XCOM: Enemy Within Critic Reviews

As far as expansions go, Enemy Within takes a relatively safe approach, opting to flesh out Enemy Unknown with new maps, enemies, and upgrades rather than redefining its core. Thankfully, it works, because the additions are every bit as smart and enjoyable as the main game.

Enemy Within adds more troop customization options, fearsome enemy units, and new levels to explore. Anyone who loves an intense firefight should test their mettle on Enemy Within.

More than ever, XCOM is a spectacular tactical game full of stories and characters you create for yourself, and is best enjoyed in Iron Man mode on Classic difficulty to enhance the emotional highs and lows of victory and permanent defeat.

On the whole, Enemy Within plays like someone, somewhere kept a list of every minor thing they imagined, while playing Enemy Unknown, would make that game better — and then made those changes.

An excellent expansion to the already superb original, that cleverly weaves in new features that force you to relearn and adapt everything you thought you knew about Enemy Unknown.

Essential for fans and newcomers alike, XCOM: Enemy Within’s additions meaningfully alter your experience of the game, forcing players to take new approaches to an already loved title. Firaxis has done it again.

Small annoyances aside, Firaxis have taken a great game and made it brilliant. There’s so much content and so much to see and do in Enemy Within that one playthrough is unlikely to do it.

The improvements and additions to one of 2012’s best games make XCOM: Enemy Within’s second quest every bit as alluring as first contact.

While only minor additions to the game, Enemy Within somehow manages to make the greatest console turn-based strategy game even better.

This is the definitive version of XCOM. If you're looking for tons of content, high challenge and old-school, hardcore gameplay, this is the place where you'll find it all.

Plenty of new features make this the perfect excuse to jump back into XCOM.

The follow-up to one of last year's best games is an enchanted version of the same masterpiece. Battles are more expansive and go way deeper than before. The higher difficulty levels alongside the Iron Man Mode gives the gameplay an incredible nerve and challenge. Xcom Enemy Within might as well also be one of this years best games.

Returning base commanders might want to ponder whether new classes, maps and foes are worth a second investment, but those who slept through the original extra-terrestrial invasion should pick Enemy Within up immediately.

Fortunately, there's enough new content here to justify it for players looking for another spin in Firaxis' gripping tale of alien invasion.

Still, XCOM: Enemy Within is exactly what Enemy Unknown needed. More maps, more aliens, more equipment... more content.

Many of the great franchises of the 90s have burned out or faded away. But now, XCOM is back in a way that plays like a love letter to the original. It may not be stellar, but it has everything to make it feel right with the old fans while at the same time welcoming the newbies with tentacular appendages. That is a rare and wonderful thing.