XCOM: Enemy Unknown

https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stoob/works

Firaxis did themselves proud with this game.  As someone who banged his head against the original XCom: Enemy Unknown (AKA XCom: UFO Defence) from the 90s, and even got to Mars and defeated the alien horde, I fully appreciate how well Firaxis did in updating this classic title.  While, yes, it could be said that the game was more 'linear' than the original, such as that certain research needed to be done at certain times, whereas in the original you could pretty much decide your own course of action, this did not detract from a well crafted turn based strategy game in its own right.

Much like the original however, a sense of 'attachment' for your soldiers forms, as they go through the missions, getting stronger each time and getting out alive.  Losing an experienced soldier in the field is not only damaging to the operation as whole, as that expertise is needed to help keep others alive too and prevent them from panicking, but pangs that they'd come so far only to be killed by some snit of a Sectoid.  Each soldier is given a generated full name and once experienced enough, a nickname, which only adds to the attachment.  Nicknames like 'Thunder', 'Hex', or 'Rhino', typical grunt nicknames but they are combat experienced soldiers so it's to be expected.

So my pondering has been around how the reserved and usually focussed research specialist, Doctor Vahlen might interact with these 'grunts'.  We don't get much to go on from the game, it's not very 'character' based, though from some research of my own, many of the devs wanted Doctors Vahlen and Chen to be married and even created an elaborate model for a wedding ring that was never used.  I don't have any issues with the marriage idea but I personally don't go with this, not for what I want to muse.  Firaxis themselves have said that no-one is wrong as it doesn't say either way in-game.