Developer Firaxis already had a major winner with Xcom: Enemy Unknown, but has made it into near tactical perfection with the standalone expansion pack—Xcom: Enemy Within. Although adding on new mechanics, levels and stages— improving the game tenfold—then charging full price for it again might rub some people the wrong way. But if you’ve never played it before, this is the best version. Set in a world where aliens arrive to wreak havoc, you control a team of special military forces who fight back in a variety of ways. The diversity of your soldiers and what they can do is what makes Xcom shine. One trooper might be physically altered to control a giant mechanized death machine, another could be an expert sniper, and it’s up to you to control how things go down between humanity and the baddies. With a long, enjoyable campaign, interesting gameplay ideas, and a great art style and score to take in, it’s time to dive in to Xcom.
This article appears in Dec 5-11, 2013.