Much like its half-human, half-animal protagonists, Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden is a hybrid. It looks to push the grid-based tactics of games like XCOM 2 and Phantom Doctrine to their next logical step by incorporating stealth and pre-fight planning into the experience. Unlike its counterparts, however, Mutant Year Zero deftly cuts some of the strategy game abstraction by alternating between exploring areas in real-time and the familiar tactical combat that you probably already know and love.
The result distills the essence of turn-based strategy games that have come before into something more intense. While it has an RPG-style progression, Mutant Year Zero is truly a series of tactical exercises. Having the right gear, the right plan and, honestly, the right luck all matter far more than your level or your opponents’. It’s tough, cerebral, and if you’re willing to learn how to play its way, pretty damn satisfying.
