XCOM: Enemy Unknown, a very late review

So I finished my first playthrough of XCOM: Enemy Unknown on PC not long ago on September 7th, yes I'm about a year late to the party but this game didn't really impress me initially so I didn't wanna play it. But now that I've played it, I'm gonna say this was one hell of a ride for a TBS(Turn-based Strategy) lover like yours truly.

I hereby present to you my first ever game review in my blog, minor spoilers alert!

COVER ART: XCOM Enemy Unknown PC Box Art

Basic Info:
Developer:     Fireaxis Games, Feral Interactive
Publisher:      2K Games, Feral Interactive
Release Date: Oct 9th, 2012(NA) Oct 12th, 2012(Int.)
Genre:           Turn-based Strategy/Role Playing Game(TBS/RPG)
Game modes: Single player, Online multiplayer (2persons PVP mode)
Ratings:          Mature/Pegi 18
Platforms:       Windows, Macintosh, Xbox 360, PS3

OPENING: The game opens with an interesting, yet 'terrifying' quote, a prelude to what's about to come. (Aliens, UFO, anyone?) *Also, I had to shrink all the other images from XL to L, or else they would have crossed the line like this one did.

FIRST MISSION: Your first mission commences with only 4 squad members with the same armor and weapons, with randomly assigned names and no class specialization. Eg. Holly Clarke, which i prefer to read it as - Holy Clerk!!

As your new recruits gain experience in the battlefield and get promoted, they are randomly assigned into one of the 4 different classes that each has their own pros and cons.

1. Heavy
2. Assault
3. Sniper
4. Support

The Psionic class is an extra, special class that you'll not gain access until late game. Keep in mind that the Psionic class is not a separate class, but it builds upon your current class and enables your unit to gain access to additional Psionic abilities.Take my 'Omega' Summer Cheong for example, she's a Colonel ranked Sniper, but also has access to the Psionic abilities. Only Psionic-enabled units are able to wear the Psi Armor, where the Psi abilities are in purple, as shown in the 'HEADSHOT' screenshot below.

HEADSHOT: 'Omega' Summer Cheong prepares to snipe an Uber Ethereal with her Plasma Sniper Rifle. Her Psi Armor is easily the best armor you can eventually research and purchase in the game, but at $400, it doesn't come cheap .

The gameplay is divided into 2 segments: TBS on the battlefield, and Base Management during mission intervals. Battlefield TBS is self-explanatory - you're deployed into an area with alien activity, and you'll be ordered to Dispatch the enemies, Locate and escort a VIP back to base, Examine the UFO wreckage or Assault an alien base.

MISSION PREP: You'll eventually unlock 2 more squad slots to allow up to 6 units in your mission squad. It's just glorious when you have them lined up like this.

BASE MANAGEMENT: Facilities built adjacent to one another nets you the adjacency bonus. For example, every Satellite Uplink or Satellite Nexus built in adjacent will provide a +2 satellite capacity bonus.

The Base Management, however, is more complex than it seems, where early decisions will have significant repercussions. For example, if you bought extra Medikits from the Foundry(I actually bought 6, damn it), which heals 4 HP on use, it'd be a waste of money since you might not want all of your squad members to carry a Medikit, cuz you're only allowed to carry an extra item such as a Medikit, a Scope, or a Grenade in the early game. To remedy this, your Support class units are able to learn a skill that enables you to carry two items in a mission. For other classes however, it is wise to take a moment off to think about what to bring along.

LAUNCHING SATELLITES: I permanently lost 2 countries in my first playthrough, unfortunately, which was a shame.

However, that was just a small example of Base Management. A bigger example would be Launching Satellites. As you progress through the game, nations will have increased panic level due to unchecked alien activity without a satellite scanning the region. Therefore, it is imperative to launch as many satellites as possible at the start of the game to minimise panic and bring in the extra income per month as each satellite is launched for a nation.

In the case that the panic level of a nation has exceeded the threshold, the country will permanently withdraw from the Council, where any additional rewards you were receiving will be null from that point onwards. If 8 countries withdraw from the Council, it'll be an immediate game over. Micromanagement and careful planning are therefore important if you want to survive another planetary assault to see the ending and credits.

BARRACKS: The game gets better though: You can customise your squad member's names, skin colour, hairstyles, loadouts etc. The game certainly gets more interesting if you name your squad after your friends.

HUGE shoutout to my fellow blogger and friend: Quince Yap, my Major ranked Heavy class, codenamed 'Thunder' - checkout his awesome blog at http://mygfisguminho.blogspot.com/

UNIT CUSTOMISATION: Fairly late into the game, my boy Quince was gorgeously equipped with a Titan Armor, a Heavy Plasma, a Blaster Launcher, and a Scope lens for that +10 Aim. 

END GAME: It took me more than 20 hours to beat the game, and it was a fairly good run, as you can see, i did a little better than most people on the planet - I only lost 3 soldiers in the final level(whose names I won't be mentioning). I tried repeatedly to not lose anyone for more than 2 hours, but I just gave up in the end cuz it's too damn hard to not let anyone die.

Here's a video review by IGN's Steve Butts:

Here's another one by Gamespot's Kevin VanOrd:

Summary:

+Addictive, tension-filled TBS gameplay

+RPG elements - classes and skill tress make your squads progressively more powerful

+Soldier perma-death gives you an emotional attachment to your squadmates, especially if you name them after your friends

+Memorable and diverse cast of aliens

+Well-animated character models

+Complex base management economy makes each decision important

+High replayability

-Difficulty spike during final mission, especially in the last segment

-Equipment sorting during prep

-Boring and repetitive maps, for some reason, the UFOs never crashes into cities, only forests

-Dumb civilians who sometimes run towards aliens to be killed

-Camera foibles and visual glitches

-No selling option for extra equipments

Score: 8.5 GREAT