XCOM 2

 PlayStation 4
User Score
7.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 518 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 332 out of 518
  2. Mixed: 93 out of 518
  3. Negative: 93 out of 518
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  1. jstevo
    Oct 20, 2016
    10
    Initially this game was frustrating; being quite a good gamer, but having not played the original XCOM, I selected “moderate” difficulty. This was a huge mistake; not only was the game punishing every SINGLE error I made, I was aimlessly wandering a map and dying often. Losing key staff members. Eventually rage quitting.
    However, after throwing the toys out the pram, I stomached my pride,    Initially this game was frustrating; being quite a good gamer, but having not played the original XCOM, I selected “moderate” difficulty. This was a huge mistake; not only was the game punishing every SINGLE error I made, I was aimlessly wandering a map and dying often. Losing key staff members. Eventually rage quitting.
    However, after throwing the toys out the pram, I stomached my pride, and started the game on “easy/first time playing XCOM.” This is where I really started to enjoy the game; I was able to successfully complete missions, move forward in the overall game etc.
    It’s still difficult, but I really started to enjoy it. It’s a clever game, very few times have I ever had to pause when playing a different game and think “I could lose this round if I make 1 mistake” or constantly cycling through different tactical options, or after completing a move go “DAMN I should of considered that.”
    Most games nowadays dumb everything down to be completely generic and enjoyed by everyone. This is deliberately hard, and has a steep learning curve.
    Its also full of bugs; like everywhere. Sometimes so many things go wrong that you actually go “what just happened in the last 10 seconds” the camera pans to nothing, someone falls through a floor. Its bizarre, but I still love it. Well worth the price.    … Expand
  2. Malooga
    Sep 29, 2016
    10
    Did you like/love X-Com Enemy Unknown? Buy X-Com 2. That's the basic gist of things, but I still have like 50 characters to go for a minimum review...so...aliens.
  3. Pureray
    Sep 27, 2016
    10
    The fight for Earth, just became a whole lot harder in Xcom2! A simply great addition for any strategist fan to have for their Playstation 4! It shares the same game mechanics from the original, now with better visuals and more new enemies and equipment to experiment with in the battlefield!
  4. Kai82
    Jan 16, 2021
    10
    A great sequel. The story is set approx 20 years after X-Com Enemy Within / Unknown. Earth has surrendered to the aliens (We would have no sequel otherwise;-). The X-Com project was abandoned and the aliens created a shining new benevolent future for humanity. This is however a facade as they have a more sinister agenda. You are again the commander of X-Com and freed from captivity to beA great sequel. The story is set approx 20 years after X-Com Enemy Within / Unknown. Earth has surrendered to the aliens (We would have no sequel otherwise;-). The X-Com project was abandoned and the aliens created a shining new benevolent future for humanity. This is however a facade as they have a more sinister agenda. You are again the commander of X-Com and freed from captivity to be the leader of the resistance. The aliens and the puppet government troops called Advent will try to stop you. The general gameplay is the same. It is half base management (Development & Research, building, training etc.) and half turn based strategic combat missions. You have a mobile headquarter in form of the Avenger a captured alien supply craft. Here you can build several facilities. There are requirements, building / maintenance costs and of cause you must have enough power supply. Facilities can be upgraded to gain additional benefits. You research new technologies and build weapons / items that help you. Be warned there is a huge mysterious Avatar Project run by the aliens. It is basically a game over timer and it should be a priority to stop them. There will be monthly supply drops and dark events. You get a choice to stop 1 of 3 events and face the disadvantages that go along with the others . These range from don't bother me with this to crippling your efforts. There is a new resource called intel. It is used to contact the resistance on other countries and is a valuable resource. Try to get a good balance with building facilities and researching. Then there are the turn based missions. You send out a squad of soldiers on different types of missions. You have normally a concealment in place as long as you don't attack or be spotted (Use this to full advantage). There are 4 classes of soldiers available with a fifth being unlockable. These are Ranger, Grenadier, Specialist and Sharpshooter. All classes are useful and the extra class requires a bit of research and building but is worth it. The final mission would be far more menacing without 2 members of it in my team. Many staples / features return. Your soldiers level up into a new ranks by defeating enemies. With each rank you can chose 1 of 2 abilities. There are a few interesting builds as there are overlaps and branching parts. Be warned your soldiers can permanently die or be wounded which means unavailability until full recovery. There is again a training facility where you can unlock some benefits if you have a soldier with the needed rank. It should be a no brainer that the squad size upgrades should be high on the list and that you should train a few rookies to have replacements in case of wounded or dead soldiers. There are a few new enemies you must prepared for. Be warned that some missions have a time limit or are more difficult (retaliations for example) if you want to get the best results. As X-Com staple you have a great variety on difficulty settings. The higher once are truly challenging. I recommend a play-trough on lower difficulties to learn the mechanics and then starting with the higher once. The game mechanics overall work well and they mastered the art in giving us more of the same and some additions that are refreshing but not to alienating. The story itself delivers as there are great twist and a strong final. Overall this is an excellent sequel and one of my favorite strategy games. An easy recommendation especially for fans of the genre.… Expand
  5. brandoncargill1
    Oct 20, 2019
    10
    Great game, as long as you don't mind utilizing a quick save. That is an absolute must, unless you want to beat your head against the wall. You definitely earned your progression and I enjoyed the difficulty.
  6. azog
    Oct 1, 2016
    10
    Elapsed strategy game with turn-based system.
    The title is not without errors but it certainly is the best strategy released on PS4. Fantastic game big opportunities tactical and strategic.
  7. nismo10
    Apr 16, 2017
    10
    Lo mejor que ha jugado en años, es un juego dificil, pero gratificante cuando ganas, es al principio dificil de entender, pero una vez entendido pasarás horas y días enteros disfrutando, lo recomiendo ampliamente.
  8. mikehettfield
    Oct 7, 2016
    10
    I was having my doubts, but at the end this game Is such a epic one to me, i love the character customization and the setting, is just how strategy games should aim for, I-m so glad it-s on ps4 now so more people get to know thhe series and keep it growing, STOP READING ANYMORE AND GO GET IT!!!! XD
  9. Atilla1456
    Oct 5, 2016
    10
    Incredible game, exactly what I bought it for. It holds true to the XCOM Franchise, and presents new challenges while adding new functions. A great story also comes along with the great gameplay and "athmosphere" of XCOM 2. A game that is worth buying.
  10. kernowtom
    Jan 2, 2017
    10
    This is my favourite game of 2016. Would highly recommend to anyone who loves turn based games. It is very challenging but never too difficult. The game is a good length and is perfect for multiple playthroughs.
  11. Dattwood7
    Sep 27, 2016
    10
    If you liked XCOM: Enemy Unknown/Within, you'll like this game. You might have to get used to the new classes (the biggest change, in my opinion), but there are enough improvements in this game to win you over (one of the biggest is undoubtedly the improved character customization options: You'll get so attached to your crew you'll want to restart every time one of them gets hurt.) ThereIf you liked XCOM: Enemy Unknown/Within, you'll like this game. You might have to get used to the new classes (the biggest change, in my opinion), but there are enough improvements in this game to win you over (one of the biggest is undoubtedly the improved character customization options: You'll get so attached to your crew you'll want to restart every time one of them gets hurt.) There might be some bugs, and you might gripe about some other little things, but the core game is there. This is an excellent strategy game, simple as that.… Expand
  12. pelotasDePiedra
    Oct 5, 2016
    10
    Fantastic gama that improves on the first one in every aspect. The difficulty has been ramped up though so you need to be prepared to lose more people this time around. Delicious game regardless!
  13. TraceSkipper
    Apr 13, 2017
    10
    Frustrating, stressful and not enjoyable. I played it on easy and I raged quit a few times until i had enough and deleted it. Then I spent a day thinking about what I did. Am I too sensitive to handle these types of experiences? What has happen to me?? So I redownloaded it and for better or worse I am all IN! To make an experience difficult as this is the only way that this game could beFrustrating, stressful and not enjoyable. I played it on easy and I raged quit a few times until i had enough and deleted it. Then I spent a day thinking about what I did. Am I too sensitive to handle these types of experiences? What has happen to me?? So I redownloaded it and for better or worse I am all IN! To make an experience difficult as this is the only way that this game could be made. An Alien race has taken over earth and they are better than you and they know it. So go ahead play it show yourself you can.… Expand
  14. horrorsparadise
    Sep 30, 2016
    10
    Welcome back commander.
    Xcom2 arrived on PS4 and boy the battle for Earth has never been harder and funnier than this. It will not come as a surprise the game is good. It was good when it came to PC and the XCOM: Enemy Unknown/within were great. It suits the console great and the new mechanics, new enemies and equipment are also great. Will always be one of the best turn based games out    Welcome back commander.
    Xcom2 arrived on PS4 and boy the battle for Earth has never been harder and funnier than this. It will not come as a surprise the game is good. It was good when it came to PC and the XCOM: Enemy Unknown/within were great. It suits the console great and the new mechanics, new enemies and equipment are also great. Will always be one of the best turn based games out there. But nobody will properly read meta review about this game. It's awesome. Good to see you again commander.    … Expand
  15. thrill747
    Sep 30, 2016
    10
    Oh man, such a great game! This review is for the benefit of anyone who might be "on the fence" about getting this game. Basically, if you already played the crap out of XCOM:Enemy Unknown/Enemy Within and are looking for more then you gotta get this game. It does have a few glitches in gameplay and cut-scenes but nothing that ruins the game, stops the game, or ever takes you out of theOh man, such a great game! This review is for the benefit of anyone who might be "on the fence" about getting this game. Basically, if you already played the crap out of XCOM:Enemy Unknown/Enemy Within and are looking for more then you gotta get this game. It does have a few glitches in gameplay and cut-scenes but nothing that ruins the game, stops the game, or ever takes you out of the game. All-in-all it remains a super-challenging and immersive XCOM experience. Highly recommended! Just be sure to save often 'cuz it is not easy!… Expand
  16. Knight_Shade
    Feb 2, 2019
    10
    I've always been a fan of Turn-based strategies since Rebel Star, Laser Squad etc. and I've enjoyed most of the XCom games so maybe I am biased in my opinion but this version lived up to my expectations.

    This is an excellent revamp and extension of the old classics with a great storyline and new characters and weapons. I played it on normal settings and finished it, although it is hard    I've always been a fan of Turn-based strategies since Rebel Star, Laser Squad etc. and I've enjoyed most of the XCom games so maybe I am biased in my opinion but this version lived up to my expectations.

    This is an excellent revamp and extension of the old classics with a great storyline and new characters and weapons. I played it on normal settings and finished it, although it is hard / impossible to keep your favourite characters alive all the way through without some luck.

