XCOM: Enemy Within

1. GuyZero

   Nov 18, 2014

   10

   I was a huge fan of XCom: Enemy Unknown and the new XCom is a huge step up. The new missions, technologies and enemies work great on the iPad.I was a huge fan of XCom: Enemy Unknown and the new XCom is a huge step up. The new missions, technologies and enemies work great on the iPad. Also the new version seems less crash-prone on my iPad Air versus the original so that's also a plus. For people who have never played before, XCom is a unique tactical combat game with no peer.… Expand

   • 6 of 9 users found this helpful
2. Dal_ReviewedDat

   Nov 9, 2016

   10

   I am really really really struggling to understand HOW they converted this utter classic so well to mobile.
   
   It works a dream. If youI am really really really struggling to understand HOW they converted this utter classic so well to mobile.
   
   It works a dream.
   
   If you know either Xcom, or Xcom EW, then this is just replaying the entire game with only very very very minor parts missed out (such as they all speak English, no choice to change them to their origins language). That doesn't take anything from this masterpiece to re-experience.
   
   If your new to Xcom, its a 4x turn based strategy, I like to think of it as an advanced version of chess, whereby each unit type has different movement and firing capabilities, to which the alien invaders also have unique skills to exploit or endure. It's simply brilliant. The perm-death of your units that may be with you for some 20 missions or more before his/her death, well its genius. You invest money and resources into units and there deaths are usually guttering, I recommend always opting for Ironman mode to make sure you experience the full game as it should be!
   
   Touch screen is perfect, I've not once accidentally moved my troops as i have done with a laptops touchpad, and all the familiar commands are just a slide between.
   
   I really was expecting chunks to be taken out of the game on a conversion: Less enemies. No animations. Less dialogue and cut scenes. No Building up the base. No satellites and Xcom funding concerns. But no... every little detail is there. It literally is playing Xcom on your phone/pad.
   
   I can't rate this anything but a 10. All PC/game to android/iOs conversions should be as brilliantly executed as this - best 2.7gb and £9 I've spent on my phone… Expand

   • 1 of 1 users found this helpful
4. Jluke121

   Mar 21, 2020

   10

   It's my fav game ever on iPad (and it's always been on PC too, since the 90' versions).
   Now I really want to replay XCOM 2 WOTC on my iPadIt's my fav game ever on iPad (and it's always been on PC too, since the 90' versions).
   Now I really want to replay XCOM 2 WOTC on my iPad Pro 11"...
   Please port it, Fireaxis! Sure the new iPads are capable of managing it!… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
5. onetime40

   Dec 15, 2014

   10

   Ignore the 5 (as of now) negative reviews. They are fake! The problem with metacritic is that anyone can leave a review, even if they don'tIgnore the 5 (as of now) negative reviews. They are fake! The problem with metacritic is that anyone can leave a review, even if they don't own the game or if they have a slander-agenda (think competing companies). This game is one of the best on the iOS store. Fans of the vanilla game have long wanted the expansion content on the iPad and now we have it.
   
   Due to the iOS regulations, it couldn't have been easy, big thanks for the developers for supporting the iPad with a real game. This is not a "mobile freemium / F2P" piece of ****. This is a real game.… Expand

   • 4 of 6 users found this helpful
6. RazvanClau

   Nov 21, 2016

   9

   It is the real thing and ...
   
   1) It works rather well. I think it is above 30 FPS, even 60 FPS. 2) The graphics are almost the same as onIt is the real thing and ...
   
   1) It works rather well. I think it is above 30 FPS, even 60 FPS.
   
   2) The graphics are almost the same as on PC, maybe at medium setting, with some things disabled.
   
   3) Controls are better on touch but annoying when picking elevation.
   
   4) Some missions are excluded (story missions) but overall, the storyline and the mission structure remained the same.
   
   5) Takes incredibly little space compared to the PC version.
   
   6) Expect about 3 hours of battery life on the iPad Mini 4 while playing it.
   
   7) The cost of 9.9 EUR is justified.
   
   Chances are that if you buy it on the iPad, you've bought it before so it is not really new or interesting. That's the biggest flaw with this game. It is a demonstration of what it is possible. It is an actual AAA game that runs better on my iPad Mini 4 than on my MacBook Air 2015. It is not the lite version, it is not the mobile version, it is the damn entire experience with touch optimized controls. I can only imagine how easy is to play on the iPad Pro but it must be frustrating on mobile (haven't even tried on the iPhone).
   
   But ... it is a old game. A damn old game. I've played it several times before playing it on the iPad. Yes, it is still cool and damn interesting but the novelty isn't there. The same can be said about most of the things released nowadays. You get some cool ports but chances are that you've played that port before. Would I pay 10 EUR again for such a game? YES. Would I pay 20 EUR? YES. I would pay full release price. But don't sell games that were popular 3 - 5 and even 10 years ago as brand new on the App Store because apart from the "WOW, I can run this on mobile" factor, there isn't anything else.… Expand

   • 1 of 1 users found this helpful
7. dj_cole

   Feb 19, 2015

   9

   Xcom Enemy Within is an updated version of Enemy Unknown. Enemy Within greatly improves on the somewhat simpler version of Xcom that was EnemyXcom Enemy Within is an updated version of Enemy Unknown. Enemy Within greatly improves on the somewhat simpler version of Xcom that was Enemy Unknown.
   
