Tactical Troops: Anthracite Shift
The game is good for casual players who like to make some chaos on the maps but also for tactical-focused minds that analyze every turn. I love versatile weaponry with its various differences in games mechanics. However, unit types could be more distinct.
Gridless movement is quite unique feature in tactical games and it’s really fun to work on positioning your units on a playfield: “Hide behind his rock so I could lean out my rifle but not stick out too much not to get hit”.
Teleporters do the job of adding a new layer to this two-dimensional game. Great idea. They could be used in more places though.
– Real player with 82.7 hrs in game
Read More: Best Sci-fi Local Multiplayer Games.
The game is “tactical” all the way - it requires thinking and few mouse-waving skills. It does not require reflex. It’s also not a fast-paced game and gives you a fair amount of time to think. I’ve played chiefly the campaign mode.
There are always two phases: prep, where you decide how to equip your platoon, and the action phase, where you’re deployed. There’s some AI behind the enemies, so they don’t behave identically in every run, so sometimes the ‘improved’ strategy you came up with after a failed run also fails.
– Real player with 21.9 hrs in game
I am not a Monster: First Contact
One of the best games I’ve ever played. It is Xcom style tactical turn based strategy game and it is flawless.
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Visuals are stunning. Game is made in a way that it looks like as if it was made in the 60s. The graphics use old movie filter, the sound effects are “poor” quality, stereotypical (with game progress you’ll find out that they have much more depth) characters and the whole future concept from 60s movies about distant future. The whole 60s thing is done very well. Amazing.
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Level design is great and used cleverly. Many times game reuses same levels, but is done so well that those reused environments feel like totally new levels, I mean they are, they have different objectives and stuff, so they are completely new levels, just with same level design. But it is not reused because of lazyness or cheapness, it’s reused because it is needed for story progression. This is really smart design choice, I love it.
– Real player with 104.4 hrs in game
Read More: Best Sci-fi Online Co-Op Games.
Literally, I started the game with no expectations. I knew people liked the multiplayer, but since I wasn’t interested in it, I’ve watched the game with suspicion. Once I learned that there was a single-player mode, I didn’t expect much from it either.
I was sure this was some sort of “alibi mode” to complement the multiplayer and even if it was good, it would be short as most indie game campaigns are.
Oh my God, how wrong I was! The game campaign is simply stunning!
It is very long, it takes 25-30+ hours to finish it. - That is a huge selling point for me!
– Real player with 44.8 hrs in game
Spaceland: Sci-Fi Indie Tactics
Spaceland review
Quick Review: Spaceland is a surprisingly fun game with some fun surprises, but only if you crank up the difficulty. It’s a very simple and straight forward turn-based strategy experience. The simplicity and bare-bones nature of the early game might turn players away. But those who stick with it will be rewarded with a bit more of a robust game than what initially meets the eye.
Important Note**:
First and foremost, you have to set the difficulty to the hardest setting: Normal. I played through the game on this difficulty, so my review is based on this. But I did replay the last two levels on Easy just to collect a couple things, and it was an absolute snore. You can play sloppy and rush decisions with no repercussions. There is just no challenge on Easy, meaning no strategy, meaning no game. In my opinion, Easy mode reduces Spaceland from a game to a “series of actions”. Please play it on Normal.
– Real player with 29.6 hrs in game
Read More: Best Sci-fi Adventure Games.
I had fun with it. It is 28 levels and I completed it in 16 hours with 100% achievements. I wouldn’t say it is casual, since the missions get pretty tough (on Normal, which is the highest difficulty). You start with only 1 person in the squad and that increases as you find more people. However, eventually you can’t bring everyone on each mission so you need to pick the team that is best suited. Some (or all) of the slots will be locked into specific members.
There are 2 upgrades, equipment (weapons and armor) and abilities. You need cash for equipment and chips for abilities. Each mission has a set of objectives, which gets you cash and chips. However, you only get the bonus the first time you complete them in a mission. You can replay missions for missed objectives, or to grind cash (killing monsters always gives cash). They also added daily missions in, that you can run to get more chips and cash (one per day).
– Real player with 18.5 hrs in game
Final Theory
Final Theory is basically turn based space combat with different classes of ships pew pewing each other. It’s a great little game that keeps being updated and improved (so updating this review - again).
If you’re looking for an in depth space strategy, this is not for you, as it’s more tactical space combat at the core, however with the latest version there is now some strategy involved in how you configure your Fleets, based on the numbers you can have and the upgrades you have against certain hulls (Destroyer, Cruiser, Battleship etc.).
– Real player with 523.5 hrs in game
65/100 Challenging + Frustrating ..mmh, rather not play this without reading ;(
EDIT: ..NEW DLC Royal Navy (Dec 2020)
***PLAYGUIDE scroll down
decent game (runs on tablet/notebook) with quite some flaws, so the fun is limited and that´s why most players give up after some hours.
Not sure I keep on playing this, it´s a real chore ;(
Main Limiters are:
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only 1 move per turn (so wasting moves can be deadly)
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AI is quite good even at Novice level
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Frustration comes when you are head to head with AI and lose by 1 move to start Final Thesis Nuke ;((
– Real player with 80.8 hrs in game
Solar Rogue
I’m enjoying Solar Rogue much more than I was expecting. You keep your ship’s energy up so you can convert and craft upgrades. Move through sectors of space looking for more. Crew management is place holder at this time but will hopefully be added during early access.
