Hey Marines!
The Campaign in USC:CF will feature a grand strategic layer on a planet map, persistent global inventory management, unit progression with XP gains and permadeath, narrative elements with lore & choices, and even more, compared to the non-Campaign game modes. But how will the Campaign start, what choices will the player have in creating a Campaign session, and how will those affect the course of the game? Today, we’re going to tell you a bit more about this.
Starting a Campaign
From the Main Menu you’ll find yourself on the Campaign setup screen. The Campaign will feature a slot-based save system, but that doesn’t mean you can’t save manually or have multiple saves if you’re not playing on Hardcore (“Iron Man")—the main purpose of this system is to let you easily differentiate between save files belonging to different playthroughs!
In addition to the Difficulty setting known from the other game modes, which will not only control enemy number and strength but also the amount of loot and some other elements (don’t forget, in the Campaign, what items and ammo you spend will remain spent—you'll have to find means to replenish the stock!), there’s the Campaign length/complexity setting that controls how big a war you’re getting yourself into. With the Story option, the background simulation that runs the alien hordes and controls the flow of the whole Campaign will be more simplistic, letting you follow a clear path and finish the story in 15-20 hours if everything goes well. On Normal, you’ll see much more alien activity and more battles, will have to make more strategic choices, and will have to be wiser with your spending and overall management to be able to complete the story in about 50 hours. Full-scale is for the real strategy enthusiast who is not afraid to micro-manage everything—many, many battles await against an enemy on multiple fronts, against the scarcity of resources, and the weight of all choices that cannot be unmade.
Affiliation
As a Fleet Commander of the USCF, you’re not above the intricacies of global politics and corporate espionage. The greatest mega-concerns that run Earth in 2308 have a huge stake in all United Space Command activity, and not everyone is always playing by the book—of course not! At the beginning of the game, you’ll have to choose an affiliation—or you can choose not to have one outside of USC. This choice will affect your Relations and Renown, two new systems that will be important during the Campaign. By navigating the world of politics, agreeing to or rejecting (or failing!) secret missions, selling information to, or withholding intelligence from the different firms, your Relations with them will change. A good relationship will grant you perks, like access to exclusive weapons and items. Renown, on the other hand, measures your dignity as an officer, and if you don’t engage in fishy agreements with non-military agencies, that will boost it dearly. Renown may be used in a far subtler way than Relations, like facilitating a resolution between warring factions, requesting additional reinforcements, or holding the morale of your crew high even when things go awry. The Relations and Renown system will be a secondary layer to the Campaign, one you can mostly ignore if you’re only interested in the war strategy, but it will give your choices even more weight in certain situations. And of course, every mega-concern may have a hidden agenda that can influence the course of the war, so you’d better be prepared!
Personal avatar
You didn’t think you could wage war remotely on a planet many lightyears away from Earth, did you? You, as Commander, will be among your marines aboard the deck of your flagship and will have the option to go into battle with them when you want, or when the necessity arises. At the start of the Campaign, you will be asked to customize your avatar. This avatar will be one of the many units on the roster, representing you, personally. You can choose not to go into battle yourself, and if everything goes well, you’ll never have to; but fighting alongside your marines can boost their morale and your Renown. Some secret missions from affiliations will also require that you oversee the operation in person. And, of course, if the flagship—horribile dictu!—ever gets attacked, you’ll have to fight for your life alongside your fellow crewmates. If your avatar dies, the game is immediately over—but, of course, you can always reload a previously saved game… granted you’re not playing on Hardcore!
Stay tuned for more updates on the Campaign. We're not done sharing sneak peeks at what we're working on and what's waiting for you!
❄️ The USC: Counterforce team 🎁
