XCOM: Enemy Unknown

 PC
User Score
8.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 2608 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,075 out of 2608
  2. Mixed: 329 out of 2608
  3. Negative: 204 out of 2608
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  1. Cytokinesis
    Oct 27, 2012
    7
    I fell in love with this game when I first started playing it, but then something went horribly wrong. If you only intend on playing the game once or maybe twice then this game is a fantastic gem; a great experience. If you want to play more than that then it has some surprises in store. First of all the UI and controls are ok but they could be so much better on the PC. Every once in aI fell in love with this game when I first started playing it, but then something went horribly wrong. If you only intend on playing the game once or maybe twice then this game is a fantastic gem; a great experience. If you want to play more than that then it has some surprises in store. First of all the UI and controls are ok but they could be so much better on the PC. Every once in a while (rarely but it happens) you just get royally screwed by these forced camera angles. Also sometimes it just won't let you click on a space and the cursor doesn't even show up. This happens a ton when you use grappling hooks and it makes them unusable. At first the game seems like it has a lot of depth but you will exhaust it soon after a couple playthroughs. You will know where aliens are waiting for you on maps and the base building is really, really shallow. The lab is completely worthless and spamming workshops is the best strategy. Research is extremely shallow as well. There just simply aren't enough things you look forward to getting. All they needed to do is add completely random maps and balance the base building/satellites/research and this would have been an absolutely phenomenal game able to be enjoyed for hundreds, maybe even thousands, of hours. Right now you are probably looking at about 20-50 hours before you realize there is nothing more for you in the game. It's a real shame.… Expand
  2. oliver1h
    Nov 14, 2012
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game had plenty of potential...Unfortunately they are mostly unexploited...My problems with the game boils down to these: 1. The maps are too small and repetitive (The makers of the game said the player will not see the same map during the campaign...Well that is not true) 2. The maps are too scripted (Enemies wait for the player to reach a trigger zone, than they start to move around and attack. They do not move around the map by themselves.)3. Weapon upgrades are too linear (Laser is better than simple projectile weapons, plasma is better than laser and projectile weapons etc.)4. The campaign is too short 5. Weak tactical layer (no stand, crouch, lay...) 6. Weak strategic layer (Build satellites, workshops, power generators, laboratories, and a few other building and that all...It is nothing like in the old UFO:EU) 7. You can't chose the nationality of your soldier (why can't we?) 8. You can't place your base where you want on the geospace (why can't we??)… Expand
  3. 21-5-73
    Oct 9, 2012
    7
    Aaah, remakes. Many of those, lately. After the Jagged Alliance one (true mess), here it comes XCOM.
    Being an old XCOMJAFTSStorm veteran, i think i'm allowed to a little cynism. Well, let's recap the pros and cons, shall we?
    UP: -New Graphic Redone: after 18 years, it was expected. Visual glitches and cameras bugs? They were expected too. If we wait, the patch will come. -New Turn    Aaah, remakes. Many of those, lately. After the Jagged Alliance one (true mess), here it comes XCOM.
    Being an old XCOMJAFTSStorm veteran, i think i'm allowed to a little cynism. Well, let's recap the pros and cons, shall we?

    UP:
    -New Graphic Redone: after 18 years, it was expected. Visual glitches and cameras bugs? They were expected too. If we wait, the patch will come.
    -New Turn System: simpler, faster. Nothing to discuss about it.
    -RPG Characters Personalization: faces, voices, armour colors, perks, nicknames. Nice adds.
    -More Objectives: very limited(defuse bomb escort save), but always a plus.
    -PERMADEATH MODE: for serious gamers.

