The Bureau: XCOM Declassified tactical shooter game will play a lot like Mass Effect (hands-on preview)

xcom

During the course of a long development process, The Bureau: XCOM Declassified has morphed from a shooter to a hybrid game that resembles the game play of the Mass Effect series. You can play the title as a shooter, but you won’t get that far if you don’t constantly assign orders to your two squad mates. You can freeze the action and assign your squad to outflank the enemy. That adds elements of a role-playing game and a squad-based tactical shooter game.

Unlock premium content and VIP community perks with GB M A X! Join now to enjoy our free and premium perks. 

Join now →

Sign in to your account.

Dean Takahashi

Dean Takahashi is editorial director for GamesBeat. He has been a tech journalist since 1988, and he has covered games as a beat since 1996. He was lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat from 2008 to April 2025. Prior to that, he wrote for the San Jose Mercury News, the Red Herring, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Dallas Times-Herald. He is the author of two books, "Opening the Xbox" and "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked." He organizes the annual GamesBeat Next, GamesBeat Summit and GamesBeat Insider Series: Hollywood and Games conferences and is a frequent speaker at gaming and tech events. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.