I finally gave in and bought X-COM (the board game).
Overall it was better than expected. The components are well done, the use of the app is reasonable and the game itself is actually deeper than expected. There is a lot of luck involved in the dice rolls, but the players can do quite a bit of risk management. Only thing I didn't like was the lack of a manual - the rules are taught by the app and to check details you have to wait until the action shows up in the current round or use the index. Apparently they have released them as a PDF for free download now, but still: Using an app for a board game is okay, the lack of a printed version for your rules is not.
The game offers four roles:
Central Officer -> Controls the satellites, relays info from the app to other players, keeps track of thread and can re-arrange board pieces (to move UFOs or fix mistakes by other players)
Commander -> Controls the interceptors, manages the budged, keeps track of panic levels and deals with crisis
Squad Leader -> Controls the soldiers, defends the base and sends soldiers to missions
Chief Scientist -> Controls the scientists, researches techs and workshops tech items for one-use
The roles play quite different, but are all imporant for the game. While the rules for the scientist are easy, for example, he really has to make the right picks depending on the current situation. In fact, I'd say he has the most strategic impact despite his rather simple mechanics. There is also a bit of interaction between the roles. For example, the Squad leader turns defeated aliens over to the scientist, who can use their cards as salvage to boost research and the Commander can train soldiers from the Squad Leader to turn them into Elites or (with appropriate tech) use his interceptors for ground support.
What we noticed, though, is that we had quite a bit of downtime for everyone with 4 players, especially when it came to the resolution phase. The game seems to work much better with 2 players that take two roles at once. That way both of us were constantly engaged. Now we usually play with one guy being Commanding Officer and Commander and the other one being Squad Leader and Chief Scientist.
Overall I'd say it is a solid game with a high (but justifiable) price tag. If you like cooperative gameplay, are a fan of the X-COM universe and/or enjoy risk management - this might be your game.
I certainly didn't regret buying it.