UFO: Enemy Unknown

UFO: Enemy Unknown
Also known as: X-COM: UFO Defense (US) Developer: Mythos Games Publisher: MicroProse Platforms: DOS, Amiga, PlayStation, Windows Released internationally: 1994 This game has unused areas. This game has unused graphics. This game has unused items. This game has unused abilities. This game has unused music. This game has unused sounds. This game has unused text. This game has regional differences. This game has revisional differences.

UFO: Enemy Unknown is a turn-based tactical combat game with elements of global strategy, resource management, RPG, and even a bit of arcade. Intercept and shoot down UFOs, capture aliens, protect cities from acts of terror, and study your enemies to fight them better. The game spawned two less successful sequels in the same genre, two more failed sequels in different genres, and more recently a very successful reboot in XCOM: Enemy Unknown.

A lot of info about the game's internals is collected in the fan wiki https://www.ufopaedia.org/index.php/X-COM

Version Differences

To do: Changes in engine, sounds, Amiga and PS1 differenes.

There was the original release, several patches up to Version 1.4 (at least for MS-DOS), and a "Collectors' Edition" also labelled as Version 1.4 but with significant changes to the engine and sounds to address compatibility issues.

The PlayStation version features a non-random map for the final mission and several animated cutscenes for the mission end (good and bad) and for the endgame.

Unused UFO Components

To do: Is there anything else?

UFOs and alien bases may have a number of immobile objects which are captured when a player wins a tactical mission. Then they can be sold for money or researched to unlock further research, or at least get some flavor text and score. But there are at least three exceptions.

Alien Reproduction

A valid base inventory object and research topic, with Ufopedia text and graphics available, but the Battlescape tile that would yield it after a mission is not implemented. The research text reads:

English: These chambers contain alien foetuses. The design of these containers seems to suggest that the aliens which use this process rely completely on laboratory reproduction. The rich nutrients ensure rapid development of the foetus. This factory line system could generate thousands of alien clones in a short space of time. The process could be easily adapted for human reproduction, or alien-human hybrids.

French: Ces chambres contiennent des foetus aliens. La forme de ces containers semble suggérer que les aliens qui utilisent ceprocédé dépendent totalement de la reproduction en laboratoire. Les aliments riches assurent le développement rapide du foetus. Cette reproduction à la chaîne peut générer des milliers de clones aliens en très peu de temps. Le procédé pourrait facilement être appliqué pour la reproduction humaine, ou pour des hybrides aliens-humains.

German: Diese Kammern enthalten außerirdische Föten. Die Konstruktion dieser Behälter deutet darauf hin, daß die Außerirdischen, die diese Methode benutzen, zur Fortpflanzung auf Labore angewiesen sind. Die reichen Nährlösungen garantieren die rasche Entwicklung des Fötus. Diese fabrikmäßige Aufzucht könnte innerhalb kürzester Zeit Tausende von außerirdischen Klonen erzeugen. Der Prozeß kann leicht auf die Fortpflanzung von Menschen oder Mischformen angewendet werden.

The item does not trigger any lines of research and is there solely for flavor, just like half a dozen other "alien research" items. There are various fan speculations to as why it was not included. Interestingly, this idea is revisited in X-COM: Apocalypse as "procreation parks" derived from the invaders' technology and being the preferred way of reproduction for humans in the 2080s.

UFO Construction

In the sequel X-COM: Terror from the Deep, the "USO Construction" item is captured in downed USOs, and the player needs to study it to be able to research craft based on alien technology... but in this game the UFO Construction item has no relation to UFO Construction research. The research is unlocked by a combination of topics on UFO components. However, the base inventory item still exists and can be sold, if it's added by editing a save game.

Alien Habitat

Research item, text, and graphics are absent. Battlescape tiles can be altered to yield this base inventory item after a mission and it can be sold, but not researched. Fans speculate that this item together with "Alien Food" may have been intended for researching Alien Containment facility, but in all versions of the game Alien Containment is already buildable from the start.

Unused Ufopedia Text

Aircraft weapons lack description texts in the game, but the strings are present in the ENGLISH.DAT, FRENCH.DAT, and GERMAN.DAT files. The first five obviously correspond to Stingray, Avalanche, Cannon, Fusion Ball and Laser Cannon. The remaining weapon is Plasma Beam, which doesn't fit the remaining description.

English:

ADVANCED AIR TO AIR MISSILE WITH SPECIALLY SHIELDED ELECTRONICS.
AIR TO AIR MISSILE WITH NUCLEAR WARHEAD, BUT AN EXTREMELY HEAVY LOAD.
HIGH POWERED CANNON WHICH FIRES ARMOUR PIERCING ROUNDS CAPABLE OF PENETRATING 16 INCHES OF STEEL.
THIS LAUNCHER FIRES A BALL SHAPED MISSILE POWERED BY ANTI-MATTER REACTION. THE BALL DESTROYS THE TARGET WITH A GRAVITY WAVE IMPLOSION.
THIS CONVENTIONAL LASER BEAM IS POWERED BY AN ANTI-MATTER REACTION CHAMBER.
THE GRAVITY BEAM DIRECTS A FINELY CHANNELLED IMPLODING GRAVITY FIELD.