   The series, for those unfamiliar with it, is based on leading a secret covert operations group, known as Xcom, as it attempts to secretly defend earth from an alien invasion. The game does allude to all of this being top secret, which seems a bit ridiculous as you play through the game, but that doesn't really matter to the gameplay. You act as supreme commander of the Xcom project, managing and building up a base of operations, sending out satellites to detect alien presence, managing the happiness of funding countries, researching and leading squads of up to six soldiers into battle that can then be leveled up as they gain experience.
   
   The game, like any other game, has evolved with its modern iteration. It is a sharp, fun and responsive squad based strategy game that has streamlined a lot of the annoying micromanagement features of past games, but has also simplified things and put a cap on squad member leveling up. It is a more accessible, but simpler game than past generations.
   
   The game, in the most basic sense, plays like this. You have a base that you expand with various modules that you can build into your secret mountain hideaway. As you research new technologies new modules open up for upgrades or more efficient research. You launch satellites to gain funding from the various nation groups across the globe and to spot alien incursions. When incursions happen you deploy a squad of soldiers into a tactical, squad based "seek cover and advance" type gameplay that dictates a methodical approach to combat. As missions are failed or ignored panic will rise. Victories reduce panic. There are a handful of main story missions for advancing the game that are unlocked by certain milestones in the game, but the vast majority of missions are procedurally generated battles with aliens. There are basic research items, but as you kill aliens and do autopsies, capture and interrogate aliens, or shoot down and capture alien ships more research items are unlocked to gain better weapon and armor and new gadgets.
   
   There are four basic classes. Assault, heavy (machine gunners), snipers and support (medics) which each have their own skill trees that you can utilize as they level up. All four classes are needed across the game to face different situations. Medics to stabilize downed squad members, snipers to provide cover, heavies to deal huge damage in short bursts and assault troops to act as front line combat soldiers.. Later in the game psionic abilities are added which add some more variety to your soldiers, but psionic abilities are rare and only have three tiers. In Enemy Within a new addition is Meld which can be used to upgrade soldiers genetically or cybernetically. This adds a lot more variety to the class structures, allowing you to turn your favorite soldiers into cybernetic MEC's or upgrade them genetically to improve their abilities and durability. Personally, I found MEC's not terribly useful and fairly resource intensive in terms of Meld, which is a very limited resource, but the genetic alterations had great affects and were well worth the cost.
   
   The Enemy Within expansion also adds a good variety of missions if you count the smaller addons with it. There are new covert operations to locate and eliminate a secret organization known as Exalt that is out to hamper your efforts. There is also another series of missions focused on a Chinese criminal orgainization. Overall, they are nice addition of scripted, story missions.
   
   The aliens you face are variations on a few base models, but the variations offer enough change that the game continually changes and evolves as you proceed. New challenges are thrown at you every few missions that force you to think more carefully about how you combat the alien menace.
   
   The game looks good. It won't blow anyone away. It has its own style, but nothing that really sticks out as uniquely distinct. The technical side of the graphics are good enough and slightly better than your run of the mill top down game. Sound effects are well done and add to the experience and the voice acting is well done with squad members reacting to the battle.
   
   The controls on the PC are very easy to work with. Consoles are also surprisingly good, though moving the cursor around with the joysticks can be slow. The iPad controls are cumbersome and you can end up moving soldiers to areas you don't mean to because you have to press an area twice to move there.
   
   Enemy Within is a much improved version of Enemy Unknown. It adds additional complexity, options, missions types and squad improvements to the game. Ultimately, the game is still on the simple side, but the added content really pushes the game into the replayable multiple times enjoyment level. I would recommend for strategy fans who may have been turned off by Enemy Unknown's simplicity.… Expand

   • 2 of 2 users found this helpful
8. Scritty

   Mar 12, 2019

   9

   Solid game on Ipad. plays well. Just over 3 gigs which is tiny compared to the 20+ gigs the PC version is. Price seems fair for a PC developedSolid game on Ipad. plays well. Just over 3 gigs which is tiny compared to the 20+ gigs the PC version is. Price seems fair for a PC developed full game.
   On that - I have PC and most consoles. I know that the development cost for a game like this is in the tens of millions of dollars and so developing it for, and selling it on Ipad first for $4.99 with maybe 300,000 sales is never going to work. This game sold almost 5 million copies on Steam alone (See SteamSpy for details) 70% of them at the full $50 price tag. It's great that Ipad users get games like this to play - but we don't get many developed for us from scratch of this level, because financially it isn't possible. We get easy, cost effective conversions of already successful games that have paid of their development and R&D costs on their main sales platform, I've got this FF WotL, Darkest Dungeons and sever other games that were all on other platforms first. They all play really well on Ipad and I'm happy with that. Maybe if 2 million people would pay $30 for an Ipad game we'd gat premium games developed for Ios first? But if that day never comes I'm happy to be able to play some of the greatest games ever on a touch screen on the go even if it is a year or two after PC or console release. Seems a fair way to do things.… Expand

   • 1 of 1 users found this helpful

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