14 DAY TRIAL // One of the biggest surprises of the announcement that developer Firaxis and publisher 2K Games are working on a new XCOM title is that they are only planning to deliver it on the PC, meaning Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems.
The first title was also offered on home consoles, and many fans were expecting to see a sequel use the improved processing power of the Xbox One from Microsoft and the PlayStation 4 from Sony.
Firaxis tells IGN that the decision was made because they have experience working on the PC and want to use all their resources in order to make sure that XCOM 2 is a game that delivers high-quality characters and locations, more destruction, physics-based rendering, and procedurally generated maps.
Neither of them is at the moment possible on any platforms other than the PC, and Firaxis is not willing to compromise.
XCOM 2 is being created on a much-improved version of Unreal Engine 3, which is closer to the capabilities of the fourth version of the development tools.
Jake Solomon, who leads the creation process, states, "When we have our meetings, when we talk about stuff, we only talk about PC. We talk about What is the experience like on PC? What does the mouse feel like in this experience?"
The user interface of XCOM 2 is also tweaked
Firaxis also wants to use the PC focus to make sure that gamers will have an easier time controlling their teams in the field and will be able to move faster between other areas of the game.
More tactical details will be offered to make sure that fans know how to approach a situation.
The downside of the PC-only nature of XCOM 2 is that there are no plans to introduce support for a gamepad at launch, although it might be offered later if there's sufficient interest from the community.
The new title will take place 20 years after the events of the original, with Earth now dominated by the aliens after they managed to overwhelm its defenses.
The XCOM organization has not disappeared, but it is forced to use hit-and-run attacks in order to try and disrupt the situation and find ways to take back territory from the enemy.
Firaxis aims to deliver new classes, improved engagements and a new focus on hand-to-hand action.
XCOM 2 will be launched in November of this year.