French:

MISSILE AIR-AIR SOPHISTIQUE AVEC DES SYSTEMES ELECTRONIQUES SPECIALEMENT PROTEGES.
MISSILE AIR-AIR A TETE NUCLEAIRE, MAIS D'UN POIDS TRES ELEVE.
CANON TRES PUISSANT QUI TIRE DES BALLES CAPABLES DE PERCER DES ARMURES ET DE PENETRER DANS DE L'ACIER DE 40 CM.
CE LANCEUR TIRE UN MISSILE, DE LA FORME D'UNE BALLE, GRACE A LA REACTION ANTI-MATIERE. LA BALLE DETRUIT LA CIBLE AVEC UNE IMPLOSION D'ONDES GRAVITATIONNELLES.
CE RAYON LASER CONVENTIONNEL EST ACTIVE PAR UNE CHAMBRE A REACTION ANTI-MATIERE.
LE RAYON GRAVITATIONNEL PRODUIT UN CHAMP GRAVITATIONNEL A IMPLOSION CANALISEE.

German:

FORTSCHRITTLICHE LUFTKAMPF-RAKETE MIT SPEZIELL ABGESCHIRMTER ELEKTRONIK.
LUFTKAMPF-RAKETE MIT ATOMSPRENGKOPF, DOCH EXTREM HOHEM GEWICHT.
HOCHLEISTUNGSGESCHÜTZ FÜR PANZERBRECHENDE GESCHOSSE, DIE STAHL VON 16 ZOLL DICKE DURCHDRINGEN KÖNNEN.
DIESE ABSCHUSSVORRICHTUNG FEUERT EIN KUGELGESCHOSS AB, DAS DURCH ANTIMATERIE-REAKTION ANGETRIEBEN WIRD. DIE KUGEL ZERSTÖRT DAS ZIEL MIT EINER GRAVITATIONSWELLEN-IMPLOSION.
DIESER KONVENTIONELLE LASERSTRAHL WIRD DURCH EINE ANTIMATERIE-REAKTION AUSGELÖST.
DER GRAVITATIONSSTRAHL SETZT EIN GENAU AUSGERICHTETES IMPLODIERENDES GRAVITATIONSFELD EIN.

Sound

To do: Differences between 1.2, 1.4, and CE

Unused Map Blocks

To do: Pictures

Tactical maps are randomly assembled from pre-made blocks. Maps (3D arrays of tile indexes, usually 10×10×3) of each block are stored in MAP files, and tiles they use are defined in MCD, PCK, and TAB files. A map can use multiple tilesets and what corresponds to what is set in the engine.

There are several MAP files that are not used by the engine. There is no way to tell what tile sets they were made for, but fans have figured out reasonably good guesses: https://www.ufopaedia.org/index.php/Talk:MAPS

MAP3.MAP

A 32×48×3 map with several blocky human buildings, but with alien gravity elevators.

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  Level 1

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  Level 2

• 

  Level 3

The file contains several extra bytes at the start, and has to be manually edited for MAP editing software to accept it. The polar terrain was chosen because only it has puddles; the original intention is unknown. The block is far larger than any other terrain block, and cannot be combined with them as it is because everything else has length and width in multiples of 10. There is no room to place X-COM craft and no exit grid, thus the block cannot be used as the only block for the mission.

MAP4.MAP

A 32×48×3 map of a single large building in the same style.

PABDUCT.MAP

A 10×20×4 map with two pyramids linked together, with alien technology inside.

PHARVEST.MAP

A 20×20×4 Dome-shaped UFO(?) assembled out of pyramids.

PSCOUT.MAP

A 10×10×4 pyramid-shaped UFO.

TEMP.MAP

A 10×10×1 map that's the same as the bottom level of URBAN17.MAP.

TEMP1.MAP

A very simplistic 10×10×1 design similar to the medium scout UFO.

TEMP2.MAP

A 20×20×1 map that's the same as the middle level of URBAN08.MAP.

TEMP3.MAP

A 20×20×1 map that's the same as TEMP2.MAP, but without stairs.

UFO_000.MAP

A 10×10×2 A map that's a smaller version of the medium scout.

UFO_010.MAP

A 20×20×2 map that's a smaller version of the abductor.

UFO_1B.MAP

A 2×2×3 UFO smaller than Small Scout.

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This map uses unused tiles from files UFO1.MCD, UFO1.PCK, and UFO1.TAB - same as for Small Scout. Unlike Small Scout, however, this ship has no gravity lift and no interior.

Unused Mechanics

To do: Other unused game mechanics implemented in the engine, but not used by existing resources and uncovered by altering files and reverse engineering. Melee combat too.

Fire and smoke area effects use similar mechanics, but the engine allows four more types of smoke-like effects. There are no resource files for them and nobody knows what they were going to be. They are speculated to be gas weapons like in Apocalypse.

There are four unused types of grenades. Again, speculated to carry the four unimplemented types of smoke-like weapon.