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on September 16, 2025
<br>XCOM 2 is not a game for those who think about what’s going on in a single instance. Everyone will need to think three turns ahead in every aspect of the campaign, and even then, it’s mostly about luck, creating an incredibly random experience in the process. Even from the beginning, players believing they’ll be able to keep everyone alive will run into a harsh reality check, whether they’re on the easiest or hardest difficulty settings. It’s not primarily the combat that can be difficult though, it’s the world management that can be a bit stressful. Similar to Enemy Unknown, there’s a time component to XCOM 2, ensuring you don’t take your sweet time to level up characters and accept every side mission that becomes available. There will be crucial choices to be made, but instead of ruining reputations based on countries and risking resources, these are classified as larger reaching outcomes to alien progression in the world. There’s so many systems at play that anyone could easily see themselves overwhelmed, and it doesn’t help that there’s an unfortunate lack of explanation on the various mechanics.<br><br> <br>What We Said: "At the end of the day, XCOM 2 is the poster boy of the modern turn-based strategy game. The game can feel unfair at times, but Firaxis has crafted a dynamic experience with virtually limitless replay value and a constant level of challenge. Fans of the series will find plenty of enjoyment watching the XCOM troops struggle to protect mankind once again, and Firaxis can pat themselves on the back for making one of the most addictive and rewarding strategy games of all ti<br> <br>Why You Should Play It: Despite a few hiccups at launch, XCOM 2 builds on the refined strategy experience that Firaxis Games delivered a few years ago. There’s more depth to building your squad, greater tension to the battles, and a story that goes in some really unexpected directions. Even those who may not be intrigued by strategy titles should give XCOM 2 a l<br><br> <br>For the curious, the ending of Terror From The Deep resulted in a victory for XCOM , but it came at a price: the ecosystem of Earth is more or less destroyed, forcing most humans to move into urban city centers much like ADVENT had encouraged in XCOM 2 . This led into the plot from XCOM: Apocalypse , but we're going to keep our speculation to one game at a time. Of course, it's possible that Firaxis left the underwater glimpse as a massive misdirection for fans, but we doubt they would show alien technology underwater and abandon the subject entir<br>The core XCOM 2 gameplay, at least for those who have played Enemy Unknown, remains mostly intact. This is still a third person, isometric strategy shooter that focuses on dice rolls each turn to determine the outcome of battle. There are times when things will go in the player’s favor, and then there are times when it goes the complete opposite direction. This can be a random experience, and most of the time it becomes very stressful. Unless you save scum all the way through the campaign, the chances of surviving every battle with no casualties is highly unlikely. That problem derives mainly from some occasional confusing hit percentages and reactions. There’s nothing like seeing a soldier stand two feet in front of an enemy with a gatling gun and shoot through the unfazed alien with a big failure text pop up taunting you. At the very least there should be more animations showing the opponents dodging your bullets, not just standing there clueless.<br> <br><img src="https://cdn.wikimg.net/en/strategywiki/images/thumb/8/8c/Shounen_Yangus_to_Fushigi_no_Dungeon_box.jpg/125px-Shounen_Yangus_to_Fushigi_no_Dungeon_box.jpg"; style="max-width:450px;float:left;padding:10px 10px 10px 0px;border:0px;" alt="" />The game purposefully left the fate of Doctor Vahlen, the chief scientist from Enemy Unknown , a mystery throughout the game. While she was mentioned briefly, it looks like XCOM have been unable to establish communication with her. In the prequel novel for XCOM 2 , it was revealed that Vahlen escaped a brutal ADVENT attack on a research outpost by taking a boat to the sea. We have little doubt that Firaxis left her fate open for a reason, and we suspect she has been one of the first to work out that a new threat is due to emerge from the dep<br><br> <br>While we ran into a few sporadic graphical and gameplay glitches, the game is a very polished title that should entertain fans new and old. At the end of the day, XCOM 2 is the poster boy of the modern turn-based strategy game. The game can feel unfair at times, but Firaxis has crafted a dynamic experience with virtually limitless replay value and a constant level of challenge. Fans of the series will find plenty of enjoyment watching the XCOM troops struggle to protect mankind once again, and Firaxis can pat themselves on the back for making one of the most addictive and rewarding strategy games of all t<br><br>Fans in 2012 were anxious to get their hands on another XCOM <a href="http://www.Entropiaplanets.com/proxy.php?link=https://marketingme.wiki/wiki/10_Features_We_Hope_To_See_In_Triangle_Strategy">SLG game strategy</a> after so many years absent. Coming from the creators of the Sid Meier's series, players were cautious in their anticipation, as while the developer is known for creating strong strategy elements, XCOM was a whole other ball game when it came to combat. Involving complex world building elements and critical decisions through the campaign, Enemy Unknown and its follow-up expansion, Enemy Within, became arguably the best installments in the long running franchise. It featured incredibly hardcore elements with the concern that even the simplest mission could end with a couple of your most invested and powerful comrades coming back in body bags. There was nothing like it on the market, and because of this, Firaxis was far from ready to hang the series up and has been working on a new and greatly improved sequel that will undoubtedly make fans joyous. While it seems XCOM 2 improves upon its predecessor, there are some shortcomings to its execution.<br>