The first DLC for Phoenix Point, the turn-based sci-fi strategy game from original X-Com creator Julian Gollop's studio Snapshot Games, is now available on the Epic Games Store. Entitled Blood and Titanium, the update adds new cybernetic augmentations, available through new research projects, that will enable improved stats and new abilities.
That stuff doesn't come without a cost, though, and not just in terms of diminished humanity: Bionics are expensive to make, and every time a piece of it gets messed up in combat, it's going to cost even more money to fix.
The New Jericho faction also gets a new subfaction in the DLC called the Pure, made up of former soldiers who have replaced most, or in some cases all, of their bodies with bionic upgrades. (They must have a pretty beefy budget.) The Pure have a separate set of mission to complete, and their own story to tell through new in-game cinematics. New weapons and equipment are also in the mix, including the new Zeus EMP grenade, which is particularly handy against vehicles and Pure soldiers.
Separate from the DLC, Snapshot has also released the free Leviathan update for Phoenix Point that adds another new subfaction, the Forsaken, who were exiled by the Disciple of Anu for using Pandoran mutations to mutate their entire bodies—not all that different from the Pure, from the sound of it, except that they use alien mutations instead of mechanics for their enhanced abilities.
The update also includes makes various tweaks, fixes, and balance changes, including:
- Changes to most weapons and all damage types
- A rework to difficulty levels making the easier difficulties more forgiving and the hardest difficulties more challenging. This should provide a range of difficulties suitable for players of all skill levels and experience
- Changes to the Pandoran evolution speed and the Oneiric Delirium Index (ODI) - these changes reduce any sudden spikes in difficulty while keeping the pressure on
Phoenix Point: Blood and Titanium is available for $5 from the Epic Games Store, and is included with the five-part season pass.