– Real player with 30.5 hrs in game
Void Eclipse
It’s a combination of 4X, deck builder, and grid-based, turn-based tactics with unique factions. Terrific unit design, artwork, and battle animations. Battles were quite challenging so you’ll have to use the full combination of unit upgrades and abilities to succeed.
– Real player with 1.2 hrs in game
Played the beta, bought the game.
Unique exploratory travel/resource acquisition with turn-based encounters, As you advance, you’ll be able to form multi-unit multi-skill squads (check out the dev’s demo vid).
Cool artwork and immersive audio ambiance
– Real player with 1.1 hrs in game
Möbius Front ‘83
I think this is my first Steam review; I watched a talk from Zach and he said that he takes feedback seriously so I figured, why not?
I love Zachtronics’ coding games, and I also love turn-based wargames, so I was pretty excited for this one. Unfortunately I think they’ve missed the mark this time. There’s a lot to like, but while it has the pleasing simplicity of games like Into the Breach (single-digit numbers for health, damage, range, and speed, grid map, etc.) it lacking some of the elegance.
– Real player with 53.5 hrs in game
Möbius Front 83 is a simple and good game. Yet to finish it, but played enough of it to say what I think.
PROS:
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Great presentation, graphics is aesthetically pleasing, great animations of units – I love how dust animation is used to indicate direction of movement of vehicles.
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Outstanding sound design. Muffled sound of weapon fire and explosion sound like you hear weapons firing in the distance or if, like I imagine it would be to hear sound of weapons firing while you sit in an armoured vehicle.
– Real player with 39.7 hrs in game
RAM Pressure
this game is bad. you get less than you payed for it.
read the impressions bellow, for details.
…100% chance to… miss
…70-ish hours latter… i completed a hard(3/4) difficulty mision, without deaths and with inferior equipment.
…the campaign is locked behind extreme grind. i forgot what is the story
…its not a whatever-shooter, its a whatever-grenader.
…lootboxes!
…check my artwork for a collection of cool screenshots from the game
…researched hangar 3 and did not get to build hangar 3
– Real player with 85.3 hrs in game
I was truly hoping this would be a fun game, but it turned out to be a time-wasting pile ofsteaming disappointment. Original XCOM vet/junkie, here, and I’ll warn you this game is ABSOLUTE TRASH. Just spent an hour on ten missions with my one… single… “Pro” troop after giving this game a week of optimistic enthusiasm. Reward for my efforts………. made only $300 profit trying to find some way to harvest enough beginner ammo to grind with full squad for a while on “Normal” mode to hopefully accumulate enough beginner gear to take on “Hard” AI, of which will obliterate a normal-fitted squad. As many have already stated, this is a Pay-To-Play garbage grind-fest. If that’s your thang, get mental help.
– Real player with 35.2 hrs in game
Revival: Recolonization
Set in a post-apoc version of Earth, Revival is a 4x strategy game where the world and its rules can change at key moments, creating a deep and highly replayable experience. Explore a transformed planet, negotiate or conquer new territories and bring the light of civilization to regressing human colonies in order to prepare mankind for war with a despotic entity.
Enjoy an unprecedented level of freedom
Say ‘yes’ to meaningful replayability. Say ‘no’ to predictable and boring late game!
Revival generates a vast possibility space for you to play around with. From sudden weather changes to zombie infestations and bans on certain weapon types – boy, you are in for a surprise.
Adapt to new conditions with the help of the nuanced edict system that allows you to terraform the planet and fine-tune the game rules on specific regions of the map. Protect your settlement from changes by building special shield constructs or by accepting the blessings of your tribe’s totem tree.
Progress through the ages
Survivors of the terrible catastrophe that almost destroyed mankind have unique traits and bonuses that affect your gameplay style. Pick the right tribe to take under your wing and help your followers evolve through four distinct epochs, all the way to futuristic settlements and breakthrough technology.
Engage in tactical combat
Command an army that is suited to your play style by gearing up troops with a variety of components, which can also be crafted. Adapt your tactics in intense turn-based battles by mixing and matching different parts, as well as smartly using destructible cover to defeat your enemies.
Explore Earth after a devastating cataclysm
Revival takes place on our own home planet whose landscape and climate have been dramatically transformed. Discover pre-cataclysm artifacts and anomalies with unexpected behaviors. Face off against wild beasts that have evolved to survive in these conditions, as well as fearsome mechanical automatons that roam the lands.
This Legion Kills
This Legion Kills is a fast-paced, tense, two-player board game of tactical combat. You command a furious fighting force OF THE FUTURE against a ferocious foe. Recruit your armies. Scout out a unique map. Draw a hand of Command Cards. Deploy your Vanguard. The battle is joined!
To win, you must reduce your enemy’s Glory to zero before they do the same to you. Your successes on the battlefield chip away at your enemy’s Glory. It never goes up, only down; so it’s always a tense, back-and-forth race to the bottom.