    Highly recommend to anyone who likes the genre. Still the best of the bunch imo.    … Expand
  17. gqmasters3
    Oct 31, 2019
    10
    This game is superb. I am really surprised the user score is so low; I can only imagine people didn't like how hard the game is so they decided to cry a fit over it, but I don't know that for sure. XCOM2 is a lot of fun, challenging and it has a replay value through the roof. I highly recommend this game if you like turn based tactical RPGS.
  18. Xcommander
    Sep 30, 2019
    10
    The XCOM 2 was amazing game but incomplete until war of the chosen expansion.i recommend if you want to play XCOM 2 buy war of the chosen expansion that complete game in every aspect
  19. ZeroV
    Nov 21, 2019
    10
    - finished couple of times, including War of The Chosen
    - playing on legend difficulty now and loving it
    - graphics 10/10, story 8/10, DLCs 9/10, gameplay 9/10, soundtrack 7/10 - loading screens are definitely not something for the impatient - space orientation sometimes requires higher precision due to some level complexities - great challenge, intuitive learning curve - a minor    - finished couple of times, including War of The Chosen
    - playing on legend difficulty now and loving it
    - graphics 10/10, story 8/10, DLCs 9/10, gameplay 9/10, soundtrack 7/10

    - loading screens are definitely not something for the impatient
    - space orientation sometimes requires higher precision due to some level complexities
    - great challenge, intuitive learning curve
    - a minor rendering glitches, mostly humorous but not game breaking
    - the game constatly pushes you to do better no matter how good you think you were → thats my favorite aspect, its like an aggressive super hyped over enthusiastic proactive chess couch (with lasers)    … Expand
  20. X-comfan18
    Apr 27, 2021
    10
    The best turn based UFO Defence game that I've played.

    XCOM was Great. XCOM has further built up on it's strengths and created an even better product with Updated Graphics and Campaign. Every single DLC had a profound impact on gameplay and refined it even further.

    Grab the complete XCOM2 bungle for best experience.
  21. michaeljhuman
    Feb 14, 2022
    10
    This is based on playing more recently than a lot of these reviews, and on a PC. I don't have the issues others have. Also, I have War of the Chosen installed, which might change how the base game plays even when not doing WOTC.

    Ok, I consider this one of my favorite games ever. Hard, sure. But rewarding. It took me time to learn how to deal with some of the challenges. But I have    This is based on playing more recently than a lot of these reviews, and on a PC. I don't have the issues others have. Also, I have War of the Chosen installed, which might change how the base game plays even when not doing WOTC.

    Ok, I consider this one of my favorite games ever. Hard, sure. But rewarding. It took me time to learn how to deal with some of the challenges. But I have beat it quite a few times, not sure what difficulty levels.

    War Of the Chosen adds interesting, though sometimes stressful challenges. I would say play the base game first, and beat it. Then take on WOTC.

    There's a fair amount of customization of difficulty. For example, in my game, I can double the turn timers.

    Reading the reviews, I can see this is not for everyone. I don't know if the game was buggy in earlier versions, and/or if WOTC has improved things a lot. But I loved the game BEFORE buying WOTC.

    Yeah, 10/10 seems high, but this game made me want to keep going back and restarting, and trying different ideas.    … Expand
  22. Shortbuss1211
    Nov 27, 2022
    10
    This game can be very frustrating at times.. you will either hate it or love it ..one of my top ten list but so is Final Fantasy so take it as it is .. opinion
  23. Yojimbo2015
    May 20, 2023
    10
    The seminal turn-based strategy game returns with some upgraded visuals and a conscious attempt to inject a bit more variety into the missions and maps. As with a lot of strategy sequels, some of the tinkering seems to be there for its own sake and adds a layer of complexity without really adding to the enjoyment. For this reason it doesn't quite capture the imagination in the same way asThe seminal turn-based strategy game returns with some upgraded visuals and a conscious attempt to inject a bit more variety into the missions and maps. As with a lot of strategy sequels, some of the tinkering seems to be there for its own sake and adds a layer of complexity without really adding to the enjoyment. For this reason it doesn't quite capture the imagination in the same way as Enemy Within, but it's a top notch strategy title nonetheless.… Expand
  24. GABRIEL1030
    Oct 16, 2016
    9
    It´s a nice strategy game, the maps are aleatory and the experience is well balanced.

    Presentation 8
    Graphics 8
    Gameplay 8
    Sound 8
    Endless Appeal 9.5

    The game is very satisfactory because every stage is different, the new customization options are welcome.
  25. Markos-
    Feb 13, 2019
    9
    it is true as some say that the game lacks originality. It is, in fact, just "more of the same" if compared to the previous.
    However, this game is in any case great if you do love turn based tactical combat, carefully improving your soldiers and weaponry as you progress. Getting attached to your squad members helps for an added immersion (I recommend to name them after friends, etc... ).    it is true as some say that the game lacks originality. It is, in fact, just "more of the same" if compared to the previous.
    However, this game is in any case great if you do love turn based tactical combat, carefully improving your soldiers and weaponry as you progress. Getting attached to your squad members helps for an added immersion (I recommend to name them after friends, etc... ).
    It is more of the same (really good stuff).    … Expand
  26. Johnnybont
    Oct 26, 2016
    9
    This is an amazing game, a great advancement on the previous instalment. A must play for everyone who owns a PS4 and is looking for a strategy game! yes, it is a little buggy and yes the camera can be a little annoying, but the game play is king here and massively makes up for these points.
  27. Rox22
    Apr 16, 2017
    9
    I was so happy when I heard this was getting a PS4 port. So was it worth the wait? H3ll yeah!

    It took everything great from the last game, and improved upon it. It looks like they did listen to most of the feedback from the previous game. Visually on par with last game with bigger and more varied environments. Even though the game improves on so much it also feels too much like    I was so happy when I heard this was getting a PS4 port. So was it worth the wait? H3ll yeah!

    It took everything great from the last game, and improved upon it. It looks like they did listen to most of the feedback from the previous game.

    Visually on par with last game with bigger and more varied environments.

    Even though the game improves on so much it also feels too much like the game before it. This is not a bad thing, just wish they could have added more new elements eg. ship combat from the original series.

    Also now there is a great and engaging story, delivered far better than the first game with some great and developed characters.

    Overall:
    XCOM 2 is a great improvement and upgrade from the previous game, but does now need some fresh gameplay mechanics for the next game.    … Expand
  28. monks99
    Jun 20, 2020
    9
    So much fun but difficult at first. But great! Just great! I hope there are more games like this.
  29. hokido
    Oct 8, 2016
    9
    After both Valkyrie Chronicles and The Banner Saga this year i was more than happy to jump into another turn based strategy game, this time the follow up to the very good XCOM Enemy Unknown/Within.

    As with the previous game it is a real challenge you have to think constantly, go charging in and you will get slaughtered, patience is the key and there is no better feeling than luring a    After both Valkyrie Chronicles and The Banner Saga this year i was more than happy to jump into another turn based strategy game, this time the follow up to the very good XCOM Enemy Unknown/Within.

    As with the previous game it is a real challenge you have to think constantly, go charging in and you will get slaughtered, patience is the key and there is no better feeling than luring a group of Aliens into a well planned out trap.

    This brings me onto one of the only issues i have with the game time sensitive missions, countless times i have had to rush across the map to secure a piece of Intel or blow something up after which i have to watch my squad get annihilated, because in order to reach the objective in time strategy has to go out of the window.

    This is my only gripe in what otherwise it a top quality turn based strategy game and a great follow up to 2012's XCOM.    … Expand
  30. fallouts
    Sep 27, 2016
    9
    Great game. Must own for fans of the first two on last gen of consoles. The graphics are crisp, clean and stylish. The game play is improved with lot of new features and new classes.
  31. JackytheRipper
    Oct 4, 2020
    9
    Turn based tactics, character development, research and base building, ideally combined
  32. SrPepe
    Jan 22, 2018
    9
    Un tremendo juego que hace muy buen honor a la primer entrega, muy divertido. Ansioso por el tercero!
  33. TatsMcGee
    Sep 8, 2018
    9
    While I was playing this game, something kind of clicked in my brain and forced me to ask the question, why don’t I play more tactical turn-based games? I now realized that I am a huge fan of this genre and need to play more games like this. Game play wise this is a great game, I really enjoyed mapping out my soldiers and trying to find the perfect (or near perfect) spot for them.

    There    While I was playing this game, something kind of clicked in my brain and forced me to ask the question, why don’t I play more tactical turn-based games? I now realized that I am a huge fan of this genre and need to play more games like this. Game play wise this is a great game, I really enjoyed mapping out my soldiers and trying to find the perfect (or near perfect) spot for them.

    There is just something about having the “perfect” turn where everything just goes right. It’s just extremely satisfying feeling to watch your plan unfold and things just go well. The game has a lot of depth so when you’re first starting out, things just seem to go badly. Over time, little by little you learn how to deal with the various obstacles and before you know it, something will click and you’ll just understand the game. For me, it took me about 10 hours before I can confidently say that I started to understand the depth of the game.

    Tactical depth is a great way to describe this game. There is a lot going on and there is a lot to learn in order for you to maximize your efficiency. For each turn, you control at most 6 units (you start with 4 but unlock more slots as the game progresses) and each unit has 2 actions. There is variety in each action as well, you can move once then for your second action you can take a shot an enemy, you can chose to hunker down which gives you better defense and evasiveness. You also have the option of going into “Overwatch” which is another defensive option where if an enemy moves, your unit (or units if you put multiple units in overwatch) will fire at the enemy. You can also throw grenades which don’t do as much damage as a shot but they’ll break an enemies shield and they’ll blow up the surrounding area which makes it easier for your other units to fire at the enemy. You also have the option of moving again so you can move twice as far in one turn.

    The game has 4 types of units you can use in missions. I do recommend using combinations of them all in missions because each unit type can help in certain situations. There is a grenadier which basically has a grenade gun which allows them to have 2 grenades rather than 1 but also they can shoot grenades further than other units can simply throw them. There is the Sharpshooter which is basically the sniper type and this unit has better aim, can shoot from further away but you have to keep in mind shooting the sniper rifle counts as 2 actions so if your first action is move or reload then the sharpshooter will pull out their pistol which does less damage. There is a Ranger unit and they’re really the flanking unit. They can sneak around enemies, put themselves in a better position and take out enemies from behind. The final unit is the specialist and they have this drone which can be used for 1 of 2 things. The drone can either be used for combat where it will do damage to an enemy but I found that using the drones as a healer was a better way to go. I figured since all of the other units deal damage, it would be nice to have one unit that its primary role would be to heal wounded units.

    The game has a somewhat simple leveling up system where units will gain abilities as they rank up. There are 8 total ranks, you start out as a Rookie and rank them up to Colonel. So as units rank up to Colonel they’ll have 7 total abilities and those abilities vary depending on the class. Whats also nice about ranking up the units is, they gain more health and also they’re overall accuracy will improve as well. Having higher accuracy is important because when units miss their shots that is when bad things happen.

