XCOM: Enemy Unknown

 Xbox 360
User Score
8.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 412 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 336 out of 412
  2. Mixed: 41 out of 412
  3. Negative: 35 out of 412
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  1. Planex
    Jul 8, 2013
    4
    Prepare to fight a losing battle. When I first played XCOM I really liked it, but the more I played the more I found huge flaws. The game scales in difficulty way too quickly with far too few rewards. You will fail optional objectives 90% of the time and lose troops in the process. Your most valued troops will be killed. You can't choose what types of troops to recruit. You can't equipPrepare to fight a losing battle. When I first played XCOM I really liked it, but the more I played the more I found huge flaws. The game scales in difficulty way too quickly with far too few rewards. You will fail optional objectives 90% of the time and lose troops in the process. Your most valued troops will be killed. You can't choose what types of troops to recruit. You can't equip more than one item (like a medkit AND grenades). You can only shoot at designated targets, so if there is an enemy behind destructible cover (like a wall or a box), you can't actually shoot the cover to destroy it. The game doesn't provide you with certain details that are extremely important, like the fact that it takes 3 days to hire new troops. The controls are not intuitive, sometimes requiring you use the joystick and other times the directional pad. The list goes on. Like I said, I really liked this game when I played the demo, but everything goes rapidly downhill after the intro mission. You will only enjoy this game if you play it on the easiest difficulty or if you enjoy being frustrated.… Expand
  2. ransom34
    Oct 17, 2012
    3
    First off, this is really not an X-Com game and if you go in looking at it as a new IP then you will be a lot better off. The game is heavily streamlined/dumbed-down from its origins and rather than a turn-based strategy game like the original X-Com games, you are buying a turn-based ACTION game, like a turn-based Gears of War. You are limited to 4 squad members to start, you cannot buildFirst off, this is really not an X-Com game and if you go in looking at it as a new IP then you will be a lot better off. The game is heavily streamlined/dumbed-down from its origins and rather than a turn-based strategy game like the original X-Com games, you are buying a turn-based ACTION game, like a turn-based Gears of War. You are limited to 4 squad members to start, you cannot build or manage new bases, the maps are pre-done rather than random (and can repeat through a game), and virtually all of the strategic portions of the original X-Com have been deleted. I suspect this was done to "attract the CoD/GeoW audience" but it just makes the unsuitable for any true strategy gamer and its slow pace will certainly keep away the FPS fans. Now this is not specifically a "bad" game, and if you are the type of gamer who thought "wouldn't it be cool to command a Gears of War squadron (dressed in Mass Effect armor) in a turn-based game but without all those unnecessary strategic elements, new base building, and micro-managing" then this is the game for you. X-Com EU has loses the overall strategic gameplay, and is all turn-based action with Mass Effect armor and guns. Not for me, but who knows, there might be an big undiscovered market for this game type.… Expand
  3. Mike_M
    Oct 21, 2012
    1
    This is a fake strategy game with about all the complexity of tic-tac-toe. Firaxis tries to make up for this by obscuring the rules and details from the player, which only makes the game more annoying. The replay value is zero, unless you have OCD.
  4. Brickthegrim
    Feb 8, 2013
    3
    The base building aspect was neat as was the unit development but the game was ugly and the controls just didn't appeal to me. As for the combat it's like playing chess the video game it's slow and got boring quick and let's be honest it's not exactly difficult so it's like playing chess on a computer who can't win.
  5. Mudpooch
    Mar 24, 2013
    3
    Its a good thing that a got this game for free when I pre ordered Bioshock Infinite through steam cause if I had spent any amount of money on this crap I would have felt extremely cheated. Now this is the first Xcom game I've played and its probably gonna be the last unless 2k Marin come up with something brilliant with their tactical fps interpretation of the franchise. Im a huge fan ofIts a good thing that a got this game for free when I pre ordered Bioshock Infinite through steam cause if I had spent any amount of money on this crap I would have felt extremely cheated. Now this is the first Xcom game I've played and its probably gonna be the last unless 2k Marin come up with something brilliant with their tactical fps interpretation of the franchise. Im a huge fan of Firaxis Games and their Civilization IP but they seriously dropped the ball, lost the plot, went off their heads bonkers and screwed up when they decided to unleash and curse us with this poor excuse of a game...… Expand
  6. Brutus2009
    Mar 26, 2013
    0
    Worst game I have ever played. I'm glad this was $25 on black friday and I was able to sell it for $22 on glyde. Game was boring, repetitive and mind numbing. I'm not sure why anyone would give this a 10, or anything about a 5. If you were desperate to play a game because all you do is play games 24 hours a day, then i could see maybe giving it a 5, but you would still probably beWorst game I have ever played. I'm glad this was $25 on black friday and I was able to sell it for $22 on glyde. Game was boring, repetitive and mind numbing. I'm not sure why anyone would give this a 10, or anything about a 5. If you were desperate to play a game because all you do is play games 24 hours a day, then i could see maybe giving it a 5, but you would still probably be better off replaying almost any other game than starting this one.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

6
#6 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2012
24
#24 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2012
8
#8 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
90

Universal acclaim - based on 35 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 34 out of 35
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 35
  3. Negative: 0 out of 35
  1. Toronto Sun
    Mar 6, 2013
    100
    By virtue of how it stokes more parts of my brain than any game of the past decade, I’m inclined to consider XCOM: Enemy Unknown one of the most important titles of this generation. This game will test your disaster-management skills, levy you with suffocatingly difficult choices on how to spend your resources and cause you to grow so fond of your chess pieces that each skirmish takes on the flavour of a Whedonesque drama.
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  2. X-ONE Magazine UK
    Dec 1, 2012
    90
    It's like The Sims, but with much shorter life expectancies. [Issue#91, p.66]
  3. Telegraph
    Nov 12, 2012
    100
    It's [a] tough and punishing game, but in the best way possible. Every loss compels you onward in the war and the story. Where most games are frustratingly punishing, XCOM delivers a masterclass in challenge and escalation.
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