XCOM: Enemy Unknown

Fans of the tactical combat/business sim classic X-COM had long awaited a worthy sequel.  After several underwhelming followups in the '90s, Firaxis promised a return to form with 2012's Enemy Unknown.  But did it prove a worthy return of a classic PC franchise, or should it have been kept locked away like a captive alien? 

 

X-COM as a franchise had been dormant for many years by the early 2010s, with most fans still lamenting the lack of a followup anywhere near as good as its first entry.  So when 2K, still hot off the success of games like Bioshock and Borderlands, announced a reboot, fans got excited.  That excitement largely turned to anger once a trailer was released, showing that the game would be yet another first person shooter with a vague XCOM skin.  They turned things around when Firaxis quickly announced a second game - a proper turn based tactical combat title this time that would serve as a reboot to the series.  The FPS would later be reworked into a tactical third-person shooter called "The Bureau: XCOM Declassified" and released to middling reviews and disappointing sales.  (But hey, at least it's better than X-COM: Enforcer...bleuch.)

XCOM: Enemy Unknown is a blend of old and new elements.  There is still a degree of base building and character and equipment management to the game, though it is considerably more streamlined - you don't get to manually design your bases or choose exactly where to place them on the world map; instead you pick one of five continents to operate from, getting a unique bonus depending on your choice.  Character building also puts less focus on training individual stats now, with each character now align into one of four predetermined classes after gaining their first rank. The Assault class relies on speed to flank enemies, Supports heal and buff allies, Heavies pack massive firepower and tank damage, and Snipers pick off enemies from afar, getting some hilariously game-breaking abilities in their upper ranks.  The Enemy Within expansion also adds a fifth in MEC Troopers - soldiers placed inside heavily armored battlesuits that pack heavy firepower.  After each rank-up you get a choice of one of two upgrades to pick from, but once you pick one the other is closed off permanently, so it's a choice to be considered carefully.  Combat also operates on a somewhat smaller scale - you deploy units in the field in squads of up to four (later upgradeable to five and later still to six) and maps use predetermined points that provide partial or full cover.  Some walls and cover points can be destroyed by powerful attacks like grenades, while others can prove hazardous in their own right (cars have a habit of exploding after taking any amount of damage).  Characters can also climb up ladders and drainpipes to reach rooftops, jump through open windows and, with upgrades, use ziplines to reach new vantage points, so the environments are quite dynamic.  You'll also frequently be forced to choose between nations to help when a Terror Mission gets underway, which will improve relations with one and harm them with the other, so it's a game with a lot of hard choices to make.

Researching new technologies and alien anatomies remains an integral part of the experience - you'll have to capture aliens and their technology to research in order to keep pace with the escalating threat of the aliens (and, in Enemy Within, a terrorist faction called EXALT).  In a twist from the original, alien tech now self-destructs if its wielder dies, so capturing enemies alive via stun grenades (or clubbing them unconscious with a melee attack) becomes a new layer of strategy.  This comes in a variety of forms - new weapons using laser and plasma technology are major ones, but armor upgrades, equipment like SCOPEs and improved medkits, and eventually psychic powers (considerably less game breaking than the original game's though still quite dangerous), all help your team and make surviving later fights considerably easier.  Another resource added in Enemy Within is "Meld", which, after being collected during missions, allows the player to outfit their squad members with genetic and mechanical upgrades - super leaping, a chance to escape death via a second heart, and inflicting backlash damage on psionic attackers to name a few, as well as enabling them to become the aforementioned MEC Troopers.

Enemy Unknown retains the business management element of the original games too.  You'll of course have to acquire resources by going on missions, manage money for new troops equipment and upgrades by selling unneeded resources, and keep XCOM's member nations happy and loyal - if panic from alien attacks rises too high they'll reduce funding or even withdraw from XCOM entirely, while keeping it low and your squads alive and healthy may cause them to increase funds instead.    Base building is still here, albeit mostly focused on placing particular types of rooms adjacent to one another for bonuses, there's less focus on logistics (your troops can get basically anywhere in the world quickly and without trouble right from the start) and the base defense element of the old games is almost entirely absent.  It returns in Enemy Within, albeit in an extremely limited form - the aliens attack your base exactly once near the start of the campaign and then never do so again; it's even said in dialog: "I doubt they'll try that again!". This stands as a pretty baffling contrast to the original games, where defending your bases was a pretty major component of the late game - you'd want their location to stay a secret (and build cloaking fields to that effect), because once the aliens found a base, they'd come after it almost constantly until they managed to capture and destroy it.  Once that happened, you'd have to rely on intercepting alien ships before they could attack, building stationary defense systems for when they did get through or, as a desperate last resort, fending them off in a skirmish battle.  It makes a little more sense in XCOM 2 (wherein you operate out of a cloaked ship that's constantly on the move and therefore much harder to track down), but seems a pretty prominent omission in a remake of the original game.

