Mission Control (EU2012)
Mission Control
Mission Control is the facility at XCOM HQ where XCOM: Enemy Unknown's Geoscape is located. The Geoscape is the 3D real-time representation of the Earth (and Moon) used by the XCOM commander to send aircraft and soldiers on missions and to track the evolution of the fight against the current alien invasion.
Using the Geoscape the XCOM commander can Scan for Activity and/or wait for upcoming Research or Engineering reports. The Geoscape will also show unexpected events such as detected UFOs, alien attacks in progress or Council missions. The world view will also display any missions in progress, such as air interceptions and your Skyranger transport craft either going or returning from ground combat missions.
The Geoscape is where the game is advanced until new events occur. Enemy Unknown is played in real time, although it's rare for events to occur during base management and/or ordering planes, so those actions may be done at leisure. But all non-trivial actions, such as planes flying to their destination, completion of projects, waiting for new recruits to arrive, etc., take time to accomplish and this time must be waited out in the world view.
The Geoscape can be accessed both through the Mission Control and Situation Room of the XCOM HQ. The Situation Room also allows the XCOM commander to access other important strategic aspects such as funding and finances, expanding satellite and interceptor coverage and to track XCOM's campaign objectives.
The Mission Control facility is run by Central Officer Bradford, an NPC character that will notify the XCOM commander of the arrival of any upcoming reports or events, as well as advising him/her on any mission matters.
Geoscape
The view of the Earth-Moon system is presented in a 3D format which allows to zooming in specific locations and that will also display icons for current XCOM and alien activity. The map is continuously updated as the SCAN FOR ACTIVITY button is pressed/clicked to speed up time, showing dynamic physical events like day/night transition, etc. The view can be toggled between the Hologram and the Normal displays using the globe button.
The Geoscape also displays:
- The game's Date and Time
- 3D icons representing aircraft, UFOs, panic levels and other information;
- A list of UPCOMING EVENTS
- A list of current MISSONS
- Buttons to toggle the view or return to the base view.
To assign XCOM craft to those missions the player merely needs to click and select them. When XCOM craft are sent on missions the 'Scan For Activity' button is disabled until the mission is completed and the aircraft returns to XCOM's headquarters.
List of Icons
A number of 3D icons will be displayed by the view, depending on the view:
- The location XCOM HQ
- XCOM craft to their way or returning from on missions
- Funding countries will be outlined and their color will show their Panic levels
- XCOM satellites or interceptors deployed to protect countries will also be displayed
- Countries who signed pacts with the aliens are marked with a 'red vortex'
- Airborne UFOs
- Downed/Crashed UFOs
- Terror Sites
- Alien Abductions
- Council Missions
Upcoming Events
The right side of the Geoscape will list the number of days remaining until projects are completed or other any other upcoming events. Upon reaching the specified date the player will be informed of the event's results by the relevant XCOM department.
List of scheduled events
- Research reports on science projects
- Engineering reports on Workshop and Foundry projects
- Council monthly reports on XCOM's performance
- Arrival of new soldiers and purchased craft
Mission Launch
Satellite Launch
Mission Control is the location where satellites are launched after they are built by Engineering. By expanding its space detection network XCOM will enhance its capabilities to detect and stop incoming UFOs, receive additional Council funding and decrease the panic level of the country where it provides cover. And due to its critical role, the Aliens will also try to target and destroy XCOM's satellite network.
Any available ground missions will be displayed at the top of the Geoscape. Clicking on any mission will show the country and type of mission, along with its difficulty level and any additional rewards (money, soldiers, scientists, engineers) offered for completing the mission. If the option 'Launch' is selected then the player will be brought to the Hangar where he/she will be able to select and choose the ground squad.
Air combat between XCOM's Interceptors and the UFOs happens when XCOM's satellite network detects an incoming alien craft and a fighter craft is sent to engage it. The following air combat can occur on any of these circumstances:
- To protect XCOM's satellite coverage - UFOs can be sent on a retaliatory missions to shoot down XCOM's satellite's over a specific country. If it is not intercepted the satellite will be destroyed, losing any detection coverage over that country (and also funding).
- To interdict alien actions - To prevent the UFO from completing any other Alien Mission.
- To recover their technology - For later recovery of invaluable Alien Artifacts at the UFO crash site.
Whenever air interception occurs the game will open an window for the resulting Air Combat.
Countries/Regions
The Geoscape displays the 16 countries which directly contribute to XCOM and thus in turn need to be protected. Each nation provides resources which may be increased by deploying satellites above that particular country and exhibits a panic level between 1 and 5 (5 being the worst). These countries, their satellite coverage and associated panic levels can be seen in the Situation Room and are listed here, divided by geographic areas:
| Africa | Asia | Europe | North America | South America |
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In addition to the countries of the Council there appears to be also other nations with whom you may sell weapons (through the Gray Market or that may appear on the news headlines on the Situation Room. However, their overall impact in the game is unclear at this moment, although you may recruit soldiers from those nationalities.
| Asia | Europe | South America |
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