X-COM: UFO Defense Review (Kalon)
Everytime I play the newer XCOM games, I always come back to this one. Its hands down the second best (the best being apocalypse). It is also easily in my top ten greatest games ever made.
Its user interface is definitely an artifact of 1994, but I assure you it is much better than it looks at first.
I have been playing this game since it came out. I have beaten it multiple times...and yet I keep coming back every couple of years because its just soooooo much better than the new XCOM games.
Its a game that doesn't hold your hand, and throws you straight into the pool, and that is what makes it fun. You WILL figure out how to swim in short order. You will get your knees scraped and your nose bloodied, but you will figure out how to duck those punches and throw some counter punches. Its really all about fighting smarter, not harder. Even "superhuman" difficulty is pretty easy once you understand the game.
Frankly, I envy new players because I have already seen all the things the game will throw at me and I can make a straight dash to the end game...which is another thing this game does brilliantly. It doesn't tell you how to win, and there is no narrative story/cutscene that spoon feeds you. Your first order of business is to defend humanity...and as you research new tech...you will slowly piece together what you need to do. It might take you some time. Do yourself a favor and do NOT check any wiki's to see what to do unless you have no joke gone an entire year in game and still have no idea what you should be trying to do in order to win. Do yourself another favor and absolutely check out guides for new players because the UI isn't super intuitive for new players.
Also, I recommend going to https://openxcom.org/downloads-milestones/ and installing openxcom. There is a little "how to" video and an installer now, so its super easy.
Bottom line, buy this game and enjoy some old school TBS. This (and apocalypse) are the best it ever got for the series.