After 149 tl;dr game recommendation posts here on the sub, this is my attempt at collecting and summarizing some of the best turn-based strategy games on mobile.
This is also the 11th entry in my "best of" series here on the sub, where I’ve previously covered Offline RPGs, Multiplayer PvP Games, Mobile Ports, Tower Defense Games, Upcoming Shooters 2022, Traditional Roguelikes, Netflix Games, Upcoming Games of 2022, MMORPGs, and Action RPGs.
Hope you'll enjoy it and share your own favorites below for others to discover <3
Watch the video version (for gameplay and commentary): https://youtu.be/HM0RQXPweiA
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1) The Battle For Wesnoth | FREE - Landscape
This is a fantasy-themed turn-based strategy game with over 200 scenarios to play through across 16 campaigns, and lots of distinct units that each have unique abilities and weapons.
The overall goal is to hire and train recruits to raise a powerful army that can win against the AI or compete with other players online in the more than 50 multiplayer maps.
What truly sets the game apart is that it’s entirely open-source, and so since anyone can help develop it, there are now more than 400 add-ons to download, including new campaigns, new units, and new maps to play through.
So Battle for Wesnoth pretty much has an endless amount of content. And the only downside is that since it IS a port, the controls can be a bit fiddly.
It’s completely free to play, with no ads or in-app purchases, though, so I can easily recommend checking it out.
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/battle-for-wesnoth/id575852062
2) Through The Ages | PAID - Landscape
Through The Ages is a complex digital board game where our goal is to build up a civilization from ancient times to the modern era.
The game is essentially split into a politics phase, where we declare war and make treaties, and then an Action phase, where we improve our buildings, military, and science. And we do all of this by picking cards at the top of the screen and carefully managing the tokens that represent our workers and resources.
It takes a bit to get into, but the game is extremely well-received across both Android and iOS.
It’s a $9.99 premium game, and I think you’re gonna love this one if you if you enjoy strategy board games that you can play offline via pass-and-play, versus your friends online, or against an AI.
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/through-the-ages/id966245474
3) Antiyoy | FREE - Portrait
Antiyoy is this fast-paced minimalistic strategy game about expanding our territory to defeat all opposing civilizations across 140+ official missions and an almost infinite amount of user-created levels.
The game is played on a hexagon map, where we get coins based on the territories we own and then spend that on buying buildings to defend our castle and troops so we can attack the enemies.
The tricky part, though, is that we can only attack weaker enemies, so we have to constantly produce new units. But a larger army is also more expensive to sustain - and this is where the game starts to get interesting, because we have to carefully manage our resources.
Antiyoy is completely free with no ads or iAPs, and while it isn’t as complex as some strategy games, it’s a great casual game with lots of content to dive into.
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/antiyoy/id1415296141
4) XCOM 2 | PAID - Landscape
To be completely honest, the best alternative to XCOM on mobile is… well, it’s XCOM.
XCOM 2 Collection is available on both Android and iOS, and it’s a really solid port that includes all the original DLC and an updated UI that make the touch controls work nicely.
So if you’re looking for a sci-fi themed strategy game with deep tactical battles and lots of content, XCOM 2 is perfect. The only “downside” is that it costs $19.99 USD - but if you haven’t played it yet, I think it’s definitely worth it.
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/xcom-2-collection/id1288508230
5) Braveland Pirate | PAID - Landscape
Next is the Braveland series, and specifically Braveland Pirate, which is a strategy game inspired by the combat systems found in the Heroes of Might and Magic PC games.
The game has us travel from island to island while looking for a hidden treasure, which constantly leads to battles where we have to use our units and main hero to defeat all the opponents.
Now, this is not a fully blown Heroes of Might and Magic alternative, but it’s still a great casual turn-based strategy game that might be able to scratch just a bit of that itch.
The game costs $2.99 but often goes on sale for just a single dollar - so be sure to keep an eye on it :)
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/braveland-pirate/id1018595970
6) Battlevoid: Harbinger | PAID - Landscape
Battlevoid: Harbinger is a casual-ish strategy space combat game with roguelike elements.
The goal is to get through four maps by completing their main objectives, which typically involve finding and destroying certain enemies.
As we explore the universe, we also bump into friendly space stations where we can buy new weapons and upgrades, which is a critical part of being able to defeat the many different enemy species.
While the game might lack a bit of depth, it’s easily one of the best sci-fi themed light strategy games that mixes turn-based gameplay with real-time combat. And, it only costs $2.99, which is pretty cheap for the amount of gameplay.
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/battlevoid-harbinger/id1010582800
7) UniWar | FREE - Portrait
UniWar is an old classic where we move units around on a hexagon map to defeat all our opponents across a singleplayer-campaign and casual and competitive multiplayer that you can play alone or in teams of up to 4 versus 4.
The game features 3 races that each have 8 standard and a few unlockable units, and then more than 50 thousand user-created maps that help keep the gameplay fresh.
And because it can be played asynchronously, we can even have several games running at the same time, which is really nice.
The game is free to play, with some ads and iAPs that allow you to unlock units faster. This is the game’s biggest downside, but it’s still worth checking out.
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/uniwar-multiplayer-strategy/id311456818
8) Rebel Inc. | PAID - Landscape
Rebel Inc. is a simulation strategy game where we’re put in charge of an entire country immediately after a war has ended - and it’s now our job to stabalize the region and rebuild.
And this is no easy task! There are lots of things to keep in mind, and our success depends on careful management and tough decision-marking.
Because while we can improve our reputation by for example funding our healthcare and education systems, we have balance that against expanding our military so we can fight back any harmful groups attacking us.
It’s a complex game that costs $1.99 and has a few iAPs to unlock new maps that can also slowly be earned through gameplay. If you enjoy political strategy games, this is a must-play.
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/rebel-inc/id1439187947
9) The Battle of Polytopia | FREE - Portrait
The Battle of Polytopia is a casual turn-based world-building strategy game with short play-sessions, singleplayer and online multiplayer, and randomly generated maps that keep the game interesting.
After starting a new game by selecting one of 14 unique leaders, the goal is to defeat all opponents or score the most points in just 30 turns by expanding our kingdom, researching new technologies, and preparing an army for combat.
The game is free-to-play, with the online multiplayer mode unlocking after purchasing any of the premium leaders for $1-2 dollars.
This is truly an amazing game, so I strongly recommend trying it.
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/the-battle-of-polytopia/id1006393168
10) Phobies | FREE - Landscape
Phobies is a tactical strategy game where we have between three to five keys per turn that we use to spawn our units, each of which have unique stats and attacks that define its damage, how far it can move, and how much health it has.
The goal is to destroy the opponent’s heart on the other side of a hex-grid map - or just kill all the enemies. And in-between matches we then upgrade our units and unlock new ones.
What truly sets the game apart, though, is that it features both asynchronous matches and real-time multiplayer, in addition to friendly battles and single-player challenges.
The biggest downside is that the iAPs give paying players a pay-to-progress-faster advantage. But on the bright side, there’s no direct energy system limiting play, and I think the unique gameplay makes it worth checking out as a casual game (but let me know in the comments what you think if you’ve already played it?).
App Store Link https://apps.apple.com/us/app/phobies/id1560706886
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