X-COM 2

My first triple-A release of 2016 that I will be taking a look at. This was among the few games released this year that I wanted to look at and was actually hyped for. Now that the game is actually out, I will proceed to present an opinion that assesses the possible elements that the reader could enjoy and the elements that hurt the experience; in short, a review-like opinion. While the game's name is mentioned on the title of this post, I will state it below for greater clarity. It is:

X-COM 2

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c3/XCOM_2_cover_art.jpg

X-COM 2 (so far, for PC only with mod support) is the sequel to X-COM: Enemy Unknown (and the expansion pack, Enemy Within). Set twenty years after the events of the first game, X-COM 2 takes place on an Earth already conquered by the invading aliens of the first game. The game takes place in a timeline where X-COM (the main resistance against the aliens) were brutally defeated by the aliens resulting in Earth's surrender to the invaders. Earth is currently under the control of the puppet administration ADVENT who are under the direct control of the invaders and have indoctrinated the masses into believing that the invaders have noble intents for humanity. The invaders do have plans for humanity; grim plans that could spell its extinction or enslavement. However, there is a glimmer of hope in this grim dystopia. X-COM had not been completely wiped out by the aliens and currently exists as a guerrilla resistance group. Your unseen player character, the Commander from the first game, is rescued from the aliens by X-COM's latest incarnation. X-COM's objectives are as follows: prevent the invaders from succeeding in their plans for humanity, survive, and possibly kick the invaders off the planet. The stakes are high but there is no other way to protect humanity from these invaders.

I have finished a 60+ hour playthrough of the game a week ago and had a great time playing through the entire game (save for one bit stated in this post). Here are my opinions on what makes this game good and what could hurt this game's appeal.

What makes it?

A 74% chance to hit will not guarantee a hit (nor will a 99%)

The gameplay is the same turn-based tactical battle game as the previous with the good parts of the system still intact. Fans of the system used in X-COM Enemy Unknown and the expansion, Enemy Within, will be able to grasp the nuances of the system here fairly quickly. The differing classes of soldiers return with different names and improvements to their abilities (which will be covered later).

In 29 years, we will find out whether mankind will ever get cities as clean as this

The main difference in this game compared to the previous games is the new Concealment mechanic. Since X-COM is considered to be a terrorist group to the ADVENT-controlled planet, X-COM now utilizes a guerrilla-styled approach in their war against the aliens. Concealment allows for the squad on the battlefield to move around unseen though concealment can be broken by a variety of methods such as squad members firing at targets, explosives, the squad being in a position which the enemy can flank them, certain types of hacking, the enemy (or certain objects) spotting the squad within their field of vision (indicated by marked tiles) and more that. Using Concealment allows players to set up ambushes against their unaware opponents which is often the recommended tactic for certain missions. I can definitely attest to how good it feels to set up a perfect ambush that kills off a patrol of guards with no misses and even after 60+ hours of gameplay, it is still fun to set up ambushes.

Not only is it raining, there is a tag-along with the squad here

It also helps that there are a variety of missions with enough variations of maps that encourage differing approaches like a forest map with enough high ground for the Sharpshooters (Snipers) to go to town on the alien opposition or a housing area with enough cover on the ground to encourage a quick rush to the objective. As mentioned before, there are a variety of missions like package extraction, VIP rescue, Dark VIP abductions (or executions), relay protection and Retaliation missions (which replace Terror missions). While most of the gameplay relies on random number generators (RNG), the game does allow the player to compensate for the RNG most of the times and the player, with enough time and tactics, can circumvent the RNG with the right builds. It can be slow at times but compared to X-COM Enemy Unknown, X-COM 2 does feel faster at times (especially with timed missions). So players who enjoyed Enemy Unknown (and/or Enemy Within) or players who enjoy strategy could find enjoyment in X-COM 2.

While this shot did not miss, the person afterwards missed a shot with the same hit chance

The challenge that the X-COM games are well-known for is still here where the early-game is difficult due to the expandable manpower, resources and advanced tech available to the aliens. Adding to this is the RNG that acts up like a dog in heat that can make battles difficult though can be beneficial on certain occasions (especially in puppy production). A sudden break in battle can go wrong in an instant when reinforcements arrive and the enemy (on Commander difficulty at least) did not flunk flank, making for tense and nail-biting scenarios whenever an ADVENT soldier manages to flank a member of the squad. 

