Can I skip cutscenes in XCOM: Enemy Unknown?

Found the answer in the Steam Community page for the demo.

Find XCOM's install folder. For Steam, it's the following:

• Windows: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\XCom-Enemy-Unknown
• Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Steam/SteamApps/common/XCom-Enemy-Unknown/XCOMData

Then go through to \XCom-Enemy-Unknown\XComGame\Config\ and open up "DefaultEngine.ini" in a text editor like Notepad.

Under the header ; PC Startup movies (CTRL + F for quicker access), delete the "+" before the 4 entries there. Save and start XCOM and the movies should be gone, however your video settings will be reset. Simply reconfigure your resolution and the changes will stick.

You're better off modifying your user configuration rather than files in xcom's installed folder, as those may get wiped out during a patch. I prefer putting a semicolon in front of the line instead of deleting it.

• http://web.archive.org/web/20160423034408/http://www.gamefront.com/xcom-enemy-unknown-ini-tweaks/
• http://forums.2kgames.com/showthread.php?150666-Here-is-how-to-disable-intro-movies-for-Xcom

This mod at XCom Nexus did the trick for me. The mod is really just a batch file that does the same "heavy" lifting for you as @Mark's Gamefront article. Instructions are on the download page. Note, if you had the demo, be careful that you get the correct instance of XComEngine.ini.

Unfortunately, I don't know of a way to skip the other cutscene's outside the ESC key and even then some of the cutscenes seem like they are really more loading screens disguised as a cutscene.