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. BAPACop
    May 27, 2013
    7
    This is the first and only X-COM game I've ever played, so I'm not rating it down because it isn't the same. I'm rating it so low because it is not a strategy game as it is billed. There are several major reasons for this.

    First, the "random" aspects are not actually random. I'm not talking about how savescumming is prevented due to the random seed. I'm talking about how the computer is    This is the first and only X-COM game I've ever played, so I'm not rating it down because it isn't the same. I'm rating it so low because it is not a strategy game as it is billed. There are several major reasons for this.

    First, the "random" aspects are not actually random. I'm not talking about how savescumming is prevented due to the random seed. I'm talking about how the computer is a cheating bastard. I had a mission once where the first enemy to fire scored a critical hit every time. It didn't matter which enemy was shooting, where they were shooting from, who their target was, where their target was, the cover their target was in, or if the enemy that was shooting took their shot before or after another enemy moved. I tested this by retreating continually and forcing the enemy to follow me to take their shot. I crossed the entire map back to the start point, and without fail the first shot taken by the AI every turn resulted in a critical hit.

    Second, the cover system is absolutely horrendous. There are four levels of cover. 0 is no cover. 1 is "half" cover. 2 is "full" cover. 3 is "full" cover with the Hunkered Down ability active. These aren't the actual numerical values as the game uses them to calculate anything, they're just my observation. Okay, now that I've explained that, forget about it, because the game will. Enemies can and will shoot you through walls. The shots will visibly pass right through them. They will shoot you through floors. They will shoot you through bus stops. They will shoot you from fifty feet into the adjacent room behind a solid wall where the only way you can see them is from their red outline because even the camera can't see them. A car provides the exact same amount of cover when it's intact as it does when it is a smoldering wreck. It's very annoying to get hit by an enemy who is making a shot that is simply not physically possible.

    Third, the computer is a cheating bastard. Yes, again. They don't follow any movement rules, it seems. When you encounter enemies they immediately interrupt your turn to move into cover. Floaters can teleport onto your flanks at will. Berserkers can interrupt your turn to move. Thin Men will literally drop from the sky on your flanks. Sectopods can take three actions per turn. Enemies will spawn right in the middle of your squad. Groups of enemies will teleport around the map if you lose sight of them. In other words, there is no strategy involved in placing your units, you just need to hope the game decides to be nice.

    Fourth, squad panic is simply awful. XCOM is supposed to be the world's most elite military force. So why do they act like they've never been in a firefight before? One of your units takes a hit, and your other members of the world's most elite military force turn all the way around, take aim on the person beside them, yell "HELP ME!" and shoot them in the face. Losing a squad member because they got shot through a wall is bad enough, now you're just rubbing it in for no good reason.

    Fifth, global panic. The first thing I want to point out is how incredibly stupid this sort of conversation must sound. "Hello, is this XCOM, the world's most elite military force focused on fighting the alien invasion? This is the President of the United States. We have decided we are being invaded by too many aliens to require the help of the world's most elite military force focused on fighting the alien invasion. Please stop saving our citizen's lives." The second thing is that the system is simply broken. Not taking a mission in a country increases the panic levels of all the countries on that continent for some reason, not just the one being attacked by aliens. This means that no matter how well you are playing the game, you will eventually lose. A game where you are guaranteed to lose is a very badly designed game.

    Sixth, I have an underground complex filled with advanced technology, soldiers who can practically blow things up with their minds, multiple satellites over every continent, multiple heavily armed interceptors stationed on every continent, but when three cities get attacked by aliens at once I can only send one group of six people while the other ninety-three soldiers twiddle their thumbs in the Barracks.