    DOWN
    -Inventory Is Gone: EH?! What the...? I cannot pick objects, i cannot use objects or weapons unless i equip them before mission? I cannot save my dying fella with a soldier who didn't start with a medi?Unrealistic at least. Dumbed down at worst.
    -Only One Base: HUH?!? No more transfers, no more base specializations, NO MORE BASE DEFENCE MISSIONS?? Guess the magichated words: dumbed down.
    -Enemies wait like morons until you see them: i didn't believe it, then i saw it. What the hell? You're the invaders, brainless idiots, just invade! You expect me to blast you, and only then you make your whole turn?!
    -DOOM3 Greatest Hits: exception to last rule, sometimes they appear FROM NOTHING, like teleported, in your line of sight. Alien Powers? Human Bugs?
    -All the World is country: you can kiss goodbye desert, arctic, farm scenarios. Gonna fight in Egypt? Pennsylvania market! Well, I was expecting way less from the guys who ruined the civ series with the V chapter.
    The game is fun, dynamic, entralling. But dumbed down. Don't compare to the original, and you've a good game. You DO compare, and you've some irrealistic, simplified remake that's better than others(after-series, extraterrestrials, ecc).
    I am an old player, the original was my life, yet I mantain an open mind.
    But I'm gonna beddy-bye with two night demons in my ears: Dumbed and Down.    … Expand
  4. AxeMan
    Oct 13, 2012
    6
    Good game but provides a lesser experience than the original. I wasn't expecting nor desiring just a re-skinning of the original, but I wanted something that would give me the same level of experience that I had playing back in 1995. Unfortunately, there is not the same level of tension and malice that was in the original. The music, fog of war("where did that shot come from?!"), dynamicGood game but provides a lesser experience than the original. I wasn't expecting nor desiring just a re-skinning of the original, but I wanted something that would give me the same level of experience that I had playing back in 1995. Unfortunately, there is not the same level of tension and malice that was in the original. The music, fog of war("where did that shot come from?!"), dynamic enemy placement and movement, dynamic battlefield inventory(" yes kiddies, when Bob went down, I ran through a hail of plasma bolts to pick up his medkit and heal the team."), aliens attacking your bases, soldier skill advancement, and other mechanics made me feel like the threats were everywhere and that I was in control to deal with the threats. With the current game, the removal of so many game mechanics for the sake of "streamlined gameplay" feels more constrained. I guess you can only make so many decisions on a gamepad controller...and continuing on this thought, this game, like many others, has been designed, primarily, for a console. It is an unfortunate truth, but most non-MMO games are oriented to consoles because that is where the money is, and console players are not seeking the same type of gaming experience as a PC player. I don't have a problem with the game itself, it is OK, not my bag, but it's OK. I pose to you if this game had not used the X-COM IP, what would you have thought of it? For me, I would have given it a pass, but since it had the name, I bought it,and with it some expectations. It's a shame. PC gaming reality has set in. Deep gameplay now goes no further than a console controller.… Expand
  5. Ixam
    Oct 9, 2012
    7
    In short, good game, not great, probably worth $20-30. You have to ignore the payed reviewers, ie all the 10s that seem to think this game has nothing at all wrong with it. It is similar to the original in structure and gameplay, but in general it is highly simplified. Everything is simpler, this makes it less frustrating and tedious, but also means you have less control over pretty muchIn short, good game, not great, probably worth $20-30. You have to ignore the payed reviewers, ie all the 10s that seem to think this game has nothing at all wrong with it. It is similar to the original in structure and gameplay, but in general it is highly simplified. Everything is simpler, this makes it less frustrating and tedious, but also means you have less control over pretty much everything. For instance, in combat, there are no more TUs, no more saving TUs to look around the corner after your move, or saving TUs for reaction fire. There are no more individual stats, so you don't have to go through and sack half the soldiers you hire because they aren't brave enough. While this is pleasant in some respects, it does mean that any time things go wrong, it is almost always because of some random number generator in the game. There is no saying: "what could I have done differently?" It is just a matter of chance in combat. Honestly the worst thing in the game was that it lacks the tension and suspense of the original. I was never creeped out or put on edge by what is happening. It feels more like an action game than a game of suspense. This is mostly the result of the music and the alien appearance sequences. In the original, if your character moved somewhere bad, he just died, in this game, the aliens have a spawn cinematic and don't get reaction shots when you soldiers first appear. There is no concern about walking into a room and getting instantly killed. This makes the game much easier, but also makes the game much less suspenseful. Perhaps there could be a game mode where aliens don't have cinematic sequences, and also get overwatch shots immediately on spawning. So all in all, much much easier than the original, still quite fun, and not worth $50.… Expand
  6. Zeusbot48
    Oct 12, 2012
    6
    This game could have very easily been a 9, but two things are holding it back, one is that it has been significantly simplified compared to it's predecessors. The game is still fun, but not quite as engaging or replayable as it's ancestors. The other serious negative is the incredible number of bugs. I don't think I have ever even played a beta build of a game that was this buggy. Line ofThis game could have very easily been a 9, but two things are holding it back, one is that it has been significantly simplified compared to it's predecessors. The game is still fun, but not quite as engaging or replayable as it's ancestors. The other serious negative is the incredible number of bugs. I don't think I have ever even played a beta build of a game that was this buggy. Line of sight bugs out fairly often, with soldiers unable to shoot on enemies that are clearly in sight, shots are frequently taken through walls, the camera on large ufo missions pops to the exterior view so you can't see your soldiers, bits of terrain flicker and move your soldier to the wrong position when you try to use them for cover, perks fail to trigger, denying your soldiers their benefit, unit's abilities disappear, meaning they cannot shoot and are useless, and the strategic objective has bugged, leaving me unable to advance the campaign and forcing me to restart. There is no excuse for releasing a game in this state. Especially when it has so much potential.… Expand
  7. AtoningUnifex
    Oct 14, 2012
    5
    Ignoring the whole XCOM remake comparison (this is jist a different game with a similar story) and looking at the gameplay itself... it's annoying. I started off playing it and was instantly struck by the very limited number of equipment slots, the forced nature of having to choose from simultaneous attacks, only being able to attack UFOs with a single interceptor (which if that fails youIgnoring the whole XCOM remake comparison (this is jist a different game with a similar story) and looking at the gameplay itself... it's annoying. I started off playing it and was instantly struck by the very limited number of equipment slots, the forced nature of having to choose from simultaneous attacks, only being able to attack UFOs with a single interceptor (which if that fails you can't send another). It seems unrealistically limiting.

    Fighting past these initial impressions i got on with playing and for a while really got into the fast paced action style of play, would have probably given this a 7 at that time. Then i got further into it and realised that actually the controls are awkward and clearly converted from concole, rather than designed for PC, and they can be unsresponsiv too. Numerous times I've been unable to move or select things and even the wrong thing has been activated. The most damning thing, in my opinion though, is the game cheats - I know that's a stupid thing to say but it actually really does. I was having significant difficulty on a mission and decided to cheat myself - play a move, save after success etc. What i discovered is that even though the chance to hit may say 66% (which it did in my case) no matter how many times i replayed a particular shot, with the same soldier in the same position it missed every time. Must have retried about 20 times. So now I'm left wondering what exactly IS deciding whether shots hit or not, because it doesn't appear to be chance!! This on top of all the other little niggling bugs, glitches, limitations has really damaged my enjoyment of the game and left me feeling very mediocre about the whole thing.    … Expand
  8. Devalinor
    Oct 10, 2012
    7
    Good game, but too much dumbed down.
    No inventory
    No crouching
    No more ammo needed
    Not a real X-Com game
    If you have ever played X-Com Ufo defense you would know what i mean.
  9. Nesterhews
    Oct 12, 2012
    5
    Take Xcom and remove all the unique strategy elements that made it popular. Replace those with pretty graphics and quality voice effects, add in a poor ending and you have a fairly mediocre game. Not as bad as apocalypse but not worth 50 dollars.
  10. hb7phoenix
    Oct 13, 2012
    5
    To put it plainly - it's been watered down way too much. No soldier inventory, no turn units (which gave you so many more tactical options than here) - instead some arbitrary 2 move/shoot actions, no multiple base building, a stupid system that prevents you from actually helping every country (terror missions - in the original, you could actually do them all if you were smart with yourTo put it plainly - it's been watered down way too much. No soldier inventory, no turn units (which gave you so many more tactical options than here) - instead some arbitrary 2 move/shoot actions, no multiple base building, a stupid system that prevents you from actually helping every country (terror missions - in the original, you could actually do them all if you were smart with your base building/soldier management), no micro management of your base (I do like the ant farm view, just wish I could zoom in), a UI clearly made with consoles in mind.

