XCOM is a curious hybrid - a decades old concept and a new game in its own right, grand strategy layered on tactical combat, and a mix of camp and existential dread. On the whole it's a great game, but just be aware that it has ups and downs, especially if you come in yearning for the freedom of the original.

This is what happens. This is what happens when you let a grizzled, cynical X-COM vet loose in the XCOM demo. This the story of Token Squad Platoon.

First off, no, I'm not being sexist, I am literally looking for strategy games that my girlfriend, specifically, would enjoy. I don't assume that all girls are like my girlfriend or vice versa, I'm trying to just deal with her preferences and way of thinking on her own terms.

Unity of Command has a permanent, reserved spot on my hard drive because it's a pithy, clever little game. It's easy to hop in and puzzle out a scenario during a lunch break, stretching out the mental muscles that may get cramped during a workday.

UoC has only a very basic tutorial, so it took me a few days before I properly got it, then maybe another week before I really, really got how it works. The keys to success are speed, movement and position.

Let me get this out of the way first - I love Panzer Corps and I think it got even better with its "Grand Campaign" DLCs. It's simple, elegant, easy to grasp, and just good fun. The DLCs added more features, better victory conditions, and more variety in the scenario designs.

I was hoping that with the release of Afrika Korps, the new standalone expansion focusing on the titular army in North Africa, might take the series a quantum leap further. What I've found instead is a solid expansion, but not the growth I was hoping for.