X-COM (Collector's Edition)

by MicroProse Software, Inc.

Product Features

• Includes: X-COM: UFO Defense / X-COM: Terror from the Deep / X-COM: Apocalypse

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00002SFNO
• Media: CD-ROM
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,568 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

GameSpot Review

Following in the footsteps of X-COM UFO Defense is no easy task. A modern classic of strategy war gaming, the original X-COM combined an amazing turn-based battle engine with a complex resource management system to become one of the most addictive and innovative games of the last few years.

Relocating the battle from outer space to inner space, X-COM Terror from the Deep creates a scenario where a long-dormant alien race is awakening from the ocean depths. Once again you must take command of the X-COM troops, leading them through battle and managing ever decreasing funds to improve your facilities. Everything that made the first X-COM such a success is still present in Terror from the Deep, but very little has been added to the formula.

Apart from new art and a handful of new combat options, this is exactly the same game as UFO Defense, only much more difficult. The story follows an identical pattern, ensuring that discoveries and important events are easily predicted by X-COM vets. Even though the new alien races and weapon technologies may appear different at first, it gradually becomes apparent that they're the same races and technologies, with new names and new faces.

This rehash leads to some logical errors which are difficult to overcome, especially considering the new aquatic locale. Even though most of the missions take place underwater, you can toss grenades around with ease, and you must develop special suits to allow your soldiers to move vertically (apparently the X-COM training camp doesn't including a swimming class).

Anomalies aside, Terror from the Deep is still a great game, but it seems more like an add-on than a bona-fide sequel. Fans of UFO Defense will find a pleasurable challenge in the cagier alien artificial intelligence, but interested newcomers are likely to find much more pleasure in the original.--Ron Dulin/SpotMedia Communications
--Copyright ©1998 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of GameSpot is prohibited.

Manufacturer Description

The X-COM force is once again called to action in this star-studded compilation featuring three classic titles that introduced the gaming world to spine-tingling squad-based tactical combat. Pitted against an alien invasion, players will need to use their wits in this epic battle against the Ethereals, Mutants, and Sectoids.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars X-Com Series, December 8, 1999

By 

m c boykin - See all my reviews

This review is from: X-COM (Collector's Edition) (CD-ROM)

This game bundle is a must for anyone who enjoys a good turn-based strategy game. Fans of military strategy will also find the X-Com series appealing due to its extensive reliance on squad level tactics; When you move a soldier, it is imperative that at least one other soldier be placed in an overwatch or support by fire positon... failure to do so will greatly increase your odds of sustaining casualties. This is particularly true of missions in urban areas and aboard commercial naval vessels. (I find it helpful, whenever possible, to deploy my men in fireteams of 4 or 3 and ensure that they have complementary abilities and weapons. I also rely heavily on alien individual weapons, so that my soldiers can pick up spare ammo from the dead.) When not involved with a combat mission, the management of resources, research and bases provides an additional challenge. Regarding overall appeal and playability, my ranking of these three titles from best to worst would be 'Terror from the Deep', 'UFO Defense' and finally 'Apocalypse.'

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars One near-perfect game...and 2 others, January 9, 2004

By 

David A. Farnell (Fukuoka, Japan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: X-COM (Collector's Edition) (CD-ROM)

The original X-Com is one of the greatest games ever. You could run the old DOS version on a 386-processor computer, and I'm still playing the Collector's Edition port to Windows on my 1.3GHz notebook years later.

It's not a perfect port, though. The opening cutscene is missing some of the sounds from the original, like the British woman saying, "Warning...warning..." The sound files for the aliens seem to have been randomized, so some of them sound pretty weird. (The Sectoids have surprisingly deep voices when they die, and one of the pink-blob aliens makes a huge explosion noise as it moves...) The Blaster Bombs go off in random directions if you try to change altitude. And when the aliens invade your base, sometimes a large part of your defending force just doesn't show up for the fight...I once had to hold off a bunch of Ethereals and Sectapods with nothing but various HWPs, despite having a dozen Squaddies stationed at that base.

Despite all that, it's still fun as all get-out. I love to rename all my Squaddies after friends and relatives. It makes the fights a lot more nerve-wracking. (Oh no, they got Kevin!)

There are the two mainline sequels on the disk too. Terror from the Deep is OK, but it's just more of the same--not really original or much of an improvement. X-Com: Apocalypse was a fun game, but never quite as fun as the original, IMHO. Oddly, I've never been able to get it to work on a recently-built computer, though. I've found myself just playing this slightly-flawed version of the old original X-Com, over and over.

I don't want another sequel to X-Com--I want the original, updated, with more aliens and technologies and suprises, multiplayer options, and all that, great graphics, a better interface--but all with that original humor and horror.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars X-COM - The best game I have ever played, November 29, 2000

By 

Bert Cushman (Asland, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: X-COM (Collector's Edition) (CD-ROM)

I've been playing computer games for over twenty years now, and X-COM remains my favorite game ever. I loved the early missions where your soldiers struggle to stay alive, I felt joy when research turned up a powerful new weapon, and I loved the sense that your team is getting ready to attack the aliens back at their Martian base. I loved the turn-based combat, where you got to choose what your tactics would be (rather than clicking everywhere on the screen like a madman), but could still be surprised by a burst of gunfire from a second-story window.

I grew attached to the soldiers that had survived many combat missions, and was sad when a grizzled veteran lost the number of his mess when some rookie threw a grenade in the wrong place. I struggled to decide whether to pull back a squad that had already lost half of its soldiers, knowing that there were probably only one or two aliens left guarding a downed UFO.

X-COM 2: Terror From The Deep was nice because it gave you new things to see, but essentially it was exactly the same game, and as such was a mild disappointment. It was mildly pleasant to have to figure out the new technologies, and to see the new aliens....Still, I recommend you buy this game, simply to play the first X-COM. I envy those of you who are about to experience the thrill of this game.