XCom: Enemy Unknown

XCom: Enemy Unknown is simply the port of last year's award-winning PC and console game to the mobile platform. As I had played and enjoyed the game extensively last year, it was less than exciting to go through the cycle all over again.

If you have already mastered the game, there is really little reason to fork out another $25 to play the same game. But if you have not, the game is highly recommended.

The title is itself a remake of the 1994 hit XCom: UFO Defence, also known as UFO: Enemy Unknown in Europe.

In the game, you command a secret anti-alien organisation that has, hitherto, operated in the shadows. But now, the aliens have invaded Earth in numbers and your organisation has been activated.

You must recruit soldiers, research alien technology and craft better weaponry to stand a chance against a technologically superior enemy.

It is actually a lot harder than it sounds.

You are funded by 16 nations, but you will not have the resources and satellite coverage at first to protect them all.

The secret to success is in the battlefield, where your soldiers must overcome the odds to take out the aliens and live to tell the tale.

As they win battles, they will gain experience and level up to obtain new skills to help them turn the tide of battle.

There are four classes of soldiers. The sniper can take out enemies from a distance with a single head shot, but is weak at close range.

The assault soldier is best equipped with a shotgun as he is designed for rushing into the fray. Heavy soldiers are the ones with rocket launchers, capable of decimating multiple enemies with a single shot. The support class are healers.

The game is well designed for the touch interface and I found it easy to control my soldiers in the battlefield. However, the mobile version left me feeling that the gamepad, mouse and keyboard are still better controllers for this game.

XCom may be a port, but it sets a new benchmark for the quality of titles designed for the tablet.