Tactical turn based strategy game XCOM: Enemy Unknown, of course, was one of the main games in 2012. Almost the only decent remake of the original X-COM: UFO Defense, was so good that I was able to revive the genre gradually fading popularity among the general public. Now, one year later, the developers are offering to our attention XCOM: Enemy Within – addition, deserves a separate discussion.

It should be noted that we do not usually write about the supplement, but XCOM: Enemy Within is not just a few new cards, a couple of enemies and updated fresh additional missions. No, instead of the standard for other games facelift for $ 9.99 before us five minutes to the new game, which offers rewind time back and replay XCOM: Enemy Unknown by the new rules.

The plot is still the same distressed Earth attacking alien invaders, to counter that, a special paramilitary organization called XCOM. Then everything is as usual: build base, studying the remains found, launch satellites, shoot down UFOs, interrogate captured alien abductions and prevent attempts to try to keep an acceptable level of panic in the countries that finance our activities. With one exception – when in contact with strangers, people discovered the canister with an unusual substance, called Meld. During the research it appears that using nanomachines that comprise the substance, we can create super soldiers to fight intruders. 

Obtain the substance was not easy – at most levels are two cans, each of which establishes a mechanism of self-destruction. The first five moves explodes after landing your troops, the second ten. To prevent an explosion, you must manually disable the timer or destroy all enemies on the level before the detonation. In theory, nothing special, but in practice this means that the second canister soldiers will usually break under heavy enemy fire, covering their offensive smoke grenades.

But here’s another piece of nanomachines achieved and can be sent in one of two laboratories for the rewards. Improving personnel can be to focus on genetic modification or clothe soldiers in huge mechanized exoskeletons. Both options involve changing class and the loss of all learned skills, and in the latter case even limbs, but these sacrifices are absolutely justified, as a result we get is the real ultimate weapon. 

Invisible sniper without a run jumps up on the roof of a nearby cafe, big, after killing an enemy emits pheromones that improve the characteristics teammates, soldiers with two hearts, which is not only experiencing a fatal hit, but each move a couple of units regenerating health, what could be better? Well, I do not know … how about a three-meter walking tank, armed with a machine gun at the same time which, flamethrowers and grenade launchers? Or a walking fortress periodically jump on the enemies electromagnetic pulse, able at this mine premises immediately and heal all the soldiers around her? Oh yeah, and it’s still a miracle chrome kinetic armed fist, one hit is now able to send this overly aggressive Mouton alien to his forefathers. Naturally, while the pilots MEC to advance her career by learning new skills themselves exoskeletons can be improved, tune and even repainting. 

By the way, an amazing deal, the latter-day upgrades not depersonalize your soldiers, but rather give them more personality, so that the reason for loading the last save after one of the veterans unsuccessfully peered around the corner, only increase.

In short, the new fighters XCOM – is incredible, but updated aliens, unfortunately, significantly inferior to man version 2.0. Able to become invisible and attack at the most inopportune moment Seeker seems dangerous just the first couple of meetings until you barely seeing his tentacles on the horizon, do not start to leave fighters mode overwatch. But sektoid terrible enemy in the exoskeleton. This machine, with the support of their fellow small, can easily make half squad in just a few moves, if you missed just have not got heavy armor and heavy guns. 

But, as practice shows, especially the newcomers have nothing to oppose the pressure of elite units XCOM, so choose a higher level of complexity, unless you want to throw right and left end of the game alien like kittens. After all, if even on normal difficulty you can explore and learn almost everything, then at higher already have to choose – to insert your sniper sverhzorkie eyes or dig, and improve one of the robotic suits. 

And do not be confused by a small number of new units from enemies, because in addition to the alien forces in HSOM has another enemy – a hitherto unknown terrorist organization EXALT, sympathetic extraterrestrials. Its agents will sabotage research, steal data and all kinds of spoiling your life. You, in turn, are sending spies into cells EXALT worldwide with the aim of returning the stolen data and gather information about the terrorists themselves. And, a few days after introduction, a person will have to return by sending him a rescue team. Armed terrorists are not worse than yours, so that the soldiers have to sweat while hacking spy network repeaters or merges with the enemy important data servers. Gradually Staff XCOM will appear information about the possible location of a terrorist base and, consequently, the ability to attack the enemy, but to take hasty decisions should not be – the introduction of troops in the wrong country fraught with elevated levels of panic and loss of funding. 

Remember that most annoyed in XCOM: Enemy Unknown? And no, it’s not a lack of inventory, and a very limited set of cards, which began to bother about the third day. In XCOM: Enemy Within this problem is solved. In addition to substantial transformation of old maps, the game added a lot of new locations – repeating places became only occur closer to the thirtieth hour of the game. Given the impressive number of random scenarios (and more fine-tuning in the Second Wave) replayability XCOM: Enemy Within increased several times compared with the original. 

About multiplayer same can be said only that this time it works as it should, since the majority of bugs are not gone. True no revelations in this mode does not appear – collect squad, trying to squeeze into the credit limit, and meet with a group of opponents in a relatively small map. Can play, but there is a certain balance to the claim so that the campaign so far looks much more attractive.

When you run the loader offers a choice of XCOM: Enemy Unknown and supplement, but take my word, once you try XCOM: Enemy Within back to the original version will be no desire, too everything better.

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