UFO: Afterlight review

Humans vs aliens. If anything from videogames is to be believed, it’s the inevitable struggle of the future. In this third installment of the UFO series, mankind’s already lost the battle for planet Earth, and we've been shipped off by conquering aliens to a lonely crater on Mars instead.

Newcomers will be totally bewildered by Afterlight’s mix of turn-based strategy and micro-management. If you’ve never tested the waters of the series before, it can be a bit like trying to gouge your eye out with a slippery spoon - painful and tough, while you’re positive there’s a much better way to get the job done.

From the main menu, there’s an overwhelming mass of options available, from training characters to building up your base. Once you’ve finished clicking around these, the world map allows you to send out your drones to colonize the planet and search out a conflict you can send your team into.

On the combat screen, the graphics are a bit sparse and the turn-based combat won’t be to everyone’s tastes. Making matters worse is the diabolical camera which seems to have a mind of its own. It's one of the most frustrating we’ve ever had to deal with.