So moving on to next week and moaning about horror once again, the big highlight is Amnesia: Rebirth. You can pick up both XCOM 2 and Insurmountable for free on the Epic Games Store all this week, until the 21st of April. Luckily, the actual sequel to the alien invasion simulator just continues turn-based fun, though it does have a history of performance issues for which I’ve experienced many times, ultimately worth playing for many many hours. I liked the camp 1950s, almost Destroy All Humans-like style throughout the game even if it was inexorably the same third-person shooter guff we have elsewhere. Then again, take my opinion with a grain of salt, as I am the only one that enjoyed The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, despite it being easily one of the worst games. I like it a lot, as I said when I reviewed the similar Phoenix Point from the series creator, Jullian Gollop.

It gave more, and while it did bring small changes, those changes are hissed at with flecks of venom spat from the fangs of the more ardent, immovable fans. The 2016 sequel to the wonderful 2012 reinvigoration of the sci-fi turn-based strategy genre, did everything fans love and hate about sequels. Nothing exemplifies modern tastes in comparison quite like XCOM 2, the 2K and Firaxis reimagination of the classic turn-based alien murder simulator, in which many players accumulate hundreds of hours. Insurmountable seems to be sliding up against the unenviable task of crossing what seems to be the insurmountable 50-hour mark. Look at the best Rogue -likes, Isaac, Hades, and Darkest Dungeon, they are built for tens to hundreds of hours of play. On paper, it is a concept that can only go so far, and it does have legs, it just isn’t going to compete with what seems to be the goal for everyone else, length.

However, that difference alone doesn’t particularly light new fires to keep adventurers alive for long. The premise alone sounds interesting, and as I said, it is the same… but different. Released last year, there wasn’t much fanfare surrounding it, and for good reason.

Free Insurmountable