The Bureau: XCOM Declassified

1. Za_Dobro

   Aug 20, 2013

   10

   The Bureau is very good game. It has a strong tactical component, good plot, and nice graphic, battles is very tense and hard. AI of enemiesThe Bureau is very good game. It has a strong tactical component, good plot, and nice graphic, battles is very tense and hard. AI of enemies is pretty smart, they may surround you, attack you from behind. In my opinion: one of the best shooters of last five years.… Expand

   • 7 of 21 users found this helpful
2. BadboyStelin

   Sep 17, 2013

   10

   I loved X-Com Enemy Unknown. It was fresh, challenging and made you think. Nothing about Enemy Unknown should detract from the successes ofI loved X-Com Enemy Unknown. It was fresh, challenging and made you think. Nothing about Enemy Unknown should detract from the successes of The Bureau, which is also fresh, challenging and makes you think. It's such a shame that some reviewers award far lower scores than it actually deserve because it's compared against an expectation that nothing should be changed from the original formula. In other words fan-boys and fan-girls who presumably must have exactly one slice of toast, with 2.2g of butter, 1.5 dollops of Robinson's shredded orange marmalade, one hard boiled egg (7.7cm circumference) and 353 ml of milk for their breakfast EVERY day, because change wouldn't be good.
   
   The Bureau is a great game in its own right. Graphically the game creates a wonderful world full of tasteful pastel colour, great environments and detail that deserves recognition for what it does and how it makes the player feel drawn into the game. The game does a fantastic job of inviting you into a well thought out and portrayed sic-fi adventure that would be fitting of many a AAA movie, and is not too dissimilar in storyline to Independence Day. The vistas are lovely to look at and the 60's setting offers a welcome change to the humdrum of other game designs. The creativity behind the overall theme and the atmosphere it creates is as good as any Bio-shock or Mass Effect game. Later in the game the alien-ship architecture and technology together with glimpses of a stunning galaxy are on a par with, and often better than, many of the AAA movie titles you could think of.
   
   The interaction between characters is very much like Mass Effect and once you've chosen a certain line of dialogue you want to pursue, I love the slight twist on how your character delivers the message in the same way that the lead characters in Mass Effect did. Yes it's a simple development trick but one which captures your attention and satisfies if you are even slightly interested in video games telling a story rather than just knocking on a 2ft thick plank of wood.
   
   Controls are tight and the method of selecting skills, attributes and weapons is very simple and intuitive and never interfere with gameplay.
   
   Yes, as some reviewers have pointed out, the selection of skills mid-fight does pause the 'action' but this is not an action game in the same genre as COD, it's a tactical shooter and one in which tactics need to be considered, actioned and then reconsidered and re-actioned to keep on top of the enemy onslaught. The enemy will try to flank you, then they introduce ones that can fly, so overhead becomes a problem too. If you accept that issuing orders and actually leading your team is a key focus on this game, you will automatically realise that the selection of skills mid-fight is not a hinderance but actually the core skill in the game. Where will you direct your team to take cover, what weapons should they deploy against who, which enemy needs to be taken out first, can you afford to ignore part of the battlefield in favour of tasking everyone to concentrate fire-power on just one foe, who needs medical attention, who is about to die, do you provide that medical attention yourself or direct a team member to do so? It's all down to you and you can approach a fight in any way you please.
   
   Before you begin a mission you will choose which squad members to take with you. That choice will have a bearing on how easy or how successful you are in completing the mission. Each squad member can be levelled up through experience and you can choose which attributes and weapons they should carry with them.
   
   You cant upgrade weapons as such, but you can choose from rapid fire weapons with lots of ammo to heavier plasma weapons with more limited ammo. You can upgrade certain elements of the squad's attributes. Generally that focuses on a choice of harder-hitting weapons, an ability to distract enemies or offer squad-healing abilities according to what you think would be most useful.
   
   The Bureau can be challenging and on harder difficulty levels it demands real focus on your team and constant reassessment of risk and tactics. It can all become quite frantic at times. Once a mission is complete you'll return to base where a few discussions with other characters will take place. Again I found those visits to the base very interesting in developing the story and I spent a little time just soaking in the atmosphere of the very believable (in a sci-fi world) bunker and the people who work there. I do not agree with those who suggest the visits to base are long and drawn out and completely unnecessary.
   
   Overall I rate this game very highly and would recommend it to those who love tactical shooters, Mass Effect style games and who love the XCom theme but who are open minded enough to accept that a new take on a theme can be hugely enjoyable without being a carbon copy with a new front cover?
   
