XCOM: Enemy Unknown iOS Port Preview and Interview

Owners of Apple devices might want to check out some recent coverage of the upcoming iOS port of XCOM: Enemy Unknown, a remaining of the 1994 original X-COM developed by Firaxis and ported to iOS with the help of 2K China.

Joystiq chatted with lead designer Jake Solomon on how it came together:

The project can be traced back to the time when Firaxis was finishing up its work on XCOM: Enemy Unknown for PC and consoles. 2K China presented a version of the game running on iOS, and from there Firaxis would work with them on the portable incarnation due this summer. It features the full functionality seen on other platforms, thanks to the Unreal foundation that has played nice with iOS since late 2010.

“Without Unreal, it certainly wouldn’t have been possible,” Solomon says.

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In Solomon’s eyes, a lot of the potential success for XCOM: Enemy Unknown has to do with its genre. “It’s difficult to translate some games over to mobile devices,” Solomon says. “It makes me laugh that we’re one of the oldest genres, but we are by far best-suited for the platforms emerging. Gaming, like many things, is cyclical and good mechanics are good mechanics.”

While Shacknews goes hands-on:

Starting up the game on the European continent, it really does appear that the overall gameplay is intact. The basic game controls transition very naturally from the console and PC experience to the iOS environment. Moving and dashing involve either tapping a finger on a desired location and tapping to accept the move or tracing a finger to a specific area and double tapping. Completing most basic actions is similarly intuitive. You use the assault rifle on nearby aliens, for example, by tapping on the “aim” button and then tapping “fire” to accept the move.

Certain game controls feel more interactive. Using a grenade is a great example of how the port takes advantage of the iOS gestures. After tapping to select a grenade, drag your finger to create a blue laser-like trail in the direction of an alien enemy, and tap to accept and turn them back into space matter. There wasn’t enough time to get to an area with climbable platforms, but Shacknews was informed that swiping two fingers up or down allows you to climb or descend.