Earn new weapons and armor in XCOM 2 DLC, Alien Hunters

The hunter becomes the hunted in the second DLC for XCOM 2, Alien Hunters. It adds a new story mission, weapons, armor, and enemies when it releases in Asia on May 13.

For starters, the Avenger’s Armory is due for an upgrade called Hunter’s Lodge, where chief engineer Shen has been busy cooking up four new prototype weapons: The Bolt Caster, Hunter’s Axe, ShadowKeeper pistol, and Frost Bomb grenade. The first is a highly damaging single-shot weapon while the aptly named ShadowKeeper conceals its user if the enemy is killed.

Being prototypes, they must be recovered if dropped on the battlefield, else they’d be lost for the rest of the play-through. Fun as they sound, they’re more of a necessity to help combat the new foes lurking in our shadows.

Completing the new narrative mission introduces three Ruler aliens who show up randomly throughout the campaign.

According to Firaxis’ announcement, these Rulers each have their own tactics and may escape to fight another day. If they do, they’ll pursue us around the globe until either they successfully kill us or wind up as material for our laboratories. All things considered, it’s best to deal with them before a tough mission rolls along.

Of course, defeating a Ruler comes with its own set of tangible rewards. Each Ruler’s corpse will eventually pave development for a new suit of armor, providing greater tactical options to its user. The Icarus Suit, for example, comes with boosters to fly around the map for unrivaled mobility – paired with a sniper rifle it almost sounds too powerful.

Which is where the harder difficulties come into the picture.

Alien Hunters is the second of a three-part DLC set called the Reinforcement Pack, priced at S$20 on Steam. It’s also available separately but at US$9.99 (S$14), it certainly comes off as the costlier option.

For reference, the first DLC was the Mad Max-esque Anarchy’s Children.