    So the accuracy is probably the most important game play mechanic and how it works is pretty simple. So lets say there is an enemy on the map, you select your unit and it has a 30% shot accuracy. That’s not a great shot so you want to give your unit a better opportunity to hit its mark. What you would want to do is move that unit closer or a better strategy would be to bring out your Grenadier. Lets say the enemy is perched behind a tree so what you want to do is get that tree out of there so your other 5 units have a better shot. So the Grenadier comes in, shoots its grenade and eliminates the tree. Now you can move your other units closer and it could take that 30% shot accuracy to 90% shot accuracy.

    If you’re a fan of turn-based games, I would recommend picking this game up. It’s a solid game that has a lot of depth that takes time to learn but you have to have the patience to deal with games short comings. I know when this game first came out there were some major issues with the PC version but I believe that’s better now and I would say if you can play on that version. If you do end up playing on a console, just keep in mind that its great but very buggy.    … Expand
  34. shiftyman
    Dec 9, 2016
    9
    XCOM 2 is the hidden gem on PS4, anyone who is unsure whether to purchase it, like I was, will not be disappointed after a few hours of gameplay. The amount of upgrades and customisations available is amazing and fun. The turn base stragery at times is extremely unforgiving, but rewarding. Just a great game all round.
  35. spadePerfect
    Oct 10, 2016
    9
    This game is satisfyingly punishing and hard as hell, but the constant tension makes you want to keep going anyways.
    No matter how helpless you might feel, the feeling after beating a Very Difficult mission without being hit and owing it to nothing but your own tactics is the best you've felt for a while in a game and makes you want to keep going no matter what.
    The game suffers from    This game is satisfyingly punishing and hard as hell, but the constant tension makes you want to keep going anyways.
    No matter how helpless you might feel, the feeling after beating a Very Difficult mission without being hit and owing it to nothing but your own tactics is the best you've felt for a while in a game and makes you want to keep going no matter what.

    The game suffers from some technical issues like long loading times and visual glitches but nothing game-breaking or gameplay-affecting is among these. If you liked XCOM Enemy Unknown/Enemy Within, get this game.    … Expand
  36. midniteblues
    Oct 10, 2016
    9
    XCOM 2 is one of the best experiences I've had on the PS4. The game is actually harder than XCOM: Enemy Unknown, however it manages to feel more rewarding. I felt excited every time one of my soldiers gained a promotion and the feeling of satisfaction when beating a difficult mission is something that not many other games provide. The only bad thing I can say about the PS4 port is theXCOM 2 is one of the best experiences I've had on the PS4. The game is actually harder than XCOM: Enemy Unknown, however it manages to feel more rewarding. I felt excited every time one of my soldiers gained a promotion and the feeling of satisfaction when beating a difficult mission is something that not many other games provide. The only bad thing I can say about the PS4 port is the super long loading times. I think the further you get in the game, the longer the loading times become. I experienced loading times of up to 3 minutes when I was close to the end of the game. However, even with that said, this game deserves all the praise and it is a must play. Hopefully 2K will patch the game and make it run smoother. Other than that, this game is nothing short of amazing. 9/10… Expand
  37. thatcoolguy222
    Sep 23, 2017
    9
    Amazing game! I just finished the game on easy (since im a noob), and it was an awesome experience. I really liked the fact that every step you take matters (when fighting, but also when upgrading/building). One wrong decision can really screw you up, which makes the game very interesting and tense. In addition there is tons of stuff to research and build. A wide variety of enemies, and aAmazing game! I just finished the game on easy (since im a noob), and it was an awesome experience. I really liked the fact that every step you take matters (when fighting, but also when upgrading/building). One wrong decision can really screw you up, which makes the game very interesting and tense. In addition there is tons of stuff to research and build. A wide variety of enemies, and a wide variety of classes for your team. Each class is very different and can really add something unique to your team. I bought the expansion immediately after finishing :). Only reason i did not gave a 10 is because the game on the PS4 has some bugs and frame rate drops which can be kinda annoying on bigger maps. Also the load times can be pretty long. But for the rest it is an awesome game! If you like a mix of strategy and rpg; BUY IT!… Expand
  38. Dano1871
    Dec 6, 2016
    9
    X-com 2 isn't an RTS. It is a turned based strategy game, not real time so I don't see how someone who has played it is writing that down as a review.
    Anyway the game is great nice graphics and nice game play worth the money
  39. PS4allday
    Dec 28, 2016
    9
    Wow, most of the reviewers are right, this games even better that the previous XCOM. Love the satisfaction you get from progressing thru the game. Building your squad, building new facilities, researching for new gear and items and exploring the map for new adventures. Love the deep strategy required from the gamer to get the most reward from the game. My PS4 version did kick me out toWow, most of the reviewers are right, this games even better that the previous XCOM. Love the satisfaction you get from progressing thru the game. Building your squad, building new facilities, researching for new gear and items and exploring the map for new adventures. Love the deep strategy required from the gamer to get the most reward from the game. My PS4 version did kick me out to main menu once but due to auto-save feature only lost 10 minutes. I have had the game 4 days and already have 20 hours in. Love it!… Expand
  40. sandroide
    Aug 15, 2017
    9
    Finally a nice game with a fair mechanic although not so deep but ok.
    I liked it and I'm looking forward to buy the next extension! It took too long since the first release and I hope it will be good as well.
  41. Vitolo98
    Nov 15, 2018
    9
    I love this game. The world is interesting and with great potential. The artstyle is catchy and pretty. The gameplay is addicting, and the game has huge amounts of replayability. The game is dirt cheap, get it. Only cons are the long loading times, and the occasional stutter. But part of that is due to high CPU consumption of this game, which is a Achilles heel for the beloved PS4 hardware.
  42. Scebol
    Aug 5, 2023
    9
    Non sono un amante della fantascienza ma amo i giochi a turni e xcom 2 è sicuramente uno dei migliori. Le uniche pecche sono alcuni bug e i tempi di caricamento biblici, che pero' si riducono drasticamente se lo si gioca su ps5
  43. Jebb333
    Jun 22, 2020
    9
    Loved the mechanics and honestly is a super fun game to play. It’s definitely hard at first but once you get used to it it’s addicting. The customization options are pretty awesome
  44. bergcamp101
    Feb 21, 2021
    9
    I give it 9, because overall experience was impressive, which is great, but there are so many problems... FPS is so low, and it's a turn-based tactics! Loading times are infinite. I bet they did it on purpose, so you couldn't reload your move too often... And those hit percentages are just preposterous. You know that feeling, when you shoot 6 times in one alien, and miss 5 times, but whenI give it 9, because overall experience was impressive, which is great, but there are so many problems... FPS is so low, and it's a turn-based tactics! Loading times are infinite. I bet they did it on purpose, so you couldn't reload your move too often... And those hit percentages are just preposterous. You know that feeling, when you shoot 6 times in one alien, and miss 5 times, but when the enemy shoots from the same position, he does critical hit...… Expand
  45. TianLong1
    Mar 31, 2023
    9
    Great turn-based tactical RPG with loads and loads of customization for your soldiers, even better than its previous release. There is a lot of different maps and types of enemies which make the game harder as you progress. I wish there were more types of objectives aside from attacking a base/payload or saving civilians, it can get a bit repetitive.
  46. djbarker
    Feb 12, 2018
    8
    I love and hate this game. The tactics you need to succeed are very deep, but the RNG makes me want to scream! The game is improved in every aspect over Xcom, especially as now enemies don't suddenly teleport onto the map and totally disrupt your plans.
    The contols in the ship are clunky and it takes ages to load, both of which become very irritating, but the high challenge of the game    I love and hate this game. The tactics you need to succeed are very deep, but the RNG makes me want to scream! The game is improved in every aspect over Xcom, especially as now enemies don't suddenly teleport onto the map and totally disrupt your plans.
    The contols in the ship are clunky and it takes ages to load, both of which become very irritating, but the high challenge of the game play makes up for these negatives. Highly recommend if you want a game that really makes you think and forces you to gamble.    … Expand
  47. drlowdon
    Jan 22, 2017
    8
    X-Com wasn’t exactly an easy game but this sequel takes things up another notch right from the start in terms of difficulty, and I’m sure that will put a fair number of people off (I came close to giving up after my 3rd restart). It’s worth sticking with and taking the time to learn how everything works however as you’ll be rewarded with a genuinely deep and rewarding strategy game.

    The    X-Com wasn’t exactly an easy game but this sequel takes things up another notch right from the start in terms of difficulty, and I’m sure that will put a fair number of people off (I came close to giving up after my 3rd restart). It’s worth sticking with and taking the time to learn how everything works however as you’ll be rewarded with a genuinely deep and rewarding strategy game.

    The game plays largely the same as previous iterations with the gameplay consisting of managing your base of operations (securing supplies, recruiting soldiers, researching new weapons etc) and turn based missions that task you with a variety of objectives such as rescuing VIP’s or securing key intel. Veterans of the series will notice a greater variety of mission types, enemies, weapons etc but these don’t change the game at all.

    From looking around forums the most controversial addition seems to be the ‘timed’ missions which only allow a set number of turns to complete them. Initially these can prove very frustrating as they force you to move forward quicker than you’d like, often resulting in your soldiers being ambushed and quickly killed. Personally I feel as though the turn limits could have been a little less strict on occasions (The VIP missions in particular force you to rush to much) but, after a while, I realised that they made a good addition as they prevent overuse of the tactic of moving forward at a snail’s pace and putting your soldiers on overwatch every turn. A further addition that adds to the difficulty is the enemy reinforcements that can arrive at random during missions. These are a good idea in theory as they help keep you on your toes, and you do have a turn to set up an ambush, but when three or four enemies suddenly drop into a difficult spot and take out half your squad it can sometimes feel as though the game is determined to just beat you up.
    I’ve heard a few comments regarding the way the game works on PS4 but, other than a few minor glitches here and there (the bodies of all my female soldiers vanished on one mission!) and loading times that are a little too long when starting a new mission I had no problems at all during my 25+hours of playing the game.

    Overall X-Com 2 is a minor refinement of the formula that worked so well for the series last generation and, assuming that the difficulty doesn’t put you off early on, you’ll find it’s arguably the best strategy game available on current gen consoles.    … Expand
  48. iKen
    May 21, 2020
    8
    Played on PS4 Pro.
    Gameplay: GREAT
    Graphic: GREAT
    Story: GOOD
    Music/Sound : GREAT
    Dialogue/Voice Acting: GOOD
  49. xephnid
    Oct 22, 2017
    8
    I wanted to like this game, I really did, and I did rate it an 8 despite how much it annoyed me. XCOM 2 contains a whole lot of improvements over the first one. Even more if you also buy War of the Chosen...