    If you're brand new to the series, you will most likely enjoy this game a lot. If you're a die-hard fan of the original like me, you will most likely be disappointed once the novelty of playing a new XCOM game has worn off.    … Expand
  11. Lnzu
    Oct 13, 2012
    6
    The tactic is nice in this game, but the strategic level is broken. Unbalanced, user unfriendly -- the main problem is that the game won't allow you to act when you want, you can only react. Given that you can choose only one mission out of three each time, the panic level (the one that determine how well you do worldwide) will increase and increase, so you'll lose some countries anyway,The tactic is nice in this game, but the strategic level is broken. Unbalanced, user unfriendly -- the main problem is that the game won't allow you to act when you want, you can only react. Given that you can choose only one mission out of three each time, the panic level (the one that determine how well you do worldwide) will increase and increase, so you'll lose some countries anyway, you can do nothing about it. You can decrease their numbers (quiters), but you can't save all, even on normal. It's like every time three new fires starts and you can put only one out. And you can do nothing to prevent that. If you're lucky random missions and council orders will help you, but that's save&load game, which sucks. You don't have the power as a gamer to act when you want -- scan territories, put down alien infiltrations, you only react, and if you're not lucky with random events, you're screwed. I drop the game, as soon as I realised I can't be a commander, I can't sent several squads to investigate simultaniously different problem sites. WTF, I mean -- why I can use only one squad at a time, and on top of that I can't give'em order to go and survey the country I know being under threat. I can only react. With one squad. I say **** that **** I want to run an efficient organization, Xcom, not this crappy excuse for "last hope of humanity". **** it, it could be a great game if not for it's strategic component. Unless it's fixed, this game doesn't worth your money. It's frustrating all along, aside the tactical battles.… Expand
  12. Flamingcanine
    Oct 10, 2012
    5
    Not the Xcom you were looking for sums it up.

    As the dev diaries throughout the game wait for the release stated, anything difficult or somewhat "Not fun" like base defenses or assaults have been cut out, as has the ability to send a reasonably large squad. It has been replaced by a Decent perk system for each soldier class. The Difficulty has a huge gap between Medium and "classic"    Not the Xcom you were looking for sums it up.

    As the dev diaries throughout the game wait for the release stated, anything difficult or somewhat "Not fun" like base defenses or assaults have been cut out, as has the ability to send a reasonably large squad. It has been replaced by a Decent perk system for each soldier class.

    The Difficulty has a huge gap between Medium and "classic" which truly brings out the soldiers inability to shoot, while making the weakest aliens capable of killing swathes of units in full cover with one or two shots.

    Multiplayer is fairly fun, stripping away the already incredibly barren strategic layer to do combat with up to a arbitrary six units each. Choosing the units is a headache for human soldiers due to it being a cluster of lists, and the aliens lack any customization other then their individual names. Furthermore, instead of allowing humans vast customizeability like in the campaign, the units are effectively pigeonholed into three to five "sets" of skills.

    Worse, there are roughly only a dozen maps total, and only five Multiplayer maps, complete with knowledge of the best cover.

    While not a bad game, it is a thouroughly mediocre game for the time spent developing it, and it is not spiritually a successor to Xcom: UFO defense. It's a very different fish for sure.    … Expand
  13. tototototo
    Oct 9, 2012
    6
    It's not X-Com, so if that's why you're here you'll be somewhat disappointed. On its own merits the game is good, but not the best in the genre. The name hinders it really, since players will expect more from it.
  14. Crimson
    Oct 9, 2012
    5
    Fun game when it works, but there are alot of annoying bugs. Accuracy of weapon shots is buggy. I've seen point blank assault rifles and pistols report 20% accuracy, while long range shotgun shots report 80%. There seems to be no correlation between what you see on screen, and what will actually occur. Cover is equally buggy, with the shield (cover) icon seemingly useless. ManyFun game when it works, but there are alot of annoying bugs. Accuracy of weapon shots is buggy. I've seen point blank assault rifles and pistols report 20% accuracy, while long range shotgun shots report 80%. There seems to be no correlation between what you see on screen, and what will actually occur. Cover is equally buggy, with the shield (cover) icon seemingly useless. Many missions are buggy (its fun losing a whole squad to a disabled bomb that still blows). Cars constantly blow up (seems Michael Bay had a hand in this games development...) at even the slightest provocation taking your men with them, wouldn't be so bad if the 'flame' visual indicator wasn't buggy and only showed up 1/2 the time. The alien AI is pretty simplistic with them just standing around for you to find them on any given map. The strategic portion of the game was really dumbed down since the original, apparently picking up a med kit from a fallen ally was just 'too complex' for todays gamers...… Expand
  15. xephnid
    Jun 10, 2013
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This is a great game. It really is. But there are a few caveats you should consider before buying it.

