The newest batch of games added to the Xbox One’s backward compatibility list is comprised of titles that were generally not all that well received when they came out, but managed to garner a cult following due to their unique takes on their genre, as well as their distinct aesthetic and style, as confirmed by Microsoft’s Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb on Twitter.

Well, okay, that description applies to only two out of the three games that is in this batch, but I think that’s good enough. The three games are: The Darkness, The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, and Duke Nukem Forever (a game that was famously panned back in the day when it came out).

You might have noticed a theme here, and yes, yes, all three of these games were in fact published by 2K. All three are playable via disc and digitally, and you can buy them on the Xbox Store now (in fact, all three are on sale isn’t now too, if you’re looking to try them out).

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Players will take on the role of Agent DaSilva and his team, as they are infected with a specific drug, and thrust into combat with an agent team who has been infect with a different drug, the Sleepwalker pathogen.

According to White-Wiedow, Hangar 6 R&D was an opportunity to explore a different element of the 60’s vibe that the main game incorporates. While the overall tone remains the same, the focus is shifted onto the subject of military experimentation with psychic and psychotropic drugs.

As far as game play goes, Hangar 6 R&D takes all of the most fun tactical elements of The Bureau: XCOM Declassified and “serves them up on a platter” for gamers. There will be plenty of skin-of-the-teeth combat situations to look forward to.

The Hangar 6 R&D DLC will be available on Xbox 360 starting October 8th.

I digress. After plenty of procrastination and numerous overhauls, The Bureau is finally available on the PS3, Xbox 360 and the PC. Developed by 2K Marin, it tells the tale of the humble beginnings of the XCOM organization way back in 1962 at the height of the Cold War.

Following hot on the heels of last year’s mega successful XCOM: Enemy Unknown, this prequel sees you take control of gravel-voiced Special Agent William Carter as he takes on the alien onslaught during a time when hats and waistcoats were obligatory and everything had a kind of sepia haze to it.

"Things aren’t looking good, with bulbous headed alien sectoids scampering about the rubble and a heap of corpses left in their wake. Cue the start of a lengthy and enjoyable campaign…"

As the Bureau’s top agent, and accompanied by a couple of occasionally dopey AI colleagues, Carter is clearly the sort who’s rarely ruffled even in the face of adversity. What’s more, despite diving about the place while under alien gunfire, he manages to keep his hat firmly on his head – now THAT’S the mark of a true American hero circa 1960!

The game kicks off with Carter in his apartment before answering the door, getting shot and waking to find himself miraculously healed with his attacker’s charred and lifeless remains staining the carpet. Mmm, intriguing. With sirens blazing and smoke permeating the building, what ensues is a mad dash outside to find out what the hell is going on. Things aren’t looking good, with bulbous headed alien sectoids scampering about the rubble and a heap of corpses left in their wake. Cue the start of a lengthy and enjoyable campaign…

Right from the start, everything looks pretty great visually – the aforementioned yellow-brown hue is well suited to a game set in the 1960s, while the incidental music, voice acting and overall feel of the game is appealing. You really get that sense that you’re being invaded and that no one was really prepared, which instantly reels you in. From the flickering lights and smoke effects, to the piles of debris and splatters of blood about the place, it’s all very atmospheric. The game’s a bit of a slow starter but persist and it’s an enjoyable affair.

"There are various alien creatures to take on – ranging from the impish swollen headed types that leap about the place to the lumbering fellas that take a fair bit of damage before they fall."

On PC at least, the controls take some getting used to – especially in the midst of an alien attack. That’s not so much a flaw in the game rather my ineptitude when using a keyboard and my preference for a console controller. Nevertheless, once you’ve mastered contorting your fingers into the various positions to run, roll, shoot and clamber over debris it all becomes second nature fairly rapidly.

Quickly you learn that charging headlong into combat is not a shrewd move. Instead, using cover and some tactical nous is the order of the day. By employing the “Battle Focus” function, the action slows to a crawl, allowing you to set orders for your team, draw fire, flank enemies and hit them where it hurts. The bad guys’ positions are highlighted by an orange glow, making it easy to plan your next move and perform that all important Critical Strike or deploy laser turrets and call in aerial strikes to turn things a little more in your favour. Make no mistake though, this is a tough game that poses a real challenge on the harder difficulties.

There are various alien creatures to take on – ranging from the impish swollen headed types that leap about the place to the lumbering fellas that take a fair bit of damage before they fall.

"Cut scenes push the story along nicely and a dialogue wheel allows you to glean more details from the people you encounter. Admittedly, there’s a sense that you’ve seen much of these ideas before though."

The game’s environments are varied and there are some truly standout levels. As you progress, you pick up new equipment and weaponry, with some alien gadgetry available too. Notes and photos littered around the levels allow you to learn a little bit more about what’s been going on and are well worth taking the time to pore over as it certainly adds to the plot. Cut scenes push the story along nicely and a dialogue wheel allows you to glean more details from the people you encounter. Admittedly, there’s a sense that you’ve  seen much of these ideas before though.

