Last night my friend and I tried heX-Wing for the first time. Actually, we are calling it heX-Wing 1.0 since this variant is only for version 1.0.
So after going to Kinko's (sorry, its FedEx Office now) to print up a play mat, we were ready. I had doubts, but the one thing we discovered is that all the fiddly aspects of this game is completely erased/removed! Using hexes really did help in a big way. I'm starting to understand what people are saying. The biggest influence is the speed of play. We were shocked on how much faster game play was!
My friend really likes this heX-Wing add-on, but for me, I'm not sure yet. This variant takes a lot out of what I do not like about X-Wing, but I guess I got use to it. I'm pretty sure my friend will get me to play more heX-Wing 1.0, so maybe after a few more games I will know how I feel.
This variant is a very clever hex conversion, and if you like hex based air combat games (like my friend), then you will really like heX-Wing.
Oh, that is when I noticed that the TIE Fighter has something in common with this variant.