You want turn-based strategy but don”t know what to play? We”re collecting the genre kings from XCom to Civilization for you in 2022
Just one more round – with this mantra, the best turn-based strategy games keep us up all night. And if you”re looking for just one more such game – you”ve come to the right place. In this list, we present you with the best turn-based strategy games currently available. In the case of series, however, as with real-time and build-up strategy, we only present the best part of each.
Since the transition between turn-based strategy and turn-based tactics is also very fluid, you will find representatives of both genres here. That is, those games in which you command large armies and empires, as well as tactics games that focus more on a few individual heroes or small units.
Table of Contents
XCom 2
(Developer: Firaxis Games – Platforms: Linux, Windows, macOS, Switch, PS4, Xbox One, Android, iOS – Release: Feb 5, 2016)
What is it about? XCom is a series steeped in tradition, which has celebrated new successes with its two remakes. XCom 2 also turns the setting on its head a little. Sure: You still fight tactical turn-based battles, but you no longer try to stop an alien invasion, instead you defend yourself against the occupation that has already taken place.
This time you build a mobile base of operations where you research for better equipment and complete time-critical missions. With the War of the Chosen add-on, the gameplay is further enhanced. For then there are a number of particularly nasty boss aliens who chase you and like to barge into the missions unannounced.
Admittedly, the new editions are not quite as extensive, complex or difficult as the classics. For example, there is no need to build several bases and the presence of story missions makes for a much more linear experience. On the other hand, they are more enjoyable to play. If you want to experience the classic again nowadays, we recommend the engine remake Open XCom.
Old World
(Developer: Mohawk Games – Platforms: Windows, macOS – Release: July 1, 2021)
What is it about? Old World wants to follow in the footsteps of Civilization and makes you the leader of an ancient nation like Greece or Egypt. In contrast to the big competition, you can”t progress greatly through the ages here, but always remain in antiquity.
The familiar turn-based strategy gameplay is combined with a dynasty simulation similar to that of the Crusader Kings series. Your leader can die, for example, which is why you have to appoint a successor. Otherwise, you can expect classic hex strategy here, where you command your troops over the fields and build cities on them.
Another special feature is the command system. You do not command every unit in every turn, but have a special resource for it. Once this is used up, you can no longer give commands and have to wait for the next round. This means that you have to think carefully about which units you want to move.
The Banner Saga 3
(Developer: Stoic Studio – Platforms: Windows, macOS, Switch, PS4, Xbox One – Release: July 26, 2018)
What is it about? Banner Saga 3 is the conclusion of the mix of round tactics and role-playing game, the first part of which was released back in 2014. It stands out apart from the exciting battles not only because of its wonderfully drawn graphic style, but also because of its really tough moral decisions.
The developer”s goal here was always not to rely on the usual elements of a role-playing game, such as buying items or looting, but instead to focus on the story around the player”s entourage. You are supposed to accept and live with failures here instead of simply loading an earlier game state.
Especially in the third part, the battles have become particularly complex due to features such as warped enemies and unique hero titles. This makes it a real challenge to win the battles on the chessboard maps.
Age of Wonders: Planetfall
(Developer: Ubisoft Montreal – Platforms: Windows, PS4, Xbox One – Release: August 6, 2019)
What is it about? The Age of Wonders series has always been an insider”s tip for turn-based strategy, but it has usually been overshadowed by its great predecessors Heroes and Civilization. Planetfall doesn”t quite reach those either, the economy and diplomacy on the world map aren”t deep enough for that. But Age of Wonders also has clear strengths: It has a much more extensive combat system than many other 4X games.
In combat, the game switches to tactical hex battles that are somewhat reminiscent of XCOM – we have to manoeuvre our soldiers specifically into cover, and even simple units often bring special abilities like grenades or healing. And there are over 200 units, each of which we can also manually equip with modifications. So if you like to build your perfect army in the finest detail and lead it into battle, you”ll get your money”s worth here.
If empire management is the most important part of a turn-based strategy game for you, then you can also have fun in Planetfall – and perhaps even enjoy the fact that it plays much faster overall than some of its genre colleagues – but you are probably better off with some of the more complex titles in the rest of this review.
Gary Grigsby”s War in the East
(Developer: Gary Grigsby – Platforms: Windows – Release: Dec 7, 2010)
What is it about? Here you get the holy grail of hardcore strategy gaming. War in the East offers an enormously detailed simulation of the entire Eastern Front, with each hex covering ten miles and each platoon covering just over a week. And the game really does simulate everything: supply routes, ammunition, fuel, fatigue, morale, weather zones, terrain, fog of war, damaged units and custom commanders for armies, corps and individual divisions.
Over 500 historical commanders all have their own stats such as combat experience and political standing and can be promoted, fired or executed. And you have to take all this into account for several hundred divisions, which you control individually. Either in smaller scenarios or in huge campaigns over the entire war. War in the East is certainly not a game for everyone and not necessarily beginner-friendly – but if you”ve already mastered all the other games on this list and are looking for a new challenge, then check it out!
Endless Legend
(Developer: Amplitude Studios – Platforms: Windows, macOS – Release: Sep 18, 2014)
What is it about? Endless Legend offers an enormously creative fantasy.scenario. Basically, it is in many ways a fairly classic 4X strategy game with borrowings from Heroes and Civilization: we manage cities, armies and heroes on a world map, complete battles and quests and thus lead our faction to victory. But it is these factions that make the game something really special, because they are enormously cool in design across the board – both atmospherically and game mechanically.