    The maps are more varied. The enemies are more varied. The gameplay has improved quite a bit. Everything looks better. And more... There is a lot to like. But - and this is a big    I wanted to like this game, I really did, and I did rate it an 8 despite how much it annoyed me. XCOM 2 contains a whole lot of improvements over the first one. Even more if you also buy War of the Chosen...

    The maps are more varied. The enemies are more varied. The gameplay has improved quite a bit. Everything looks better. And more... There is a lot to like.

    But - and this is a big one - Firaxis have learned nothing whatsoever about interface design between the two games. Nothing. I have no hope that they ever will.

    Every thirty seconds there is some inane voice-over to tell you perfectly obvious stuff. And to make absolutely positively sure you pay attention to that hideous mix of bad exposition and superfluous tutorial, the game locks the interface, takes camera control away from you and forces you to look at that one thing you don't care about. And because that's not annoying enough, that **** is on repeat. You will hear it again and again and again while screaming "Give me control of the frickin game, dammit!". Sure, some of the exposition and the tutorialising is useful at least halfway through your first playthrough. About mid-game however, it'll start to grate. By the end you will rage and scream "Shut up! Shut up!" while the game noises at you.

    Some people think this game has replay value. I disagree. You will never want to hear from "Central" again. Never. This can be slightly mitigated by installing certain mods, but only slightly.

    I really wanted to like this game. I kinda did. Kinda. I don't regret buying it and its expansion. And, no, I will not buy future Firaxis games. This is it.    … Expand
  50. chrisse989
    Jul 7, 2018
    8
    I love Xcom EU, so was happy with more Xcom when this announced :)
    I enjoy XCOM 2, but less so than EU:
    - You get WAY too much notifications - Maps are random generated and are ok, but after a while feel also very generic. - Load times are a tad long. I don't think that the game is too hard as some commented (comes from a guy who did 70 runs on I/I in EU, 95% fails). What does tick    I love Xcom EU, so was happy with more Xcom when this announced :)
    I enjoy XCOM 2, but less so than EU:
    - You get WAY too much notifications
    - Maps are random generated and are ok, but after a while feel also very generic.
    - Load times are a tad long.

    I don't think that the game is too hard as some commented (comes from a guy who did 70 runs on I/I in EU, 95% fails).
    What does tick me off is that you might encounter a bug playing in Ironman (you only have one save) which ERASES your save. Not fun when you're 15 hours in on the highest difficulty. I've had it in EU too, but only twice on 80 games. In XCOM 2, I had it on my third run... That should have been fixed a long time ago (-1 point of for that)    … Expand
  51. pongkrit03
    Aug 1, 2017
    8
    XCOM 2 is surely a great game, however whether it surpass XCOM1 or not is still uncertain. I am XCOM's veteran and I really have good time with XCOM2. While the battle system is still as satisfying as the same, the management system is changed a lot. Last time, you was in the underground base and intercepted alien UFO with your crafted combated airplane, now your base is within the hugeXCOM 2 is surely a great game, however whether it surpass XCOM1 or not is still uncertain. I am XCOM's veteran and I really have good time with XCOM2. While the battle system is still as satisfying as the same, the management system is changed a lot. Last time, you was in the underground base and intercepted alien UFO with your crafted combated airplane, now your base is within the huge airship, you choose the place to attack instead. It is quite opposite from original and I want to praise the team who come up with this fresh new idea. The graphic looks nice. Difficulty, however, is surely harder than XCOM 1. High cover is not as reliable as it was because most enemies have some skills that can hurt you in some way even you are in cover. Moreover, almost every mission has timer. Therefore, the most effective way to fight in XCOM2 is to go on full aggression, kill enemies before they have chance to retaliate. It is not bad concept but I prefer the old way to have balance in attack and defend. I believe Overwatch got nerfed as well.

    The story mission in XCOM 2 is not as good as XCOM1. I don't feel like I enjoy much of it. The new two managers in your ship (engineer and scientist) are not as memorable as the old ones. I love Dr. Valen and Shen more than these two guys. The ending is not satisfying.

    More importantly from my first playthrough, there were several time that my game was crash. Thankfully, the game has autosave so it did not hurt my progress. The freezing animation happened quite a lot. LOADING TIME IS TOO LONG, I must mention this. Loading time kills enjoyment of the game. It may be better to play with high spec PC rather than PS4

    DLCs are good so far. Strangely, I like the costume dlc which normally I never care about costume in any other game, don't know why.

    In summary, XCOM2 is still a good game. Without crash and long loading time I would give it 9/10, but in my opinion I still love XCOM1 more than XCOM2. I would suggest you to play XCOM2 on PC if you can. The graphic on XCOM2 looks very polished though. For those who never played XCOM1 before I highly recommend you to play XCOM 1 enemy within first, because the price is cheaper, the quality of enjoyment is on par or better and the difficulty is more suitable for new comers. If you like XCOM 1, just grab XCOM 2 and have fun. It is still good game nonetheless.    … Expand
  52. illphil
    Oct 28, 2016
    8
    Really good game. I would give it a solid 8. It has bugs and really long loading times which can be annoying if you make a big mistake and need to reload a save. I had never played the previous games so I found it difficult the first time I played because it was encouraging me to push through the main story missions. You should not do this if you are new to the franchise- look at someReally good game. I would give it a solid 8. It has bugs and really long loading times which can be annoying if you make a big mistake and need to reload a save. I had never played the previous games so I found it difficult the first time I played because it was encouraging me to push through the main story missions. You should not do this if you are new to the franchise- look at some of the advice online and focus on powering up and expanding and your team and territory early on or you will get destroyed later.

    It's really satisfying once you figure out how it works and can start dishing out ass kickings. Then again if you get too good then it becomes too comfortable later on so I found it difficult to strike a balance. Still, it's a great and exciting strategy game and well worth playing.    … Expand
  53. countofhell4321
    Oct 6, 2016
    8
    The mood of this game is unforgettable, brand new rethought strategy, new features and renewed, stronger alien units are going to bring this game even for a higher level, however the graphics are not improved, only minimal, it is clearly the same engine as the XCOM 2012 and the soundtrack, few sound effects are reused as well.
    The game runs in 1080p, the CGI animations running smooth and    The mood of this game is unforgettable, brand new rethought strategy, new features and renewed, stronger alien units are going to bring this game even for a higher level, however the graphics are not improved, only minimal, it is clearly the same engine as the XCOM 2012 and the soundtrack, few sound effects are reused as well.
    The game runs in 1080p, the CGI animations running smooth and clear. Great content, excellent playability.
    However XCOM 2 still suffers from the same problems as XCOM 2012 or Enemy Within, framerate drops and hanging, long loading times but this is a TBS game so this won't cause too much trouble during gameplay.
    XCOM 2 is a strong 8 for me.    … Expand
  54. marykaymylove
    Feb 9, 2017
    8
    This is the best top down turn based strategy I have ever played but some elements are holding it back and these are:

    1) Lack of character customization unless you buy the DLCs 2) Missing at point blank is complete BS 3) Legendary Ironman is unnecessarily difficult without trying almost 30 times. 4) The performance issues are noticeable especially with the fps drops. 5)    This is the best top down turn based strategy I have ever played but some elements are holding it back and these are:

    1) Lack of character customization unless you buy the DLCs

    2) Missing at point blank is complete BS

    3) Legendary Ironman is unnecessarily difficult without trying almost 30 times.

    4) The performance issues are noticeable especially with the fps drops.

    5) Central. SHUT. YOUR. TRAP.    … Expand
  55. Bringo69
    Jan 24, 2017
    8
    I am changing my score from 6 to 8. This is actually a very decent game but you will need to invest time into to understand the mechanisms. Also if you are new to the franchise, you will need to play it on easy.
  56. Thrice_Bitten
    Jan 31, 2017
    8
    Having never played an Xcom game, I wasn’t sure what to expect other than a turn-based action game and I tend to enjoy those. The plot is simple and quickly gets out of the way so that gameplay can take center-stage. Combat proved to be engaging and challenging. Sometimes a scenario would put me in a bad situation, but that felt less like being screwed over and more akin to how real warHaving never played an Xcom game, I wasn’t sure what to expect other than a turn-based action game and I tend to enjoy those. The plot is simple and quickly gets out of the way so that gameplay can take center-stage. Combat proved to be engaging and challenging. Sometimes a scenario would put me in a bad situation, but that felt less like being screwed over and more akin to how real war might throw you a curveball. Some might disagree with me, but I enjoyed that Xcom 2 had a shallow level of customization spread across various frontiers. I never got bogged down trying to choose between a dozen different skills for my soldiers, research paths, weapon upgrades, or facility-builds like some resource management games focus on.

    Everything took a backseat to the combat missions which was my most enjoyable experience with Xcom 2. My one complaint in this area would be that the animations were often basic, repetitive, and did not sync with actions. Often I would find myself unloading a dozen rounds from a machine gun into an Alien’s face, only for the alien to pause for a second then spastically ragdoll around the floor and start clipping into walls. This replaced some of my immersion with chuckles but overall did not ruin the game for me by any means. Xcom 2 is far from perfect but was still an extremely enjoyable game, and I look forward to future installments. I can see myself replaying this game, recommending it to friends, and I may even go back and play Xcom: Enemy Unknown at some point. A solid 8 out of 10.    … Expand
  57. EEKtheratbat
    Mar 20, 2017
    8
    As a fan of the original game i really liked that they brought this to console again, The only downside of this game is that the missions feel repetitive so they have to work on that for a sequal and the loading times are just terrible ( even on the pro ).
  58. siphus007
    Dec 24, 2017
    8
    It's hard to say why, in XCOM 2, Earth has inexplicably lost the war, when you swear you remember a positive ending sequence for the first game.
    ...which is just as inexplicable for how shockingly hard this game is in comparison to the first. While the template remains mostly the same, the tactics change consierably, including the ease of having your whole squad wiped out from one    It's hard to say why, in XCOM 2, Earth has inexplicably lost the war, when you swear you remember a positive ending sequence for the first game.
    ...which is just as inexplicable for how shockingly hard this game is in comparison to the first. While the template remains mostly the same, the tactics change consierably, including the ease of having your whole squad wiped out from one mistake. But I digress.

