“XCOM: The Board Game” Hitting Shelves This Fall

Aliens vs. Androids...and Probably iPhones, Too

By Brad Sewell on August 6, 2014 at 2:27pm

With a variety of aliens encroaching upon Earth from the inky depths of space, it falls upon XCOM to unite a planetary defense. UFOs sweep the skies, and XCOM has eyes looking for them with a wide satellite array. Fear and panic rise around the globe, and XCOM puts soldiers on the ground to fight in the streets and rescue who they can. Longtime fans of the PC and console games know the score, and now Fantasy Flight Games will bring tabletop gamers in on the action as “XCOM: The Board Game” is expected to be in stores by the end of this year.

With a board reminiscent of “Pandemic,” up to four players coordinate a front to keep the world from being overwhelmed. As in “Pandemic,” “Forbidden Island,” and others, each player takes on a specific role to aid in the effort. In “XCOM: The Board Game,” there are four roles:

• Commander - This player allocates resources and deploys interceptors to handle UFOs while they’re still in the sky.


• Chief Scientist - This player focuses on research and development, helping to better gear your soldiers and surveillance networks.


• Central Officer - This player seeks to spread information from XCOM to the outside world and to scramble alien communications by commandeering the satellite network.


• Squad Leader - This player controls soldiers and ground units and strikes to maintain a balance between assaults in the field and defense at XCOM headquarters.

One aspect of the game that sets it apart from others is the use of a digital app that controls and coordinates the alien attack. To do this, the app randomly selects strategies from one of five different invasion plans. Although the plans themselves start as broad concepts, the app can fine-tune them to react to player movements.

. . . [The app] heightens the game’s tension as it forces you to respond in real-time. Then, after you move quickly to coordinate your response, you engage the enemy in the untimed resolution phase and feed the results to the app. Based upon these results, the app launches the invasion's next strikes. Fantasy Flight Games Official Website

The digital companion app also provides players with a rulebook and appears to be able to serve as a game tutorial. It is provided free of charge. There is currently no information what--if any--permissions the app will require.

Fantasy Flight Games does not currently have a price tag posted on the XCOM page, but updates can be expected in the coming months.