We will start this off with thank God this did not actually see the light of day. In an interview with Edge, Firaxis Lead Designer Jake Solomon reports that the original design of XCOM back in 2003 was not very good. Good thing it never came out because last year's XCOM was one of the best games of the year. Solomon states that, "We had to identify those things that make a game XCOM, and it's very hard to do with a game that's so big and emergent, and has all these complex systems in it." It was probably for the best and they ended up having a smash hit on their hands. I guess things went in the direction that was needed. Sometimes taking the time to gain experience is what can make the difference.

P.S. The video above is of the new prototype.