It's also a big reason why the combat AI for enemies leaves so much to be desired.Įnemies often make terrible strategic decisions or choose to not setup overwatch fire to take shots when you cross their path, which should be common sense. Except, to its credit, that's usually because a big new enemy shows up or factions bicker with each other more so than it is a missed shot that had a 95% chance of landing. Phoenix Point is at its best when you're in the thick of combat, executing your strategy and feeling confident, all before things suddenly start to go wrong. Disabling what makes an enemy powerful eventually becomes, more or less, the only strategy that can lead to a win. This means you can do things like shoot off limbs to make enemies drop weapons. You can auto fire or take direct-aiming control with a system similar to VATS, a targeting system found in Fallout, that lets you target specific body parts or even weapons. Instead of every shot devolving into a dice roll, every bullet has its own trajectory in the engine. On the surface, gameplay looks and feels a lot like XCOM, but there are some major differences worth noting.

Of course, they will be dead for good if they fall in combat, which is certainly assured. This version of the system has a bit too much micromanagement to still be fun.īut don't worry: just like in XCOM, you can name your squad members in Phoenix Point. Overall, I think the base approach in XCOM 2 is a bit better and more focused, as opposed to the more scattered approach here. You'll even get special upgrades unique to the factions you pick. There are multiple factions of surviving humans, so you must pick sides and pick your battles carefully. In the latter parts of the campaign, enemies start to get extremely tough, and it makes some of the higher difficulty settings extremely difficult.Īs the new leader of the Phoenix Project, you are tasked with upgrading and establishing bases around the world - slowly and methodically. The upside to this idea is that there is a refreshing amount of enemy variety in Phoenix Point, at least in terms of design and size. However, Phoenix Point swaps aliens for grotesque oceanic monstrosities emerging from the sea as bizarre mutations. Just like XCOM, Phoenix Point is a mostly isometric turn-based strategy game that tasks you with mounting forces against strange creatures hell-bent on overrunning the planet. But in this case, it's a bit more like that meme about copying homework and changing a little of it to not get in trouble than it is about simply iterating previous ideas.ĭon't get me wrong: there are some key differences between the games, but if you didn't know the differences between them and watched footage of both, I could fully understand if you thought Phoenix Point and XCOM 2 were the same game - or at least games in the same franchise. Naturally, Gollop draws heavy inspiration from his past work. Phoenix Point is developed by Snapshot Games, a studio co-founded by Julian Gollop, the original creator of the XCOM series. You honestly can't discuss its merits and failings without drawing a bold line with permanent marker directly back to XCOM. Reviewing this game in a vacuum is missing the point.

Phoenix point designer