The Bureau: XCOM® Declassified™

NICE

From reading reviews here and elsewhere, I got the impression that this game faced a lot of vitriol upon announcement and initial release for taking the XCOM series in a completely different direction. Although this ended up not being an FPC, as initially announced, it was still too late to rebuild the bridges that had been burned. I came to "The Bureau" aware of this background, but approached it with an open mind. It didn't disappoint. Playing both the main campaign and the DLC, I was pleasantly surprised at how natural the blend of third-person shooter and tactics worked. Unlike in the main XCOM game, you only control your main character directly, and can give instructions to two other squad members. By coordinating them and choosing their enemies, you can tactically take down large waves of enemies, despite your technology often being less impressive than theirs. Story-wise, the end "The Bureau" is a bit of a foregone conclusion. As this is prequel, it is clear that humanity will ultimately fight back the alien invaders. However, it is up to you how this is realized. Along the way, there is a unique twist that may challenge the perception that the aliens are always chaotic evil. I am going to dock a star, however, for performance. My video card generally runs games released in 2014 and earlier at 720p, or even higher. However, I had to keep "The Bureau" at 800*600 to ensure smooth gameplay and a constant 60FPS. Otherwise, though, I recommend giving this game a try -- especially if you catch it on sale.

for 4 dollars why not Good Game Fun Action Guns Story I Enjoyed the Game Very Much

I just want to sit on the beach and eat hotdogs. That's all I've ever wanted.

I can think of few other games that got as bad a rep because of raging fanboys than The Bureau: XCOM Declassified. Despite a hellish dev-cycle that's been detailed in full by Polygon, this game came out and was just AMAZING... but it wasn't a turn-based strategy game so everyone dismissed it out of hand. Nevermind that it has one of the best endings in gaming, or that the gameplay blows the likes of Mass Effect out of the water, or that it perfectly captures the tone and aesthetic of the 1950's sci-fi thrillers that inspired XCOM in the first place, OR that its DLC offered even greater tactical challenges (and that DLC is included in this version pure gratis). Ignore the people who couldn't get past the fact that XCOM: Enforcer was bad over a decade ago (and who for some reason forgot that XCOM was always spread across multiple genres); 2K Marin did a beautifully job polishing this game into one of the best cult-classic games of the 7th console generation. It plays great with a controller or KB & Mouse, and even though I have it on PS3 and Steam, I'm grabbing it again.