XCOM: Enemy Unknown doesn't have the same level of granular management and meticulous planning as the original game, but it's not trying to slavishly re-create what came before - it's a fresh take on the X-COM format, retaining the familiar premise and most of its points of challenge while bringing a new feel and design philosophy.  Keeping the basic tenets while taking the gameplay and storytelling in new directions also gave them plenty of leeway when it came time to make a sequel, with XCOM 2's much higher stakes and surprisingly dark plotline elevating it to what I consider the best game in the series.  Enemy Unknown of course derves it's share of praise too, particularly maintaining its predecessor's depth and challenge in a time period where "bringing classics to a new audience" mostly meant "dumbing it down to the point of being farcical".  It may not be flawless and it's still somewhat overshadowed by what came before, but Enemy Unknown is easily X-COM's best entry since the first and very worthy of the name.

Developer: Firaxis Games

Publisher: 2K Games

Released: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016

Platform: XBox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, OS X, Linux, iOS, Android, PlayStation Vita

Recommended Version:  As usual I recommend the PC version for the fact that it supports modding - more classes, map types and customization options become available.  One popular choice is a fan mod known as Long War, which adds much more content across the board, larger scale battles and makes the campaign into more of a lengthy, sustained war effort.

XCOM: Chimera Squad

An experimental outing headed by one of the designers of XCOM 2, Chimera Squad could be considered a cross between XCOM-styled tactical gameplay and a little bit of room-breaching action a la the SWAT series.  Indeed, a major mechanic in the game is positioning your team at various breach points and attacking foes all in one swift action, gaining bonuses if you enter through unexpected means (blowing up a wall, entering through a vent) or facing potential penalties if you just come in through a door or window.  In addition, enemy and ally turns are now interleaved between one another rather than being broken up by side, and rather than custom-made characters, Chimera Squad is a prefab team - eleven elite soldiers, alien, human and hybrid alike, all with distinct abilities and loadouts to aid them.  For example, Torque is a Viper who can slip through vents to launch ambushes and spit venom to blind/disable enemies, Verge can add enemies to his psionic "neural network" to grant himself stacking passive bonuses, Zephyr is a close-ranged but quite powerful melee fighter, and Cherub primarily serves as a support character, drawing enemy fire and shielding allies from harm.  They take on a variety of missions across City 31, defeating terrorist threats to the city and gradually exposing a larger conspiracy, and per series standards, gradually collect resources and research to unlock new gear and abilities in the course of their missions.  The campaign is quite short by XCOM standards and, unlike every prior game in the series, the death of a single agent results in an immediate game over.  A definite changeup for the series, though for $20 (or less if it's on sale), it's a fun little game to play through once or twice while you wait for XCOM 3.

Developer: Firaxis Games
Publisher: 2K Games
Platform: PC
Released: 2020

XCOM 2

After a very successful but somewhat divisive remake of the original X-COM, the stage was set for a sequel.  But does Firaxis's XCOM 2 help the franchise step out of the shadow of the original game's legacy, or does it simply provide a by-the-book entry for the franchise

X-COM: UFO Defense is a game that remains highly regarded among fans of classic PC games even today, and for good reason - it was a brilliant blend of tactical combat, business management and even had a touch of RPG style character building, requiring you to train up your army gradually and improve their skills through combat (and hope they didn't get taken out by a fatal reaction shot or an exploding gas station).  It had a number of sequels and spinoffs in the following years of varying quality, but none ever quite matched up to the first.  In the early 2010's, a reboot was announced; however, it quickly drew heavy criticism from fans, seemingly discarding the deep strategic element of the series in favor of a generic first person shooter experience.  The developers did take this criticism in stride, though, reworking the gameplay considerably to make it a squad-based tactical shooter (somewhat akin to Mass Effect in gameplay), and retitling it to "The Bureau: XCOM Declassified" to cement it as a spinoff rather than a proper entry, though it still only got middling reviews and sales were lackluster.  Alongside it came something more in line with fan expectations - a turn-based tactical combat experience that put focus on training your squad, managing their finances and developing new equipment to even up the odds in battle.  It was well-received and commercially successful, though it still felt a bit simplified and didn't break much new ground for the franchise in terms of storytelling or mechanics.

XCOM 2 was released four years later, serving as a direct sequel to the reboot.  Rather than attempting to copy Terror from the Deep or Apocalypse's scenario, though, it took a considerably darker turn.  The game is set on a future Earth where XCOM lost the war early on and the aliens (now under the collective name "ADVENT") have become a part of everyday life, using their technology and control of the media to keep the populace under control and blissfully unaware of their genocidal acts.  XCOM now exists as a rogue faction centered out of a single carrier ship called the "Avenger", waging a desperate guerilla war against the aliens and trying to prevent their mysterious "Avatar Project" from coming to fruition; this effectively serves as a time limit hanging over the game, as if the project does reach completion it's an immediate game over.  Taking some undercover actions and completing certain types of missions can set back the project's progress, but not stop it entirely, so that becomes another strategic element you must factor into your choices.