Carter and his colleagues all have certain attributes and abilities – with those in your charge belonging to Recon, Engineer, Commando or Support classes. Just like the previous game, fail to revive a fallen comrade and their demise is on your conscience – that’s it, they’re gone for good and you’ll have to fill the void with another willing – but less skilled – replacement. Strangely though, the permadeath element never truly leaves you mourning a colleague like it did in Enemy Unknown, which is a real shame.

Personally, I found The Bureau enjoyable and entertaining but it paled in comparison with last year’s epic. It is refreshing, however, when such a popular franchise returns with a different slant to it and, for the most part, this third person shooter is a decent effort and features some good tactical elements and ideas. Overall, it’s well worth a play but falls short of being a classic.

This game was reviewed on the PC.

Game Overview:

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified is a third-person tactical shooter that tells the origin story of the XCOM organization. Players take up the role of Special Agent William Carter. He is the Bureau’s top agent, and must lead his squad against an alien threat.

The game is published by 2K Games and developed by 2K Marin. The game is now available on the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360.

Check out the video walk-through of The Bureau XCOM Declassified below and let us know if you have any questions in the comments section below.

For video game guides, tips and wikis, check out our gaming portal here.

This above is the epic monologue from the just-premiered trailer for The Bureau: XCOM Declassified.

This trailer gives us the most cohesive view of the upcoming release we’ve seen yet. The speech is inter played with stunning cut scene clips and game play grabs, which all meld together to make one hell of a trailer.

If you couldn’t infer it from the trailer, or haven’t been paying attention til now, The Bureau: XCOM Declassified centers around an elite group of government agents, unified in fighting off an alien attack, capturing samples, and utilizing their technology against them for the betterment of mankind.

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified drops for Windows, PS3, and Xbox 360 on August 20th.

I’ll be honest, I don’t even know why I’m being made to cover The Bureau: XCOM Declassified as much as I am. As I have made clear plenty of times before, the game’s existence bothers me, and rubs me off the wrong way.

On the other hand, the more I see of the game, the less outright opposed to it I become. I still don’t like the idea of a shooter based in the XCOM universe, but at least now I can see how it might work, and perhaps even more importantly, how it might be a good game on its own merits.

The newest trailer is admittedly not one of those videos that have had me hyped for the game even slightly at all. It’s a rather bizarre live action trailer, and it sort of feels like one of those old, grainy science fiction shows about alien invasions. At the very least, it gets the job done, I guess.

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified releases in two weeks on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC.

2K Games have released a new developer diary which provides some insight into the development of their upcoming release, The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, and gives us a look at how the members of the 2K Games team work together.

Our narrator for this video, in large part, speaks specifically to the time period that The Bureau: XCOM Declassified is set in: 1962 was in many ways a very tumultuous time for America, with counter-culture inspired distrust of government, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and being right around the time of the Kennedy assassination.

With all of this governmental chaos on the inside, and mistrust on the outside, the idea of a secret war going on between government agents and aliens really throws one’s perspective for a loop. Petty conflicts between different sects of humans start to feel trivial once you start getting into inter-species war.

In terms of the actual development of the game, we are told that since it’s commencement in 2010, it has seen quite a few revamps, but one aspect has remained true: This is a character focused game. The idea behind the main character is tried and true, and has survived the entire process.

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified is slated to release August 20, 2013 for Windows, Xbox 360, and PS3.

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified publishers, 2K Games, have released a new promotional trailer for the upcoming release. The newest XCOM installment is set to release August 23rd, 2013. At this point it seems, the trailers are less about showing us what to expect from the game, and more about wowing us with their production value, the potential of the idea, and their writing.

This newest installment in the series of live-action trailers picks up and continues the story f government agents tracking alien activity some time in the 1960’s.

This trailer is almost all-live action, with a few CGI effects and sounds thrown in here and there. While it isn’t explicitly stated, we can assume that the trailer depicts an interrogation between a member of The Bureau and a captured member of the alien species against which you will be fighting. The trailer employs some clever camerawork and storytelling to keep us guessing but still get the point across without actually being overt and giving us a look at the creature.

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified is set to release August 23rd for Windows, Xbox 360, and PS3.

2K Games is slowly but surely attempting to convince people of the sanity of trying to make a shooter based on the X-Com universe. And while The Bureau: X-Com Declassified has rightly faced a lot of opposition and skepticism since its initial reveal, it’s beginning to look better and better as we learn more and more about it. Check out the newest video, a developer diary, on the game, and tell me if you are convinced. The entire idea still sounds unnecessary to me, to be honest, but at least I can say that the game they are making using the license looks fairly interesting and not just a cookie cutter cash in like many of us originally feared.

Except for the graphics. Those graphics look awful.

The Bureau: X-Com Declassified is due out on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Steam for PC, in August. Stay tuned to GamingBolt for further coverage.

About The Bureau: XCOM Declassified:

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified is set in 1962 at the height of the Cold War, The Bureau tells the story of the undercover XCOM organisation’s first encounter with a mysterious enemy.

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified will be available on PlayStation 3, PC and Xbox 360.

Check out The Bureau: XCOM Declassified Wallpapers below: