STRATEGY GAMES OF 2018

Age of Empires 4

TBA | Relic |

Age of Empires is unexpectedly returning, and with probably the best RTS studio still around, Relic, at the helm. It looks like the Homeworld, Company of Heroes and Dawn of War developer has been borrowed by Microsoft from publisher Sega. Details are slim at the moment, though we know that it will take a broader look at history, from antiquity to the conquest of the New World, than Age of Empires 3.

Phoenix Point

2018 | Snapshot Games |

Julian Gollop, the designer of the original X-Com, is taking another shot at the genre he pioneered in Phoenix Point. Early footage on Snapshot’s development blog suggest that the team are going for a more gritty, realistic look. Enemies in Phoenix Point will apparently adapt physically to your tactics, evolving new defences and installing new weapons to counter your elite troops.

A Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia

April 19, 2018 | The Creative Assembly |

Total War travels to 878 AD Anglo-Saxons, Gaelic clans and Viking settlers clash for control of the rainy isle Britannia. Expect your classic Total War formula, complete with strategic maps and huge real-time battles, but focused on one particular historical flashpoint rather than an era.

Frozen Synapse 2

First half of 2018 | Mode 7 |

2011’s Frozen Synapse surprised with its cool blend of turn-based gameplay and scenario simulation that allowed you to sweat some ideas before committing to your moves. Its sequel expands the action to a procedurally generated city filled with varying factions that will react differently to your actions, stealth maneuvers, and new unit types.

BattleTech

2018 | Harebrained Schemes |

BattleTech creator Jordan Weisman and the developers behind Shadowrun Returns team up for turn-based mech combat based on the 33-year-old tabletop strategy game. Customize your squad of mechs, oversee a crew of support personnel, and fight for the throne in a full single-player campaign.

Wargroove

2018 | Chucklefish |

Taking clear inspiration from the likes of Advance Wars, Wargroove combines turn-based, grid-based strategy with knights, flying mages, the occasional golem, and more fantasy fare. You’ll need to exercise caution during each match’s 40-60 minute runtime as you fight to capture the enemy commander or raze their fortress, or show off your design skills with a fully featured map editor.

Abandon Ship

Early 2018 | Fireblade Software |

Abandon Ship is undeniably evocative of FTL, but it’s set in a fantasy world with ships inspired by the Age of Sail. It’s also a lot prettier. With a ship and crew, you’ll be able to explore a procedural ocean, encounter random events, and fend off other vessels and monsters from the deep. If your captain dies, then that’s you done. Good thing you can escape in a lifeboat.

Warhammer 40,000: Gladius—Relics of War

TBA | Proxy Studios |

The 40K universe gets a 4X game, this one set on a world called Gladius Prime. Ultramarines, Orks, Imperial Guard, and Necrons all compete for it and, yes, there are hexes. This one's being published by Slitherine, who also brought us turn-based 40K strategy games Sanctus Reach and Armageddon.

Forged Battalion

2018 (Early access) | Petroglyph |

The Star Wars: Empire At War and Grey Goo lot are back with another RTS. Forged Battalion looks bright and frenetic, all neon explosions and cute tanks and mechs charging at each other. Rather than playing as a faction, you’ll be able to craft your own armies with customisable units and a persistent tech tree as you try to save Earth from The Collective. Want your tank to hover and spew out glue? Go for it.

Phantom Doctrine

2018 | CreativeForge Games |

Phantom Doctrine plays out like Cold War XCOM. You and a band of conspiracy-fighting agents known as the Cabal must stop a plot to pit world leaders against one another, and you send agents on missions to recover intel, sabotage operations, or stealthily infiltrate enemy ranks. Most interestingly, you can defeat enemy agents, then bring them back to convert them, extort them for info, or plant a trigger phrase in their head for later. Just don’t leave your guys behind, as the enemy may have equally nefarious plans.

Phantom Brigade

TBA | Tetragon Works |

This turn-based mech combat game pulls inspiration from Armored Core and Front Mission, with tabletop-style rules determining unique damage statistics, destructible buildings, and pilots that evolve as characters, like a simpler Nemesis System from Shadow of War. Mod support promises new events, missions, order, mech parts, and more.

Into the Breach

February 27, 2018 (Out now) | Subset Games |

This tactical mech combat games from the creators of FTL threatens to be one of the best games of 2018, if it ends up coming out this year. Battles happen in turns on small grids of terrain. Your custom bots can push enemies around to manipulate them into disadvantageous positions and keep them away from the civilian zones that power your units. It’s a clever procedural puzzle game with giant robots, what’s not to like?

Age of Empires: Definitive Edition

February 20, 2018 (Out now) | Microsoft Studios |

The classic RTS is returning, remastered with 4K HD art, new animations and mod support for PCs running Windows 10. The art overhaul looks terrific and naturally the game comes with the full original campaign and a scenario editor so you can pit hundreds of horses against hundreds of priests to see what happens.

(Part #5 hopefully soon)

You're a hero for ploughing through all these dude! Thanks for sharing.