Btw, i am a bit surprised that all those X-Com clones like Phoenix Point, Xenonauts, Shock tactics, etc. are all going SCI-FI and in result they look very similar to each other. I wish someone will make a fantasy Xcom.
I'm sure some have toyed with the idea at least. The problem with fantasy x-com is that it would play completely differently than shooty x-com since you'd have a mixture of melee, ranged and magic users with shields or no shields, in light or heavy armor. All unit types should be massively different from each other, but the player should still be incentivized or forced to field mixed squads. Could they make use of formations, and how would you prevent mages from being either overpowered or pin cushions? Shooty x-com doesn't have to deal with these questions because units are largely the same, the type of gun they wield being the biggest difference. Not saying it can't be done, but there are way more moving parts.
Indeed, that was more or less what I was going to write about this issue:
A fantasy XCOM would feel very different on the tactical level, because most of the tension of the original X-COM comes from the fact that something you cannot see can kill your soldier in one shot.
It wouldn't work too well in a fantasy setting, because a significant part of the units will be melee, which leads to a very different "feel".
But as
Alienman pointed out, Battle Brothers manages to create a strong feeling of tension with very different mechanics (battles are more about attrition than sudden burst of casualties).
