time you’re able to set up deadly
ambushes wherein you can quickly
pick off a few enemies before the
real battle begins. It seems a simple
addition, but Concealment is a
significant weapon in your arsenal
of potential tactics, and it fits into
the guerrilla warfare theme of
the narrative nicely. Another new
feature is loot drops, which sees
enemies sometimes dropping items
that can be added to the Avenger’s
armoury if you can reach them
before they expire. It’s just another
method via which the game creates
a sense of urgency and harrowing
momentum.
As in every XCOM game, it’s your
team of XCOM operatives who
are the true stars of the show.
The emotional attachments you’ll
form with them are very real,
and you’ll feel genuine terror
when your favourite trooper finds
themselves in a perilous situation
from which they may never
escape – especially when you’re
playing in Iron Man mode, which
affords you only one save slot and
auto-saves every turn, meaning
that every decision you make is
crucial and potentially devastating.
Seeing key operatives wounded in
combat is pure torture, knowing
that they’ll be out of commission
for the next few missions while
they recover. Of course, the fear
of seeing your veteran operatives
injured or killed is also driven by
the fact that your more experienced
soldiers wield the most powerful,
tide-turning abilities (there are
numerous soldier classes, each
with a unique pool of skills from
which to choose), abilities that can
decide whether or not a mission
ends in victory or defeat. There’s a
vast array of customisation options
available to you as well, so you can
spend as much time as your heart
desires tweaking the looks and
personalities of your XCOM chums.
I only really had one problem
with XCOM 2 when it first launched,
and that’s that it was a bit of a
buggy mess. Thankfully, in the time
since then Firaxis has released
numerous updates which have
squashed many of the technical
issues present in the game. Other
than that, I struggle to find fault
with XCOM 2. It’s an outstanding
sequel to Enemy Unknown, held
aloft by intelligent, thoughtful game
design and an overpowering degree
of tactical tension. It effortlessly
weaves tales of impossible heroics
and catastrophic tragedy, and if
you’ve even a passing interest
in games of this nature, I can’t
recommend it enough.
[ Dane Remendes ]
Would you buy it?
XCOM 2 is utterly
brilliant. The tension it
generates is exhilarating,
and its various mechanics
are smart and well
executed. Simply put, it’s
thoroughly captivating.
So yes, I’d buy it.
The Score
9.2/10
Issue 38 | 2016 The OverClocker 47