XCOM: The Board Game

XCOM: The Board Game utilizes a companion app to drive gameplay. To set up, place the central world board, distribute player roles (Commander, Central Officer, Chief Scientist, Squad Leader), and prepare the deck of alien invaders, mission cards, and tech cards. The app guides you through specific setup steps, including choosing an invasion plan, distributing starting funds, and setting initial panic levels across continents.

Players work cooperatively as the elite XCOM defense force against an alien invasion. The main goal is to successfully complete a series of missions, culminating in a final mission, while keeping global panic under control and protecting the XCOM base from being overrun.

Each round is divided into two main phases: the Timed Phase and the Resolution Phase. During the Timed Phase, players use a real-time app-controlled timer to make critical decisions, allocate resources, deploy forces, and manage defense. In the Resolution Phase, players roll dice to resolve combat, research, and mission tasks, risking failure if threat levels are exceeded.

While XCOM does not use a traditional victory point system, success is measured by completing missions, researching vital technologies, and destroying enemy UFOs to reduce global panic and earn vital credits.

The game ends in a loss if two or more continents reach maximum panic, or if the XCOM base is completely infiltrated and destroyed. Players win if they successfully complete the final mission before humanity's last stand fails.