The Mess Hall

It seems the XCOM FPS has been pushed back until 2013, so they are releasing a remake of Enemy Unknown towards the end of this year. It's developed by Firaxis (Civilization), so I'll expect it to be good, but buggy and with heinous cheating AI...

Today we're proud to announce that Firaxis Games is developing XCOM: Enemy Unknown, an action strategy game releasing this fall. Long-time XCOM fans will instantly recognize XCOM: Enemy Unknown's gameplay, which has both deep strategic elements and tactical combat. Players are put in control of a secret paramilitary organization known as XCOM, and as commander, defend against a terrifying global invasion of aliens. Success hinges on resource management, technology advancements, and overseeing both combat strategies and securing victories with superior individual unit tactics.

Wasn't there another XCOM game?
Yes, 2K Marin is developing a previously announced first-person shooter, simply called XCOM. That game was originally scheduled to come out last year, but has since been delayed out of 2011.

How do those games relate to each other?
The shooter takes place earlier in the fiction, chronicling the aliens' first attacks in the United States. The strategy game we're talking about here deals with the global response to the later full-blown alien invasion of Earth.

So this is some kind of RTS?
No, not in the way the term "RTS" typically applies to games like StarCraft. The real-time element of XCOM is confined to the global view, where the player keeps track of known UFOs and abductions going on around the world. Managing research and development at the XCOM organization's secret base can be done at the player's leisure, and all combat is completely turn-based.

You switch between real-time and turn-based?
Yes. When your aerial transport lands at an abduction site, the game switches to a tactical view and you command your squad of personalized soldiers in battle against an unknown alien threat.

So what do you do in the real-time global view?
On the strategic layer, players direct research into alien technology, give their engineers and foundries fabrication requests, interact with the nations of the world (who have to be mollified to secure funding for XCOM), intercept airborne UFOs with jet fighters, level up their soldiers and recruit new ones, and dispatch the Skyranger transport to engage alien incursions on the ground.

Is this a remake of the original?
Kind of. Re-imagining is probably a better term. Firaxis' XCOM: Enemy Unknown doesn't directly copy the underlying game systems – for instance, soldiers have different stats than they did in the 1994 original – but the concepts are still here. Players still have to manage multiple resources and threats on a global scale in a seemingly hopeless war against extraterrestrial forces with far better technology and capabilities.

Is this going to be dumbed down for the "wider console audience"?
Firaxis is undeniably streamlining aspects of the game and removing no small amount of micromanagement, but from what I've seen I wouldn't call it "dumbing down" the game so much as getting rid of tedium and uninteresting mechanics. Soldiers still die permanently, fog of war and line of sight are hugely important in combat, and you absolutely can lose the game if you screw up too badly.

This is currently my most desired game of the year

Seriously? Not one bit of interest...?
I'll be the only one on PS3 anyway - everyone else will bugger off to PC

I never took to the game, not even way back on the PC.

Fuck yeah - pre-ordered for next week
Sy, Dave - you not interested?
It's got PvP...

It's not for me states, i'd lose intrest, to much slow paced action for my liking, i dunno man seems a bit boring.

Fair doos y'all - see you on the other side

I'm probably posting to myself here, but fuck it...

XCOM memes:

Been watching a guy playing on youtube, it actually looks alright, i don't think the earlier vids did it any justice.. you know with the nooby type reporters like ign trying to play

< Double post >

I love it. PvP is pretty good, although matchmaking is a bit of a slag. This game makes me turn to Dark Souls to relax. WTF? It is brutal on the higher difficulties.

lol.. he did well..

You can totally troll with certain PvP builds

Ghost armour...?
Squad sight snipers...?
Cyberdisk and drone support...?
Mind control...?
Hidden Cryssalids...?

Patch inbound - looks good

Thanks for all the feedback you guys have provided here in the XCOM forums. We here at 2k Games and Firaxis have been listening to your comments and are preparing a patch that will be releasing soon on all platforms. Exact date is TBD, but we will let you know as soon as we get word.

Here are a list of changes that will be included in the patch.

Major Fixes
• Abductor roof visibility problems resolved

• Interception game hang issues resolved
o If two interceptors are sent after UFO
o If Skyranger is returning from combat after an Interceptor was already deployed

• SHIV inaccessible issues resolved

• AI Alien Activity Hang resolution

• Multiplayer connectivity optimization

Other Fixes
• TempleShip optimization: All Soldiers properly spawn when restarting the mission after clearing the second room of TempleShip

• Snapshot penalty should no longer apply when Overwatching without first moving.

• Easy Difficulty is now easier.

Again, thanks for all the feedback and for being super patient as we prepare each patch for release. We are always monitoring the forums for issues and will post as soon as we get official updates.