Turn-based tactical games
Turn-based tactical video games are a genre of strategy games where gameplay is divided into turns, during which players take sequential actions with their units or characters. In turn-based tactical games, players typically control a group of units, such as soldiers, heroes, or specialized characters, and navigate them across a grid-based map or environment. Each turn, players can move their units, attack enemies, use special abilities, or perform other actions within the game's mechanics and rules.
The turn-based nature of these games allows players to carefully consider their options and plan their moves strategically, taking into account factors like terrain, unit strengths and weaknesses, and the overall objectives of the game. Typically, the outcome of battles or encounters is determined by a combination of factors such as unit statistics, positioning, and sometimes random chance. Some well-known examples of turn-based tactical games include the XCOM series, Heroes of Might and Magic series, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Jagged Alliance.
Most popular turn-based tactics games
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101: The Airborne Invasion of Normandy
Windows XP/98/951998 Empire Interactive
So you think you're ready to storm Normandy? Think again. 101: The Airborne Invasion of Normandy drops you into the chaos of World War II with all the grace of a paratrooper landing in a barn. This is a tactical strategy game that rewards patience, planning, and a high tolerance for being outflanked. It’s gritty, detailed, and makes you feel ...
5th Fleet
DOS1994
This 1994 naval strategy game for DOS is based on the board game of the same name, which means you’ll spend more time squinting at menus than blowing up ships. It’s cerebral, methodical, and incredibly satisfying - if you’re the kind of person who organizes their spice rack alphabetically. You command modern naval forces in the In...
A Line in the Sand
DOS1992protected SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.
A Line in the Sand (1992) is what happens when a board game about modern Middle Eastern warfare gets turned into a DOS strategy title with all the subtlety of a cold war memo. You command military forces in a region that is perpetually on fire, and your job is to somehow make that worse - or better, depending on your alignment and ability to read p...
Age of Wonders
Windows XP/98/951999protecteddemo Triumph Studios
Mix one part turn-based strategy, one part fantasy novel, add a dash of dragon, and you get Age of Wonders (1999). This is the game where wizards rule, elves sulk in forests, and you get to conquer the world with tactical brilliance - or blind luck. It’s like chess, but with lightning bolts and skeleton armies. Diplomacy is an option, but hon...
Age of Wonders 2: The Wizard's Throne
Windows XP/98/952002protecteddemo Triumph Studios
Age of Wonders II: The Wizard's Throne is a turn-based strategy game developed by Triumph Studios and published by Gathering of Developers. It was released in 2002 as a sequel to the original Age of Wonders. The game is set in a fantasy world where players take on the role of a leader, either as a wizard or a warlord, and compete for control of the...
Arnhem: The Market Garden Operation
DOS1988 Cases Computer Simulations
Arnhem is the kind of wargame where you spend more time reading hex maps than shooting anything. It’s all about recreating Operation Market Garden — you know, that WWII battle where everything went spectacularly sideways. The graphics are what you’d call “functional,” the sound is silent, and your troops have the survi...
Austerlitz 1805
DOS1989 Cornerstone Software
Battle for Normandy
DOS1983protected Tactical Design Group
Released in 1983, Battle for Normandy plays less like a game and more like a history book that came alive, donned a helmet, and asked for a coffee. This is wargaming at its purest: grid maps, unit stats, and more abbreviations than a tax form. It’s not flashy, but it’s serious, cerebral, and kind of hypnotic if you’re into micro-m...
Battle Isle
DOS1991protected Blue Byte Software
Turns out war is a lot tidier when it’s turn-based. Battle Isle (1991) gives you neat little hexagons to move your units on, like a very angry board game. It’s got strategy, sci-fi flair, and just enough AI ruthlessness to make you question your life choices. The graphics are basic, the pacing slow, but when you finally flank that enemy...
Battle Isle 2200
DOS1994protected Blue Byte Software
With Battle Isle 2200 (1994), the series goes full 3D cinematic—with cutscenes so dramatic you’d think they were auditioning for a soap opera in space. The gameplay is classic hex strategy, but now with upgraded visuals and FMV actors who clearly missed their calling in daytime TV. It’s grand, slow-burning, and surprisingly tense....
Battle Isle 93: The Moon of Chromos
DOS1993 Blue Byte Software
A game with a name like Battle Isle 93: The Moon of Chromos clearly means business. Released in 1993, it’s an expansion-slash-standalone with new missions, harder AI, and an even more hostile moon. You’ll manage resources, maneuver troops, and try not to scream at your screen when your tanks fall into another ambush. It’s tactical...
Battle of Antietam
DOS1985protected SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.
Civil War buffs, rejoice. Battle of Antietam (1985) lets you relive one of the bloodiest days in American history... via pixelated dots and turn-based tension. There’s no flash here—just raw, old-school strategy where every misstep feels like a historical footnote. Think of it as digital Gettysburg reenactment, minus the itchy uniforms....
Blitzkrieg: Battle at the Ardennes
DOS1990 Command Simulations
In Blitzkrieg: Battle at the Ardennes, you’re not just playing a wargame — you’re being handed a clipboard, a stack of orders, and a freezing cold battlefield in 1944. This 1990 DOS title lets you relive one of WWII’s most intense moments, complete with turn-based tactics, historical accuracy, and menus that make Excel look ...
Capture the Flag
DOS1993
Carrier Strike: South Pacific 1942-44
DOS1992protected SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.
Clash of Steel
DOS1993protected SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.
Conflict in Vietnam
DOS1986 MicroProse Software
Conflict: Europe
DOS1989 Personal Software Services
Conflict Europe is an abandoned turn-based top-down strategy game set in Europe. The game was developed by Personal Software Services and released by Mirrorsoft in 1989 for DOS, Amiga and Atari ST.
Conflict: Korea
DOS1992protected SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.
Crusade in Europe
DOS1985 MicroProse Software
Decision at Gettysburg
DOS1990 TigLon Software
Decision in the Desert
DOS1985 MicroProse Software
Decisive Battles of the American Civil War: Vol. 1
DOS1988 SSG Strategic Studies Group
Decisive Battles of the American Civil War: Vol. 2
DOS1989 SSG Strategic Studies Group
Decisive Battles of the American Civil War: Vol. 3
DOS1992 SSG Strategic Studies Group
Decker
Windows 10/112002freeware
Desert Rats
DOS1986 Cases Computer Simulations
Empire Deluxe
DOSWindows 3.x1993 White Wolf Productions
Empire Deluxe is a classic turn-based strategy game that was originally released in the early 1990s. Developed by Mark Baldwin and Bob Rakowsky of White Wolf Productions and published by New World Computing, it is a successor to the game Empire, which was created by Walter Bright in the late 1970s. The game is set on a world map, where pl...
Empire II: The Art of War
DOSWindows XP/98/951995 White Wolf Productions
Fantasy Empires
DOS1993protected Silicon Knights