    Most importantly: You *will* have to helplessly watch some of the soldiers you lovingly named, outfitted and leveled die. And it's even more likely you will watch innocent civilians die on your watch. The latter are nameless and you may not find yourself caring about them as much, but still...

    Another thing I found... unusual... is that the developers did their utmost to make gaming the outcome of random rolls impossible. All shots fired are based on pre-rolled seeds, so quick-loading wouldn't change the outcome. If there was quick-loading. But there isn't. There's quick-saving, yes, but there's no quick-loading. You will have to go to the menu to load a game. And the menu isn't available while there's alien activity or a cut-scene. And did I mention that higher difficulties cause the game to continuously save every little thing, so loading a save won't revert to an earlier state anyway? That's even more... um... unusual. The developers said they wanted players to commit to their actions. I say it discourages experimentation. You cannot simply try things out, because it may cost you soldiers.

    Speaking of cut-scenes: Every time a group of aliens spots you, there's a cut-scene. Every time one of your base team members makes a remark, there's a cut-scene. Every time your troops leave the base or return to it, there's a cut-scene. And so on. While all of these cut-scenes are short, they will most definitely become aggravating over time and reduce the fun of a second play-through.

    I would have given this game a rating of nine, because I enjoyed it an awful lot, but the reduced replay value made me subtract a point. The number of paid shills on this board cost it another. I've read quite a few of those ten reviews and they all smell funny. That kind of behaviour mustn't be rewarded.    … Expand
  16. X-Abrupto
    May 7, 2014
    7
    This game totally went under my radar until recently. I played the original XCOM game back in the mid-90's and I kept seeing people talking about this game called XCOM: Enemy Unknown, not realizing they actually remade it a couple of years ago. As soon as I figured it out, I went and got it.

    I don't think there are comparisons to be made with the original XCOM/UFO Enemy Unknown game    This game totally went under my radar until recently. I played the original XCOM game back in the mid-90's and I kept seeing people talking about this game called XCOM: Enemy Unknown, not realizing they actually remade it a couple of years ago. As soon as I figured it out, I went and got it.

    I don't think there are comparisons to be made with the original XCOM/UFO Enemy Unknown game despite the various similarities.

    This game has two major flaws.

    The first one is that it doesn't look good. Its uninspired main screen menu tells you it doesn't aim to be visually beautiful. It's not a big budget game with mindblowing graphics. I even wonder why they didn't chose to do cinematics with real actors instead of poorly animated computerd generated characters. Live acting would've reduced the cost ( it's a 2 days work, really ) and it would've made the game look better overall. But that's a personal opinion, of course.

    The second flaw, and probably the most important one, is that this game is unforgiving and brutal. It's not a Ninja Gaiden Black or Dark Souls type of challenge that forces you to sharpen your skills by practicing - and ultimately defeating the game with a feeling of accomplishment. This XCOM game is just ruthless and you can't do a thing about it. There's only a tiny difference of difficulty between easy and normal, and the normal mode is very, very hard. The game doesn't tell you what to do to augment your chances of winning, especially concerning everything surrounding the base management. It won't tell you how to make profits and how to augment your chances of victory. There's a lot of stuff you get to learn by yourself at the cost of tens and tens of hours of gaming filed with what I'd call gamer rape. You are most likely to restart your game once or twice. By the third time you play, you probably will master most of the elements of the game, but it's still very hard to beat.

    The combat mode is probably the best part of the game. Those who like military strategy will fall in love with this game. It's the strategic aspect of the game that kept me from giving up on it after realizing I had to invest on satellites when it was way too late. The combat mode can be very gratifying if you come up with strategies as you fight your enemies. If you send your squad to random spots without thinking of the consequences, you're most likely to get a severe beating at the hands of a formidable AI that could reduce Garry Kasparov to tears.

    But then again, the difficulty of the game catches up and you'll find yourself in terrible situations more than once. Your soldiers will die and you will fail some missions unless you save and load repeatedly. The AI isn't to blame here, because if you have a smart AI, why make it dumb to alleviate the difficulty? All they had to do was to reduce their hit points and reduce the damage they could deal to you to make the game easier. But it seems the people who made this game really wanted to make it almost impossible to play for an average gamer who can't spend days playing a single video game before he actually manages to understand the mechanics of the said game.

    Many so-called hardcore gamers will tell you this game is just like the old school games and that it was made difficult willingly. Sorry, but I don't agree. The good ol' hard games were hard because they were poorly designed and had close to no beta testing whatsoever. Battletoads, Friday the 13th, etc. etc. they were hard games because the people who made them had no idea on how to reduce the difficulty - or they simply didn't care. There's hard and then there's hell-worthy hard. This game falls in the second category.

    There's also something that bugs me in the combat mode. Sometimes I put my soldiers in specific areas, thinking they will get a higher accuracy percentage, but it turns out they don't. I think this game required a little more tweaking here and there concerning this department.

    Scenario-wise, it's very boring. They missed the opportunity of hiring a good writer who could've come up with a respectable story. Instead, we get dialogues worthy of a 10 year old boy playing with action figures.

    The music is pretty good in this game. It's highly reminiscent of Deus Ex: Human Revolution, but it still holds its own. There are some good tunes in this game.

