XCOM: Chimera Squad, a standalone title in the XCOM franchise, has just been announced. Set five years after XCOM 2, Chimera Squad sees a group of human, alien and hybrid agents working to stop a mysterious group from causing City 31 from descending into anarchy.
Alongside the 11 Agents who can complement and combo with one another, the encounters based mission structure, interleaved turns and deep meta-game, XCOM: Chimera Squad includes the all-new Breach Mode mechanic.
According to Firaxis in Breach Mode,
Players will shape the battlefield to their advantage with a new combat phase that injects squads right into action. They will strategically assign agents to different entry points and coordinate their assault plans with a range of Breach-specific skills;
XCOM: Chimera Squad Breach Mode
Breach Mode gives players the ability to take control over the battlefield. This new combat phase allows the player to inject squads directly into the action by assigning specific entry points. With the units in place, players can then co-ordinate the attack but using a range of different Breach skills.
In the image above, you can see a squad preparing for a Breach and you can see a number of different stats regarding two different entry points available in the level.
Security Door
- Secure Entrance
- There are fewer Aggressive enemies present at this entrance.
- Overseer
- Last Unit through this entrance automatically activates Overwatch after the breach
Main Door
- Scanners
- Entering through here Marks your units until the end of the encounter
At the mission select screen, you can see the projected breach options available in addition to the number of projected encounters. This allows you to plan for the mission by selecting units with appropriate Breach skills based on the Breach options.
As the announcement of XCOM: Chimera Mode has only just happened, the full number and details of Breach Skills is still unknown, however, based on what we know so far, it’s certainly going to add yet another layer of strategy to the series.
XCOM already boasts some of the best tactical turn-based gameplay in the genre and Breach Mode sounds like an incredibly welcome addition.
XCOM: Chimera Squad will be released for PC on April 24, 2020.