    To summarize, XCOM: Enemy Unknown is not a strategy game. It fails at the most important element of a strategy game: Rewarding strategy. It would get a 0 for that reason, but it's actually quite entertaining once you realize it's not a strategy game and start to play accordingly. That, and it changes the lights on my keyboard to coincide with the enemy turns and I think that's neat.    … Expand
  2. 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
  3. ultravincent
    Jul 9, 2013
    7
    It is a good game, with good structure and mechanics.
    The biggest issue: the level designers were LAZY.
    The levels start looking similar and being repetitive pretty soon. Too bad, it could have been a 9 game with decent storyline and creative levels. Hopefully that'll happen in an expansion.
  4. 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.
  5. faceless-1
    Nov 18, 2013
    7
    This game is not bad, but original X-COM was better. No base battles, space ships got simplified (only sky ranger), no and team you waaay smaller. The good idea was soldier classes, but sniper class is way overpowered in compare to others. Still XCOM: Enemy Unknown is solid game and good tribute to original X-COM.
  6. 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
  7. DesertEgoal
    Oct 27, 2012
    7
    Makes the turn based game genre seem bad-ass. The different units and abilities/weapons keeps you coming back for more to try to master all the interesting combinations. It is a good break from other competitive games that require you to be fully focused in unable to move your fingers from the controls for a second.. XCOM has the same competitive feel but challenges you more in theMakes the turn based game genre seem bad-ass. The different units and abilities/weapons keeps you coming back for more to try to master all the interesting combinations. It is a good break from other competitive games that require you to be fully focused in unable to move your fingers from the controls for a second.. XCOM has the same competitive feel but challenges you more in the customization factor and how you use your selected squad to their fullest.… Expand
  8. Blackcat7k
    Oct 14, 2012
    7
    XCOM: Enemy Unknown Review

    I came in thinking that Firaxis was just giving us the original XCOM with a slick graphics upgrade. I was pleased and saddened by some of the changes to the original formula of the game. After finishing XCOM:Enemy Unknown on Classic I can say that Firaxis did a commendable job, but it is very apparent that much of the old gameplay that gave the original a    XCOM: Enemy Unknown Review

    I came in thinking that Firaxis was just giving us the original XCOM with a slick graphics upgrade. I was pleased and saddened by some of the changes to the original formula of the game. After finishing XCOM:Enemy Unknown on Classic I can say that Firaxis did a commendable job, but it is very apparent that much of the old gameplay that gave the original a tense, tactical feel was taken away in favor of a more streamlined approach. Graphics and Sound:

    The graphics have a feel that seems to fit the original look of the game. The special effects and sounds for the weapons fit the game very well and definitely sell the game. The switching camera angles can also invoke a sense of achievement or trepidation depending on if you're seeing one your soldiers gunning down an alien or a new deadly group of aliens coming into view. Sometimes enemies will appear to stand on thin air and there seem to be clipping issues with some flying enemies becoming stuck in ceilings and being completely invisible unless you blow the roof away. These aren    … Expand
  9. zeninsight
    Oct 14, 2012
    7
    playing this game is like drinking whiskey with too much ice cube... you know it is whiskey, its smell like whiskey, but the taste is dilluted by water.. played in classic difficulty and finish it in 2 days (around 20 game play) i've played original x-com back in the 90's..and of course i got high expectation on this version.. while graphic is good, the gameplay somewhat roughly similiar..playing this game is like drinking whiskey with too much ice cube... you know it is whiskey, its smell like whiskey, but the taste is dilluted by water.. played in classic difficulty and finish it in 2 days (around 20 game play) i've played original x-com back in the 90's..and of course i got high expectation on this version.. while graphic is good, the gameplay somewhat roughly similiar.. it less some of the features that make xcom is uniquely xcom such as : limited role for all item, aliens research material, no artwork for the alien image which i think they should have because its cool, ground combat became so linear basically just run ahead and shot whatever alien you encounter (compared the exploration of the old game), no research material regarding alien motive and purpose (the old xcom you will research UFO type, capture several alien commanders, to slowly reveal their movites and purpose of the atacks,) pace of game is to fast (dont think its logically possible to research all alien technology, reverse engineerd and kill the alien boss mereley under 1 year, human is not that genious!!).. to sum it up.. although the game still fun to play.. but its a simpler version of UFO and wouldnt be able to capture the original game greatness.. good effort but too bad.. they could make it much more better… Expand
  10. Cris
    Oct 16, 2012
    7
    Lost points for:
    1. Excessive bugs
    2. Over-simplification of key features 3. Purely arbitrary nonsense Unfortunately the game released with a slew of graphics bugs, and more importantly game altering/affecting bugs like randomly appearing aliens. The occasional glitch on release is fine, but in this case playing a mission without noticing a graphics glitch is almost impossible. The    Lost points for:
    1. Excessive bugs
    2. Over-simplification of key features 3. Purely arbitrary nonsense

    Unfortunately the game released with a slew of graphics bugs, and more importantly game altering/affecting bugs like randomly appearing aliens. The occasional glitch on release is fine, but in this case playing a mission without noticing a graphics glitch is almost impossible.

