XCOM is probably one of the most beloved cult classic turn-based strategy games out there. The reboot managed to help the old Micropose series gain a new audience on home consoles and PC. Well, one gamer decided to take a completely different route with the title by remaking the game in Excel.
Reddit user crruzi posted up a rather popular post on the XCOM sub-Reddit showing off his Excel-powered rendition of XCOM. Crruzi explains that the Geoscape part of the game design isn't finished but the tactical combat phase is, explaining how the idea came about and what role players take on in the Excel version...
I just learned VBA for my job and wanted to get familiar with it. Because I love XCOM I decided to make it my project to code a complete XCOM game in excel. The game is set between the events of XCOM:EW and XCOM 2, where a group of guerilla fighters try to liberate their city from ADVENT control.
There's a link over to a series of images posted on Imgur that allows you to get a look at what the game looks like running in a Visual Basic format for Excel.
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Players can basically play EXCLCOM – the Excel version of XCOM – much in the same way that the other traditional titles are played in the combat phase. There are attack options, explosives, weapon and character stats, and even environmental damage. Special skills have also been included to give the game more tactical depth, including things like the Run-and-Gun skill.
What's most impressive about this is that there's an included level editor for this project. This enables gamers to make up their own levels for EXCLCOM and play them against the AI.
It's a fairly impressive venture by crruzi to have recreated XCOM in Excel. It certainly doesn't look anything all too impressive from the graphics standpoint, but that's to be expected from something made in Excel. What is impressive is the dedication that crruzi exhibited in bringing the mechanics to life through a Microsoft office program.
I imagine this is a nice bit of a holdover until XCOM 2 launches this upcoming February for PC.
Firaxis and 2K Games haven't been putting a lot of promotional weight behind XCOM 2, as they've mostly been taking their time in releasing promotional material for the game. However, there is a lot of excitement over the upcoming turn-based strategy title and – as exhibited by crruzi – some gamers can't wait to get their hands on the upcoming title and are making due with their own devices until the game launches early next year.
XCOM 2 features quite a few big changes from the first game, including a more advanced Geoscape with more base and personnel customization features.
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