As in Enemy Unknown, your generic soldiers start off as a plain "Rookie" class, but after gaining experience will be randomly promoted to one of four prefab classes.  Grenadier is similar to the first game's Heavy class, able to equip heavy armor and carrying a minigun-style cannon (capable of shredding enemy armor) and a grenade launcher.  Rangers function similarly to the first game's Assault class, specializing in close-quarters combat with rifles, shotguns and even melee weapons.  Sharpshooters function similarly to the Sniper class, taking long-ranged shots that consume an entire turn or, in a pinch, relying on close-quarters combat with a pistol. Specialists serve as a support class, using a flying drone called a "Gremlin" to aid allies, hack enemy electronics and even stun enemies with electrical shocks.  A fifth option exists as well once a Psi Lab is built - the Psi Operative, who unlocks powerful skills that aid allies and hinder enemies, though they only improve by training in the Psi Lab, not through battle.  The expansions add a few more you can recruit through special missions - cybernetic soldiers called SPARKs, the stealth-utilizing Reapers, the psionic melee-fighting Templars, and Skirmishers - renegade ADVENT soldiers who ally with the resistance.  Naturally all of said classes have a variety of customization options - gear, abilities, skins and overall stats - so you still have plenty of leeway to customize your team as you see fit even if there's only a handful of overarching classes to choose from.  (And of course, those playing the PC version have plenty of mods to introduce more classes if they wish.)

Gameplay remains largely similar to the XCOM norm - battling enemies, researching their tech to enhance your own loadouts, scavenging for resources, and of course dealing with the odd special mission to either deal a heavy blow to ADVENT's schemes, gain new allies in the resistance, earn much-needed resources, or just fend off a direct attack on the Avenger.  Fitting for the dark setting, characters who suffer serious harm in battle can also gain debilitating "negative traits" - being fearful of a certain enemy type, compulsively reloading their gun if it's not at full, panicking when on fire, and so forth.  These can be cured in the infirmary, though it puts the soldier out of commission for several days to overcome their fear.  Another changeup comes with the War of the Chosen DLC which adds three powerful bosses called "the Chosen" who can randomly intrude on any mission you undertake.  They are persistent and very dangerous, but you will eventually be able to uncover a way to defeat them permanently through a special mission - this not only prevents them from bothering you in future missions, but will give you access to their (very powerful ) weapons for your own use.

The game does add a few new mechanics to the core combat experience as well.  One that comes in fairly quickly is Armor, which reduces all damage taken on both you and enemies; however, some weapons (gatling guns and explosives in particular) will damage it, lowering the threshold, and a handful of abilities can even bypass it entirely, so it's not something you can rely too heavily on.  Stealth is another prominent one - you begin most missions undercover and can move freely, though if you're seen by an enemy or launch an attack, the enemies will begin to come after you in earnest; this gives you an attack to secure advantageous position before going loud.  Reapers work slightly differently here, in that their attacks only have a chance to reveal their position - they can potentially stay hidden and pick off a few foes before the jig is up (though the chance of staying hidden gets substantially lower each time).  Thus, stealth is engineered to be a strategic element that will be quite useful, but it's not a total balance-killer as in some games.

In my view, XCOM 2 is a masterpiece.  Enemy Unknown was a worthy remake, but it felt a bit overshadowed by the 1994 classic in terms of overall depth, variety and scope.  XCOM 2, however, really allows  the reboot series to stand its own, paying homage to everything that made the series a hit while also feeling very fresh.  It plays well to the original's strengths while also working in Firaxis's talents for keeping you on your toes with a variety of randomized events, inventive mechanics and a constant air of uncertainty, ensuring that every decision you're presented with is one you have to weigh the risks of carefully.  A fantastic tactical experience that any fan of the genre should play.

Developer: Firaxis Games
Publisher: 2K Games
Platform: PC, OS X, Linux, Playstation 4, XBox One, Switch, iOS, Android
Released: 2016, 2020, 2021
Recommended Version: The PC version is a personal favorite, as it allows for modding that introduces anything you could want - more classes, more enemy types, more equipment, a much longer campaign if that's your thing, and all sorts of voice packs and even guest characters, both serious and silly.  A personal favorite being one that adds a mission to recruit none other than Duke Nukem - rather appropriate considering the theme of both his native game and this one.  (I've also added 2B from NieR, Max Payne and even Bob Ross to my squad with other available mods.)