    The biggest problem for me comes from the over simplification of key aspects that made the original XCOM games interesting. Let me start off by saying that I fully agree that managing 20 soldiers per squad was tedious, and the game benefited from streamlining in that sense, BUT, and this a big but, they ended up taking way too much off the top. You're hard limited to a squad of 6 members and one squad only, these soldiers have zero inventory, they just simply have the items they can equip and nothing else.

    Ammo doesn't need to be managed, grenades and other usable items are an "X uses per combat" deal and skills are simply cooldown based. Pointless weapon restrictions also exist and for some reason my Sniper cannot equip an assault rifle even though they had no problem using one before they became a sniper, the heavy weapons class also has this pointless restriction but for some reason the other two classes do not. While you can swap people in and out of your squad before the start of a mission, you cannot create pre-set squads either. All soldiers can be fully customized and the only unique thing about them is the flag on their backs, all males share the same body type and females have the exact same problem, no variations exist in height and for that matter the voices all sound the same as well.

    Another big problem that ties into this is that it's not possible to have more than one squad or respond to more than one event at the same time, to me this is a huge issue, especially since the rewards are the exact same every single time, even near the end of the game, 200 currency, 4 scientists, or 4 engineers and sometimes a squad member. This results in being almost forced pick the region that's in most panic as the mission you handle because the rewards basically suck and there's no incentive to take 200 currency over the loss of a country's support on the council. So this begs the question of why the game was dumbed down so much that you can't build multiple dropships, have multiple squads and respond to multiple attack/abduction sites at once?

    This, coupled with stupid and often times arbitrary things like the previously mentioned weapon restrictions, really hurt the games sense of freedom and depth of strategy. For example, if I am going to assault a landed UFO I know that most of the fighting will be close range, high mobility fighting with limited field of vision. I have two options, take a sniper who will be pretty useless, or swap the sniper out for another character. Neither of these is particularly appealing to me, instead I'd like to be able to just equip my sniper with an assault rifle or a shotgun and use them that way but I can't. Or better yet, why can't I have both? If I give up enough inventory space and other things there's no reason why I shouldn't be able to carry a sniper rifle with 10 bullets and an assault rifle with 90. Sure I wouldn't have grenades, a medkit, a pistol, a rocket launcher or infinite ammo, but I could customize the soldier to be what I want them to be. Unfortunately this extends further into combat, hit %s are very random and you honestly shouldn't base your decision to shoot on it, I've hit plenty of 25% shots and missed plenty of 90%s. The only way to be sure that you don't miss is to get 100% hit chance and this isn't realistically possible in most scenarios so missions boil down to finding cover and abusing the hell out of Overwatch which is essentially a guard/interrupt feature. On the same topic, cover itself is random in effectiveness and ranges from grossly overpowered to completely useless, I've had characters killed through full cover before and I'm not convinced that this was due to a bug but rather just how cover is intended to work, so the only surefire way to survive is to load up on hitpoints/medkits and kill the aliens before they kill you. That being said you WILL die in long drawn out battles regardless of how smart you play, the computer simply has higher damage/accuracy values than you can ever hope to see, moreso they're almost impossible to flank thanks to a stupid "introduction" mechanic that happens every single time an alien comes into view for the first time. This gives the aliens instant control of the game and lets them move to cover which is a complete joke.

    Overall not a bad game, but if you're looking for an authentic XCOM or TBS feel, it might be better to skip it, there is no way this game 10/10 like the fanboy reviews claim but it's certainly not 4/10 either.    … Expand
  11. iseeall
    Dec 14, 2015
    7
    This is a remake of 1993 XCOM UFO Defense which is very well done yet lacks some strategic depth of the original.

    The good: - in many things, the game tries to stay very close to the original - more alient types, including heavily armored robots - all aliens and your soldiers have new special abilities - more weapon types, including shotguns - great music, some tracks remind Deus    This is a remake of 1993 XCOM UFO Defense which is very well done yet lacks some strategic depth of the original.

