XCOM 2 Reviews

Soldiers deaths on the battlefield are permanent. You can only recruit more back at base, assuming you have supplies spare, and they begin again at the lowest rank. It was particularly soul destroying to lose a soldier who had scraped through long enough to acquire skills that were coming close to rivaling that of the enemy’s.

XCOM 2 is more tense and thrilling than a turn-based strategy has any right to be. There are some great additions to the original gameplay, but the port to console is an imperfect one.

XCOM 2’s PS4 port is hobbled by some turgid technical issues, but it’s a testament to how magnificent a game it is that it still rises above them. Outstanding, brutally challenging and endlessly enjoyable, XCOM 2 is a legitimate triumph.

Republished on Wednesday 30th May 2018: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of June's PlayStation Plus lineup. The original text follows.

The chosen one.

The ultimate tactical turn based game is back! Aliens have all but won, but your six men army is ready to blast them away back to where they came from and give you a hella good time doing it.

If you can take punishment as well as you can dish it out, then XCOM 2 strikes the right balance. Its tactics are hardlined, its urgency is persistent, and it will wear you down even as it builds you up. A beautiful, brutal beast of a tactics game. But do what you can to clean up these graphical and gameplay hitches, Firaxis; this game deserves it.

When it comes to turn-based strategy games, they don't get much better than XCOM. This recent console release is bursting with incredible classic alien-busting strategic gameplay so let's suit up and get ready to launch.

XCOM is one franchise that has been around nearly forever, but not everyone knows that it existed past 2012. Its history spans all the way back to 1994, but it’s in 2012 where XCOM made its first real step into the current “modern” gaming world. XCOM: Enemy Unknown was the “re-imagined” remake of the first XCOM game, UFO: Enemy Unknown, that originally launched in 1994. It was an impressive game that humbled many and won numerous “Game of the Year” awards. Eventually XCOM: Enemy Within, the expansion to XCOM: Enemy Unknown, was released that added more gameplay elements and content which further impressed its audience. Two years later, we’re given XCOM 2 and I can tell you one thing: it still doesn’t fail to impress. There’s a whole lot of the same, but even more of the new as well as the better.

Overlooking XCOM 2’s few problems is easy in the face of its overwhelmingly solid experience. Console players who had been eyeing this title since its release in February shouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger.

XCOM 2 rises above these small errors, and is still a highly recommendable strategy game for those both new and familiar with the franchise. Both friendly and hostile upgrades are doled out to yourself and the opposition over the course of the entire campaign, ensuring variety through to the end. Whether or not you will make it there is entirely on you, which is why success is celebrated and losses so discouraging. XCOM 2 introduces new elements that keep the strategy game fresh, continues to overwhelm the player with options, and challenges you to overthrow the alien overlords in power. There isn't much more I could ask for.

XCOM 2 is a great strategy game for the same reasons that Enemy Unknown/Enemy Within were, for the unique minute-to-minute gameplay, but as a sequel, this needed more innovation and less iteration.

Back in 2012, Firaxis released XCOM: Enemy Unknown to widespread critical acclaim – and now its long-awaited sequel has arrived on PC.

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The legendary strategy series X-COM went dormant for well over 10 years, until Firaxis Games resuscitated it with XCOM: Enemy Unknown. The turn-based tactics game released in October 2012 proved with its widespread success that there was still a strong demand for this type of product, thus encouraging the development of further entries.

Visually, the game looks pretty good, as the game has its own style that departs from realism giving it a lot of leeway and unique look. On launch though, the game itself had numerous performance issues such as sudden drops in frame rates and long load times, which did not equate with the fidelity of the game. The current version of the game has addressed most of these performance issues and certain gameplay gripes like game animations being too slow. On sound, the game has distinct sounds for different enemies, particularly useful for enemies hidden by the fog of war, and weapon sounds. Music is also awesome, especially with tunes that embed the cause of liberation from alien oppression. In a wrap, XCOM 2 is a solid game and sequel as it brings veterans of XCOM: Enemy Unknown right at home with the game, and those new to the XCOM games will find a game with a lot of depth and conflict that it will pull you right in.

So is XCOM 2 a good game? Yes, it is. The core gameplay is solid and provides a good backdrop for the drama of random numbers. It captures the suspense of wondering what the aliens will cook up next or what’s in that facility and should be praised for that. While there are problems so caked on that mods will likely never wash them away, the fact remains that there’s a strong game here. The glaring aforementioned asterisk is that you have to assemble it into something worthwhile yourself from unincluded parts. It played the “blah” sequel part to perfection, neglecting seemingly obvious features for the community to figure out; not that they were even overly difficult to do seeing as how mods have already addressed many issues. It all indicates pure oversight from the studio, which I suspect were caused by a rushed delivery. XCOM 2 was released a barren Christmas tree of a game, luckily possessing enough branches to dangle somebody else’s flashy ornamentation on to gussy it up.

Small technical issues hold XCOM 2 back, but it's still as compelling as ever.

XCOM 2 manages to utilise improvements from Enemy Unknown to make a superb game, but stumbles a little on the way.

I would love to be able to give XCOM 2 my unreserved recommendation, but I can’t ignore the elephant in the room. If you don’t intend on playing on Ironman mode, and have enough patience to deal with (not so) occasional glitches, it’s excellent. If you were looking forward to a hardcore playthrough, or can’t stand it when technical issues get in the way of a good time, you’ll definitely want to wait for a patch or two before deploying.

XCOM 2 somehow manages to improve upon the 2012 series reboot in almost every single way; from the way that the concealment ramps up the pacing, to the minor changes to battles and management that both fit the theme wonderfully and make for great gameplay. Aside from a few moments where the impossible happened and a some optimisation issues XCOM 2 suffers from, this is one uprising worth taking part in.

While we ran into a few sporadic graphical and gameplay glitches, the game is a very polished title that should entertain fans new and old. At the end of the day, XCOM 2 is the poster boy of the modern turn-based strategy game. The game can feel unfair at times, but Firaxis has crafted a dynamic experience with virtually limitless replay value and a constant level of challenge. Fans of the series will find plenty of enjoyment watching the XCOM troops struggle to protect mankind once again, and Firaxis can pat themselves on the back for making one of the most addictive and rewarding strategy games of all time.

XCOM 2 is finally here, and we're taking a break from mourning our fallen squaddies to tell you how great it is.

The tactical strategy series that says no to aliens makes a comeback once again. After the success of Enemy Unknown and Enemy Within the bar has been set high for XCOM 2, yet it emerges mostly victorious from its battle with gamer expectations.

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With a focus on variety and replayability, this sequel has an answer to most of my complaints about 2012’s excellent XCOM: Enemy Unknown, and aside from some mostly cosmetic bugs, it comes together brilliantly. Thanks to a new spin on the same great tactical combat, plus unpredictable maps and randomized objectives and loot, XCOM 2 is an amazing game I’ll easily put hundreds of hours into.

XCOM 2 doubles down on everything that players enjoyed about the previous game. A deeper story, more strategy options, more enemies, and just more mechanics makes for an improved experience all around. Some technical issues pop up, and newcomers will have trouble wrapping their head around the vast array of game mechanics, but once it all clicks there is a lot to love about this game.

XCOM 2 is everything a sequel should be, keeping the things that everyone loved about the first game while changing things up as much as possible. Turning XCOM into a scrappy resistance force alters the sequel considerably, not necessarily for the better but certainly for an equally interesting and different campaign. The enemy forces and AI have been revamped considerably, making for a hugely nerve-wracking and yet satisfying time, and the sheer variety in missions is superb. The base manage...