XCOM: Enemy Unknown for iOS

While I haven’t purchased the iOS game yet I have read a few reviews and wish that I had the money to get the game. XCOM: Enemy Unknown was released for iOS devices yesterday for $19.99. While it’s probably the most expensive game on the platform, it’s one heck of a game.

It’s Mostly All There

Everything you love from the 2012 release is there, mostly. All the skills, customization, difficulty, permadeath, it’s all, pretty much, there. The game looks great, even on an iPhone 4. It does appear to be more cluttered on the phones but you can still get every angle you want when surveying the field to plan your next six moves.

Killcams

One thing that I noticed in the reviews I read/watched was that they don’t have normal killcams. In the PC/Mac/PS3/360 versions you are given a few different killcams that zoom in and add some cool cinematic effects to the gameplay. On the iOS versions the reviewers said that they didn’t see any killcams in the play throughs they had done. They did see the slow motion reaction fire cameras but no kill cams for getting that sweet critical shot.

Cutscenes

Just like in the original versions there are cutscenes throughout the campaign of defending the earth. The difference here is that you can’t skip them. While it might be cool the first time or maybe even the second time, when you’re playing the fifteenth time, I can imagine it’ll be more of a hindrance than anything. 

No Slingshot

One last bad thing. The slingshot DLC is not included in the iOS launch. Whether or not it will come to iOS I don’t know but it’s not a total loss. While it added some new missions and maps it didn’t do anything to improve or lessen the experience it just added new venues to get your team slaughtered in until you figured out the right strategy for that map.

No Multiplayer

It’s as simple as that. They currently don’t have multiplayer but they do plan on releasing it as a free update. Whether it’ll be an online only affair or a hand-off multiplayer is yet to be announced.

The Positives

Everything Else You Want

I just listed off three negative things about the iOS release that I learned from watching and reading other reviews. However, every review gave it great scores. It seems as though, aside from the few minor details I mentioned above, that this game is just as great on iOS devices as it is on the computer or console of your choice.

Crossplay/buy

When you buy this game on your iPhone it’s connected to your apple account. That means that you can install it on your iPad, iPad mini, iPhone 4/4S, iPhone 5. It also has cloud saving which means that you can play on your phone while on the toilet at work and then save it and hop onto your iPad when you get on the bus.

Basically what I’m saying is that if you loved the game and have either an iPhone or iPad of some sort then you should get this game to satiate your urge while you’re on the road or are too lazy to open up your computer. I plan on getting this game as soon as I can afford it and hopefully it won’t be too far down the line so I can fully review it.