    Despite various aspects of the game feel downgraded from 1, the story is still compelling, the core gameplay is still a blast, and the constant stream of activities makes this one of the most addictive games I've ever played. I want to say maybe an 8.5, but it leans further towards an 8 due to balancing problems, frustrations, and slightly more visual issues. While XCOM 1 is a must-play and is refreshingly difficult but exquisitely fun, XCOM 2 is simply more of the same with more difficulty and a little less fun.    … Expand
  59. MaxsterChief121
    Dec 23, 2017
    8
    XCOM 2 is a fantastic game, filled with lots of fun as well as pain. Although this game is good, the console ports left a little bit to be desired, from glitches, bad frame rate, long load times, and some low textures here and there. Although these are problems I still didn't think it was enough to bring the game down to far, and I believe that XCOM 2 (PS4) is still a very good game, evenXCOM 2 is a fantastic game, filled with lots of fun as well as pain. Although this game is good, the console ports left a little bit to be desired, from glitches, bad frame rate, long load times, and some low textures here and there. Although these are problems I still didn't think it was enough to bring the game down to far, and I believe that XCOM 2 (PS4) is still a very good game, even with these flaws.… Expand
  60. Cocaine
    Mar 24, 2020
    8
    I really love this first X-com. And the second part is good too but not better then the first one. Advantages and disadvantages of the second part:
    "+"
    1. Great squad customization 2. Lot of interesting equpment which creates interesting tactics possibilities 3. Melee combat 4. Nice strategical part on the Avanger 5. Plot is good enough for strategical game "-" 1. MISSES in are    I really love this first X-com. And the second part is good too but not better then the first one. Advantages and disadvantages of the second part:
    "+"
    1. Great squad customization
    2. Lot of interesting equpment which creates interesting tactics possibilities
    3. Melee combat
    4. Nice strategical part on the Avanger
    5. Plot is good enough for strategical game
    "-"
    1. MISSES in are short distance, when you have 95+ accuaracy you always thinking that it must be MISS, this force you to use guns only when miss is not critical for you or your gadjets and abilities are on cooldown.
    2. Plot on the first part was better
    3. Bad optimization, long loadings screens    … Expand
  61. Berik
    Nov 9, 2018
    8
    Great game, but buggy on PS4 and loading screens can get as long as 20 minutes when you get near the end of the game. Clearly this never reveived the patches it needed and deserved. Still, it is an excellent game that gets you hooked and attached to your soldiers. Story and missons are very fun.
  62. Nerevarinho
    Jul 4, 2020
    8
    Would reload savegame again. But loading time is too long.
    ................
  63. Sylaman
    Nov 10, 2019
    8
    I liked this game a lot! I'm fan of Strategy and RPG games, and here these two genres are combined. XCOM 2 captured me for a long time.
    The only con is absence of big variability in soldiers development, variants are very limited.
  64. Ciboxes
    Dec 8, 2019
    8
    Lo bueno, un juego a la altura de su antecesor, buena historia, gráficamente no es perfecto pero esta muy bien. Lo malo, tiempos de carga largos, fallos gráficos, que ya no deberían de pasar, después de varias actualizaciones
  65. Biberattacke
    May 1, 2020
    8
    Das ist das erste mal, dass ich mir ein Spiel aus der berühmten Xcom Reihe gekauft habe.
    Ich wusste zwar grundlegend worum es im Spiel geht, hatte aber keine Spielerfahrung.
    Grundsätzlich kann man sagen, dass mich das Spiel wirklich überzeugt hat. Das rundenbasierende Spielsystem mit ihren in einer Runde geteilten 2 Zügen erscheint sinnvoll und geht recht schnell in Fleisch und Blut    Das ist das erste mal, dass ich mir ein Spiel aus der berühmten Xcom Reihe gekauft habe.
    Ich wusste zwar grundlegend worum es im Spiel geht, hatte aber keine Spielerfahrung.
    Grundsätzlich kann man sagen, dass mich das Spiel wirklich überzeugt hat. Das rundenbasierende Spielsystem mit ihren in einer Runde geteilten 2 Zügen erscheint sinnvoll und geht recht schnell in Fleisch und Blut über.
    Da ich leider mich als Anfänger fühlte, habe ich die leichteste Schwierigkeitsstufe gewählt (Rekrut). Das ist nicht uneingeschränkt zu empfehlen. Es wird nachdem man Mechanik Verständnis und Missionserfahrung gesammelt hat recht leicht, fast schon zu leicht und das obwohl man Anfänger ist. Trotzdem hat mich das Spiel gut unterhalten und ich werde mindestens nochmal auf der Stufe Veteran das Spiel durchspielen und/oder sogar noch die Erweiterung "War of the Chosen" spielen.
    Per Summa also eine absolute Kaufempfehlung !    … Expand
  66. Smiler78
    Dec 20, 2022
    8
    This is a pretty damn good game. Exactly what an turn based strategy game should be. The best strategy game on ps4 BY FAR. (We need more like this) A good variety of aliens to combat keeps the game interesting. The power ups and new items keep you wanting to come back. I just wish it lasted longer. Highly recommended. Good job. One of the only games I will not delete because I will comeThis is a pretty damn good game. Exactly what an turn based strategy game should be. The best strategy game on ps4 BY FAR. (We need more like this) A good variety of aliens to combat keeps the game interesting. The power ups and new items keep you wanting to come back. I just wish it lasted longer. Highly recommended. Good job. One of the only games I will not delete because I will come back and play it again.… Expand
  67. HaloFever
    Nov 22, 2019
    7
    XCOM 2 is a quality game (minus a few bugs) that I'm just not really into as total package. Before I start ripping into this game, I want to praise the core gameplay. The game is D&D with guns. The strategic turn based gameplay is fantastic and the animations look great. If this were all the game was, and I commanded my elite fighting squad to victory over the alien scum, I would be theXCOM 2 is a quality game (minus a few bugs) that I'm just not really into as total package. Before I start ripping into this game, I want to praise the core gameplay. The game is D&D with guns. The strategic turn based gameplay is fantastic and the animations look great. If this were all the game was, and I commanded my elite fighting squad to victory over the alien scum, I would be the happiest gamer ever.

    Unfortunately, XCOM 2 has more. The meta game is about building a base, collecting supplies, and outfitting your XCOM 2 soldiers. Unlike a D&D game where all this happens via core gameplay, the extraneous activities are accomplished from a map screen and a base building screen. I have no objection to the screens, they look fine. My problem is spending my time dickering over how to spend intel points when I want to lead my squad into battle. Worse, poor decisions in the meta game will kill your squad in the core game. I know some folks like breaking out those spreadsheets to find the best combination of abilities and gear. I am not one of them.

    Mission failure would not be so bad except the loading times are awful. Some developers have the technology to reduce load times. Aspyr doesn't. I think I might just restart the game on easy difficulty so I can avoid failing and having to re-load game saves. Maybe I would tolerate this in my younger days when I had less responsibility and more free-time. My I just don't want to spend the last half of my life in loading screen.

    The game has a few bugs that affect gameplay. Most are of the silly variety where a corpse will keep wiggling until the end of a mission. All-in-all, this is a stable game. Graphics really are amazing. I appreciate the care taken to create cutscenes, voice characters, and add some flavor to the troopers you command. The game even has multi-player though the likelihood of finding a match is near zero.

    Full disclosure: I picked up this game for "free" with PS Plus. I might feel more invested if I had paid for it. Or I might be more frustrated trying to enjoy something that doesn't quite "click" for me. All-in-all this is a good game, just not good for everyone.    … Expand
  68. GamerJosh0137
    Oct 3, 2016
    7
    I picked up Xcom 2 on ps4 the day it was released last Tuesday mainly for something to play until this fall's flood of games I have been waiting for. I'm not a RTS fan at all really. I don't have anything against RTS games I just don't think consoles are an efficient way to play them, which might be why you don't see many RTS games on consoles. The last time I had a gaming PC was whenI picked up Xcom 2 on ps4 the day it was released last Tuesday mainly for something to play until this fall's flood of games I have been waiting for. I'm not a RTS fan at all really. I don't have anything against RTS games I just don't think consoles are an efficient way to play them, which might be why you don't see many RTS games on consoles. The last time I had a gaming PC was when the original Command and Conquer Red Alert came out lol. Anyway Xcom 2 is an real time strategy game based on guerrilla warfare against an Alien race that has almost completely taken over Earth and its inhabitants. You must build up your base along with weapons, armor, and soldiers in order to become a formidable foe against the Advent (the aliens). I was not expecting to like the game as much as I did. I really wish though that I could have played Xcom 2 on a PC because the only problem I have with this game is the amount of technical issues I had while playing. Otherwise, my score would have been a 9 or a 10. First off you will see that sometimes your enemies completely ignore some of the rules of engagements that are supposed to apply to them as well as the player. Hit chance is also a problem. After running in to a few hit chance problems I started recording my skirmishes. A lot of times my soldiers would have a 90% chance to hit the intended enemy but most of the time would miss. I found that Soldiers that had a 40% chance to hit their targets did so much more often that the times my soldiers had a 90% hit chance. I also came across some instances where I would have my soldier ONE tile away from an enemy and after giving the fire command the soldier would raise his rifle several inches above an enemy's head and completely miss! I could even see he would miss before he even fired. Imagine being in combat and your enemy standing right in front of you says "I'm gonna kill you, you sob!" Then raises his rifle to point at a cloud, fires, then says in his mic "I missed him!?" WTF? Yet the Advent NEVER misses when they fire at me lol. Either way though the game is definitely worth the price. Dying or failing missions actually matter. If you lose a soldier in the field he or she is gone forever which adds to the excitement of completing a mission with 0 casualties. The AI in this game is pretty impressive giving it a certain kind of challenge. Don't get me wrong, I know they are both completely different games but when I finally beat a difficult mission or enemy it makes me feel the way Dark Souls does after beating a boss after several hundred tries. The difference is Xcom only gives you one chance to get it right. Unless you want to be a wimp and use previous saves so that you don't fail. I highly recommend you don't do that though. You will lose interest pretty fast if you make it too easy.… Expand
  69. Heisenberg93
    Oct 26, 2016
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. XCOM 2 grew up in my thoughts with a lot of trust, hype, but also some doubts. I was expecting great things from Firaxis. I expected that they could overcome the first chapter. I won't talk about this game as the others want me to do it; I'll talk about this game for what I think. And what I think is that it was a disappointment, already anticipated in part by the PC audience.

    The plot is really good, no doubt about it. The fact that aliens, or ADVENT, have taken control of the Earth, for 20 years, feels perceptible as things have changed and how XCOM are now a thing of the past. It reminded me the sci-fi opera "The Visitors". However, as the aliens have won the war, after Enemy Unknown, to me it is not yet clear: governments have surrendered to the aliens...so? Nothing else? Apart from this, the fact that ADVENT have used the Commander as a weapon against humanity itself is brilliant. Also going forward during main missions I was always curious to known where the discovery and the struggle would bring the XCOM team. The twists are not lacking, and I found the Spokesman "last stand" (or whatever happened to him) simply amazing; even the destruction of ADVENT's network seemed a reference to 1988's movie "They Live" that I like, and final mission having to drive an "Avatar" with the Commander and the squad on his side was very nice. The plot is rich and pushes you to going forward till the end. Simply excellent.

