Reboots are a prominent part of the video game industry, but they have become significantly more prominent in the last decade. It’s often the case that an old game series likeFableorPerfect Darkis revived after being dormant for a few years, with a reboot that swaps genres, visual style, and gameplay elements. While these reboots are a dime-a-dozen, none have been quite as successful asXCOM: Enemy Unknown, which turns 10 years old today.
Back in 2012,theXCOMserieshad faded into distant memory, with the last entry releasing all the way back in 2001. Over a decade later,XCOM: Enemy Unknownreleased, rebooting the franchise and reshaping its identity for a modern audience. A decade after that,XCOMhas become a relevant series once again, with spinoffs and a beloved sequel under its belt, but it all started withXCOM: Enemy Unknown, the game that saved a franchise.
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XCOM: Enemy Unknown Saved the Franchise
Debuting all the way back in 1994 withXCOM: UFO Defense, theXCOMfranchise began life as a strategy game that split its gameplay into two distinct segments. The first of these segments, named the Geoscape phase, saw players survey the Earth as they place bases and answer calls to aid. Once a mission has been chosen, the next phase begins, known as the Battlescape. Here, players control a squad of XCOM operatives as they face off against aliens on the ground in a turn-based tactics system. Fans ofXCOM: Enemy Unknownwill know this gameplay loop very well.
Announced in January 2012, and released in the very same year,XCOM: Enemy Unknowncame out of nowhere and long-time fans were pretty skeptical before launch. TheXCOMfranchise had been around for less than a decade before it faded into obscurity, and the notion of rebooting it seemed a little pointless. Not many people were crying out foranXCOMreboot, soEnemy Unknowncame across as a pretty big gamble from Firaxis and 2K Games.
However, after its September 2012 launch date, word quickly spread thatXCOM: Enemy Unknownwas a game worth caring about. The critical reception toXCOM: Enemy Unknownwas nothing short of spectacular, with critics deeming it an instant classic. The general audience reception was also phenomenal, with the game selling extremely well for a relatively obscure reboot.
One of the biggest reasons behindXCOM: Enemy Unknown’s success was its high level of accessibility. BeforeXCOM: Enemy Unknown, the turn-based tactics genre wasn’t the most popular in the video game industry.XCOM: Enemy Unknownacted as the introduction to the genre for many gamers, and it did a perfect job of easing in newcomers, bringing in new mechanics gradually throughout the game to ensure that players didn’t get overwhelmed. This is especially true for those playing on PS3 and Xbox 360, as beforeXCOM, strategy games weren’t commonplace on consoles.
XCOM: Enemy Unknownintroduced a plethora of gamers to the turn-based strategy genre, and doing so brought new life to not only theXCOMseries, but to the genre as a whole. Along with a sequel that improves upon its predecessor in every conceivable way,XCOM: Enemy Unknownalso paved the way for upcoming games likeMario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, andFiraxis' ownMarvel’s Midnight Suns. 10 years later,XCOMis still a relevant franchise. Despite releasing back in 2016,XCOM 2is still placed at the top of the best strategy game lists, and the Sci-Fi franchise’s legacy continues to grow, rather than fade into obscurity.
XCOM: Enemy Unknownis available on PC, PS3, PS Vita, and Xbox 360.