    Ultimately, this game is still amazing despite the harsh criticism I have on it concerning the difficulty. You end up getting the upper hand of it, but it takes so much time ( definitely 20hours+ required to know what you're doing ). I mean, we either go to school or have jobs. Sorry to put it this way but let's be honest here. This game will only be loved uncondtionally by people who don't have a life. Normal people who play video games a couple of hours once in a while will quickly give up on it. I think that commercially speaking, this game is a failure since it only appeals to a very tiny portion of gamers out there.    … Expand
  17. Magnethead
    Oct 11, 2015
    6
    SO GOOD!...SO TERRIBLE! SO FRUSTRATING!

    The thing about Xcom is that the mechanics themselves are fantastic, they really are. The turn based squad strategy is fun, the overall research/building strategy is fine. The problem lies only in two elements: 1. Difficulty settings. 2. Random Number Generators. Let it be said, if you're fairly casual with strategy and you play this game    SO GOOD!...SO TERRIBLE! SO FRUSTRATING!

    The thing about Xcom is that the mechanics themselves are fantastic, they really are. The turn based squad strategy is fun, the overall research/building strategy is fine. The problem lies only in two elements:

    1. Difficulty settings.
    2. Random Number Generators.

    Let it be said, if you're fairly casual with strategy and you play this game casually on "normal" setting, the game is absolutely fine. No problems there. This review is not for you then, just ignore. That's just not for me.

    If you're very serious about strategy, you'll almost certainly find "Normal" difficulty too easy and "Classic" fitting in general (at least if you're only planning one playthrough). Sounds great, right? Could have been except for one thing: the variance on Classic. Everything is a roll of the dice, which is fine, but the variance is insane. You can do everything right and still lose the game in one brief moment of bad luck. I'll illustrate the problem with this one scenario that actually took place for me:

    Turn 1. Your squad arrives in the woods. You move them into defensive positions just in case you're being charged right off the bat. They're all in cover, they're all in Overwatch (guarding). Three aliens attack, the squad takes down the first one. The second one uses a skill that automatically deals 1 damage, it hits one guy.
    *BREAK* Let me here say that one damage is nothing, it really is nothing.
    So, the guy who got hit with the whopping 1 damage rolls a dice and panics. He panics by turning to his right and trying to execute his friend standing right next to him because... well, who knows. It's the standard panic reaction in this game. He rolls another dice and misses from point blank range. Just can't hit. Well, fine you think, but alas. Behind him is a seasoned veteran, a captain who has seen many battles. He rolls a dice too, he also panics. Now, he has taken 0 damage, he has merely seen one dude take one damage. Well, he handles panic in the same way and decides to execute one of his friends. He chooses your best solider (and medic) and nails her right in the back of the head with a critical hit, killing her instantly. End turn one.
    Turn 2. Bring up menu, quit game.

    Things like this just happen, they just do. You can restart the mission whenever they do, but it wears you out. Or it did with me. Worst thing is, they could fix everything wrong with this game so easily.

    1. rebalance panic.
    2. remove critical hits.

    Just those two things would limit the variance to a degree where the game would feel hard but fair. It's really all they needed to do and then the game would probably be a 10.    … Expand
  18. sinadoom
    Nov 13, 2014
    6
    Having never played a turn-based game, I decided to take the plunge into XCOM after seeing so many positive reviews for it. At first, the experience was ecstatic. I clocked in over 20 hours' playtime in a weekend! I was expecting the gameplay to be very dull, not accessible and for all the base management to be confusing and overly complex. But I was wrong - this game couldn't be any moreHaving never played a turn-based game, I decided to take the plunge into XCOM after seeing so many positive reviews for it. At first, the experience was ecstatic. I clocked in over 20 hours' playtime in a weekend! I was expecting the gameplay to be very dull, not accessible and for all the base management to be confusing and overly complex. But I was wrong - this game couldn't be any more accessible and easy to get into. I loved the simplicity of the mechanics but the depth that it could present the player with. In terms of combat and variety in soldiers, aliens, customisation, level design etc. Enemy Unknown is fantastic. You will never play the same map twice, which is highly impressive - especially given the variety of areas. You really feel a sense of control and importance - the theme of being a commander during a time of crisis is portrayed nicely without being mundane. Every action, every turn, every decision feels meaningful. And that's perhaps the best thing one can say about this game. Later on however, you realise the flaws in its design.

    Now, I'm the kind of gamer that likes perfection - I will restart until I get the result I want. Naturally, this isn't well-suited to turn-based games. Although I highly enjoyed the concept of XCOM and its gameplay, some design decisions and bugs make the game unplayable without the so called "save-scumming" tactic. The most noticeable issue is that of finding the aliens. The fog of war is so thick, your soldiers have to practically walk within a few tiles of the enemy to see them. But this is the real kicker: THEY GET TO MOVE EVEN THOUGH IT'S NOT THEIR TURN! So many times I have been cheated by the game because I spent about 3 turns dashing forward not finding any enemies, and all of a sudden I move ONE TILE forward and a bunch of them appear out of nowhere and surround me DURING MY TURN! This is clearly unfair and really takes away from the tactical element. It's just plain cheap and bad design; although it's not game-breaking most of the time so I can cope with it. The second major issue I have is line of sight and chance to hit. I find that the percentage you see is almost compeltely random and counter-intuitive. So many times I have moved my soldier to a tactically better spot to increase my chances of hitting the enemy, only to lose sight of them or to lower my chances. Whoever did the calculations for hit percents clearly didn't test it in practice - there are so many ridiculous examples where you're next to the enemy and miss yet can have a high chance of hitting them from obscure angles and, in rare cases, through walls! Having played fast-paced action games for so long, the idea of turn-based combat did seem ridiculously novel at times. I mean, you can target an enemy that's directly behind another enemy but not hit the one shielding your target. The visual representation of the combat is horrific at best. Oftentimes, the games will show plasma on your character even if the alien missed you but it shows that it hit, and vice-versa. It's as if the graphics/UI team had no communication with the gameplay designers and those that code the mechanics. The camera issues in this game are inexcsuable. Especially for levels with verticality and those inside buildings, the isometric design really exposes how bad of a job the developers did of using Unreal Engine 3. First of all, framerate drops. Then, when you try to select your units or point to where you want them to go, it keeps moving about or there is so little consistency between what you see on screen and what's actually going on. It's kinda hard to describe, but once you play the game you'll see plenty of minor bugs and the occasional major one (e.g. my Hover SHIV got stuck in a wall and couldn't move). I have read reports of corrupted saves and problems with the autosave feature too.

