5 Turn-based Strategy Games You Forgot Were Awesome

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Real-time strategy games such as StarCraft, Age of Empires, and Command and Conquer have become much more popular in recent decades, causing turn-based strategy games to decline in popularity. However, the turn-based genre still exists, with developers occasionally releasing new titles. Games like XCOM, which combine turn-based gameplay with tactical elements, offer fans even more choices. Plus, there are many excellent, lesser-known turn-based strategy games worth discovering.

Here are five turn-based strategy games you may have forgotten.

5) Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden

Whether or not you consider it a true strategy game is debatable, but The Bearded Ladies’ Mutant Year Zero is worth mentioning. It plays like XCOM, focusing on tactical combat, but adds moments of real-time exploration to make it unique. While it’s not strictly turn-based strategy, its blend of strategy and tactics felt too close to the genre to leave out.

Also, Mutant Year Zero is a truly excellent turn-based strategy game – one of the best of the last ten years, yet it doesn’t get much attention. Each character feels unique, and you can customize them with mutations to create the perfect team. The game brilliantly blends real-time stealth with turn-based combat, a combination we’d love to see more of. And for those who disagree with its inclusion, there’s a little surprise waiting at the end of this list!

4) Heroes of Might and Magic 3

The Heroes of Might and Magic series was a standout turn-based strategy franchise in the 1990s, but its popularity declined in the 2000s. Heroes of Might and Magic 3, released in 1999, refined the gameplay of the earlier titles, creating a nearly flawless experience. Players especially appreciated the new ways to win, larger game worlds, and the addition of more factions, which made the game highly replayable.

When Heroes of Might and Magic 3 came out, many critics praised it as proof that turn-based strategy games were still popular. Back then, there was a lot of debate between fans of turn-based and real-time games, and HoMM 3 was a key title for those who preferred a slower, more strategic pace. Luckily, a new Heroes of Might and Magic game, Olden Era, is scheduled for release in 2026, giving fans a chance to revisit the series they love.

3) Warlords

Released in 1990, Warlords might feel a bit dated now. However, it was a pioneering strategy game that let players command a fantasy army of creatures like Storm Giants, Horse Lords, Orcs, and Grey Dwarves. A unique feature was its ‘hot seat’ multiplayer, where up to eight players could take turns playing on a single computer – a common way to play with friends back then.

The original game led to four sequels. But perhaps the biggest impact of Warlords on gaming was the creation of the Puzzle Quest series. These games, similar to Bejeweled, are set in the world of Warlords, which was originally developed from a Dungeons & Dragons campaign created by Steve Fawkner in the 1980s.

2) Blood Bowl

Blood Bowl recognizes that football is fundamentally a strategy game played in turns. Think of it like this: coaches decide on a play every half-minute, and then players try to execute it as well as they can. While player skill and a bit of luck always play a role, the core gameplay of football naturally fits the turn-based strategy format.

While you can play a fast-paced version of football in Blood Bowl, most players find the turn-based gameplay much more enjoyable. It’s really fun to manage a team of fantasy creatures and progress through the career mode. There have been three games in the series, but Blood Bowl 3 hasn’t been well-received because of its in-game purchases. Luckily, the original two games are still easy to find and play.

1) Civilization: Alpha Centauri and Call to Power

When people think of turn-based strategy games, Civilization is often considered the best, and it’s easy to see why. The developers at Firaxis Games keep improving with each new game, creating experiences players can easily lose hundreds of hours in. But today, I want to discuss some of the spin-off games that came out in the late 1990s.

Okay, so if you’re looking for a real gem, check out Alpha Centauri. It was built on the Civilization 2 engine, but seriously upgraded. They added things like playing multiplayer at the same time, letting you customize your units, and opened it up for tons of modding. Honestly, playing through the campaign felt like living inside a really good sci-fi book, turn-based style. A lot of people consider it one of Firaxis’ best games, and I totally get why. It was a huge deal when it came out, and it’s a bummer we still haven’t gotten a proper sequel.

So, there was this other game, Call to Power, made by Activision – not the Civilization guys, Firaxis. It used the same engine, but let you push way further into the future, past the 21st century and all the way to the year 3000! That meant a bigger focus on colonizing space. Honestly, it wasn’t as good as Civ, but it showed us what the series could do with space travel and even had a better naval system. It actually got a sequel in 2000, but Activision lost the Civilization rights by then, so it wasn’t branded as a Civ game. Still, it had some cool upgrades and you can still find it pretty easily.

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2026-01-08 21:13