Not quite a miss, not quite a hit If you're a fan of the original.
User Rating: 8 | XCOM: Enemy Unknown PC
Today everything seems to be a remake, whether It's a movie or a video game.Unfortunately as with all scenarios where you are meeting old and new, some unique qualities get left behind and other elements get "cleaned up" or re-imagined to make the experience similar but not quite nailing it on the end to relive those fond memories.If you're coming from the past and expected a remake of an old classic, there are some things you will definitely miss, such as;rnrn- No more free fire to take out walls to clear line of sightrn- Careful positioning, such as crouching/kneelingrn- Building your own base across a platform and then having it invaded by aliensrn- Those wonderful snake people that I used to love so muchrn- That slow shot by shot cam that watches every shot either hit or missrn- No more creepy alien music, music isn't bad either though just not as "spacey" for mern- Wide-open non-linear random maps (huge miss here unfortunately as they seem to be redundantly noticeable quite quick)rn- Large squad of men to cover a map (now only six maximum)rnrnThere are obviously some features missed more than others. And others more understandable while others leave you wondering why this decision was made when it was what separated the game from the typical pack.rnrnBut what made Xcom really great was the slow, methodical nail-biting decisions you'd have to make with every turn...It's still here just in a more confined way...you don't feel like you can manipulate the environment as much as you used to and the maps lack variety of cover and seems the out-of-bounds zone are so narrow it's more like playing on a football field than on some vast landscape where the enemy could be anywhere...now you can pretty much guess which corner they are around...which takes a little bit of the mystery away. What happens now is there is a group of overwhelming foes that tend to lay more accurate fire than your own soldiers and will make quick work of your squad If there are any false moves or stragglers since by default you only start with a squad of 4, you can't choose the classes your men are so it's a random roll of the dice as they rank up as to what weapons they will be able to use and what abilities associated.rnrnThere is also more emphasis and less control over the story, you're a bit pressed into service and generate money through fundraising essentially, so you'll find it frustrating and feel obligated to act accordingly to what the games storyline is requiring you to take place in...or risk losing funding or support and essentially could end the game for you due to having no funds to purchase upgrades and maintain your base. Maintaining your base is also not something very fun, the interface the build things is simple and nothing special, the view of your base doesn't feel quite epic or space-aged, feels more like a WW2 underground bunker that you will never actually have to walk through.rnrnAll in all X-com Enemy Unknown is still enjoyable to play and entertaining, still nail-biting and frustrating when you lose a skilled up man only to have to default back to a rookie which is essentially useless. However because of the linear play, it feels a bit confined and narrow, like it could have been more....more aliens, more maps, more technology, more ships, more more more. Hopefully some of these things could be added in the future, for now we have a pretty good remake, something that's still entertaining and I'm sure some will love while others will hate. If you're coming in to this genre for the first time I'd say It's a must have experience.