The Cultists of the Eternal End, for example, are the only party that cannot found new cities and instead expand their queen”s seat into a huge metropolis. Apart from that, they rely on converting the villages of minor factions to their cause.
If you prefer to enjoy similarly cool ideas in space, then the sci-fi counterpart Endless Space 2 is right for you. There you can play as the Horatio, for example: An entire faction consisting only of a single vain trillionaire and a horde of clones of his perfect self. Who would ever want to play a round-robin strategy game with normal factions again?
Master of Orion 2
(Developer: Simtex – Platforms: Dos, Windows, MacOS – Release: 16 December 1996)
What is it about? Master of Orion 2 is the classic archetype of space 4X. It”s an object lesson for other turn-based strategy games in two main areas: For one, it was pleasantly deep but never overly complex. Secondly, it offered enormous replay value because we could tailor our faction so precisely to our play style: In the race builder, we either choose bonuses like telepathy, which allows us to take over planets without ground troops via mind control, or which makes our race eat stone and not need agriculture.
And the spaceships that we lead into battle are also freely assembled by us! The 2016 remake, however, couldn”t quite match the glory of the original. It wasn”t a bad game in itself, but in the meantime there are simply better space strategy games: for example, Stellaris by Paradox or the aforementioned Endless Legend 2.
Total War: Three Kingdoms
(Developer: Creative Assembly – Platforms: Linux, Windows, macOS – Release: 123 May 2019)
What is it about? The only series that belongs to both the best real-time and the best turn-based strategy games: Total War. Their recipe for success is precisely the ingenious mixture of epic RTS battles and turn-based empire management. And Three Kingdoms represents the turn-based strategy half best, because it brought the series decisively forward in this area and closer to the depth of pure turn-based strategy.
For example, in diplomacy, where we now have plenty of opportunities for negotiation and nasty dodges – like setting two other players on each other in proxy warfare. The real-time battles are nowhere near as varied as in Total War: Warhammer, for example, because the various warlords all lead quite similar troops into battle.
But that doesn”t make them bad by any means, because classic Total War battles without many fancy innovations are still some of the most epic things to play in the strategy genre.
Alpha Centauri
(Developer: Firaxis Games – Platforms: Linux, Windows, macOS – Release: Feb 12, 1999)
What is it about? For its part, Alpha Centauri transplanted the Civilization principle into a sci-fi scenario – but this was not just a new skin, Alpha Centauri also fully exploited the new possibilities of this setting. On the one hand, in terms of game mechanics: with advanced technology, we can, for example, terraform the planet and create mountains or level it to the ground. For example, we can divert rivers into our territory to create oases there and let the enemy”s region dry out and starve.
On the other hand, the future setting also scores atmospherically: the seven faction leaders all have their own vision for the future of humanity, and their quotes give the scenario a surprising amount of depth. What”s more, unlike Civilization, Alpha Centauri tells a real story in the course of a normal game.
For the planet turns out to be increasingly intelligent and begins to resist our colonisation more and more actively. With its seven firmly defined factions and its story, Alpha Centauri is not quite as open as Civilization, but gains its own fascination as a result. It is not only an excellent turn-based strategy game, but also a memorable experience.
Heroes of Might and Magic 3
(Developer: New World Computing – Platforms: Linux, Windows, maxOS, iOS, Android – Release: Mar 3, 1999)
What is it about? Heroes of Might and Magic 3 is one of the greatest turn-based strategy series of all time. Few games to this day can match the pull of Heroes 3, because there is simply always something to do and always something to achieve: We expand our cities, we level up our heroes, we equip them with new items and spells, and we work towards ever more impressive fantasy units like dragons.
And we scour a map full of discoveries and adventures in search of new dungeons, new challenges and, of course, new treasures. Heroes combines some of the strongest addictive factors of strategy and role-playing games for its motivational spiral into a devilish mix that is hard to let go of.
But fortunately it doesn”t have to, because not only does Heroes 3 itself deliver seven campaigns and 48 scenarios, but the fans also continue to tinker with the map editor. And with the HD remake, the classic is still quite enjoyable to play today.
Civilization 5
(Developer: Firaxis Games – Platforms: Linux, Windos, MacOS – Release: Sep 24, 2010)
What”s it about? Of course, Civilization 5 is practically the king of turn-based strategy. And I don”t want to tell you any nonsense either, just to surprise you here somehow. No other turn-based strategy game has such a pull as Civilization. What could be more motivating than developing a nation from the Stone Age through the entire history?
Especially when it is so deep in terms of gameplay and at the same time so elegantly implemented: war, economy, research, culture and diplomacy all want to be managed, and can all contribute to the most diverse victory conditions. Civilization 5 is still the masterful implementation of this formula – even if it took several add-ons. At release, the game was far from a perfect package, but the expansions added important features like religion and honed Civilization 5 into a turn-based strategy masterpiece.
Interestingly, its successor went through a very similar journey: Civilization 6 was played less on Steam than its predecessor for a long time after release. But after two also really strong add-ons, it is now on par or often even ahead. But honestly, you can”t go wrong with any Civilization. And that”s a nice conclusion for the best turn-based strategy games of all time from.
What would your list look like? Are you missing your favourite title or is it outrageously misplaced? Post it in the comments!
