‘XCOM 2’ Patch Notes Outline Fixes For Game-Breaking Bugs; No Timeline Given For Performance Improvements

By Scott Craft Published 02/18/16 EST

A new XCOM 2 patch is out this week but the first official patch doesn't do anything to address the myriad performance issues discovered in the weeks following the XCOM 2 release date. Photo: International Digital Times

A new patch for XCOM 2 was released on Wednesday, roughly two weeks after the game’s Steam debut, but anyone hoping that the first official XCOM 2 patch from Firaxis will address the game’s performance issues is going to be disappointed. But there will undoubtedly be members of the XCOM 2 community overjoyed by the contents of this week’s hotfix, too.

Rather than focusing on the myriad performance issues already reported by XCOM 2 players, Firaxis has turned its attention to handful of bugs that leave the game unplayable for portions of the community. This week’s XCOM 2 patch eliminates a bug that left game saves unplayable if they featured Chryssalid Cocoons and fixes any existing save files on the player’s machine. The new patch also corrects an issue that left XCOM 2 players unable to complete scans on the Geoscape after completing the Resistance Communications tutorial. The update also removes a bug that crashed the game when players tried to preview third-party voice packs in the armory.

Unfortunately, for those of us who’ve encountered XCOM 2’s diverse array of performance issues, this week’s patch doesn’t make the game run any more smoothly. The update does make one small adjustment to the Max-level graphic settings, removing 8x MSAA, but that’s about as close to a performance fix as fans are going to get this week.

Here are the complete patch notes for the update:

Player is unable to progress to scan in the Geoscape after completing the Resistance Communications research via Tutorial – This will fix previously affected saves.
Unable to load saves with a Chryssalid Cocoon – This will fix the issue, and for previously affected saves.
Adjustments were made to Texture Streaming to assist with periodic frame spikes.
Using the preview voice button for a modded voice pack will no longer crash the game when in the armory.
Removed 8x MSAA from default Max settings.

Be sure to check back with iDigitalTimes.com and follow Scott on Twitter for more XCOM 2 coverage throughout 2016 and however long Firaxis continues to support XCOM 2 in the years to come.