Aliens in player's team

[ufogio]

Do you think are you going to implement the possibility to include alien soldiers in player's team in the future?

I say, it would be very cool to have one taman or ortnok playing in the good side... maybe, in the late game, the player can come in contact with some rebel force of aliens not infected by XVI, and make an alliance with them.
Maybe the player could find some slaves during a special rescue mission, and help them. Or, after discovering an antidote to the XVI virus/worm, he can be able to save some of the aliens he captured.
Or maybe, after deciphering the Astrogation system, the player can find informations about the location of free tamans fighting XVI.
The aliens could have some special bonuses in using alien weapons; and they can be available on a limited number, maybe you can introduce a single new NPC which is the only alien survived to XVI, and he has to go in some specific missions, and the game will be lost if he gets killed.

[BTAxis]

The likelihood of any such thing happening is very small. We have discussed the possibility of contacting "friendly" aliens on another world under attack by XVI, but we discarded that idea.

[nemchenk]

Easter egg? 

[Psawhn]

You can select an alien team for multiplayer, but I think that's the only way to see an alien inside a blue/green circle.

[eleazar]

An interesting idea, but it doesn't really mesh with with the storyline and atmosphere.

[Zorlen]

An interesting idea, but it doesn't really mesh with with the storyline and atmosphere.

Not all aliens are living, they have robotic soldiers as well. And I think that a sort of stealth mission with captured and reprogrammed alien robot doesn't contradict XVI-based storyline.
*whistles Terminator theme*

[eleazar]

Not all aliens are living, they have robotic soldiers as well. And I think that a sort of stealth mission with captured and reprogrammed alien robot doesn't contradict XVI-based storyline.

You have a point there

[ufogio]

The likelihood of any such thing happening is very small. We have discussed the possibility of contacting "friendly" aliens on another world under attack by XVI, but we discarded that idea.

That's too bad. It would be more fun for the player and a great opportunity to introduce new storyline plots or new Non-Playing Characters.

Have you ever playing a game called 'Ur-Quan Masters'? It is an old '92 game, the former name is 'Star Control II', which you can download and play for free, or install directly in any Linux distribution.
The storyline of Ur-Quan reminds me someway the one of ufo-ai. In Ur-Quan, you lead a small human force against an enemy which is similar to XVI, and to accomplish that, you have to make alliances with other alien races.
This is maybe too much for ufo:ai but as I was saying before, the player doesn't necessarly need to contact other planets to come in contact with other aliens.. maybe they could show up by themselves, and be the ones who give the player the coordinates of the XVI mother ship and explain its story.

[johnman]

good idea, but i'm not really behind it

[Panthera Leo]

If your running Linux, and have way too much time!...

You could always download a SVN version, delete the human model information, and make hard links with the same names to the alien models...

[shevegen]

The idea is fun but I think it feels against the spirit of the game.

An alien fighting on human-side against other aliens? I think many humans would REVOLT on this idea, that on the one hand aliens kill their brothers and sisters, and on the other hand they help the humans fight aliens....


What however could be fun, would be soldiers that could be corrupted by aliens somehow... money... mind control... perverted implant into their body and controlling the brain...  >

[Doctor J]

An alien fighting on human-side against other aliens? I think many humans would REVOLT on this idea, that on the one hand aliens kill their brothers and sisters, and on the other hand they help the humans fight aliens....

The idea has been used in science fiction before.  The TV show SG-1 had one of the 'bad guys' switch sides.  The civvies won't officially know about aliens, so they wouldn't care.  PHALANX is another matter, but if the traitor was convincing enough...

[Chriswriter90]

You eventually come up with a cure for the XVI human strand but what about cures for other strands?
You could train aliens with the "Training Simulator" as long as you have space in your Living Quarters.
I also like the Idea of reprograming alien "Battle-Bots".

Training Simulator = http://ufoai.ninex.info/wiki/index.php/Base_Facilities/Training_Simulator
I downloaded 2.2 a few months ago and started playing, why no Training Simulators?

[solaris]

how about humans on the alien team

[Chriswriter90]

how about humans on the alien team

That's already being worked on: it's called the XVI-H virus.

There's a glitch/bug where Ortnoks use human weapons, that might be an early build of what your getting at.