant le plus de missions, composé de secteurs reliés par des Jumpgates permettant le voyage sur de vastes distances. La suite du jeu est X Rebirth (2013).

📕 Description [en]

📜️ "The 5th installment (2008) of a space epic, mixing combat simulation and trade" 📜️ .

Computer games developer Egosoft and Koch Media, a leading distributor of games and application software, today announced the conclusion of an exclusive publishing and distribution agreement for the title X³: Terran Conflict. X³: Terran Conflict will be released under the Deep Silver label.

"The X series has always been one of our top quality brands, and an integral part of the Deep Silver portfolio," states Dr. Klemens Kundratitz, Managing Director of Koch Media. "So we are very happy to be presenting the gripping next installment of the X universe's story in X³: Terran Conflict."

"We look forward to adding another successful chapter to the X story, together with Koch Media," says Bernd Lehahn, Managing Director of Egosoft.

X³: Terran Conflict is a brand new, stand-alone game set in the universe of X³. It is the culmination of the X trilogy, with a grand finale that takes us all the way back to Earth's own solar system. Gamers can take on the roles of different characters in the X universe, or of a Terran military pilot, and experience a multitude of stories in the largest X universe ever featured for X³: Terran Conflict. It will offer more missions than any other X game before. Meanwhile, X³: Terran Conflict will pose questions such as: How has Earth changed in all these years? And how will relations between Earth and its counterparts in the X universe develop?

🌍️ Wikipedia:

X3: Terran Conflict (Usually shortened to X3TC and trademarked as X3: Terran Conflict), is a space trading and combat simulator from German developer Egosoft and is the culmination of their X series of computer games. Described as a stand-alone game, based on X3: Reunion, it boasts new plot lines, features and assets. It was first released on October 2008 for the European market and Steam.

Gameplay

X3: Terran Conflict is a single player, first-person space-based simulator where the player can explore and expand in a constantly changing environment. The player can navigate his/her ship across numerous sectors owned by the various races (Argon, Boron, Split, Paranid, Teladi, Xenon, Kha'ak, Terran, Pirate and Yaki) which are connected through devices termed Jumpgates, allowing for large-scale travel in the game universe. The entire game universe holds thousands of persistent stations and ships, with a varying economy which the player is encouraged to take part in through trading, construction, and in some instances combat. The game is open-ended, and the player is free to explore and perform various tasks at will, unless a mission instructs otherwise. There are several alien races which the player can interact with, through these interactions shaping his relationship with the races, becoming either friend or foe. Some races are presented as a constant threat where friendship is not an option. Each race has a military presence across the universe and skirmishes can break out without the player's involvement.

The player is capable of acquiring many different types of property, such as ships, stations, and factories. Ships can be piloted manually in the first-person by the player, or can be ordered to perform various tasks on their own such as engaging in combat and trading. Ships can also be grouped together to form wings, where they attempt to perform a task assigned by the player together without the player needing to order them individually. The number of assets the player can own is not limited by the game. Types of ships range from small scout ships equipped with light weaponry and shielding to large capital ships with various capabilities, which can be used for offense, factory construction, ware production or other purposes.

Combat can range from dogfights between small ships to large fleet battles involving many ships, small to large alike. There are several classes of weapons available for use, such as beam weapons, energy projectiles, ammo-based projectiles which must be kept stocked with the appropriate ammunition, various types of missiles, as well as mines. Each ship is usually capable of equipping a wide array of weapons, usually limited by the constructing race and ship size.

Several space installations are available to be built by the player. They can include factories, trading stations, stationary weapon platforms, and more. The player can also build a Headquarters, capable of many different tasks ranging from ware storage to ship construction. Factories can be built basically anywhere in a sector, usually to provide income to the player through the sale of the wares it produces, or the production of wares directly for the player's use. Wares can be bought from stations for a certain cost, and be either sold at another station (ideally for a profit) or to be used by the player. Certain wares are required at each type of station to produce the stations product. As an example, crystals are required at Solar Power Plants to produce its product; energy cells. Basic wares such as minerals, food, and energy go through several stages of production at various factories to become more advanced products, such as weapons, satellites, and drones.

Both plot and generic missions are offered and take place in the universe itself, usually with some kind of reward for the player. Local events may alter the players experience of the mission. The majority of missions are not restrictive, and the player can perform normal activities after the mission has been accepted and may call upon any available property to help with the objective.