This is not the same Sectoid you knew 20 years ago

To the game's credit, the mid-game remains tense as new enemies (some with armor and some without) begin to appear and each of these new types have unique abilities that would ruin a perfectly good encounter. These include creatures like the Vipers, Codex, MECs (robotic soldiers), Faceless, Gatekeepers and Andromedons along with improved returning foes like Mutons, Chryssalids (*shudders internally),  Berserkers, Sectopods and as pictured above, the Sectoid (that are massive threats in the early game but become lesser threats as more aliens show up).

I eventually picked Resistance Communication here since I was started in a sub-optimal starting location

The difficulty however is not unfair as the player is provided the opportunity to mitigate this challenging difficulty through research and resource management. With enough time and proper management, a player could gather enough materials to upgrade the equipment used by X-COM leading to innovations like magnetically accelerated projectile weapons, exoskeleton suits, and even psionics. On the battlefield, caution, careful gambling and preparation can even the odds (along with good usage of grenades and flanking). Even if the odds are against the player, it is possible to succeed unless the player throws caution to the win and gets themselves in a FUBAR scenario (which, coupled with the uncertainties of the RNG, often ends poorly). Enhancements to weapons, squad members, and equipment can often mitigate the difficulty and turn an incoming defeat into a costly victory. This is war and war always has consequences especially when cornered.

Not pictured here is the time taken to research the upgrades to the gear

When the upgrades and new gear did comes in, it felt rewarding for me personally as my squad-members now have better odds of surviving the coming battles. The anticipation of getting new gear and upgrades after completing a research project and gathering resources which combined with the challenge that necessitated continuous upgrades kept me invested long after 24 hours of gameplay had passed. In a nutshell, the challenging nature of the game and the ability granted to the player to counter this challenge to a good extent can keep players invested.

As the rookie took the initiative, the Sectoid realizes its poor choice of cover

The war stories of X-COM are a staple when playing X-COM and this game delivers on that front. While the actual story of X-COM 2 has improved over its predecessor with in-game cutscenes setting up the story and essential research revealing more of the alien's true plans (with some intriguing twists about the events of Enemy Unknown), X-COM 2 is still able to deliver the unique stories that take place in games. As I have stated before in one of my previous posts (http://subjectivelybiasedrants.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-narrative-we-create.html), the narratives  created by the player can make the experience more memorable. In-game events like the Rookie being the individual that salvaged a failing mission with a grenade or the mind-controlled veteran killing his or her fellow veteran against their will still can take place throughout the game. I suspect these stories will have even more impact on Impossible(or at least Commander) Ironman mode which saves progress for the player automatically regardless of how badly the playthrough is going (making consequences permanent). In one mission, my entire squad was in a horrible situation with a Sectopod and some Elite ADVENT troops bearing down on a Ranger inside a UFO and no one free except for a Specialist, a Grenadier and said Ranger. Thanks to some hacking and a grenade, the tides turned to my favour. In one other time, the Rookie threw a grenade at a car to kill off a bunch of aliens gathered around for a quick promotion. The Rookie's (and my own) mistake was not noticing the two solidiers on Overwatch near said car which resulted in their deaths when the car blew up in the next turn and costing me a trained Grenadier. My last story for this post involved my squad caught between a large platoon bunched together and an irate alien facing a member of said squad. Due to the distance, only my Psi Operative and Specialist were in range (the Heavy managed to tag the alien). I made my Specialist fire onto the alien, hoping to weaken in for a Null Lance by the Psi Operative which would leave me vulnerable to the platoon. What ended up happening was the triggering of the repeater, executing the alien and leaving the Psi Operative free to open a huge rift to discipline the platoon. All but one was killed by it and the last one fled, circumventing the fiasco. 
One particular aspect of the game that many other gaming websites have pointed out is that the game's events and missions are procedurally generated resulting in a different locations for missions, different starting locales and as a whole, a different experience from a previous playthrough. This will certainly add replay value to X-COM 2 whereby that first seemingly strategic starting locale in one playthrough is replaced by a horrible locale in the next.

