XCOM 2 Is Getting a Massive Expansion, and It's out This Year

Enemies grow smarter over time this time around.

News by Caty McCarthy, Features Editor

Updated on 12 June 2017

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XCOM 2: War of the Chosen is the new expansion for XCOM 2, and it's the largest for the series ever. Announced during the PC Gaming Show, the new trailer shows three new factions for the game, including an entire new subset of enemies: The Chosen.

"[The Chosen were] designed to be the ultimate enemy of the XCOM," says designer of the series Jake Solomon. Over time The Chosen, as well as other factions, get stronger, attain more abilities over time, just like the player. The player will frequently run into the same Chosen, where they will have new strengths and tricks. In an odd way, it sounds a bit like the Nemesis system from Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor and the upcoming Shadow of War.

The expansive expansion (haha) will be released this year on August 29, out on PC, Xbox One, and Playstation 4.

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Caty McCarthy

Features Editor

Caty McCarthy is a former freelance writer whose work has appeared in Kill Screen, VICE, The AV Club, Kotaku, Polygon, and IGN. When she's not blathering into a podcast mic, reading a book, or playing a billion video games at once, she's probably watching Terrace House or something. She is currently USgamer's official altgame enthusiast.