XCOM 2
XCOM 2 is a single-player and multiplayer turn-based tactical strategy game. The story takes place twenty years after the failed defense of Earth in XCOM: Enemy Unknown. The alien invaders now rule through a puppet regime called ADVENT, presenting themselves as benevolent while concealing sinister experiments. Humanity’s defenders have been scattered, and the XCOM project has become a resistance movement operating in secret. The player takes command of the Avenger, a captured alien supply craft converted into a mobile headquarters, tasked with uniting resistance cells, disrupting alien operations, and ultimately dismantling their control of the planet.
Gameplay alternates between a strategic layer and tactical combat. On the Avenger’s world map, the player directs research, engineering projects, and squad management, while moving the ship across regions to contact new resistance outposts, intercept supply drops, or counter alien operations. The strategy layer includes a ticking “Avatar Project” that measures alien progress toward a hidden goal, creating pressure to prioritize missions and sabotage facilities before time runs out.
Tactical missions are turn-based squad engagements that place four to six soldiers into procedurally generated battlefields. Soldiers act in sequence, each spending actions on movement, attacks, overwatch fire, or the use of abilities and equipment. Cover, elevation, and line of sight are crucial, with enemies ranging from patrols of ADVENT troopers to specialized alien units with unique abilities. Many missions begin with concealment, allowing squads to set ambushes before the enemy detects their presence. Objectives vary, including destroying alien structures, retrieving data, rescuing civilians, or simply surviving long enough for extraction.
Progression emphasizes customization and soldier development. Survivors of missions gain experience and advance into one of several classes, such as Ranger, Grenadier, Specialist, and Sharpshooter, each with branching skill trees. Soldiers can be further equipped with armor upgrades, experimental weapons, and personal combat sims. The player also manages scarce resources for building facilities within the Avenger, such as laboratories, resistance comms, or psi labs that train psionic operatives.
Beyond the main campaign, the game includes online one-on-one multiplayer where players draft mixed squads of human and alien units to compete under the same turn-based ruleset. Various difficulty settings and an Ironman mode, which restricts the player to a single autosave.