    Although XCOM is an unpredictable game, it is still linear in progression. It also has some scaling issues with the campaign; where you get all the awesome gear and have a kick-♥♥♥ base with the best weapons, jets, armour, research etc. only to be able to use them for a couple of missions before the end. In the latter half of the game, I had full satellite coverage and was drowning in money I might as well have wasted it. In early game, resource management feels really important and meaningful. Towards the end, you just sit on your wealth and can't really use your resources to help you further in combat. Although I think that's my playstyle. Indeed, XCOM is perhaps the best attempt I have encountered when it comes to balancing progression rewards with length of game.

    Overall, XCOM: Enemy Unknown is a game which convincingly sells the concept of Turn-Based strategy to those unfamiliar with the genre. However, the quality of its in-engine execution is shody and at the micro-mechanical level, it's almost broken. In terms of design and its vision, XCOM EU is ingenius. It definitely has replay value.    … Expand
  19. mthrl
    Aug 17, 2014
    5
    Could have been a really enjoyable game if it wasn't for the many game-breaking bugs that make it just plain annoying. I'm on one of the last missions in the game and yet every time I go back to try and complete it I get a bug where I'm stuck in the middle of my turn and can't do anything. It's been ages since the game's release and yet there is still no fix for the issue.
  20. dj_cole
    Feb 19, 2015
    7
    Xcom enemy unknown is the newest addition in the Xcom series. While it remains a solid tactical squad based strategy game, it does not live up to the lofty presence of the original Xcom.

    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    Xcom enemy unknown is the newest addition in the Xcom series. While it remains a solid tactical squad based strategy game, it does not live up to the lofty presence of the original Xcom.

    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. That is good for the casual player, new to the genre but a detractor to seasoned players who enjoy the complexity.

    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.

    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.

    If you like squad based strategy games you I would highly recommend Xcom, even in its simplified version. If you don't like strategy games I would say Xcom probably isn't for you. The game can be pretty brutal, and may frustrate you as your favorite squad members are killed. Overall, a good game for strategy fans that may fall a bit on the simple side for veterans of the genre.    … Expand
  21. ratface
    Nov 21, 2014
    6
    It's an OK game. I guess it's the modern, console version of a great game. As such it's limited by the user interface and the attention span of its target market. Squad size is maxed out at six, and that feels difficult to manage with the 'click x to select next soldier', instead of clicking on his portrait. Research is very limited compared to the original. You are stuck with one baseIt's an OK game. I guess it's the modern, console version of a great game. As such it's limited by the user interface and the attention span of its target market. Squad size is maxed out at six, and that feels difficult to manage with the 'click x to select next soldier', instead of clicking on his portrait. Research is very limited compared to the original. You are stuck with one base and it does not get attacked.

    The tactical game is fun. Stances are gone and cover is much more important. Much better here than the likes of Aftershock. The balance is poor. On normal difficulty it's much too easy. On classic it's too hard.

    Not terrible but not great. Worth getting if it's on sale and you are bored.    … Expand
  22. amontillado
    Feb 22, 2015
    7
    Overall: a good game but certain core mechanics stop it from being a great game. It is repetitive and in the late game it can become monotonous fending off an easy alien attack while waiting for a research project to get done.

    At times glitchy, the pacing is affected in both tactical and combat situations when short cut scenes play everytime your character misses or scores a critical    Overall: a good game but certain core mechanics stop it from being a great game. It is repetitive and in the late game it can become monotonous fending off an easy alien attack while waiting for a research project to get done.

    At times glitchy, the pacing is affected in both tactical and combat situations when short cut scenes play everytime your character misses or scores a critical hit. It's good for when you're in between games or want to do a casual tactical game. Otherwise, it doesn't present enough challenge, variety, or smooth gameplay flow to make it a strong, day in, day out game.    … Expand
  23. xcomlite
    Oct 28, 2012
    6
    I'm a huge fan of the original game, and I just finished the Enemy Unknown campaign in about 40 hours of game play. I enjoyed one play through, but I probably won't replay it. As a stand-alone game, I would rate this as a solid 8, but as a continuation of the X-COM series, it's a 6 at best. For my money, this game is worth about $15-$20.

    "X-COM lite" is probably the best description I    I'm a huge fan of the original game, and I just finished the Enemy Unknown campaign in about 40 hours of game play. I enjoyed one play through, but I probably won't replay it. As a stand-alone game, I would rate this as a solid 8, but as a continuation of the X-COM series, it's a 6 at best. For my money, this game is worth about $15-$20.

    "X-COM lite" is probably the best description I could come up with. In 18 years (that's right, 1994 b**tches!!) since the original game was released, they've made no serious progress towards a better game mechanics. Other than the graphics, I can't find any aspect of this new X-COM game that is better than the original. Every aspect of the game has been dumbed down and hollowed out to the point of making it almost foolproof. Thanks for not letting me fail, my self esteem has never been better thanks to this game. But seriously, all the developers had to do was take the original game, add modern 3D graphics and they'd be done - instant classic reborn for the 21st century. Instead they had to tinker with the mechanics of the game in some serious ways to make it "easier" and more "accessible". I get it, the original X-COM was not the most user friendly game to play, but ultimately it's complexity was part of the reward of the game. It was a lot more fun to save the world when you were fighting as the underdog, and every little action made a difference when things were in the balance.

