Lessons in Analytics From XCOM 2
Enemies of Data — A Gamer’s Guide
It has been a few years since the second installment of XCOM made its appearance. As far as squad-based strategy games go, it is an excellent successor to the original XCOM. But this article isn’t a review. I also do plan to point to game concepts like I have in other gamer series.
Aside from MMOs, all gamers know that one of the most important components of a great game is great enemies. Great games require challenging enemies and thoughtful AI. Great analytics is not unsimilar. In an analytic career, you are going to sped a good deal of time dealing with various levels of “enemies”. Figuratively speaking of course… let’s all stay friends here.
The Trooper
XCOM2’s most basic enemy is the Trooper. Their introduction comes with the label “predictable”. They have low health, poor shooting, but damn it — there are a lot of them.
In analytics, these fools are equally predictable. They show up with bad data, dumb counterarguments, and questionable sources. They are not overly quick on their feet. They are only surprising in just how many of them there are. And forget about stealth, these guys tend to be blowhards.
The ADVENT Officers
If the Troopers are a confederacy of dunces, the ADVENT officers are their leaders. These guys are harder to kill. They call the shots. And they have the ability to stun you.
Their are far fewer of these folks in the analytic ecosystem, but they can be dangerous. They tend to show up and surprise you with some unexpected data and findings. They are rarely dismissed with a single crank. First you need to disarm their data and then end them with a solid counter argument. These folks didn’t climb to their level by accident, but they should be dangerous to an experienced player.
The Sectoids
In the orginal XCOM, Sectoids were a bit comical. But in XCOM2 they have been given human DNA. They are capable of inducing panic and other mental problems. In other words, they make your team behave rather poorly.
These guys have a perfect analytics equivalent. In decades past, other employees could often be wicked smart. These days though, they have so many tools and reports at their fingertips — it is like they have analyst DNA. Their insights are often accurate and can insight panic in your team. But this is pretty easy to overcome if you simply stay calm. Discipline is a great mindshield.
The Faceless
Once known as the Thin Man in original XCOM, the faceless hide in the form of other humans. At some point in various rescue missions they spring up, create a lot of damage, and are quite a bitch to kill off without taking a squad member with them.
In analytics, this is often a team member who suddenly starts wandering the company with conflicting insights and data. These events never end well. In reality (not XCOM), some of these data enemies are not actually the bad guys. If I am being honest, there is at least one former boss I had who might put me in this category. If I am being honest, I might have put him in the next one.
The Viper
These are some of the most insidious common enemies in XCOM2. They are fast. They can bind you up. They can do impressive and accurate damage. They dodge nimbly. And even when you evade their first attack, they off hit you with poison.
They are analogous with some of the most insidious members of the data enemy community. You know these folks by their agility with numbers. They are human calculators. They are bright and impressive. But the reality is they don’t believe in data discipline. Their rather snake-like.
These guys love quotes like “… lies, damn lies, and statistics”. They believe “you can make the data say anything”. Which is all to say that they really don’t believe in data, although they would deny it. But it you believe all data can say whatever you want … what is the point? Do you just like paying someone a big salary to either argue with OR feed your confirmation bias. Truth is — they don’t know… these folks are poisonous!
If you want to win in XCOM2, you are going to have to learn to deal with all of these enemies. Often a group of two or three at a time. If you want to want to succeed in analytics, you are going to have to learn to defeat them, too. Learn to identify your opponents. Learn their weakness. Remember to use teamwork — this is a squad-based game. Invest in building up your skills, improving your equipment, and leveraging the terrain. The world of data, like XCOM 2, provides plenty of cover and perspective.
Thanks for reading. Stay safe. More important, stay informed.
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