    But a videogame is not only plot, isn't it? We know that. And XCOM has always shone for his deep, hard and complex gameplay. XCOM 2 does well all the things its predecessor did: from direct combat to the management of the base (the Avenger), from the ability of soldiers to the development of the armament and objects and management of the Resistance zones. Few new nice things as Ranger and Specialist class, improved higher customization of soldiers and concealment mode, have been great additions. So what is wrong with XCOM 2? Many things. Maybe I will be very "populist" but missions with limited turns are unacceptable. Since immemorial time, a strategic videogame must always give the time to get organized and to operate. 8 turns to destroy an alien device? Are we kidding? And even if the player destroys it and avoid a "Dark Event", but extracts the squad in trouble, without killing all aliens (just as a true Commander should operate), however, the mission is failed. Objective completed, but mission failed. Totally senseless. Then Dark Events are too frequent, and often end up to overlap each other, but this is the least. The "Avatar Project" progresses too quickly, and alien structures around the world, that if destroyed slow down the project, have to be reached after first contacting the Resistance, but need time to do that and risk not having enough time. I managed to reverse the Avatar Project only when it had already reached 8-9 on 12 points. And talking about the amount of enemies in missions? Enemy Unknown was a very difficult game, a challenge, but do not remember seeing such an unbalanced number of alien enemies during missions, at least not so often. If the difficulty in the fight against boss in the first chapter, perhaps, was not very difficult, in XCOM 2 it reaches ridiculous levels: 3 Avatars, with entire alien armies? I could not believe it. And strangely in the final mission, my soldiers (all colonels) often missed the target. Strangely. This is not difficulty. This is not a challenge, or "cool" and "badass" stuff. This is just stupid and senseless. Enemy Unknown was really difficult and don't needed things like these to be it. A good videogame is a balanced videogame. Firaxis Games and Jake Solomon: you gone wrong with XCOM 2.

    Graphically XCOM 2 is great, and as the first chapter, to be an isometric game, has an exceptional technical yield. I very liked the soundtrack, maybe even more than the first XCOM's soundtrack. But here too, from the technical point of view, I have to complain: heard about problems that XCOM 2 had when it came out on PC? Well, like a poor fool I believed that on PS4 (a PC-like console), after months and months of further development, they would correct problems. Well, no. There are some bad framerate drops and loading times reach from 2 up to 7 minutes. What is that? An installation? And I could understand Enemy Unknown's framerate issues on PS3, because the complicate nature of the console, but PS4 is a damned "PC in a box". But no correction, no change. XCOM 2's optimization is ridiculous beyond every understandable reason.

    So, what should I say in the end? Nothing, just that XCOM 2 was not what I expected (as already many other fans said), and it only confirmed more doubts than I had before. The few advantages, improvements and the good plot is not enough to call it a masterpiece, in front of all its faults both in gameplay and technical side. I'm really sorry, I bought this game on day-one, but I never expected such a thing. Enemy Unknown was better.    … Expand
  70. Tallulah
    Nov 29, 2016
    7
    Honestly, this game deserves better than my 7. I gave it a 7 because quite frankly I strongly dislike Firaxis. Their incompetence and arrogance knows no bounds.
    The game is great. Any Xcom fsn will love it. It's really that simple.
    I can't get past Firaxis' issues. So, 7.
  71. raccoondaddy
    Jun 2, 2017
    7
    Many years ago, I sat myself down in front of my brother's TV and watched him played X-COM UFO Defense for the PS1. There were moments of extreme frustration and every so often a controller would go flying. All veteran X-COM players know that feeling, but they also know what it feels like to upgrade, adapt and whoop some serious E.T. ass!

    After playing Enemy Unknown, I felt like the    Many years ago, I sat myself down in front of my brother's TV and watched him played X-COM UFO Defense for the PS1. There were moments of extreme frustration and every so often a controller would go flying. All veteran X-COM players know that feeling, but they also know what it feels like to upgrade, adapt and whoop some serious E.T. ass!

    After playing Enemy Unknown, I felt like the game always lacked some of the old charm from the very dated original. Safe to say, that X-COM delivers in almost every form. Base management has been brought back somewhat, but still seems to hold your hand provided you don't blow your all of your money. (As you cannot have your budget in the red, in this game.)

    Combat remains the same, but the class system has made a drastic change with deeper skill trees and 6 classes (1 unlocked through progress and another via DLC) Customization has made some serious improvements and it's cool to see how different you can make your units look. Although the character models do need a serious upgrade and needed to be brought out the last decade. Also, your units can get to be a little OP'd at some times, but only tend to balance out in the later missions.

    As for the aliens, there is a lot of diversity here, with more than 20 enemy types to go against. (although they do not look as menacing as before.) Still on the normal, you can get whooped pretty quickly, if your rusty or not familiar with the game mechanics, so you can't take the enemies lightly.

    With lots of new toys to research and use, this sequel is easily better than its predecessors. However, three things mire this game, an almost identical game engine as Enemy Unknown, HORRIBLE LOADING TIMES AND GAME CRASHES!!
    Which is a shame, as the developer never even took the time to fine tune the things that matters.
    Outside of that, I had enjoyed the game a bit more than Enemy Unknown and is a big improvement from the last game. Bugs and loading may deter most folks though.    … Expand
  72. juss
    Sep 23, 2018
    7
    Fantastic game, the combat system is awesome and allows for a lot of strategic play. The single player campaign is brutal however, the game punishes you for mistakes and sometimes way too harshly. If you have no experience with these types of games it is incredibly difficult for beginners unless you play on the easiest difficulty. The story-line is not that deep, and pretty bland andFantastic game, the combat system is awesome and allows for a lot of strategic play. The single player campaign is brutal however, the game punishes you for mistakes and sometimes way too harshly. If you have no experience with these types of games it is incredibly difficult for beginners unless you play on the easiest difficulty. The story-line is not that deep, and pretty bland and predictable. The loading times are frustrating too as others have mentioned. Only other criticism is that the game is quite repetitive, they could have done a lot more with mission objectives given the depth in characters and abilities.… Expand
  73. thenoobbob
    Jun 15, 2022
    7
    I really enjoy playing this game. Its the first game in this genre and it doesnt hold your hand at all, and i like that. But ist bugged. The bugs keep it from a 9 or even 10.
  74. fioritos
    Nov 21, 2020
    7
    Good game, but there are a lot of glitches in ps4 version and the load screen is infinite. This is annoying when we are talking about a game that you Will have to reload many times, as its Hard af.
  75. Lifwerne
    Sep 16, 2020
    7
    Xcom 2 is a really addicting and fun game.

    However the story is incredibly weak and it ends very abruply in a way. The objectives are confusing as well. But the combat and all the ways you can upgrade you ship and weapons are really fun. It's def not a game with too easy difficulty level and I liked that. The graphics are great and the combat feels very responsive. For some reason    Xcom 2 is a really addicting and fun game.

    However the story is incredibly weak and it ends very abruply in a way. The objectives are confusing as well.
    But the combat and all the ways you can upgrade you ship and weapons are really fun. It's def not a game with too easy difficulty level and I liked that. The graphics are great and the combat feels very responsive.

    For some reason every single person you can choose in your squad is a dark person, makes me think they are trying to push some political agenda though, which is sad. Seems a bit infected by that whole SJW thinking.

    +
    Combat
    Responsive and optimized
    Graphics
    Enemies
    Upgrades
    Narrative
    Music & sound-design
    Good difficulty level

    -

    Story useless
    Shallow gameplay in the long rong
    Very repetitious
    Unclear objectives
    SJW agenda
    Forced missions that put you out of your flow    … Expand
  76. hector_bcn98
    Mar 13, 2023
    7
    Segunda partida que inicio ya, tras acabar X-COM Enemy Within. Amo el género, amo las batallas, amo la gestión de recursos. Lo amo todo y deseaba volver a amar X-COM 2, pero no puedo, no me deja. El videojuego no me deja porque ha implantando un sistema llamado Avatar, y sin avisar de que hay un elemento, los datos, vitales para avanzar en la trama y desarticular poco a poco Avatar,Segunda partida que inicio ya, tras acabar X-COM Enemy Within. Amo el género, amo las batallas, amo la gestión de recursos. Lo amo todo y deseaba volver a amar X-COM 2, pero no puedo, no me deja. El videojuego no me deja porque ha implantando un sistema llamado Avatar, y sin avisar de que hay un elemento, los datos, vitales para avanzar en la trama y desarticular poco a poco Avatar, evitando entrar en un punto de no retorno donde los alienígenas acaban con el mundo.

    Bien, ya van dos partidas (la segunda con más de 15 horas) y por desconocer la importancia de los datos para sobrevivir, he vuelto a entrar en el punto de no retorno y todas esas horas son inservibles. El juego debería avisar de esto y dar una alternativa, porque no es justo, así como la dificultad muchas veces desmedida para sobrevivir con solo 4 soldados. Lo volveré a intentar, pero la frustración generada sigue ahí y resulta desesperante y agotador.

    Si no fuera por el contrarreloj que supone Avatar, esta secuela estaría directamente a la altura de Enemy Unknown/Within... si pasaramos también por alto el terrible framerate, los bugs, el lag de los personajes, los eternos tiempos de carga para casi todo, la estúpida dificultad en Normal o si al juego le da por congelarse. Terrible que Firaxis haya decidido dejar de parchear el juego en consolas. Está roto, haced algo!    … Expand
  77. TheSocialBandit
    Apr 10, 2022
    7
    The Game is fun
    But Game Breaking Bugs and glitches realky sucks and Loading times are so long
  78. Meeerkat
    Oct 31, 2016
    6
    THE PROS