During the late-game, the Ranger is the player's friend unless Overwatching

The improvements to gameplay . While the gameplay is mostly the same from the previous X-COM games (the reboot series), there are enough improvements and changes to the system that changed the way I approached the game. The classes for instance are no longer the same Assault, Support, Heavy, and Snipers from Enemy Unknown (nor are the MEC troopers from Enemy Within available as well). Instead they have been replaced by the Ranger, Specialist, Grenadier and Sharpshooters with Psi Operative as the newest class separate from the four. All five classes have been reworked to a tremendous degree with changes to old abilities (some minor, some major) and additional skills added to alter the strategies used. Gone are the days where the Support only serves as a medic that tosses smoke bombs and where the Sniper is the undisputed king of the battlefield. Now, the classes here vary enough from Enemy Unknown's classes that new approaches and tactics become viable. For me, I always kept a Grenadier and a Specialist so that someone could shred armor and the other could hack the occasional robot or turret.
In addition, these squad members can be improved with the use of Personal Combat Sims and Weapon Upgrades. The former refers to neural enhancements that can be looted from deceased enemies in game or purchased for Intel at the Black Market that can be used to improve certain stats for squad members like a Conditioning sim to increase Will or a Speed sim to improve mobility. Some of these implants can make a huge difference in battle like guaranteeing a successful shot (with use of a Perception sim) or granting more health to survive a shot. The latter category on the other hand refers to upgrades that can be applied to weapons to add bonuses to the weapon. Modified weapons can provide improved aim, higher critical hit chances, free reloads (that do not cost a turn), guaranteed damage even on missed shots, bonus actions, random instant kills (this particular upgrade is of immense importance) or expanded magazines. From the above list, it is clear that the weapon mods do provide huge benefits that are often game-changing and beneficial to the user when they do work. The upgrades are not overpowered though since many of the upgrades only activate by chance which balances out the positive effects of the upgrades (except for stocks, auto-loaders and expanded clips which are permanently active once equipped).

 

Fun fact: If you highlight Southeast Asia in game, you will see that one of the nations of ASEAN managed to conquer the rest

The gameplay outside the battlefield has also radically changed from Enemy Unknown. Gone is the Panic Rating of nations since there is no Council supporting X-COM. Instead, the player manages a communication network between regions that contact can be established with to obtain resources (in the form of supplies), intel and even missions (linked to facilities). Relay towers can be built at connected regions to increase the income received after some time (not sure precisely how much) and after a short time, a Black Market will be made available for the player to purchase additional goods in return for Intel. In addition, the Panic Rating has been replaced by this game's version of the Doomsday Timer, the Avatar Project timer. The diabolical plan of the aliens is only known as the Avatar Project and X-COM's main goal is to discern the details and dismantle the plan before it is completed. Facilities will be built by the aliens to accelerate the timer and should the project be completed (and thirteen days have passed), the game ends with X-COM's defeat.

These events will surely 'darken' your prospects for winning

In addition to the Avatar Project, the aliens will initiate Dark Events and Retaliation strikes against X-COM as the game goes on. Dark Events are operations and projects performed by the aliens and ADVENT against X-COM which often ends up being harmful to X-COM's efforts. Projects like armor enhancements for ADVENT troops and midnight raids to make recruitment difficult add greater challenge during missions but other projects like breakthroughs in the Avatar Project (which often accelerates the timer) and UFO patrols (that hunt X-COM's flying mobile HQ, the Avenger) can be even more harmful to the entire playthrough whether it be a quickened pace to the completion of the Avatar Project or having a UFO shoot down the Avenger leading to a critical base defense mission with a constant stream of enemies attempting to invade the Avenger whereby failure of this mission will result in a game over (this happened to me once and boy, was it tough). 

This is a situation where Concealment must be broken

I already mentioned Concealment prior to this and how it allows for stealthy ambushes that can often turn the tides of battle or screw up a mission due to the RNG but I do want to point out that this system can be advantageous especially with certain classes. An entire mission could be completed without ever being seen, using a character created to resemble Solid Snake, though I will state that this may not be such a good thing to accomplish in terms of experience gain.