    The good:
    - in many things, the game tries to stay very close to the original
    - more alient types, including heavily armored robots
    - all aliens and your soldiers have new special abilities
    - more weapon types, including shotguns
    - great music, some tracks remind Deus Ex Human Revolution
    - great graphics
    - the story is accompanied with many cutscenes and voiced comments from your staff, which helps build drama
    - great detailed tutorial
    - mind control requires the target to be in sight (no more mind controls at the very first turn)
    - you can research additional upgrades to weapons and other things in the Foundry building

    The so-so:
    - 2 action points instead of 50-70 like in the original, soldiers normally just walk once and shoot once. This takes away some depth yet makes you camp less
    - can only take 6 soldiers in a mission instead of 14 -> faster turns but fewer tactical options
    - night missions have the same visibility as daytime ones, no flares -> easier, but micromanaging flares was fun and night missions used to be real challenge
    - a strange cover system: when a mob is behind an edge of a wall, it still can be shot at, yet with a high penalty. Most battlefields are filled with tree logs, groups of stones, stairs-like elevation levels which makes the battles mostly about running from cover to cover and staying on Overwatch
    - critical hits are important -> more randomness
    - soldiers have no stats (which grew from "usage"), instead the game randomly assigns them to specializations (sniper, heavy, assault, support). Specializations offer a few special abilities though
    - after getting max rank ("Colonel"), soldiers won't improve anymore (only psi abilities, if they have psionic powers), which doesn't let you train super-ninzas and forces you to send new soldiers to let them train as well
    - a few new types of missions which are heavily scripted and linear, usually with a turn limit
    - can only build facilities in one base, no storage limit, no ammo -> less micromanagement but feels too casual
    - mobs' facing doesn't play any role: they see equally well all around them, and attacks from behind don't inflict more damage (though usually a mob won't have a covering object behind it and will be considered "flanked")
    - no arctic/desert/jungle maps but many varied urban maps
    - a soldier can take just 1 extra item (e.g.1 grenade) in addition to main weapon and pistol

    The bad:
    - most battles are scripted and not randomly generated. Enemies appear when you pass trigger tiles and take a free move to get behind cover right after they appeared. Some fall directly from above (out of thin air) behind your troops, switching to Overwatch and pinning all your soldiers down. Some will run very close to you, all while you're waiting for their animation to finish. This takes away much strategic feeling as all your battle plans are trampled by script. Worse, it makes playing on higher difficulty or iron man mode pointless, as it feels unfair to lose when you didn't know in advance a scripted situation
    - camera always tries to zoom in on the next selected soldiers which is very annoying if you want to keep camera zoomed out for a tactical overwiev
    - camera sometimes fails to correctly detect the tile under the cursor -> it may take many attempts to open a door with V key (and rotate the camera for that a lot), or sometimes the solder will run to a wrong tile which is on a different floor and visually behind the one you wish to go to
    - if a soldier sees an enemy during movement he doesn't stop and can even lose sight of the enemy by the end of the move (it was the same in the original XCOM but there you could walk tile-by-tile, and in JA2 soldiers stopped when seeing a new enemy)
    - no base defense missions
    - although everything is destructible you can't shoot at objects, except if your weapon misses an alien and hits an object instead, or you throw a grenade or fire a rocket launcher    … Expand
  12. NOKIM
    Dec 3, 2012
    7
    Im an old fan of x-com and while this game is entertaining, its defenitely nothing to be compared to the original in terms of replay value. I could go into details but ill just point out some pros and cons.
    pros:
    updated graphics awesome character models great visuals cons: limited replay value lack of in battle option-cant pick up weapons, turns not based on energy poor tactical    Im an old fan of x-com and while this game is entertaining, its defenitely nothing to be compared to the original in terms of replay value. I could go into details but ill just point out some pros and cons.
    pros:
    updated graphics
    awesome character models
    great visuals
    cons:
    limited replay value
    lack of in battle option-cant pick up weapons, turns not based on energy
    poor tactical battle options(you can wipe everthing without doing much exploring)
    lack of stat growth options

