It's hard to lose someone you care about, especially when you two have been through a lot together — even if that person is just lines of code represented by artwork.
The creators of XCOM: Enemy Unknown, the strategy game in which players lead troops to defend Earth from invading extraterrestrials, have invited players to remember the soldiers they've "lost," via Facebook.
Players of XCOM: Enemy Unknown are assigned a squadron of troops from all over the world, all with different names, appearances and countries of origin. If your soldier survives enough missions on Earth destroying aliens, he even gets a nickname, whether randomly generated or selected by the player.
After a several missions of extremely harrowing battle, it's no surprise players get attached to their soldiers, especially those who have survived a long time. In response, Firaxis Games has created a Facebook app wherein players can post details about their soldiers lives, as well as a personal message on how they lived — or died.
“We’ve received a lot of great feedback on XCOM: Enemy Unknown from our community, but the thing we hear about most are their stories of their fallen operatives. Players really develop a strong connection with their soldiers, sometimes even naming them after friends or family," says Tom Bass, 2K Games Director of Social Media and Consumer Relations. "When I play and lose a great veteran that I've ranked up and customized, there's a sense of personal loss that's unique to XCOM: Enemy Unknown. This Facebook Memorial is a fun way for fans to remember these fallen operatives and share the stories with their friends and other XCOM fans.”
A note left for Lt. Zoe "Eagle Eye" Smith by Jennifer-Lee Heinser read, "She was my best sniper, but she ended up dashing too close to a Chryssalid. :("
Lt. Smith had served in four missions for Heinser. Her date of "death" is listed as March 3, 2015.
XCOM: Enemy Unknown is out now for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.