Phoenix Point: Lead the Phoenix Project Against the Pandoravirus
Phoenix Point is a turn-based strategy game that serves as a spiritual successor to the X-COM series, developed by Julian Gollop, the creator of the original X-COM. Set in a post-apocalyptic future, the game tasks players with leading the Phoenix Project, a global organization fighting against a rapidly mutating alien threat known as the Pandoravirus. Featuring deep tactical combat, strategic decision-making, and adaptive enemy evolution, Phoenix Point offers a challenging and dynamic experience for fans of turn-based tactics and global strategy.
Plot and Setting
By the year 2047, Earth has been overrun by the Pandoravirus, a mysterious alien pathogen that mutates biological life into grotesque, highly adaptive creatures. The world’s nations and factions have crumbled, leaving behind scattered remnants of humanity struggling for survival.
The Phoenix Project, a covert organization created to protect Earth from existential threats, is now humanity’s last hope. As the commander, players must lead a resistance against the alien menace, uncover the virus’s origins, and forge alliances or rivalries with other human factions, each with their own vision for the future.
Gameplay Mechanics
Turn-Based Tactical Combat:
Battles take place on procedurally generated maps, featuring cover mechanics, destructible environments, and line-of-sight tactics.
Free Aim System allows for precision targeting of enemy weak points, offering greater control over engagements.
Soldiers can utilize advanced abilities, equipment, and vehicles, creating diverse tactical opportunities.
Strategic Geoscape Management:
The world map, known as the Geoscape, requires players to explore, manage resources, and maintain bases.
Players must scan for threats, deploy operatives, and defend key locations while responding to emergent threats.
Multiple bases can be built, upgraded, and specialized for research, manufacturing, or training soldiers.
Adaptive Enemy Evolution:
The Pandoravirus mutates over time, developing new abilities and countering player tactics.
Enemy creatures can grow resistant to frequently used weapons, forcing players to constantly adjust their strategies.
Three major factions—each with distinct ideologies and military strengths—compete for dominance:
New Jericho: A militaristic group focused on human supremacy and technological advancement.
Synedrion: A utopian society dedicated to democratic governance and coexistence with nature.
The Disciples of Anu: A religious cult embracing mutations to survive the alien threat.
Players can form alliances, trade technology, or wage war against these factions, shaping the game’s world and ending.
Research and Technology Development:
Captured enemies and recovered alien technology unlock new research projects, leading to advanced weapons, armor, and bio-engineered enhancements.
Players can reverse-engineer faction technology or develop unique Phoenix Project innovations.
Vehicles and Mechs:
Players can deploy heavily armed vehicles, such as the Armadillo APC, to support ground troops.
Customizable loadouts allow for specialized mechs and drones that enhance combat strategies.
Themes
Survival and Adaptation: Humanity must evolve and adapt to combat an ever-changing alien threat.
Moral Ambiguity and Choices: Players must navigate alliances and conflicts, making difficult decisions that shape the fate of the world.
Tactical Depth and Innovation: The game rewards careful planning and strategic foresight, challenging players to outthink a constantly evolving enemy.
Humanity’s Future: The three factions represent different visions for survival, forcing the player to choose between militarism, cooperation, or mutation.
Visuals and Audio
Phoenix Point features detailed, war-torn environments, showcasing a world ravaged by alien mutations. The enemy designs are grotesque and unsettling, with creatures that visibly mutate over time based on player interactions.
The game’s atmospheric soundtrack, composed by John Broomhall, combines tense orchestral scores and eerie ambient tracks, reinforcing the sense of dread and urgency. Enemy sound effects—such as the distorted cries of mutants and the mechanical clanking of New Jericho’s war machines—enhance immersion in the game’s apocalyptic setting.
Have you played Phoenix Point? What’s your favourite part of it? We’d love to hear from you.
Other things you might want to know:
How long does it take to beat Phoenix Point?
Around 20 to 30 hours.
Was Phoenix Point a success?
Phoenix Point has been praised for its deep tactical gameplay, innovative free-aim system, and evolving enemy mechanics, though some critics noted its steep difficulty and occasional balancing issues. Over time, expansions and updates have improved the experience, making it a worthy successor to classic X-COM games.
