XCOM 2: The Long War mod is bigger than we thought (update)

The small team at Pavonis Interactive has been hard at work modding XCOM 2 since before that game launched last year. The goal is to reprise their claim to fame, The Long War mod for the original XCOM: Enemy Unknown. Over the past few weeks they’ve begun to release details on the project, and it’s becoming clear why it’s taken them so long.

This mod is going to be huge.

In a series of posts, Pavonis unveiled just a few of the additions that they’ve made to the game. First up is the coilgun, an entirely new tier of weapons available to research. They’re described as more powerful than the game’s existing magnetic weapons, but less powerful than plasma weapons.

Pavonis Interactive and Firaxis Games/2K

Next comes an entirely new class of soldier, called Technicals. This new kit will feature an enhanced heavy weapon slot. When fully upgraded, Technicals will be able to launch multiple rockets or shoot huge gouts of flame.

Pavonis Interactive and Firaxis Games/2K

Pavonis says they’re adding at least eight new mission types that will be for the mod.

Jailbreak – XCOM must infiltrate an Advent jail and rescue key Resistance members. Success increases the strength of the Resistance in that region.

Haven Defense – A variation on Retaliation missions where XCOM must defend Resistance members against an onslaught of Advent forces until the Skyranger can get into position for extraction.

ADVENT Base Assault – XCOM must deploy to and overtake a well-defended regional military headquarters.

Invasion – Advent attempts to retake a liberated region by assaulting a city center. XCOM must destroy a psionic relay that summons continuous reinforcements, then eliminate any remaining forces.

Rendezvous – A Faceless disguised as a member of the Resistance is detected as it goes to meet with its Advent handlers and XCOM must hunt it down.

Advent Supply Raid – XCOM must defend a supply convoy and its Resistance personnel from Advent attacks.

Advent Intel Raid – Advent attacks a Resistance listening post and XCOM must repel the attack.

Advent Recruiting Raid – Advent forces attack Resistance recruiters within a region. XCOM must extract those Resistance members.

The team has detailed how they’re expanding the game’s world map, called the Geoscape. They’re taking XCOM 2’s light worker management-style gameplay and expanding it down onto every region on the map. Players will need to carefully monitor their allies in the field, and will have the opportunity to embed XCOM scientists and engineers to help boost their performance.

Enemy mechs that you capture can also be repurposed to help garrison individual regions.

Pavonis Interactive and Firaxis Games/2K

Finally, Pavonis has teased a new tactical option for players that harkens back to the original 1994 classic.

“Additional changes include the ability to deploy multiple squads simultaneously to infiltrate several enemy targets at once,” Pavonis wrote in their post. “Each of those missions will be played individually.”

No release date has been given yet for the mod.

Update: The mod, officially called The Long War 2, is available now on PC.