X-COM: Apocalypse

While X-COM: Apocalypse is not exactly a hard game, it can quickly become hard if you let your position slip. This guide is intended for new players that have never played the game before, and will therefore only contain a few spoilers. Note that this guide only deals with the real time aspect of the game.

Megapol LawPistol
Quite decent in the first week, after that it's obsolete. As a single-handed weapon, it allows the use of a second item (grenade, medikit, a second gun) in the other hand without lowering accuracy.

Megapol Plasma Gun
Much better than it's predeccesor. This gun never really becomes obsolete but it's not really not that effective. As a single-handed weapon, it allows the use of a second item (grenade, medikit, a second gun) in the other hand without lowering accuracy.

Marsec M4000 Machine Gun
The same thing can be said about this weapon as about the basic pistol, except on the higher difficulties where it's obsolete before the game starts.

Megapol Laser Sniper Gun
An excellent long range weapon. While it's damage capabilities leaves a lot of room for improvement just remember that if you miss damage will be exactly 0, so hitting is better than missing. While using this gun agents will progress relativly rapidly in thier accuracy skills.

Agents
There is three sort of agents you can hire.

Humans
The standard. Most of yours staff will be human. They are average for all things.

Mutants
Less health than human Less strength than human More Psi energy, attack and defense than human.

Good psychers, nothing else.

Androids
More health than human More strenght than human More accuracy than human

More for all, plus total immunity to psy attack. Just two weakness:

Can't make psy attack Can't progress!

Tactical Combat
In the first week, ammunition is scarce. There should hovewer be enough to go around unless you waste it. Hovewer if you decide to take the guns blazing full auto approach don't expect ammunition to last. Take every opportunity to conserve ammunition possible. A few explosive grenades would be a good idea to use when appropriate. After a bio-transport module has been created fit it on a craft and try to capture live aliens. The way to do this is to attack a live specimen with a stun grenade or stun grappler untill it falls uncouncius, and then finish the mission before it wakes up. Throwing more stun grenades will keep it uncouncius for longer.

Strategical
Put some effort in bringing down at least one of every type of UFO that appear. Also, finish the bio-transport module as soon possible and put it on a craft, the better you can start bringing in live aliens for research the better.

Strategical Combat
This early on UFO's are easy to shoot down, why can't it stay this way? Scatter your vehicles over the city so they'll have a greater chance of being close to an UFO incursion, one or two hoverbikes each should be sufficient for the early UFO's.

Spoiler section
If you want money and xp for your agents without Cheat code:

Raid over and over the Cult Sirius corporation, their building will never been empty. They will never be friend with you, so never mind how you hurt them. With each raid you will recover some valuable Psi-clone and some equipment that you might sell.

Warning: there are often one or two men with rocket launcher. Try to kill these guy quickly, to keep their equipment and your lives.