As the game progresses, many more features are made available; such as connecting multiple factories to share resources, and training marines to board capital ships.

Plot

Centuries before the events of X3: Terran Conflict, the Terrans built their own jumpgate technology, which accidentally connected to an abandoned network of alien jumpgates. They colonized many uninhabited worlds, using robotic spacecraft called Terraformers to make planets suitable for human life. A software error caused the Terraformers to malfunction and they rampaged across the colonies, re-terraforming planets, killing the inhabitants. During the last stand battle in Earth orbit, the Terraformers are drawn back through the jumpgate, which is self-destructed behind them, cutting Earth from the gate network. A small group of humans who led the Terraformers away continued to become the Argon race and the Terraformers evolved into the Xenon.

The player can play the role of many characters. If an alien is chosen as a character, the player must perform an additional mission to gain access to the Solar System. After the events of X3: Reunion, the Solar System is again connected to the gate network, albeit with different sectors and alien life present. The Terran race are far ahead of the other races technologically, but remain cautious almost to the point of xenophobia. Some Terrans begin to integrate with the commonwealth sectors and a dialogue forms between governments.

During a routine patrol in the Solar System, the player is called to battle in the Neptune system where Xenon are attacking. Using special beacons, they were able to jump deep into the Solar System without use of a jumpgate. During the battle, a small drone steals information from a Terran station and delivers it to an Argon ship in the Pluto sector which uses a jumpdrive to escape the Solar System. The player is tasked with investigating the odd activity of the Xenon who appear to be under influence of the unknown character.

The Xenon and pirate factions are found to be coordinating attacks to raid ships for valuable resources. New ships begin to appear which resemble the original form of Terraformers, attacking ships of the Boron race. The player aids the delivery of Terraformer wreckage to Terran scientists who deduce that these ships are remakes based on commonwealth technology.

Captain Robert Pearle, an undercover Terran operative has valuable information about the origin of these Terraformer ships but he has been discovered and arrested by Argon forces. The player meets up with fellow Terran agent Patricia Heywood to rescue Pearle from an Argon military sector. When Pearle has recovered, he accompanies the player on a mission to Split space where the Terraformers are rumoured to be built. A makeshift mobile factory is discovered and captured by Terran forces and several Split scientists are captured. Under interrogation, one of the scientists mentions the name, Aldrin.

Aldrin was a colony of the Terrans; established before the Terraformer war. The colonists managed to shut down their jumpgate and safeguard their Terraformers from the software error. Aldrin was presumed lost during the war. A scientist from the original Terraformer project, named Martin Winters, had survived the centuries by cryogenically freezing himself in deep space. He rediscovered the existence of Aldrin and set to work to recreate the Terraformer project using the preserved Terraformers in that sector.

The Terrans launch an offensive by reverse engineering a jump beacon to jump a fleet to Aldrin. They find a Terraformer CPU ship under control of Winters, and the Aldrin people suppressed due to Winters influence on the Terraformers. A fleet of Xenon ships joins the battle against the Terrans, defending Winters. A boarding party successfully takes control of the CPU ship and Winters again makes an escape. The player is tasked with escorting Aldrin dignitaries to the Earth Torus, making the Earth sector open to the player. Four additional plot lines are available for the player to pursue. Each is fully voiced and unlocks several unique features and assets.

Development

X3: Terran Conflict is a standalone expansion of X3: Reunion, based in the same universe and using the same engine. X3: Reunion had several popular fan made mods, the most popular of which was named The X-Tended Mod. The Mod was created by a team of artists, musicians and modders and added new content and functionality to the game. XTM received attention from Egosoft who interviewed members of the team and hosted the mod for future downloads. X3: Terran Conflict has several assets used by the XTM mod and several members of the XTM team worked closely with Egosoft to develop the game.

Following the announcement of the game, several screen-shots and videos were made available, showing game-play, new features and content. A teaser trailer for X3: Terran Conflict was made available one month after the game was announced. It featured several new ships, stations, weapon systems and graphical effects. Terran ships, which were first seen in X3: Reunion's finale, made an appearance in this trailer.