    I could list a lot more things its lacking on, that the original did not that made it such an amazing replay value game. But all in all, if you have never played it, this is by far the best remake so far from all the fails that iv seen and tried. is it worth playing..yes, are you likely to still be playing it a year from now...probably not.If you have the original you will probably stil be playing that one 20 years from now.    … Expand
  13. Shadowbane
    Oct 22, 2013
    7
    Having played XCOM in the past I wasn't sure how this game would turn out. I read a lot of reviews saying the dumbed it down and it wasn't a true XCOM. I can see where they are coming from, but truthfully I really enjoyed this game in it's own right. I wanted more weapons, armor, and item, and was a bit disappointed by perma nades and medpacks, but I got over it. I enjoyed the grafx, musicHaving played XCOM in the past I wasn't sure how this game would turn out. I read a lot of reviews saying the dumbed it down and it wasn't a true XCOM. I can see where they are coming from, but truthfully I really enjoyed this game in it's own right. I wanted more weapons, armor, and item, and was a bit disappointed by perma nades and medpacks, but I got over it. I enjoyed the grafx, music and updates to the game. What really makes it shine is the well designed combat system that for the most part stays true to XCOM. Sadly they did not put in a random number generator and shots will always turn out the same no matter how many times you save and reload a battle. I would have also likes to see multiple bases in the world and the ability to dispatch more than one mission at a time if you had the forces and equipment. 7.5/10… Expand
  14. Waclaw
    Aug 1, 2013
    7
    To make the story as short as possible: this game could have been great, but came out average. You get the impression that the game has been downsized in terms of complexity to fit as many people as you possibly can. So the agents modifications in terms of equipment is a laugh now, vehicle modifications are almost non existant, the amount of structures you can build in your base is aTo make the story as short as possible: this game could have been great, but came out average. You get the impression that the game has been downsized in terms of complexity to fit as many people as you possibly can. So the agents modifications in terms of equipment is a laugh now, vehicle modifications are almost non existant, the amount of structures you can build in your base is a shadow of what we saw in prevoius X-Coms, even the number of aliens ingame is reduced... Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad game and I do admit I enjoyed it, but it's still not what we were told we'd get and notr what was expected. Plus you have the feeling that the game overlay was made for touchscreen apps and the PC version is just a poor pott. I don't really understand why the game receives such high scores a decent piece of work, but nothing brilliant for both veterans of X-Coms and newcomers. 7/10 from me.… Expand
  15. Sean-M
    Jul 24, 2020
    7
    Great game with an interesting story. Can spend hundreds of hours playing this game. But to be honest I prefer the second one.
  16. zanz
    Apr 20, 2013
    7
    Simple, repetitive and boring... A lot less content than comparable turn based RPGs... Can be challenging on highest difficulty and it does have multiplayer, although there are much better and more fun multiplayer games around. I haven't played the old XCOM titles, but this game struck me as average at best...
  17. 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
  18. Afroman22
    Oct 23, 2013
    7
    X-Com Enemy Unknown is a wonderful turn based Real Time Strategy. It's got great options for your units you are controlling and has great ways to really make each battle a little more exciting.

    What's Here: X-Com as I said before is an RTS turn based. Planning and careful consideration of each move must be taken into place here or you could wind up dead. Aliens are coming to take over    X-Com Enemy Unknown is a wonderful turn based Real Time Strategy. It's got great options for your units you are controlling and has great ways to really make each battle a little more exciting.

    What's Here: X-Com as I said before is an RTS turn based. Planning and careful consideration of each move must be taken into place here or you could wind up dead. Aliens are coming to take over our planet and it's up to us to stop them learning from their technology to better equip ourselves to be better at the fight. Story is generic and boring so it's really just the gameplay that's keeping you here.

    Gameplay: It's turn based and it's hard to explain all the options there without it being long winded. Pretty much you can either decide to move twice move then shoot shoot right at the start take cover and so on. It makes you try to think things out and move cautiously because if you charge forward right away you can run into enemies and they can gun you down easily. You need to take cover consider your gear and consider your surroundings. You also need to consider what class to bring along with you to make sure you have a functional squad. It's really different and hard to take in for new people to RTS at first but everyone should be more than capable to learn what's going on. In the story you have to fight airships sometimes... but it's not really fighting it's just... watching wires duke it out. Which is dull and boring.

    Visuals: While they are not exactly eye popping they do have their plus sides to details on weapons on the characters in game. You can see the glow each marking and all kinds of stuff. The armors are well designed that's for sure. The alien designs too were truly outstanding. Each one was unique and full of color and life and some even scared the crap outta me when they popped up on my screen behind me. This was really well done. As for the maps it was ok. I mean they weren't eye popping but what really got me was how destructive everything was around it. The more you and the aliens fight the more torn up the map becomes. That really got me there.

