Reasonable reimplementation of original
Bought it two weeks ago. Finished it twice - on 'normal' and 'classic' difficulties.
Overall a little disappointed.
On the plus side its a shiny new version of a game I loved way-back-when.
On the downside theres not much more development in terms of story or new concepts. Sure there's some nice new aliens, but if anything there is less variety in terms of mission types. My base didn't get attacked by aliens for example. I know the extension has more stuff, but I feel that there should be more content in the base set.
Also : The interface is a bit amateur. There are keyboard hotkeys for actions - but they're different for different soldiers! So for one guy pressing '4' will reload his weapon, but for another its '3'. WTF?
The view is far too zoomed in. It is possible to zoom out, but every time you switch soldiers it moves in again. This is irritating.
Many many instances of polygon overlapping, With soldiers shooting through walls and aliens walking through each other.
The 'free aiming' needed for rockets and grenades is bloody frustrating and far to sensitive to mouse movement.
And to top it all there are still glitches in the game - especially when your troops use flight. During the final mission my ace sniper got stuck in a pillar and I had to leave him behind while my troops marched on without him. Lame.
That said, if you liked the original there IS enough here to keep you amused. Despite all my complaints I'm glad I played it. I just wish it had been redone with a bigger budget.