A series of four informative gameplay videos were slowly released throughout the course of development. They were titled after each of the game's main gameplay premises; Trade, Fight, Build and Think. These videos featured a narrative introducing several new features in Terran Conflict. The first video, entitled Build was made available on 30 July 2008. Focusing on station construction and player progression, this video reveals the existence of new stations and ship classes, as well as a new game-play feature to control large numbers of ships. This video confirms that the player headquarters, which was introduced in X3: Reunion version 2.0, is available in X3: Terran Conflict.

A developer blog was made available, documenting several experiences with the game development by several team members. An XTM and X3: Terran Conflict developer Bobby Wilkinson, known in the X3 community as Syklon, was the first to post, detailing some new aspects of the game.

📕 Description [fr]

Un jeu d'aventure et de stratégie spatiale, dans la continuité de X³: Reunion, par le studio Egosoft.

X³: Terran Conflict est le 5ème volet (2008, le 4ème est X³: Reunion) d'une épopée spatiale, mixant simulation de combats spatiaux et commerce, avec pour cet épisode, une grande finale qui amène le joueur sur le chemin du retour vers le système solaire de la Terre. Il peut être l'un des protagonistes de l'univers de X, un commerçant, un mercenaire, un pirate ou un pilote militaire Terrien, et découvrir une multitude d'histoires dans l'univers le plus grand de la série, et offrant le plus de missions, composé de secteurs reliés par des Jumpgates permettant le voyage sur de vastes distances. La suite du jeu est X Rebirth (2013).

Le développeur de jeux vidéo Egosoft et Koch Media, un important distributeur de jeux et de logiciels d'application, ont annoncé aujourd'hui la conclusion d'un accord exclusif d'édition et de distribution pour le titre X³: Terran Conflict. X³: Terran Conflict sera publié sous le label Deep Silver.

"La série X a toujours été l'une de nos marques de qualité supérieure et fait partie intégrante du portefeuille de Deep Silver ", déclare le Dr Klemens Kundratitz, directeur général de Koch Media. Klemens Kundratitz, directeur général de Koch Media. "Nous sommes donc très heureux de présenter le prochain épisode captivant de l'histoire de l'univers X dans X³: Terran Conflict".

"Nous sommes impatients d'ajouter un autre chapitre réussi à l'histoire de X, avec Koch Media", déclare Bernd Lehahn, directeur général d'Egosoft.

X³: Terran Conflict est un tout nouveau jeu autonome se déroulant dans l'univers de X³. C'est le point culminant de la trilogie X, avec un grand final qui nous ramène jusqu'au système solaire de la Terre. Les joueurs peuvent endosser les rôles de différents personnages de l'univers X, ou d'un pilote militaire terrien, et vivre une multitude d'histoires dans le plus grand univers X jamais présenté pour X³:Terran Conflict. Il offrira plus de missions que n'importe quel autre jeu X auparavant. Il offrira plus de missions que n'importe quel autre jeu X auparavant. Parallèlement, X³ : Terran Conflict posera des questions telles que : Comment la Terre a-t-elle changé pendant toutes ces années ? Et comment vont évoluer les relations entre la Terre et ses homologues de l'univers X ?

🌍️ Wikipedia:

X³: Terran Conflict est un jeu vidéo de commerce, de gestion et de combat spatial développé par Egosoft et sorti en 2008 sur Windows. Il a été édité par Deep Silver, Enlight et Valve Corporation. C'est la suite de X: Beyond the Frontier (1999), de X²: The Threat (2003), et de X³: Reunion dont il reprend le principe, et améliore le graphisme et la jouabilité, tout en apportant des nouveautés.

Système de jeu

Le joueur est quasiment libre dans l'espace dès le début de la partie ; il peut voyager de secteurs en secteurs, faire du commerce (le jeu comprend un simulateur économique dynamique), devenir producteur en faisant construire des stations spatiales (allant de la simple usine de production de nourriture à l'usine d'armement lourd en passant par les stations commerciales ou de transformation de matière première), mercenaire et remplir des contrats de chasseur de prime ou même devenir un pirate volant les cargaisons en transit et le revendant dans des stations illégales. Chaque action que vous faites influence l'univers : commercer toujours le même produit fait baisser son prix de vente dans le secteur, agresser les membres d'une race a des effets négatifs sur vos relations diplomatiques avec eux allant jusqu'à l'antipathie pure et simple.