    Sound: Music replays over and over again. I turned it off and started playing my own music. Gun noises well there is only 3 variety of guns regular, laser and, plasma and there is a sniper, assault rifle, shotguns, machine guns, and rocket launchers. They were good but it didn't really stand out for me So... not much there either. Voice acting was just a snooze fest.

    Controls: Well it's not hard it just takes time to learn but you get use to it fast. It even controlled with a gamepad but it is for PS3 and Xbox so I assumed nothing less if it's on those.

    Recommendation: This game is a 7/10 in my book due to the lacking music and sounds and the more detailed visuals as well as lacking story. Overall though the gameplay and dynamic field really help save it where it lacks in that makes this game a higher score then what I would have given it without seeing those things. While this game has it's flaws it's worth taking a look at if you are an RTS fan or just want to get into RTS.    … Expand
  19. da040926
    Sep 24, 2013
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I spent a lot of happy time with XCOM:EU but truth is, most of it was due to learning how to mod the game without any modding support from the developer.
    This is one of those games you enjoy despite being annoyed by so many bugs or simply things which could have been done so better.
    I played all my games on Ironman being unable to reload wrong decisions or even bad luck situations created great suspension and emotional involvement for me. I recommend trying it for everyone as in my opinion it itself adds 1-2 point to my score.

    I would give it 6 for vanilla game, 8 with existing mods, so I make it 7.

    - absence of modding Support despite early promises
    This is really sad potential for modding improvements, tweaking and fixes is huge!

    - friendly panic fire is way over the board
    While a great idea, their implementation is terrible. The only thing deciding if you can beat high difficulties is if you can survive massive friendly fire during early missions.

    - research unbalanced
    Since one third (maybe one half) of the game, my scientists were just playing games 90% of time (and I even had no research lab built)

    - base management trivial and boring
    I never found reason to build expensive advanced buildings as basic ones were much cheaper and did the trick just as well and I never had issue with lack of space.

    - clumsy UI shameless and poorly done console port
    Equipping soldiers before mission disturbingly annoying as there was no un-equip all function and you need to select specific soldier, check his current equipment and change it one by one.

    - itemization trivial
    No need to think here as lasers are clear upgrade over default weaponry in all parameters and plasma is clear upgrade over lasers. Situation with armors is a little better as there are some choices to be made.

    - bag restriction to a single item
    Highly annoying artificial cover for bad game design instead of design proper balance for items, cost, power and consequences, they rather force us to use only single thing. Yes, I understand it is much easier for them but it is also dumbing the game down and if you look around reviews, it is highly resented.    … Expand
  20. IonDissonanc357
    Nov 20, 2013
    7
    Fun game but not worth the $40 i spent on it. I'd say you get around $20 worth of fun out of it. The line of sight is unpredictable and shooting down ufos is extremely boring and might as well not even be a part of the game. Maybe it's just my computer but the voice overs simply don't work.
  21. 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
  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. JustSomeGamer
    Oct 8, 2016
    7
    really cool and unique strategy game with a lot of depth. This is a must have for every fan of the strategy genre! It's really frustrating though when you lose that character that you had since the start of the game : (
    And sadly there are also some **** mechanics that can screw you over really easily : /
  24. Laer
    Mar 14, 2017
    7
    ¿Quieres un buen juego de estrategia, "difícil" y con una buena historia?, este es tu juego.

    Es complicado hacer un análisis de un juego de estrategia (sobre todo para un amante de este genero) ya que hay muchas cosas de las que hablar, pero intentare abreviar para no alargarme demasiado, pero siempre tocando cada uno de los puntos que considero esencial. Historia: Una historia, que    ¿Quieres un buen juego de estrategia, "difícil" y con una buena historia?, este es tu juego.

    Es complicado hacer un análisis de un juego de estrategia (sobre todo para un amante de este genero) ya que hay muchas cosas de las que hablar, pero intentare abreviar para no alargarme demasiado, pero siempre tocando cada uno de los puntos que considero esencial.

    Historia: Una historia, que sin ser muy original, cumple muy bien con su función.

