X

XCOM (Xbox 360, PC)
• Publisher: 2K Games
• Developer:2K Maein
• Release Date: 2011
• Screenshots
• Trailer
• What We Saw:
We saw a developer driven demo that showcased many of the game‘s features. The game is, despite what the shoot ‘em up trailer shows you, really more XCOM-ish than you may be led to believe. Set in the “idyllic” 1950s, you lead the XCOM organization, assigned to rid the land of alien invaders. Just like the old game you have a map (this time only of the US from what we saw) and various missions pop up and you have to decide which to attempt – we saw rescue, anomaly, and “unknown” mission types. There’s research, alien technology upgrades, and so on. It’s not, however, a strategy game – this is first and foremost an action game but it’s peppered with elements from the original. Yes, you have squad mates and when they die during a mission—they are gone forever.
• What We Think:
Bill: I think the game has a lot of potential and that I loved 2K Marin’s work on BioShock 2. I also think this demo was hastily constructed and not ready for public viewing. It looked incredibly rough, at least graphically. That said, I know damn well this game is a long way off and I’m not at all holding its roughness against it. It’s very early in development. I do question the reason 2K wanted to show it in such a state. You can see a really cool design underneath its rough outer shell; I just think a trailer would have been enough. Or at least show enemies outside of the silly black slime balls. Those didn’t sell the fear of alien assault all that well.
Todd: I was among the few to see this demo and come away with a very positive, hopeful impression. No, it’s not the best looking game I saw at the show --maybe that will improve and maybe it won’t-- but I was surprised to find I really liked 2k Marin’s take on the direction of this game. Setting it in a farcical 50s American “golden age” and using the notion of an alien menace to disrupt that illusion of harmony may turn out to be a stroke of genius if it all comes together. Finding out that you are still responsible for running X-COM --keeping states happy to maintain state-by-state funding, having “squaddies” come with you on mission and potentially losing them permanently, and having to conduct research on items found in the field-- was a huge relief after the frenetic teaser video came out before E3.
I’m not sold on the whole alien black blob thing, but there will be other foes to deal with. I particularly liked the atmosphere in the demo we watched. The hustle and bustle of the home base made it feel very much like a real place where a large group of people were all working diligently towards a common goal. Likewise, the battle with aliens in a suburban home was frenetic; the level of destruction heaped on the place, the woman screaming upstairs, and the phone ringing downstairs... There was a genuine sense of menace and chaos about it that was intriguing.