XCOM 2
News, coverage and analysis tracking XCOM 2 across the outlets.
New XCOM game announced for dev’s 30th anniversary but there's a major catchFiraxis Games is celebrating its 30th anniversary with the announcement of XCOM: The Miniatures Game, a tabletop adaptation developed in partnership with Modiphius. While a new video game installment in the XCOM series was not revealed, Firaxis also announced a sale on its back catalog on Steam and provided an update on Civilization 7.
Xenonauts 2 review - a legally distinct XCOM 3Xenonauts 2 is a turn-based tactics game that serves as a spiritual successor to the original X-COM, focusing on intense battles and strategic base management. While it excels as a homage with improved graphics and a challenging difficulty, it offers few new ideas and relies heavily on the random elements that defined the original.
"Keeping teams together doesn't seem to matter to people, but for us it did": Star Wars Zero Company's director on what the industry can learn from XCOM 2Greg Foertsch, director of Star Wars Zero Company and former art director on XCOM 2, emphasizes the importance of keeping development teams together to foster institutional knowledge and trust. He argues that this cohesion, demonstrated by Firaxis Games' work on the XCOM series, leads to better games and is a valuable lesson for an industry frequently impacted by layoffs.- Saturday Postmortems/RetrospectivesThis article delves into the development of XCOM 2's procedural map generation and the chaotic creation of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. It examines the ambitions and challenges faced by developers in these projects.
"I was chomping at the bit to crack the code": How procedural maps became XCOM 2's biggest ambition, after Firaxis couldn't manage it in Enemy UnknownFiraxis Games initially struggled with procedural map generation for XCOM: Enemy Unknown, opting for handcrafted levels to ensure quality. For XCOM 2, the team prioritized cracking procedural generation, developing a 'plot and parcel' system to create varied and believable maps across different environments. Key figures like Garth DeAngelis, Jake Solomon, Greg Foertsch, and Brian Hess were instrumental in overcoming the technical and design challenges.
Esoteric Ebb and the Politics of Rolling the DiceEsoteric Ebb is a CRPG that draws heavily from Disco Elysium and tabletop RPGs, exploring themes of politics, democracy, and the role of chance. The game uses its mechanics and narrative to comment on the privileged perspective of players and the complexities of democratic systems, drawing parallels between divine foresight and the player's awareness of game mechanics. It ultimately valorizes democratic involvement while critiquing absolutist dictations.
32 Best Strategy Games To Play Over And Over Again In 2026This guide highlights 32 of the best strategy games available to play, spanning various subgenres like city-builders, real-time strategy, and turn-based tactics. The list includes both classic titles and modern releases, emphasizing games that require critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Many of the featured games are playable on PC and consoles, offering diverse gameplay experiences.- Smurfar i höftskynke – dags för spelhelg!Several individuals share their gaming plans for the weekend, featuring titles like Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, XCOM 2, Baldur's Gate 3, and Helldivers 2. Other games mentioned include Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team, Edgar Allan Poe's Interactive Horror, Earth Must Die, and Marvel's Midnight Suns.
The best strategy games on PC 2026: clever tactical planningThis article provides a comprehensive list of the best strategy games available on PC, covering various sub-genres like grand strategy, turn-based, and real-time strategy. It highlights titles such as StarCraft 2, Manor Lords, Solium Infernum, Against the Storm, and Total War: Warhammer 3, among others, detailing their unique mechanics and appeal to different player preferences.