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The early word for Star Wars Zero Company is in, with several outlets saying pretty much the same thing: that it's brilliant.
Previews are coming in thick and fast for the upcoming turn-based tactics game with a Star Wars twist, and, as expected, there are plenty of comparisons to XCOM. The general vibe is overwhelmingly positive, but c'mon people, why're we still using Firaxis Games' 2012 banger as a benchmark? I mean, I get it... it is giving the XCOM sauce.
Looks like critics were given a 10-hour slice of early campaign action to get stuck into, so here's what the previews are saying about Star Wars Zero Company:
Windows Central
"Star Wars is the perfect universe to offer a take on this genre in my view, particularly in the Clone Wars era. But Bit Reactor's clear efforts on the cinematic and story-delivery side give Zero Company broad potential that similar attempts at the turn-based tactics genre have missed in recent years. Baldur's Gate 3-style cinematics and character delivery, atop modern high-quality visuals and focused XCOM-style tactical play? Zero Company has everything I didn't know I needed from this quarter's very busy slate of games."
Eurogamer
"[Star Wars Zero Company] just needs to be different enough, to stand out a bit from the usual turn-based tactics fare, and to do more than treat Star Wars as a mere aesthetic. And from these first few hours it does so almost flawlessly. If you're anything like me, it's exactly what you'd hope for after hearing the premise. It's XCOM Star Wars. It's based on the sensational foundations of that series and made by people who evidently, thoroughly, get it. And it really is a perfect match."
IGN
"...I've very much enjoyed my time with Zero Company so far, especially as someone who’s relatively new to the tactics genre. Its story missions steadily ramp up in scale and intensity and introduce interesting new objectives and enemy types, its ever-expanding cast of operators is charismatic enough to make you care, and there’s considerable depth to its character customisation, bonding, and skill trees, which I’m keen to tinker with further in order to find the most consistent balance for my fireteam. If Bit Reactor manages get this thing fully operational, then Star Wars Zero Company could well be a turn-based tactics game to die for"
Polygon
"If you've played squad-based tactics games before, you have a solid idea of what to expect from Zero Company already. A team of characters with different abilities work together in turn-based combat, moving across contained-but-complex fighting zones and using cover as they pick off enemies. Zero Company differentiates itself with its classes and array of skills."
There you have it, folks. Lots of positivity, plenty of XCOM vibes, and a few minor frustrations with menus and such, but overall it's a potential GOTY contender according to Windows Central.
Tactics-based adventures like this are my cup of tea, my jammed scone, my buttered bread - or whatever other off kilter idiom you can think of - so I'm definitely more excited about Star Wars Zero Company having read the previews.
Star Wars Zero Company will launch onto Xbox Series X|S on August 27, 2026.