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XCOM: Enemy Unknown
Firaxis sends along a handful of screens showing off the PC interface for its upcoming tactical strategy game, and details more pre-order bonuses as a cherry on top.
The PC version of XCOM: Enemy Unknown is tailored to mouse/keyboard control. Most importantly, mousing over most objects in the game, from aliens to accessories, gives detailed tooltip information. Being able to see your hit percentages for firing at a target without diving into a deeper menu layer should be a nice convenience. Secondly, Firaxis has embraced the concept of right-clicking canceling orders and backing out of menus, which dramatically speeds up UI interaction in every strategy game I've seen it in.
The PC version also overlays a grid (though the spacing interval that the game uses is quite small indeed) on the entire world when you hold down the right mouse button, making lining up shots slightly easier.
As expected, XCOM looks better on a capable PC as well. You can zoom in farther, and the texture resolution is noticeably better across the entire game.
2K Games also detailed more pre-order bonuses for XCOM: Enemy Unknown. Buying the game before it comes out gives you the Elite Soldier Pack for free, which includes:
- The classic Guile look-alike soldier from the original game
- Additional cosmetic options for soldiers' armor suits
- More colors to customize your soldiers' appearances with
2K also announced a special physical retail PC edition for $59.99 instead of the standard $49.99 PC price. Purchasing the special edition comes with several extras, like a fold-out poster of the "ant farm" headquarters, an XCOM insignia patch, and digital goodies like wallpapers and a soundtrack.
The PC version of the game uses Valve's Steamworks, so no matter where you buy XCOM from you must register the game with a Steam account to play it but in return you get automatic patching, friends lists, achievements, and more.
XCOM: Enemy Unknown comes out on October 9th for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.
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XCOM: Enemy Unknown
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