After so many missions, Jane Kelly still has not finished that cigar

Character customization is one of the entertaining aspects of an X-COM game (the reboot ones at least). It is always fun to make a character based on people that the player actually knows in real life and watch them kick alien arse. It then turns tragically sad when they are killed in battle. X-COM 2 possesses a decent amount of customisation allowing for customisation of hairstyles, armour types, clothing and equipment patterns, accessories, voices, nationalities (which are sadly not as extensive as I hoped) and even personalities that alter their spoken in-game lines. I was able to remake some of my real life friends in the game to a reasonable degree using the customisation options of the game. 
Linked to customisation, the weapons used by the soldiers can also be named and customised with a variety of paint-jobs and patterns to differentiate one weapon from the other. For instance, a player could name their shotgun as Splurge and colour it purple while adding stripes for that exotic effect. They could then give it to a rookie and watch the gun splurge its contents ineffectively at a Viper. Since the game did not have that many nationalities, I often named weapons after the nations that my friends are from (Malaysia became a commonly shared name as a result). Since weapons upgrades can be applied to the guns, the customisation of weapons can help differentiate basic weapons from the heavily modified ones.

I need some lithium flowers (and mods to catch her features)

Another thing linked to character customisation is the ability to import and export characters from shared character pools. The game provides a character pool option that allows the player to make custom characters and export them into a option pool to appear in-game randomly as a recruited soldier, a VIP (to rescue) or a Dark VIP (to abduct or execute). In addition, the game allows people to share these pools and obtained other pools already shared online. I myself already made Motoko Kusanagi from Ghost in the Shell (to the extent allowed by the game) and Kiritsugu Emiya from Fate/Zero as recruit-able soldiers along with Preston Garvey from Fallout 4 who I made into a Dark VIP that I can kill in game repeatedly (There'll finally be no more settlements are in need of aid...).

It should be a crime to include a sub-par character in a game like X-COM 2 but if it means constant pain for Preston, I can live with that

Personally, I wish there was more options like being able to equip multiple accessories at the same time, additional hairstyles, and that more types of voices were available like Japanese, Korean, Chinese or Bahasa voices. In addition, the character limits for names should be modified to allow more words as it prevented me from giving absurdly long names at times (especially on weapons). Hopefully the mods will add more customisation options for the game.

[No pics, just links]
(http://www.nexusmods.com/xcom2/? & https://steamcommunity.com/app/268500/workshop/)
Mod support is already available for X-COM 2 on release which is often a welcome treat. Enemy Unknown possesses a plethora of mods available to it, including the acclaimed Long War mod (that X-COM 2's developers have acknowledged with praise), which often increases replay value, entertainment value and customisation potential for Enemy Unknown. X-COM 2 thankfully recognises this and as a result, modding tools are already made available from the get-go (unlike say, Fallout 4's Creation Kit which was advertised to be available on the launch day but...). From the release date, mods are already available and include things like new nation flags (for customisation), fancy top hats, a tweak allowing close range hacking without using up an action, free camera rotation, the Co-Optional squad and a Corgi gun (because the modders can). With X-COM 2's extensive mod support, I am looking forward to replaying X-COM 2 in the coming future once new full conversion mods arrive that substantially change the game (maybe even a Long War-like mod for X-COM 2 or even a strategic stealth game like Invisible Inc.?).


(Full disclosure: I have not tried the multiplayer yet since I do not know anyone else who has X-COM 2 and is willing to play a round with me)


What breaks it?

Remember that there is a 20% chance of this shot ruining your day

The reliance on random number generators (RNG) has been one of the main criticisms about Enemy Unknown (and Enemy Within) which applies to X-COM 2 as well. Many times a seemingly simple shot will miss even at a reasonable range while an enemy with a low hit chance will suddenly land a critical hit on your best soldier. This can be rather infuriating for some players especially around the early game where the unprepared player will find themselves suffering from a bad roll. In addition, the RNG also affects other aspects of the game such as damage received, the chances of dodging an attack (and only suffering graze), the chances of landing a critical hit, the chances of a successful hack (this one is particularly infuriating at times) and more that I am unaware of. Somewhat related to this fact is the procedural generation in every new X-COM 2 campaign which means that fewer levels, missions and starting locations are repeated which could result in a campaign that may end in disaster. Though one of the key tenets of X-COM is to play the game in a way that minimizes reliance on the RNG (via strategy and patience), some players would take issue with the RNG usage and may write off X-COM 2 as a whole. This could hurt the game's appeal to certain players but then again, games like X-COM 2 may not be for everyone.