La prise en main se fait comme pour un simulateur : le joueur est mis dès le début au poste de pilotage d'un petit chasseur qu'il peut piloter dans l'espace. Malgré l'absence d'aide significative et une interface relativement austère pour le non initié, X³ se laisse prendre en main au bout de quelques heures et grâce à un manuel utile (on peut de plus pour certaines commandes avancées se reporter à la démo de X²:The Threat qui proposait un tutorial assez bien fait concernant le pilotage et la gestion des usines qui n'a pas trop changé). Passé cette étape, le joueur peut sortir en combinaison spatiale, par exemple pour rentrer dans un autre vaisseau laissé à l'abandon, naviguer entre les stations (pour livrer des ressources, conduire quelqu'un à une autre station, commercer...) ou s'improviser défenseur occasionnel d'un secteur contre les pirates (vous pourrez même peut-être récupérer la marchandise, légale ou non, du vaisseau abattu si cette dernière a survécu à l'explosion). Par le biais de menus et de nombreux raccourcis clavier, après l'installation des logiciels adaptés, il peut mettre son vaisseau en pilote automatique, piloter d'autres vaisseaux ou stations spatiales à distance, gérer leurs stocks, communiquer avec les stations spatiales et les vaisseaux amicaux aux alentours, faire commercer ses propres vaisseaux / stations, organiser des patrouilles etc, et effectuer d'autres actions automatisées (dont le déclenchement est géré par le joueur) spécifiques.

Modes de jeu

X³ propose, au moment de la création d'une nouvelle partie, le choix entre plusieurs scénarios de base, avec ou sans la trame originale, et les échelons de difficulté qui vont avec.

Les démarrages de parties sont souvent longs et parfois difficiles, mais celui-ci ne prend sa véritable dimension qu'au bout de plusieurs (dizaines) d'heures de jeu. Lorsque les choix, très limités du début, laissent la place à une quasi-infinité de possibilités face à la taille et la complexité de l'univers X, on se rend vraiment compte à quel point ce jeu est complet et se démarque de la plupart de ses concurrents.

Combat

Dans X³, le combat peut-être une option très lucrative. Mais au fur et à mesure que les rangs de combats augmentent, les vaisseaux rencontrés et les missions proposées deviennent de plus en plus dures. Des flottes entières peuvent être gérées aisément par le joueur et les classes des vaisseaux vont du simple vaisseau de reconnaissance de quelques mètres à l'énorme porte-nefs de plusieurs kilomètres de long. Tous sont bien sûr pilotables et gérables par le joueur.
Économie de l'Univers X³

L'économie d'X³ est basée sur le principe de l'offre et de la demande : plus une marchandise est demandée dans une station donnée, plus celle-ci est chère. Si une marchandise est sans cesse chargée dans les cargos de l'IA, les usines qui la produisent vont augmenter leurs prix. Si au contraire, celle-ci est très peu demandée, elle s'accumule et les prix baissent.

Le schéma de production de base est assez simple à comprendre ; il y a 4 niveaux de production qui permettent de fabriquer toutes les ressources.

• Les photopiles (l'énergie) qui sont la base de toute production et utilisées à tous les niveaux
• Les Ressources Primaires (base de chaîne alimentaire dépendant des races, extraction de minéraux)
• Les Ressources Secondaires (nourritures complexes, éléments transformés) qui vont permettre de fabriquer les Ressources Finales
• Les Ressources Finales (Lasers, Boucliers, Missiles, ...) qui sont destinées à être vendues.

Il est à noter qu'au niveau des ressources finales, on peut fabriquer des cristaux qui alimentent les centrales à énergie solaire et permettent de boucler le cycle.

Maîtriser la production de ressources très avancées comme les lasers utilisés sur les vaisseaux de combat ou les boucliers est un défi en soi. Les mécanismes très simples de l'économie de l'univers X engendrent parfois une complexité dans la création et la gestion de ceux-ci au fur et à mesure que la taille des complexes d'usines croît.

Scripts & Mods

X³ : Terran Conflict autorise la création de scripts et de mods par les fans de la communauté, permettant de modifier sensiblement le gameplay, le comportement de l'IA, le contenu, et en ajouter (nouveaux vaisseaux par exemple). La plupart des scripts ou mods peuvent être trouvés via le forum officiel.

🗃️ Specifications

🚦 Entry status

📖️ Summary

🎥️ Videos

🕸️ Links

📕 Description [en]

📕 Description [fr]