This was my first Microprose game, and immediately captured my undivided attention for hours at a time. From the excellent sound effects (screams of the dying, explosions, etc.) to the researching of new technologies, this game is extremely captivating. Don't try to sit down and play this game if you have to be somewhere in an hour. You'll never make it.
    BThe basic storyline here is that UFO sightings got out of hand, so the nations banded together to form the Extraterrestrial Combat Unit, or X-COM. You start with one base manned by a group of soldiers, scientists and engineers. The scientists perform research on technology, captured alien artifacts and lien corpses, as well as interogations of live aliens you have captured. The engineers build all the equipment needed for missions which you can't buy. The soldiers go on missions to UFO landings, terror sites, alien bases and crash sites where you have shot down alien craft. The objective is to locate the source of the alien incursions and eliminate it.
    The 3-D landscape during combat has true line-of-site targeting, as well as buildings that explode. Gas pumps at gas stations will detonate if ruptured. Soldiers who receive life-threatening wounds can be cured if you have a medi-kit. Certain aliens have the ability to try to take over the mind of your soldiers, causing them to panic (drop their weapons and run), go berserk (start shooting in random directions) or even become possessed (go under complete control of the aliens). The list goes on and on.
    On the down side, the AI for the aliens is pretty crappy. They do the "X-COM Shuffle", running back and forth in front of you without shooting. There were a few bugs, which I believe are addressed by the available patch. The mind control that the alians do is pretty annoying when they actually take over an X-COM agent. Making the agents panic or go berserk are great features, but the control thing is too much. Also, there should be a way to improve an agent's resistance to the mind control.
     The game can be replayed over and over. I have sworn off Sierra games, as they are just the opposite: everything is scripted and happens at the same time each time you play the game. Play it and throw it away. Not this game... Play it, then play it again.
    My rating for this game goes beyond the standard 5 hockey stick system. It receives... a goalie stick!
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