This Jane Kelly managed to survive so many battles with only a minimal amount of blood loss

The drop in difficulty was noticeable for me since I managed to win my X-COM 2 playthrough on my first try (granted I have experience with the game and I indulged in some occasional save-scumming to rush through this playthrough). I note this since I only won Enemy Unknown after my third attempt playing it and after learning a lot from my two failed playthroughs (that even included save-scumming). This is the result of the new timer that does not require the player to keep a nation's panic level down but instead allows the player to manage the timer in more efficient ways along with not ending the game immediately once the timer reaches the end via a limited time period to destroy the progress made by the aliens. Not having to manage panic levels did make X-COM 2 easier for me as most of my problems in an Enemy Unknown campaign usually came from a nation that was about to pull out of the program and I was lacking satellites. This is somewhat compensated by the challenges of the in-game battles which are more challenging and risky due to the limited resources and the different enemy types. The drop in difficulty outside battle can be noticeable but in my opinion, it is mitigated by the difficulty during battle (though not as much once the squad is experienced and geared up).

Not really a bug but note the civilian's 'hiding' spot on the canopy

The bugs are not game-breaking but are noticeable that I will address them. At certain intervals, I experienced noticeable lag, frozen screens that required a force shut down and hard crashes (at the last level when multitudes of opponents turned up). The fact that X-COM 2 was marketed to be a PC exclusive makes these bugs more apparent as it implies that the developers could focus on nailing bugs on release rather than focussing on how to port the game to consoles. Other more superior game review sites and independent reviewers could point out additional problems of X-COM 2 like sub-optimal frames per second (FPS) in game and others issues that I am not well-versed in. Luckily, these bugs were manageable while open to some trouble-shooting to resolve (for instance, disabling the action camera option removed the crashing in the last level) and none of them made me want to stop playing the game (unlike Skyrim's rather infamous invincible backwards-flying dragons that made the main quest impossible to finish and made open-world roaming impossible). It is a shame that these bugs were present in a PC-exclusive game so hopefully Firaxis, if they do make an expansion pack like Enemy Within, will improve on this front.

[No pictures to avoid massive spoilers] The final level is a special criticism from me.It is one of my pettiest gripes with a game but I will mark the game down for the sudden and unfair difficulty spike here. I usually do not complain about these sorts of things but X-COM 2's final sequence really takes the cake. Without wishing to spoil, I will say that the difficulty spikes up unfairly here (especially when compared to the rest of the late-game) due to the limited resources available to the player when the player reaches this segment and as a result of this, I found myself struggling to get past the final encounter in the last level. A lot of preparation is required for this sequence and eventually, someone will figure out the secrets to making this part into cakewalk. Until then, I will point out that this is one of a few sour points in my entire succulent 60+ hour playthrough of X-COM 2.



Personal opinion:
I love X-COM 2. It managed to live up to my moderate expectations and exceeded them in some aspects. I am already making a second playthrough with even less save-scumming so that I can savour the salty taste of painful defeat. If there is a triple-A release to buy this year, X-COM 2 should be one of them. It is fun, intelligent, tragic, hilarious, heartwarming and awesome at the same time whenever a new playthrough is made. With modding and the procedural generation, I do believe that X-COM 2 will retain immense replay value that will vary with each new campaign. It has its flaws but personally, its benefits outweigh the flaws (save for one particularly final flaw I mentioned before). 

I'll give it my highest recommendation, especially to people who enjoy tactical battle games involving aliens (unless you are playing Darkest Dungeon which is also fun though different from X-COM 2). 

Summary
What makes it:

• Gameplay
• Challenge
• War stories
• Improvements to gameplay
• Character customization
• Mod support

What breaks it:

• Reliance on RNG
• Drop in difficulty
• Bugs
• The final level