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UFO Aftermath Review - PC

In the present time of May 25th 2004, a giant spacecraft has approached the Earth and began to release giant clouds that covered the skies and blocked the sun. Soon all that was left was darkness. Later, these days of darkness gained the name 'twilight'. Twilight then became Nightfall, and the time of Nightfall killed practically every form of life larger than a rodent. However there were a few survivors (aren't there always?) who now have to take back what's rightfully theirs, and seek revenge on whomever has created this new dim, faded world.

UFO: Aftermath is a sequel to one of the best games for its time, X-COM: UFO Defence. When the original was released, it blew everybody away. After the cancellation of the first sequel, X-COM: Alliance, many gamers were left in despair awaiting a new game for their new PCs. Now that it's finally here, we decide whether or not it's worth buying, and whether or not the world is worth saving once more.

Gameplay

The introductory FMV is a little disturbing. It shows real people who have been deformed from what the UFOs have done. They were watching a movie, and then all of a sudden they are all dead. It really is quite graphic, and gives you a real humane feel towards the game. UFO: Aftermath is your average turn-based strategy, with a cool storyline added to it. At first it may seem slow, but after you get the hang of the system it turns out to be quite a compelling game to play. It did have a lot to live up to with its predecessor being one of the best games of all time, and unfortunately it hasn't done the task of life. But Altar Interactive have produced a pretty good game, and it's definitely worth checking out.

To start off with, there are plenty of different options to set up the game exactly how you want it. If you're playing the game and you're thinking 'I hate how when he moves the game pauses constantly' or 'why won't they all move together' chances are it's a bug in the game, or it's a changeable option. Leaving everything on default, you pretty much have to have your hand on the space bar to get time to start and stop whilst you move around the map killing enemies. Stopping time is a great way to change your weapons in the midst of a battle where your chances of victory are slim.

There are 2 main types of games. A Strategy game (your main storyline game) and a Tactical game. A Tactical game is basically an expanded mission of what you would get in your Strategy game. Where you might have dozens of missions in the Strategy game, you get 1 main mission in a Tactical game. This does help ... (continued next page)