XCOM 2 follows the same formula. Instead of raising satellites over nations to keep panic down, maintain loyalty from nation states and allow for a steady revenue stream to finance your scientific, manufacturing and exotic weaponry, you make contact with gorilla groups all over the world. Contact will open new territories that will allow raids of alien facilities. Destroying alien facilities will reduce progression towards world domination. Failing to do so will top up the alien progression bar towards dominance and risking losing the game. World map will be dotted with contacts, supplies and radio antennas that take between 3 to 7 days to scan. Scan to reap the rewards. A Black Market returns. Some missions are time sensitive, while others remain on the map indefinitely. Scans will be interrupted by missions. A skipped mission will have consequences allowing the aliens to advance the progression bar, attack your base of operation, sabotage recruitment, enable better equipment enemy troops, allow increased deployment of enemy troops etc...
Again, you will manage your barracks, hire soldiers, upgrade armour, ordnance, gear, perks, psych abilities etc... Missions consist of killing aliens, saving VIPs and civilians, capturing tech and skulljacking soldiers for intel. Battles become more challenging as you advance in the game leading to an all out assault on an underwater alien base. Psych abilities are handled a bit differently in XCOM 2. In XCOM: Enemy Unknown, you could use your ranked soldiers to train their psychic abilities. However, in XCOM 2, once you build the psi chamber you will need to train rookies from scratch. It's worth doing so, as their psychic abilities are on steroids and will be very useful end game. Unlike the first game where you gain control of an enemy for 3 rounds, the psychics can now control a single enemy for the rest of the mission! Psychics have even greater control over area of effect. Game took just over 67 hours to complete.
