8 Awesome Video Games That Have Launched 2016 With A Bang

5. XCOM 2

The king of the new-age, turn-based strategy formula, XCOM's return in February reminded the world that Firaxis really are the ones to show how it's done. Whereas Fire Emblem will dazzle you with deftly animated cinematics and characters with more flair than an Elvis impersonator's tour bus, XCOM is a grittier, more realistic (in the context of an alien invasion, anyway) take on the stresses of trying to save the world from an unstoppable invading force. Either having your battles play out turn-by-turn will be your thing or it won't, but there's an indescribable satisfaction to making like the A-Team's Hannibal and admiring when your custom plan to tackle the hordes comes together. This can range from placing soldiers in specific positions with specific weapons, letting others lie in wait to ambush foes whilst the rest move incrementally forward to secure new ground, or anything else you come up with on the fly. Every shot counts and one wrong move can leave your squad out in the open with nowhere to go. It's this sense of success hanging by a thread that makes the basic XCOM gameplay loop so endlessly enjoyable, and by amping up the stakes of the story (Earth actually fell to alien control at the close of the first game), bolstering your squad customisation and having endless amounts of options in the field, that XCOM 2 is the definitive turn-based battler of choice.