XCOM 2 Reviews
A solid followup to XCOM: Enemy Unknown, XCOM 2 delivers on story, action, and tension. It's nonetheless in serious need of optimization to correct glitching and framerate issues.
Great strategy games are few and far between, and XCOM 2 is an absolute treat for anyone craving a challenge on every level. Marred only be a few technical presentation hiccups and slow loading times, XCOM 2 is a deep mental and emotional experience that tests each player's resolve to triumph against overwhelming odds and failure. While losing a top soldier can be a most devastating defeat, coming back from that loss and completing a mission with a group of rookies to honor that soldier's sacrifice can be an incredible accomplishment. You may still lose the war, but each campaign's small victories drive that feeling that success is possible, no matter the insurmountable odds placed before you.
XCOM 2 is a fantastic experience, and one that retains all the elements that the original release on consoles brought while adding more. The setting for the story is fun, the idea of moving the mobile base around the world is interesting, and I had a grin almost the entire time I was playing the game. Head to head multiplayer is there also for those bored once the campaign is done, but the meat of the experience is the single player for me.
One of last generation's best sci-fi games returns to consoles and continues apace, changing very little but adding a lot to the mix.
XCOM 2 is hard proof true strategy games are still in high demand, blending satisfying old-school strategic turn-based gameplay with cinematic flourish.
A great port that only could have been better including the steam Workshop integration. We know that's impossible, but it's an issue that makes this version worse than the original.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
An incremental rather than radical improvement, but no less an achievement for that, XCOM 2 irons out flaws you didn't even realise existed in Enemy Unknown. The consequence is one of the best strategy games in years.
Technicalities aside, XCOM 2 is an amazing game, a great strategy game, and we strongly recommend you to try it out.
Review in Italian | Read full review
If you can take punishment as well as you can dish it out, then XCOM 2 strikes the right balance. Its tactics are hardlined, its urgency is persistent, and it will wear you down even as it builds you up. A beautiful, brutal beast of a tactics game. But do what you can to clean up these graphical and gameplay hitches, Firaxis; this game deserves it.
The only fly in the ointment here are some technical issues to prevent you from fully enjoying the masochism: issues with the game failing to start for some users, quirks with aiming, soldiers warping to different locations when reloading and even some crashes to desktop are the stumbling blocks that have a number of gamers asking when can we expect a patch. In the meantime, I will live with these issues so I can continue having my head kicked in.
XCOM 2 manages to improve a formula that had almost nothing wrong with it to begin with, adding a sense of urgency to the already unpredictable nature of its turn-based combat. It's a rewarding experience, if not sometimes cruelly unfair.
XCOM 2 is a perfect sequel to Enemy Unknown. The core is almost the same, but is rock solid and the new setting is an excellent base for a wide diversity in missions. Only the graphical compartment could have been improved.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
XCOM 2 is a definite win in my book
XCOM 2 does what its predecessor did and more.
Needless to say, although the game has some issues with some mechanics, namely stealth, and on launch it had a lot of performance issues, with Workshop integration and the Fireaxis working hard to optimize the game, it is a solid game.
If you're going to pick up XCOM 2 having never touched Enemy Unknown, then beware. It's not the happy-go-lucky strategy experience many games will offer, in fact I'd probably say this is the video game equivalent to S&M. It is brutal. It will raise you to the peak of mental ecstasy before your attempt at humanity's redemption comes crashing down around you in only a few turns, your squad returning to HQ a crippled, shambling mess, if they do indeed return at all. XCOM 2 will make you its bitch. And the best thing about it? It'll make you want to come back for more. And you'll love it.
XCOM 2 spielt sich auf auf der Konsole großartig und liefert auch optisch ein gelungenes Gesamtbild. Es dauert zwar etwas, bis man sich mit der Controller-Steuerung zurecht findet, aber nach einer kurzen Eingewöhnung, könnt ihr genauso wie am PC euren Squad befehligen.
Review in German | Read full review
XCOM 2 is not a simple game and it will not cuddle with you at all. But because of it you will appreciate more your own accomplishments, like if you finish a level without losing a soldier or a team. XCOM 2 is about successes and falls, a difficult path to the goal, even after many bad attempts. And it's worth it.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
XCOM 2 is finally here, and we're taking a break from mourning our fallen squaddies to tell you how great it is.
XCOM 2 delivers an excellent port to the PS4. It has been cleverly designed to take advantage of a gamepad and this alleviates many potential concerns. Below this lays an experience that is unrivalled when it comes to strategy titles, particularly on console. The constant feeling of 'backs against the wall,' with scant resources and war decisions to be made, conveys a constant feeling of tension, which only serves to enhance the story of guerrilla resistance. Of course, with the permanent death mechanic, the tales of battle with much loved soldiers are rich for sharing between friends as a badge of honour and craft a memorable experience, living long after the game is finished—which, of course, is not a short one, by any means, providing the substantial difficulty is not a turn-off.