14 DAY TRIAL // XCOM 2 is the direct sequel to the incredibly successful XCOM: Enemy Unknown and it's launching on February 5. Developers took the decision to allow modders to work in advance of the official release.
2K Games and Firaxis Games probably noticed that a lot of people chose to mod the game or to use mods for XCOM: Enemy Unknown, so they went on to do something that hasn't really been tried until now. A team of modders now has access to the game, and they will launch mods for the game on the same day with the official release.
Having a game that ships along with mods is a really interesting strategy, and it's something that more studios should be doing. Of course, Firaxis is only doing this because they have a lot of faith in their game, and they know it's a good one. Even if they didn't, it's still a sound strategy that would potentially increase the value of the game tremendously in the eyes of the buyers.
Long War Studios team already working on mods
Don't get this wrong, Firaxis didn't just allow some modders to come in and mod the game. They chose the Long War Studios team, which made the famous Long War total-conversion mod.
"Long War Studios, the developers behind the Long War total-conversion mod for XCOM: Enemy Unknown and XCOM: Enemy Within, has partnered with Firaxis Games and 2K for XCOM 2. The Long War Studios team, which is comprised of John Lumpkin, Rachel 'Amineri' Norman and James 'JCLewis' Karlson, is currently hard at work on multiple mods for XCOM 2. These mods are currently slated to be available at launch on February 5, 2016," reads the official Xcom website.
The Long War is one of the most downloaded and complex mods ever made for XCOM: Enemy Unknown and it enhanced the original gameplay greatly. It's likely that whatever they are doing for XCOM 2, it is going to have the same quality.