    Addicting gameplay
    Good RPG
    Rewarding difficulty
    Interesting story

    CONS
    Near the end game, you will have crashing, glitching in missions, 10 minute loading screens (no joke, I timed them out)
    It can be overly difficult and unfair at times.
  79. Naiv
    Feb 12, 2017
    6
    Love this game, better than the previous in a lot of respects, however theirs a lot of pop in graphics after a load and those loading times are really long, i have noticed a few glitches and bugs some of which helped me out in the game, but others which just took the realism away, theirs no explination in the game to how to play or how thigns work in detial, apart from tips in a loadingLove this game, better than the previous in a lot of respects, however theirs a lot of pop in graphics after a load and those loading times are really long, i have noticed a few glitches and bugs some of which helped me out in the game, but others which just took the realism away, theirs no explination in the game to how to play or how thigns work in detial, apart from tips in a loading screen, where it is too small to even see. the game on the easiest setting feels way too hard, and i cant help but feel that the game is very unbalanced and not at all fair. i feel like theirs not enough explained to me about how the game works, sure i get theirs consequnces and time and resources matter and you can lose out, but to what extreme, and to what detrement to my playthrough, its trial and error and one playthrough of a long ass game that loads slowly just to get the jist is not good enough, especilly when its a game you save and reload constantly which is what ppl do.… Expand
  80. WrenOz
    Oct 6, 2016
    6
    I picked up Xcom 2 on ps4 the day it was released last Tuesday mainly for something to play until this fall's flood of games I have been waiting for. I'm not a RTS fan at all really. I don't have anything against RTS games I just don't think consoles are an efficient way to play them, which might be why you don't see many RTS games on consoles. The last time I had a gaming PC was when theI picked up Xcom 2 on ps4 the day it was released last Tuesday mainly for something to play until this fall's flood of games I have been waiting for. I'm not a RTS fan at all really. I don't have anything against RTS games I just don't think consoles are an efficient way to play them, which might be why you don't see many RTS games on consoles. The last time I had a gaming PC was when the original Command and Conquer Red Alert came out lol. Anyway Xcom 2 is an real time strategy game based on guerrilla warfare against an Alien race that has almost completely taken over Earth and its inhabitants. You must build up your base along with weapons, armor, and soldiers in order to become a formidable foe against the Advent (the aliens). I was not expecting to like the game as much as I did. I really wish though that I could have played Xcom 2 on a PC because the only problem I have with this game is the amount of technical issues I had while playing. Otherwise, my score would have been a 9 or a 10. First off you will see that sometimes your enemies completely ignore some of the rules of engagements that are supposed to apply to them as well as the player. Hit chance is also a problem. After running in to a few hit chance problems I started recording my skirmishes. A lot of times my soldiers would have a 90% chance to hit the intended enemy but most of the time would miss. I found that Soldiers that had a 40% chance to hit their targets did so much more often that the times my soldiers had a 90% hit chance. I also came across some instances where I would have my soldier ONE tile away from an enemy and after giving the fire command the soldier would raise his rifle several inches above an enemy's head and completely miss! I could even see he would miss before he even fired. Imagine being in combat and your enemy standing right in front of you says "I'm gonna kill you, you sob!" Then raises his rifle to point at a cloud, fires, then says in his mic "I missed him!?" WTF? Yet the Advent NEVER misses when they fire at me lol. Either way though the game is definitely worth the price. Dying or failing missions actually matter. If you lose a soldier in the field he or she is gone forever which adds to the excitement of completing a mission with 0 casualties. The AI in this game is pretty impressive giving it a certain kind of challenge. Don't get me wrong, I know they are both completely different games but when I finally beat a difficult mission or enemy it makes me feel the way Dark Souls does after beating a boss after several hundred tries. The difference is Xcom only gives you one chance to get it right. Unless you want to be a wimp and use previous saves so that you don't fail. I highly recommend you don't do that though. You will lose interest pretty fast if you make it too easy.… Expand
  81. mikepatyaev
    Oct 6, 2016
    6
    Great game. Must own for fans of the first two on last gen of consoles. The graphics are crisp, clean and stylish. The game play is improved with lot of new features and new classes.
  82. MagVinAnc
    Mar 15, 2018
    6
    These turn based strategy games, i despise almost every single aspect of it. And that's just my opinion. It is so dumb that in a bloody war against aliens, the dudes just stands still and watches them get hit, and the scream. It doesn't make any logical sense.
    Anyway this game makes you feel skilled and rewarded when you lay out a good strategic, and kill a bunch of aliens. This feels    These turn based strategy games, i despise almost every single aspect of it. And that's just my opinion. It is so dumb that in a bloody war against aliens, the dudes just stands still and watches them get hit, and the scream. It doesn't make any logical sense.
    Anyway this game makes you feel skilled and rewarded when you lay out a good strategic, and kill a bunch of aliens. This feels amazing.
    I do think that the best thing about the game is how you can develop your own characters, and make their own bio fx. This makes you feel committed to your soldiers, which is a big thrill on the battlefield, and care about them.

    6/10, just because it's a turn based strategy game.    … Expand
  83. Wolowizard
    Dec 20, 2019
    6
    As omeone who really loved the last Xcom Enemy Unknwon/ Within, this game was kind of a dissapointment.

    The devs didnt like how most players played very defensively in the last game and mostly set up overwatch traps to deal with enemys, so they did everything they could to prevent you from playing like that. The issue is, that the game punishes you at the same time for actually playing    As omeone who really loved the last Xcom Enemy Unknwon/ Within, this game was kind of a dissapointment.

    The devs didnt like how most players played very defensively in the last game and mostly set up overwatch traps to deal with enemys, so they did everything they could to prevent you from playing like that. The issue is, that the game punishes you at the same time for actually playing aggressively, but also for playing defensively.

    If you try to move too far around the enemy to flank them, you will most likely just trigger previously unseen enemy units, which are going to flank you on the next round in return, if you play too defensively, the timer will run out and you automatically failed the mission for playing like your used to.

    The classes also havent changed too drastically from the previous game, the medics can heal over a bigger distance, or use drones to deal damage or potentially hack robotic enemys, heavys can shoot multiple grenades and Snipers can focus either on using their handgun more often, or being actually even more stationary than before, while dealing alot of damage.

    The only class that has actually undergone any changes to actually support a more upfront approach is the ranger, who can know melee attack enemys, but thats a very high risk, high reward thing.

    The RNG also feels more rigged than ever, in MULTIPLE missions I had MULTIPLE 80+% shots that missed, either the game is bugged or just lies to you, we all know about the 99% shots missing in EU meme, but this game take the cake for missing shots.

    So overall its just like EW, but worse and taken into a really weird direction, I heard that the devs worked together with the guys behind the long war mod for the previous game, the mod is kinda infamous for being very difficult, so I guess hats where the inspiration came from, unles youre a masochist, I wouldnt recommend this one to fans of the previous Xcom.    … Expand
  84. eduardocecconi
    Nov 28, 2021
    6
    I never understand this blind love of the critics about XCOM2. As the DLC War of the Chosen, XCOM2 fails to provide a rewarding experience to the player. Despite all compliments to the complexity and variety of possibilities, it's impossible to beat the machine - unless you play the beginner level. I hardly recommend to disabled "Alien Hunter's" and "Shen's Last Gif" DLCs, mainly AlienI never understand this blind love of the critics about XCOM2. As the DLC War of the Chosen, XCOM2 fails to provide a rewarding experience to the player. Despite all compliments to the complexity and variety of possibilities, it's impossible to beat the machine - unless you play the beginner level. I hardly recommend to disabled "Alien Hunter's" and "Shen's Last Gif" DLCs, mainly Alien Hunter's (the most insane and annoying gameplay ever).… Expand
  85. jasonsalley
    Oct 26, 2016
    5
    THE LOADING TIMES ARE NO JOKE. At first they aren't so bad but later on we are talking 5 to 10 minutes at the end of a mission. This is not an exaggeration. And believe me when you are sitting there staring at the blue spinning XCOM logo it feels like it's 30 minutes every time. It completely ruined the game for me. It is completely unacceptable, they should be giving out refunds.

    As    THE LOADING TIMES ARE NO JOKE. At first they aren't so bad but later on we are talking 5 to 10 minutes at the end of a mission. This is not an exaggeration. And believe me when you are sitting there staring at the blue spinning XCOM logo it feels like it's 30 minutes every time. It completely ruined the game for me. It is completely unacceptable, they should be giving out refunds.

    As far as the actual game:
    This game is hard, I would recompensed playing on easy for anyone that hasn't played XCOM before and even those who have. The frustrations of the last XCOM are still there but less so, you will miss POINT BLANK shots with 95% chance, you won't be able to attack when you can clearly see a path to attack, enemies will miraculously survive with 1 bar into the next turn to waste half your team. But It doesn't feel as stacked against the player as before and the team can get some pretty powerful upgrades fairly quickly. It's a good game that is broken by glitches and those god forsaken load times.    … Expand
  86. thj1188
    Oct 8, 2016
    5
    I wish we had more strategy games on console. Enjoyed it as much as the original xcom but as the original on console it is littered with graphical glitches slow down also had to sit through some cut scenes twice as they repeated for some reason and multiple crashes. Lost progress from crashes is generally minimal due to the auto save but it is unacceptable. If a game can not be portedI wish we had more strategy games on console. Enjoyed it as much as the original xcom but as the original on console it is littered with graphical glitches slow down also had to sit through some cut scenes twice as they repeated for some reason and multiple crashes. Lost progress from crashes is generally minimal due to the auto save but it is unacceptable. If a game can not be ported properly it should not be ported. Due to these problems and my personal scoring system I can not rate it higher than a 5.… Expand
  87. MusclyMcGee
    Apr 18, 2022
    5
    Not fun when all enemies are bullet sponges and your soldiers can't hit Sh**, and can all be killed in one turn if you are unlucky (which is what the core gameplay revolves around). Everything else is actually quite good, I enjoyed the stuff on the ship, such as customising your soldiers and upgrading your ships rooms. I also found the story/lore to be quite intriguing, which you get a lotNot fun when all enemies are bullet sponges and your soldiers can't hit Sh**, and can all be killed in one turn if you are unlucky (which is what the core gameplay revolves around). Everything else is actually quite good, I enjoyed the stuff on the ship, such as customising your soldiers and upgrading your ships rooms. I also found the story/lore to be quite intriguing, which you get a lot of. PS, this game is hard AF (or just simply unfair/rng based), even on the easy difficulty.… Expand
  88. Godudu
    Aug 16, 2022
    5
    The combat/strategic gameplay is fantastic. Being able to create your soldiers and do missions with them, then seeing their progress as they evolve and keep defeating more aliens is very very cool. Enemies are very well design as well and the game is fair, it respects your intelligence and challenges you. But why 5/10 then? Because of the stupid base management and time limit. Who thoughtThe combat/strategic gameplay is fantastic. Being able to create your soldiers and do missions with them, then seeing their progress as they evolve and keep defeating more aliens is very very cool. Enemies are very well design as well and the game is fair, it respects your intelligence and challenges you. But why 5/10 then? Because of the stupid base management and time limit. Who thought it was a good idea to put a fking time limit to how much you can play? You can do the things as you wish, you must do lots of **** missions when they ask you to do, otherwise is game over. And the annoying management of research and etc is unbearable.… Expand
  89. XiaoLiSoi
    Sep 7, 2022
    5
    Played the game for a good 10+ hours and found the gameplay a bit monotonous including the story too, seems like a decent game but I think the price and type of game It is just isn't for me,.
  90. Agt_Killionaire
    Oct 7, 2022
    5
    I like this game but it is way to dang hard. You have to constantly save and load to essentially beat the game on it's easiest difficulty and it takes an undesirable amount of time to load a save.
  91. GlobalNightmare
    Nov 30, 2017
    4
    Enemy unknown was a fantastic game. Though not being the greatest player of turn-based strategy titles, I made it through to the end, and enjoyed every minute.
    I couldn't believe my luck when I discovered the sequel would be coming to the PS4. It was an instant-buy, no question about it.
    My excitement soon turned to disappointment however, upon experiencing the harsh, unforgiving    Enemy unknown was a fantastic game. Though not being the greatest player of turn-based strategy titles, I made it through to the end, and enjoyed every minute.
    I couldn't believe my luck when I discovered the sequel would be coming to the PS4. It was an instant-buy, no question about it.
    My excitement soon turned to disappointment however, upon experiencing the harsh, unforgiving difficulty. It was then that I realized that this game was not designed for me, or indeed a wider audience of gamers. It has seemingly been designed for hardcore xcom players only.
    I looked at my "Demon's souls" platinum trophy in disbelief; this game is too hard. Way too hard for the casual gamer, or novices of the genre. Even on the easiest difficulty setting. There's too much stacked against you here.
    My biggest problem is the inclusion of timed missions. Time limits in strategy games are never a good thing as far as I'm concerned. People want to play at their own pace. They don't want to feel rushed, or shoved head-first into a horde of enemies before they can plan or think. There's RTS's for that.
    I constantly felt outnumbered, outgunned, and outmaneuvered at every turn. Shouting at the television in anger as a 90% hit chance misses an enemy, yet again. I found myself constantly reloading my last save in an attempt to keep my soldiers from dying, but becoming frustrated as the lengthy load times here are an absolute joke.
    Eventually, I'd had enough. The aliens can keep the Earth. Its not worth my sanity. I'll go back to "darkest dungeon" for my strategy fix. The bad outweighs the good here, which is a huge shame as I loved the original, and there's so many good inclusions to the gameplay and presentation here worth talking about, but I just cant enjoy any of it to care. Its just too hard, and too frustrating.
    For hardcore xcom players ONLY.    … Expand
  92. huiboy
    Mar 24, 2019
    4
    Probably a fun game. But game is not optimized at all on the PS4. Clunky controls, huge frame-rate lags, and begins to become excessively slow paced due to these malfunctions. The only game where i cannot put it the background while watching Netflix because it takes a huge toll on the system.
  93. kobb
    Oct 12, 2017
    4
    'Normal ' difficulty is next to unplayable. Meta Game has terrible pacing for events demanding that you react to a contstant stream rather than actually making choices and planning. Massive disappointment.