    You kiddies have fun with your little 6 person platoon. Back in my day, we'd regularly go into battle using this little craft called the "Avenger" that could shoot down the biggest ships and carried a 26 person platoon ready to deploy at the crash site. Now get off my lawn you kids!    … Expand
  24. omegaoftime
    Nov 6, 2012
    6
    Firaxis's reboot of X-COM streamlines much of the old mechanics in the original game, but the result is a mixed bag as it's plagued by many bugs that affect the overall enjoyability. Having clocked about 97 hours on the Steam version, what was an enjoyable experience starting from normal mode became frustration as I spent more time with the game. Some of the frustrations I've experiencedFiraxis's reboot of X-COM streamlines much of the old mechanics in the original game, but the result is a mixed bag as it's plagued by many bugs that affect the overall enjoyability. Having clocked about 97 hours on the Steam version, what was an enjoyable experience starting from normal mode became frustration as I spent more time with the game. Some of the frustrations I've experienced so far were enemies that teleported in and out of view at the end of a turn, SHIV (tank-like units) that get stuck or can't shoot, line of sight issues, and rocket launchers not hurting target is just a taste of the what's to come. Although not gaming breaking on easy and normal modes, these bug heavily affect game play on classic mode where you can lose entire squad due to any of the above. For example in my classic playthrough, I often get three or more enemy groups teleporting in front of my squad and wiping them out (this happens often).

    Also, the way the game decides on your chance of hitting is finicky and broken. You can miss often when your shot chance is 75%-100%. If your shot chance is 50%, don't expect to land any shots at all. Having an MBA and taking more than enough math courses (and statistics) for several lifetimes, it makes you scratch your head why you sometimes fail to connect on even 85% chance to hit shots. I've never had problems with other games that rely heavily on chance (like Final Fantasy Tactics) before until now. Even the original X-COM was fair in determining chance and probability.

    All in all, the game is enjoyable when the game engine decides to behave itself. However, I would not recommend paying full price for this game until Firaxis decides to patch up the bugs. You should be relatively fine if you play on easy or normal modes. But if you play on any other modes, expect to see severe bugs and broken game mechanics often.    … Expand
  25. Demonbox
    Nov 2, 2012
    5
    So (35 years old lover of the original here) how is this game?
    This game is not so bad as someone described it, still be assured, this is NOT your old XCOM.
    What i found very bad? The AI is more like an AS (Artificial Stupidity) and tries to compensate by cheating, hitting 100% and dealing tons of crits (not making the game harder btw, just annoying), is this THAT bad? Yes 'cause leaves    So (35 years old lover of the original here) how is this game?
    This game is not so bad as someone described it, still be assured, this is NOT your old XCOM.
    What i found very bad? The AI is more like an AS (Artificial Stupidity) and tries to compensate by cheating, hitting 100% and dealing tons of crits (not making the game harder btw, just annoying), is this THAT bad? Yes 'cause leaves no feeling of strategy... in a wannabe strategic game, the aliens will always behave like stupid, just they hit you more often and harder.
    You can ONLY equip 1 main weapon (only the one fitting for the class the game chose for yr soldiers), 1 side weapon and 1 (or 2 if you unlock certain perks) grenade/Medikit/Stunner/etc.
    The campaign is way too scripted, i tried as hard as i could to make it last longer (squeezed 70some hours out of 2 games classic+impossible) but that just means grinding mission after mission (after a while they start repeating).
    I only listed the bad aspects of the game, so why a 5? 'cause for a while you can have some fun with this alien game... For a while, then you will put it on yr shelves and leave it there forever and go back to the old (real) X-COM.    … Expand
  26. Triggerhappy
    Nov 22, 2012
    5
    A very mediocre turn-based console game. Read some of the negative reviews before purchasing, and take my word as a decade-long tactical games fan: this game offers NOTHING new. Nothing at all. There is absolutely NO reason to play it. Actually, I believe that even an RPG like Dragon Age: Origins had more of both strategic and tactical choices.
    Very dissapointing, unbelievably overpriced.    A very mediocre turn-based console game. Read some of the negative reviews before purchasing, and take my word as a decade-long tactical games fan: this game offers NOTHING new. Nothing at all. There is absolutely NO reason to play it. Actually, I believe that even an RPG like Dragon Age: Origins had more of both strategic and tactical choices.
    Very dissapointing, unbelievably overpriced. Oh, and the voice acting is atrocious. Borderline criminal.    … Expand
  27. xian
    Oct 31, 2012
    6
    A squad of soldiers in turn-based battles against evil aliens. This concept worked in 94/95 and still works today. I always liked the theme in XCOM. Defending against an alien invasion, doing autopsys, researching new weapons, equiping your soldiers, fly out into the night and show those alien greenheads out the door - it was fun in the old games and it's still fun in Enemy Unknown. TheA squad of soldiers in turn-based battles against evil aliens. This concept worked in 94/95 and still works today. I always liked the theme in XCOM. Defending against an alien invasion, doing autopsys, researching new weapons, equiping your soldiers, fly out into the night and show those alien greenheads out the door - it was fun in the old games and it's still fun in Enemy Unknown. The downsides: I don't want to give the narrative about console ports on pc again, but... here it is: mediocore graphics, simplified game mechanics, slowly responding interfaces, reduced tactical complexity tue to reduced control options, cheesy cut-scenes, railroaded storyline...