   A new adventure anyone? Or would you prefer a lemon-curd sandwich the same as yesterday?… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
4. commonperson

   Aug 21, 2013

   9

   As a fan who's played since when the game was called X-Com I know this may be a bitter pill to swallow for purists. There was an extensiveAs a fan who's played since when the game was called X-Com I know this may be a bitter pill to swallow for purists. There was an extensive "Development hell" that the game went through (see the article over at Polygon) and while I think that comes through in some of the game's fractured design ideas this is very much a case of the whole being "more than the sum of it's parts". It's not a perfect game but it reminds me of Mass Effect (the first game). Flawed but with promise, the setting is intriguing and it serves as an interesting setup to Enemy Unknown. This is for sure something that can be built and improved but the design aesthetics and the story alone are worth playing.
   
   Now when it comes to game play it's very much a child of Mass Effect, this is not a bad thing. Issuing commands to your squad can be frantic especially since time slows down but doesn't stop you need to be very careful. The pacing can be quite clunky at times with stretches of nothing then kill boxes but still it's enjoyable.
   
   I admit my score is at least partially tainted by nostalgia but at least I can be honest about that, for many it may be a case of getting the game on sale and I understand that but everyone should give this game a go even if it's on Steam Sale.… Expand

   • 3 of 7 users found this helpful
5. mastergamesbrhu

   Nov 19, 2016

   8

   o jogo e muito bom tem alguns pequenos probleminhas mudou sua jogabilidade mais eu gostei por que eu sou muito fã de mass effect e ê parecidoo jogo e muito bom tem alguns pequenos probleminhas mudou sua jogabilidade mais eu gostei por que eu sou muito fã de mass effect e ê parecido pelo menos eu gostei se você e fã de mass effect vai gostar da jogabilidade ele ê bom pagou o pato por ter mudado mais e bom vale apena… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
6. twos

   Mar 8, 2014

   7

   Those suggesting the tactical interface and commands don't work in this game I would suggest simply don't know how to play a game like this,Those suggesting the tactical interface and commands don't work in this game I would suggest simply don't know how to play a game like this, the command system and combat works remarkably well you just have to stay on top of it and constantly issue new orders to your NPCs.
   Decent graphics, pretty much what you expect out of the story line, average music and sound but overall a very enjoyable experience, I would say unlike Enemy Unknown, which is undoubtedly the better game, Declassified has little to no replay value, but you should enjoy your first romp through.… Expand

   • 0 of 2 users found this helpful
7. ArcadePhantom

   Aug 25, 2013

   6

   Remember years ago when the devs of this game had announced a first person XCOM that was like a detective game in some ways? I was interestedRemember years ago when the devs of this game had announced a first person XCOM that was like a detective game in some ways? I was interested it sounded fresh and had the potential to be amazing but instead we got a third person tactical shooter with A.I that usually has to be baby sited constantly, don't get me wrong this game will appeal to a lot of people but if you think this is another RTS XCOM you're gonna be disappointed.
   Want a 3rd person cover based tactical shooter with the XCOM theme? buy this game
   Want a RTS XCOM? wait for XCOM: Enemy Within… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
8. Broyax

   Mar 15, 2017

   1

   C'est étonnant comme on s'attend à ce que tout aille de soi... mais tout ne va pas de soi bien au contraire ! et certaines choses que nousC'est étonnant comme on s'attend à ce que tout aille de soi... mais tout ne va pas de soi bien au contraire ! et certaines choses que nous prenons pour acquises et conçues simplement et efficacement comme on mettrait une lettre à la poste, ces choses là ne le sont pas.
   
   Prenons par exemple le système de combat des Mass Effect : simple, efficace, puissant, tactique ! mettons-le dans un Xcom.... putain c'est devenu de la merde ! comme une mauvaise copie chinoise (pléonasme) qui n'égale jamais l'original. Et pourquoi donc ? parce qu'il faut beaucoup de temps et de talent pour mettre au point ce qui nous semble aller de soi, ça ne se bricole pas comme ça par des incapables...
   
   Et en tant que jeu de tir à la troisième personne, comment s'en tire le Bureau ? comme une merde ! décidément ! on a pas vu plus mou et plus générique depuis longtemps. Et plus moche aussi. Seule la VF est de bonne qualité mais la bêtise des dialogues est hélas irrécupérable. On a qu'une envie, retourner jouer au Xcom de 2012.… Expand

   • 0 of 1 users found this helpful

See all 30 User Reviews