    Waste of time
  94. Caputalis
    Jun 6, 2018
    4
    The biggest issue is easily the turn limits. It's been years since release, and they're still way too small and way too overused. It seems like a majority of missions have a turn limit, and this causes you so essentially toss out strategy and just rush to the objective. It's awful and pretty much ruins what I enjoyed about the previous game. It might as well just be called Turn Limit-ComThe biggest issue is easily the turn limits. It's been years since release, and they're still way too small and way too overused. It seems like a majority of missions have a turn limit, and this causes you so essentially toss out strategy and just rush to the objective. It's awful and pretty much ruins what I enjoyed about the previous game. It might as well just be called Turn Limit-Com 2. Ruins the game.… Expand
  95. Schplatt
    Nov 19, 2017
    4
    Could have been a great xcom game, but the turn limits ruin nearly every level. If it’s not a turn limit, then it is some enemy destroying some equipment in a few turn, that you need to advance.

    It almost seems like they ran out of time to make this game entertaining, and just slapped some cheap time/turn limits on. I love all other aspects of the game, but could never finish it due    Could have been a great xcom game, but the turn limits ruin nearly every level. If it’s not a turn limit, then it is some enemy destroying some equipment in a few turn, that you need to advance.

    It almost seems like they ran out of time to make this game entertaining, and just slapped some cheap time/turn limits on.

    I love all other aspects of the game, but could never finish it due to these ‘features’. Deleted the game, and regret spending money on it. Without the limits, this game would easily be a ‘9 out of 10’.    … Expand
  96. Bioware-Critic
    Nov 17, 2020
    4
    XCOM 2 is a game of many, many flaws. Sadly. This could have very much gone in a better direction but the developers seem to not know the very meaning of the word - polish. Almost every aspect of the game feels unfinished and that it could have been two to three levels better if only a little more optimization and care would have gone into it.
    There is so much to criticise here ... I will    XCOM 2 is a game of many, many flaws. Sadly. This could have very much gone in a better direction but the developers seem to not know the very meaning of the word - polish. Almost every aspect of the game feels unfinished and that it could have been two to three levels better if only a little more optimization and care would have gone into it.
    There is so much to criticise here ... I will only touch on a few points and leave it at that. Otherwise I will go on a full-on nerd-rage!

    - The difficulty: There is none. I am not joking! The game is stupidly easy. What gets you though to tear out your own hair is how mind-numbingly unfair this game is pretty much in every situation and how little is explained. You are expected to make everything up as you go, probably even decide 90% of every decision to be made correctly and then fail regardless. You then will go forward a slow death you see not coming until it is too late and you have to start from 0. The very concept of the game seems to be ... "to **** all over the player and his/her dignity". It is quite intelligence-insulting. These unfair results you earn by doing mostly everything right are something you simply overcome and balance out on the tactical level and maybe not in the moment but as fast as you can. What you will not be able to balance out however, is that in the long term, on the strategic level, the game maneuvers you into a dead end if you play it for the first time AND YOU DO NOT KNOW EVERYTHING until you simply are forced to give up!

    - The gameplay: The game gives you a lot of options but is otherwise very unimaginative. You are forced down every road you take and the freedom you have is pretty much impossible to enjoy since you are bombarded with a dozen things that ... have to be done "IMMEDIATELY or ELSE!" ... Seriously, I ask myself who is so lame and retarded to think of such idiotic ideas and think themselves to be creative? The balancing in this game seems to be done by breaking the "fourth-wall" and kicking the player in the crotch! You get punished for EVERYTHING. things you could never know will happen, things you did not know existed and things that will never be explained to you no matter what.

    - Performance: I have not have a single game on my PS4 which crashed so regularly. Especially not 3 years after release. Pretty embarrassing I would say. The engine performs horribly. Every turn the engine will produce bugs of various kinds, like actions not happening or animations and their respective sounds persisting forever and torture your ears! Or the camera angle will prevent you from seeing what you need to see and from reading what you need to read. It is quite the circus during the missions.

    If Firaxis really decides to make a third game they desperately need to get back to square one!!! ... at the drawing board. This title is a mess and quite literally all over the place. I don't care how many fans this series has. For a grown-up this product is a straight up INSULT!

    If you are a person who values his/her dignity, you should give this a wide birth. If you plan on buying it I would suggest you don't pay more than 5 bucks. I, myself would like nothing better than to get my money back. Since it is a bad habit of mine to build up a catalog of bought games which I play a good while AFTER I bought them this is not possible any longer.    … Expand
  97. nickojeda612
    Jul 15, 2017
    4
    Really fun game to play but way too difficult and relentless even on the rookie setting. I spent a ton of hours just trying to get by certain levels just to have my character one shotted by a boss or to have them crippled for a whole month. The gameplay is great, the story is interesting, character creation is fun, I enjoyed the time between missions, but the only thing I couldn't standReally fun game to play but way too difficult and relentless even on the rookie setting. I spent a ton of hours just trying to get by certain levels just to have my character one shotted by a boss or to have them crippled for a whole month. The gameplay is great, the story is interesting, character creation is fun, I enjoyed the time between missions, but the only thing I couldn't stand was how difficult it was to win a battle. NOT TO MENTION THE HIT RATES THAT DIDN'T MAKE ANY SENSE! It was the vipers and their tongues that could go through walls and over buildings that ruined the game for me.… Expand
  98. MT_Tombs
    May 13, 2017
    4
    I love these types of games. I wanted to love this. Seriously. Unfortunately it crashes over and over. The load times are INSANE. Seems "rookie" difficulty is actually "extreme" difficulty and it's gets worse from there. Progress become nearly impossible and you have to reload old saves to fix stuff. What's the point? Endless frustration?
    Developers, you're not cool and hardcore if you    I love these types of games. I wanted to love this. Seriously. Unfortunately it crashes over and over. The load times are INSANE. Seems "rookie" difficulty is actually "extreme" difficulty and it's gets worse from there. Progress become nearly impossible and you have to reload old saves to fix stuff. What's the point? Endless frustration?
    Developers, you're not cool and hardcore if you make your games impossible to all but the most die hard and dedicated fans. You lose everyone else.    … Expand
  99. BigTrustBoi
    Jun 16, 2018
    4
    Well, the xcom combat and base building are still fun, I have one major gripe with the game that ruined my enjoyment. The whole Avatar project timer is some of the worse game design I have ever encountered. The fact that you need a resource (intel) to even try and do the missions is idiotic. I got to a point where I had no way of getting intel for a month so I could do absolutely nothingWell, the xcom combat and base building are still fun, I have one major gripe with the game that ruined my enjoyment. The whole Avatar project timer is some of the worse game design I have ever encountered. The fact that you need a resource (intel) to even try and do the missions is idiotic. I got to a point where I had no way of getting intel for a month so I could do absolutely nothing to make progress. So I lost about 15 hours in despite getting excellent/ flawless on every mission because the games mission structure and economy is broken. Just let me play some **** missions to progress the story once in a while, how hard is that. Additionally, the game is still buggy and has suspect load times at best especially for the type of game we are talking about. Overall very frustrated with the changes they made over xcom 1 which I enjoyed much more.… Expand
  100. overratedhuman
    Sep 3, 2020
    4
    the loading times... holy, that's gotta be a record, it's terrible!

    and that last fight of the game barely runs, it's all glitchy, you gotta end it fast or it starts lagging like crazy, I also don't like that permanent death thing, what's the point, I'm going to want to reload from an old save every time it happens, it's better than retraining a new unit even with that awful loading    the loading times... holy, that's gotta be a record, it's terrible!

    and that last fight of the game barely runs, it's all glitchy, you gotta end it fast or it starts lagging like crazy,

    I also don't like that permanent death thing, what's the point, I'm going to want to reload from an old save every time it happens, it's better than retraining a new unit even with that awful loading time, and your load game screen sucks so it's not even easy to choose the right auto save    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

13
#13 Best PS4 Game of 2016
32
#32 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2016
34
#34 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 29 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 27 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 29
  3. Negative: 0 out of 29
  1. RPGamer
    Jan 3, 2018
    80
    XCOM 2 doesn't reinvent the wheel, which is a good thing. It takes the lion's share of the gameplay from the last game and embeds it into the new game's foundation, shifting around some pieces to support the new gameplay fixtures without really altering the heart of the experience. With new soldier classes, enemy types, mission objectives, an all-new base, and a story built on losing the invasion the last time around, the new game provides the same intense combat experience and resource management series veterans expect. It ups the ante in terms of difficulty, and the result is a nail-biting game of close calls and narrow victories. While this may turn off some, it provides an amazing feeling of victory when one finds the sweet spot between keeping troops alive and advancing the long-term narrative-driving projects.
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  2. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    Nov 27, 2016
    90
    While it’s a shade short of perfect, there is no comparison: you will find no finer strategy game on PS4. [Christmas 2016, p64]
  3. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    Nov 21, 2016
    90
    No mere sequel, XCOM 2 reshapes everything with lots of success. It won't coddle you, and the invisible dice hate you, but overcoming these odds is as sweet as ever. [Dec 2016, p.72]
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