    Control: Normalmente es excelente, pero tiene algún que otro problema cuando se trata de altura (quieres a un personaje arriba pero sin querer pulsas abajo...).

    Variedad: Hay bastantes unidades, tanto aliadas (humanos con diferentes clases, híbridos y robots) como alienígenas (tanques, voladores, guardianes, atacantes,etc), además de variedad de armas, armaduras y mapas.

    Dificultad: El comienzo es bastante complicado, las unidades mueren muy rápido, tienes malas armaduras y armas, por no decir que no tienes prácticamente opciones en cuanto a las habilidades de las unidades, y se hace bastante difícil que no mueran unidades en un comienzo, pero cuando consigues endurecerlas por los combates y por tener nuevo equipamiento, he de decir que en pocas ocasiones he tenido miedo de perder alguna unidad.

    Repetitividad: No nos vamos a engañar, es muy difícil camuflar la repetitividad en los juegos de estrategia, y aun mas difícil hacer que no sea repetitivo, y este juego... lamentablemente apenas consigue lo primero. Logra mantenerte enganchado durante bastante tiempo probando cada una de las cosas nuevas que consigues a medida que vas jugando, pero una vez que has visto todo te deja una sensación de "vacío", ya que siempre se juega de la misma manera, tener la mejor equipación posible y jugar lo mas defensivo que se pueda.

    Duración de la campaña: Yo he tardado 25 horas para ver y probar practicamente todo lo que ofrece el juego y terminando la historia, no obstante, se puede tardar menos si vas mas rapido, si simplemente te centras en la historia, o por el contario, puedes tardar aun mas que yo si quieres probar y hacer cada una de las cosas que ofrece.

    Multijugador: Esta parte suele ser "importante" en este genero (lo pongo entre comillas por que depende mucho del juego y de la persona que este jugando), y lamentablemente no os puedo decir nada de el, ya que no lo he probado.

    Gráficos: Este apartado es el ultimo por que es el menos importante en un juego de estrategia, pero siempre hay un mínimo aunque este sea bajo. En este apartado el juego cumple, y mucho.

    Todo esto se junta y hace de este un juego de estrategia prácticamente obligatorio para todos los amantes de este genero, he inclusive, es un juego que puede gustar a aquellos que no se suelen acercar mucho a este genero.

    No obstante, considero prácticamente obligatoria la compra de la expansión, ya que si no el juego queda muy vacío.    … Expand
  25. dlcwolf
    Jun 14, 2019
    7
    I played both XCOM Enemy Unknown and XCOM Enemy Within. The games are 80% the same, same plot, same events, same actors, same stories, with the only difference in Enemy Within there are a bit more of new events, the human enemy Exalt, and few new enemies. There is no reason to play both since i see the second more complete and vast. If you want to play, just play the second. For the game,I played both XCOM Enemy Unknown and XCOM Enemy Within. The games are 80% the same, same plot, same events, same actors, same stories, with the only difference in Enemy Within there are a bit more of new events, the human enemy Exalt, and few new enemies. There is no reason to play both since i see the second more complete and vast. If you want to play, just play the second. For the game, i appreciated really, even if it is not at the high level of the original X-COM. But is well done and made modern. I had anyway the feeling that the authors tried to make more commercial and accepted by a wider range of gamers, exemplifying the gaming. For example, I found less researches es to do, and also the combats are made easier with less commands. So i say 7 for the first, and 8 for the second.… Expand
  26. Soullex
    Nov 29, 2022
    7
    Sonuna doğru biraz tekrara bağlıyor. Onun haricinde gerçekten çok iyi......
  27. Vanco
    Jun 4, 2019
    7
    Interesting additions to the original. Could not motivate me to complete another playthrough of the game though.
  28. Shimmeywill
    Feb 20, 2020
    7
    A solid, tight tactical game. It's a little finicky with some of the UI elements and it was hard to stay motivated through the base building element. Still a quality game.
  29. dogeswillkill
    Apr 22, 2021
    7
    i liked it, honestly. i think it's an alright reboot - i love strategy so this was right up my alley
  30. spydercanopus
    Mar 27, 2013
    6
    If you can get past the tutorial stages despite all the glitched keyboard/mouse setting, you will have fun. This game had so much potential but fell short consistently, but that doesn't mean it's boring. The game is fascinating. Just not meant to be played with a PC.
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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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