Gene Mods and MEC troopers represent the two most obvious of the new tools in the XCOM arsenal, but many more changes and tweaks have been introduced. However, capturing Meld requires aggressive expansion, as the containers in which it is stored will self destruct after a certain number of turns which means that risks must be taken in order to maximise your Meld reserves. You’ll need a lot of Meld to keep your troops in Gene Mods and MEC suits, and fortunately there is a fair bit to go around, spread throughout most maps for you to pick up on your operations. The Gene Mods are more subtle in their operation, and require more thought in their deployment, but in the right hands can prove powerful tools that can turn the tide of battle. The MEC trooper represents pure power and resilience, a manifest and unmistakable show of force on the battlefield.
A sniper with improved Muscle Fiber Density and Depth Perception can scale buildings with a single leap and fire from their elevated position with increased accuracy.īoth new troop types change the pace of gameplay.
An assault trooper with Mimetic Skin and a Secondary Heart can use his partial invisibility to get close to the enemy before striking, and take greater risks with a better chance of survival. The mixing-and-matching of Gene Mods allows for the creation of specialist troopers for a number of circumstances.
Gene Mods are applied to individual body parts (brain, eyes, chest, skin, legs) and each soldier can be upgraded multiple times, up to one mod per body part.Ī trooper volunteers for genetic modification A number of different modifications are available at the outset, while others can be learned from conducting alien autopsies. Gene Mods are more subtle than MEC conversion, and are applied to existing soldiers who otherwise maintain their existing class and abilities. For example, a MEC who was a former sniper gains a bonus to accuracy when firing from a stationary position. However, the class a soldier was pre-conversion does have a small impact by granting the MEC a unique bonus ability. Because of their size, they are unable to utilise cover and must instead compensate with their advanced armour, offensive capabilities and a unique skill tree.Ĭonverting an existing soldier into a MEC trooper is permanent and strips them of their existing class, although they maintain their rank and so can get a head start on the new skill tree. They have increased health, extremely powerful heavy weapons and can integrate several secondary weapons systems into their armour: such as grenade launchers, flamethrowers and proximity mines.
MEC troopers are cybernetically enhanced super-soldiers encased in a giant mechanised suit of killy-deathiness.
By hoarding and researching this substance, and by building the new facilities for your science team, you can upgrade any of your existing troopers with Gene Mods or convert them into a MEC very early on in the invasion.Ī cybernetic soldier casts eyes on her MEC suit for the first time
These new soldiers are a small part of a larger whole, but they are among the first to reveal themselves and have significant impacts on gameplay.īoth genetically enhanced troopers and ‘MEC’ troopers are unlocked early on through the use of a new alien resource called ‘Meld’, which can be scavenged from canisters strewn around the strategic maps on which you will be doing battle. Our early preview focused largely on the two additional XCOM unit types that have been added to the mix, through genetic modification and cybernetic enhancements. While the Slingshot DLC pack disappointed with its rather meagre offerings, this latest round of content offers a huge amount of additions to the XCOM experience and significantly changes the nature of the game. XCOM: Enemy Within is the DLC pack that fans of Enemy Unknown have been waiting for. Reviews // 29th Nov 2013 - 8 years ago // By Ross D.