I think it's just a design decision.
I agree on that, but doesnt mean it was a good one. Heck the game isnt designed for huge squads thats true. But I hate been forced to play the way the designer wants.
your soldiers are better than the aliens they encounter (except rookies vs sectoids, maybe).
Debatable, since in classic and above you cant even cope up with thin men if you dont have at least lazers and basic armor, which will not be the case most situations. And laugh as much as you want, but a rookies fixed chance of 45% to hit a sectoid and not kill it, is not something to be scoffed at. And even then their stats are way better till your soldiers have 3 promotions at least (barring sectoids). But they come into packs. Your soldiers have the potential to be better yes, but they have to stay alive. As you progress the danger becomes real. You are not only overpowered but also outnumbered. Also remember that many missions give the enemy reinforcements.
You don't lose many since with armour you can usually take a shot or two (and then heal). It is very rare to lose a soldier in XCom2012 (at least I didn't in my one playthrough at "normal" difficulty.. only the redshirt base defense people). The only risk is activating multiple pods and getting swarmed and flanked. Most of the time I was saving "one use only" abilities until I was in trouble, and never used them..
Not my experience since I didnt try it on normal but on classic and once on supper human. I had soldiers been one shoted by a variety of enemies and my rookies were more blind than the originals.Normal difficulty is not what the game is designed for. Try it on classice and up (not bragging here, I am not the best player). All thin men became snippers for example, and all mutons have tons of health and a sectopod or cyberdisc can be a squadwipe all by itself (especially the first is a nightmare and IMHO the only modified unit of the original that was spot on). Just some examples. And how are you gonna heal an entire squad? The medkit has one use or three, if you pack more supports you are going low on firepower (and that is IF you have them all six unlocked, something not viable in the first two maybe even three months). The only way to make a support a semi-viable gunner is by arming them with plasma rifles, but thats too far in.
XCom:EU had a very different approach where every soldier was replaceable (the intention being to represent us as the primitives with a number advantage since it is our home planet, compared to the advanced gengineered aliens with high tech weapons but low numbers since they are from the stars). It is totally different. You're not the super-hero anymore, you're the brave soldier that faces the nightmare with his platoon, half of which don't make it back.
Replacable? How are you gonna replace a colonel? If you gonna go Soviet on them there is no chance in hell you go through it man. If you dont have several leveled guys to take up the brunt and certain equipment up and running your going nowehere. Plus in most missions there are at least twice the aliens as you.And lets not even speak about terror missions.
I like the old version much better and facing aliens where encountering even one can make you scared and they feel dangerouns instead of just fodder to remind you how awesome humans are (the ending is really to blame here, where the ehtereal basically explains that your volunteer is the chosen one and humans are superior to everything else. Talk about a superiority complex.. but that's what people want to hear now I think).
That makes two of us, but in 2012 if you play it on classic and up, the game forces you into a mold. You have to play a certain way to win or you wont win at all. That is untill you get your armors and guns. Thats what I found the most distastefull. I felt it was like playing a mini game instead of a normal game.
I think xenonauts went the opposite way, for more action, like XCom2012 did.
No comment since I havent played that for more than 3-4 missions.