    The bright side: Only a few minor bugs at release (positive thing... I'm old...), no major balance problems. Nice story and technology concepts.

    Enemy Unknown is not a bad pc game and it's not one you will remember in two years either. But it's still a pleasant experience to play and probably worth your money.    … Expand
  28. DoctorFoxhound
    Nov 2, 2012
    6
    The game is gorgeous due to both exceptional graphics and design. I loved the turn-based combat and really enjoyed leveling up my crew with gear and skills.

    I'm giving this game a score of six mostly because of it's low replay value. I had a similar experience to some other reviewers in that I was obsessed with this game when I first got my hands on it, but after about 25-30 hours into    The game is gorgeous due to both exceptional graphics and design. I loved the turn-based combat and really enjoyed leveling up my crew with gear and skills.

    I'm giving this game a score of six mostly because of it's low replay value. I had a similar experience to some other reviewers in that I was obsessed with this game when I first got my hands on it, but after about 25-30 hours into it I got really sick of it... I no longer felt the need to upgrade my crew because they already felt maxed out, the environments and missions did start to feel repetitive, and pretty quickly I ran out of things that seemed worth researching in the lab. Despite having so much fun in the first days of owning it, I really can't see myself stomaching another playthrough.

    All of this being said, Xcom is a great game and for a lot of people, 25-30 hours of grade A, engaging game play is worth the price of admission. My only recommendation might be to wait until the game goes down in price if you are looking to pay 50 bucks for a game you can sink dozens and dozens of hours into.    … Expand
  29. antarem
    Nov 9, 2012
    6
    review for russian speakers people.
    Это хорошая игра, но XCOM 94го года в был в разы лучше. Все что    review for russian speakers people.
    Это хорошая игра, но XCOM 94го года в был в разы лучше. Все что разработчик смог улучшить это графику. Все остальное стало хуже. Что больше всего раздражает: теперь в игре нет такого понятия, как пуля - реального физического объекта; есть понятие попал - не попал.(никаких больше случайных убийств шальными пулями) Никакой разрушаемости в игре нет, пули пролетают сквозь двехметровые стены. Как вообще в ТАКТИЧЕСКОЙ игре можно было так наплевать на реализм. В общем кто не играл в первую xcom, советую это сделать, вы сами поймете, какая новая xcom получилась отвратная, благо что ее можно купить в steam, не заморачиваясь с dosbox'om.    … Expand
  30. Welgar
    Feb 8, 2013
    6
    You can't help but compare this game to the original two XCOMs. Pros:

    - Improved graphics with some nice visual effects (like over-the-shoulder view etc.) - Operatives' classes and special abilities - Innovative combat system (cover/flanking, two-stage movement) - Storyline of sorts Cons: - Strategic (globeview) part became silly and boring: you are limited to one base;    You can't help but compare this game to the original two XCOMs. Pros:

    - Improved graphics with some nice visual effects (like over-the-shoulder view etc.)

    - Operatives' classes and special abilities

    - Innovative combat system (cover/flanking, two-stage movement)

    - Storyline of sorts

    Cons:

    - Strategic (globeview) part became silly and boring: you are limited to one base; items are manufactured immediately; you can't sell what you've produced; moreover, many items are free and unlimited (like grenades or standard guns); basically you just assign research and build a few base facilities, the rest can be done right before a mission.

    - Few things to research and manufacture: only one advanced type of interceptors, several laser and plasma guns, a few armours, and some special items.

    - No inventory manipulation

    - Often unrealistic battle situations: e.g. chance of hitting an alien almost doesn't depend on distance, or you may stand just one step away from a high wall and be considered "exposed" from that side.

    - Overall, many things in the game don't seem logical/realistic. How is it possible that it takes 8 days for a few eggheads in my lab to research some mysterious crazy alien technology and immediately come up with blueprints for a new weapon (which the engineers will make for me in no time)? Or what is the connection between having satellites over three African countries and 33% increase in budget? And besides, where are all the other countries? Why don't I ever have missions there? It all makes role-playing quite difficult.

    - The game is short and not so replayable. It took me 28 hours of play to win the game while reading carefully every research report and being sometimes too strategic and cautious. And since you have a very linear story, you don't want to start over and hear all the same stuff again. I expected more.

    All in all, though the game, at least its tactical part, is still interesting and fun, it feels more like a simplified and cut-down version of the original XCOMs. Apparently, 2K will introduce more features as DLCs (something Microprose couldn't back in 1990s), which may be the reason for producing this game as it is.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

7
#7 Best PC Game of 2012
11
#11 Most Discussed PC Game of 2012
8
#8 Most Shared PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
89

Generally favorable reviews - based on 57 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 56 out of 57
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 57
  3. Negative: 0 out of 57
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Feb 6, 2013
    88
    Is it better than the original? No. One can’t imagine X-Com 2012 being an all-time-classic and people still playing with it, months from now (let alone, years). Is it a ‘true’ X-Com game, however? Definitely. Remorseless geeks are in for shivers and swoons when they meet their beloved foes: mind-controlling sectoids, zombifying Chrysalids, Cyberdisks, Ethereals… [December 2012]
  2. Armchair Empire
    Dec 18, 2012
    95
    XCOM: Enemy Unknown is a worthy tribute to its progenitor and hopefully the start of something brand new for players who've been dying to get a good squad-based strategy game that lets them not only think, but feel as well.
    Read full review
  3. Hyper Magazine
    Nov 14, 2012
    90
    Amazing tactical complexity, satisfying strategic depth; slightly dodgy ending, but your own stories are more important anyway. A modern classic.
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