Review: XCOM 2

For whatever reason, very few tactical JRPGs in recent memory have featured PVP multiplayer. Allowing players to face off against each other simply adds more variety to the game as a whole. Additionally, as the game is centered around the player's choices, opposing players may have access to different characters, weapons, and other resources based on the choices they made, making combat even more var


During the game's development, Firaxis had difficulty determining how to handle core systems such as weapon range, displaying information to the player, and how to handle actions. As a means to quickly fix the game's unfun state, Firaxis imposed a "Mutator Mondays" event where staff could add a single change to the game that lasts a week. It is thanks to these events that grenades instantly explode, set weapon ranges were removed, and the game's UI is much cleaner. Eurogamer goes into more detail on how this system saved the SLG game Releases's troubled developm
Fans in 2012 were anxious to get their hands on another XCOM game 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.

Regardless of these occurrences, Firaxis has done a great deal to enhance the overall XCOM experience by adding variety to its combat. For example, melee is a new feature to the XCOM universe, dealing massive damage to enemies at the risk of having a character exposed out in the open. This generally does significant damage in comparison to standard projectiles, which adds a new layer of strategy outside of hunkering down or providing cover fire. This also ties somewhat into the improved character class system that allows for additional customization outside of the rather robust selection of aesthetics. Just as Enemy Unknown contained, each character has their own class tree that will be accessible based on promotions on the battlefield. The higher a character traverses in their class, the more powerful and capable they become, learning additional traits and abilities. There are some deviations from the traditional format in that the classes are specialized, and their traits feel like they provide far more assistance than ever before. For example, the new Ranger class that can wield a sword can pick up a skill that ensure concealment even after your party initiates a battle, or straight up do greater damage. Depending on their skillset, they can be completely different from a character in the same class, which can lead to some interesting pairings, especially later in the game when more party slots open up.


Outside of combat, one of the key differences between a tactical JRPG and a more traditional turn-based RPGs is that players tend to have access to many more party members in tactical RPGs. As seen with the earliest entries in the Fire Emblem series, this can lead to many less important party members getting little to no character development. However, later entries in the Fire Emblem series introduced the support mechanic that allowed even the most minor of characters to still interact with the cast and show their character if the player desired. In order to make the player care about the characters in their party, the game should feature some method of interacting with their allies outside of com


As with most games, however, the answers didn't appear overnight. Constant iteration throughout development is why XCOM: Enemy Unknown and XCOM 2 are such great games. Even the original XCOM titles such as X-Com: Apocalypse went through quite a chaotic development cycle. Here are 10 facts about the XCOM franchise's development most don't know about. This list is in no particular or


While having numerous endings and routes within a game incentivizes numerous playthroughs, nothing incentivizes players to keep playing a game quite like post-launch content. Whether these are free updates or DLC, additional content to a game allows it to continue to be fresh over a much larger period of time. As a tactical RPG , Triangle Strategy could theoretically add anything from new recruitable characters to entirely new mo


That is because XCOM 2 lies to the player about a character's hit percentage. In actuality, the game gives players a much higher chance of hitting than what's on display. On easier difficulty settings, an 85% chance is closer to a 95% chance according to an interview with Jake Solomon , the lead designer for XCOM 2 . As for why 100% hits can miss, the game rounds up if a shot has half of a percent chance or higher of hitting. Don't expect this sort of percentage leniency on Legendary difficulty , however, as this percentage favoritism towards the player is disabled on higher difficulty setti