Get ready to dive into a world of thrilling Turn-Based Games with these ten new 2023 releases! From fantasy realms to dystopian metropolises, these games offer unique experiences that will keep you entertained for hours. Whether you’re a strategy enthusiast, a fan of emotional storytelling, or looking for a nostalgic twist on monster collecting, there’s something here for sure.
So get ready to embark on epic adventures and engage in tactical battles like never before. Let’s explore these exciting 10 new turn-based RPGs and Strategy games together!
Age of Wonders 4
PC, PS5, Xbox Series
Age of Wonders 4 is a highly customizable 4X fantasy game that offers a well-crafted strategy experience. It stands out for its immersive gameplay, varied tactical battles, and excellent pacing. One unique aspect is the ability for rulers to ascend to a pantheon and become recurring characters in future adventures, adding depth and continuity to the gameplay.
The game features a story where powerful Sorcerer Kings travel between different realms, providing a fresh start on each new map. The account-level progression system is well-implemented, avoiding forced monetization or microtransactions. Themed, story-based realms offer different victory conditions and engaging quests with memorable antagonists, providing a refreshing gameplay experience.
Age of Wonders 4 offers extensive customization options through empire creation tools, allowing players to break stereotypes and create races with unique traits and abilities. The progression system based on mystical tomes and alignments adds depth to race development and unit customization. While not the game’s most vital point, tactical battles are fast-paced and challenging.
The game’s graphics and user interface strike a balance between realism and stylization, with visually appealing units and maps. The interface is well-organized and easy to navigate, providing useful tooltips for additional information. Overall, Age of Wonders 4 impresses with its customizable gameplay, engaging story realms, and well-crafted mechanics. It offers a rewarding experience for fans of the genre, combining strategic depth with captivating battles.
Fuga Melodies Of Steel 2
PC, PS4/PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch
Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 is a highly anticipated sequel that continues the story and gameplay of its predecessor. It follows a group of children chasing down a rampaging tank to save their friends. The game explores the emotional impact of war, particularly focusing on the struggles of the protagonist, Malt, who must grapple with leadership responsibilities and the consequences of his choices.
With multiple endings and a playtime of around 16-20 hours, the game offers a captivating narrative that rewards player decisions. The battle system retains its tactical nature, featuring new elemental attacks and strategic options. The Soul Cannon mechanic returns, presenting difficult choices with lasting consequences. The game also improves town navigation and NPC interactions, adding depth to the world and rewarding player engagement.
Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 is a remarkable sequel that combines familiar elements with new features, delivering an addictive and emotionally impactful experience.
Limbus Company
PC, Mobile
Limbus Company is a captivating game that combines turn-based RPG and real-time brawl mechanics. Engage in exhilarating battles where units on both sides act simultaneously, and clashes between characters determine the outcome. Use the right skills to win clashes and command units by connecting skill icons on a grid.
Create diverse strategies with a cast of unique characters, known as Sinners, and equip them with powerful E.G.O weapons. Explore a massive dystopian metropolis and embark on a gripping journey to find the Golden Boughs. Players immerse themselves in the world of Project Moon with fully voiced dialogue in Korean, and experience the innovative gameplay and captivating storytelling it offers. Plus it’s totally free on Steam.
Cassette Beasts
PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series
Cassette Beasts is an indie game that caters to players who have grown tired of traditional Pokémon games. It features a unique cassette tape system for recording monsters and presents visually appealing sprites and backgrounds. The game offers complex interactions between monster types, adding strategic depth to battles. With two-on-two battles and the ability to fuse with companions, the gameplay becomes even more intricate.
Cassette Beasts charms players with its nostalgic appeal, ‘90s aesthetics, and witty humor. However, the game can become repetitive, and collecting monsters loses its incentive after assembling a functional team. Despite these flaws, Cassette Beasts remains a fun and visually captivating experience, showcasing the talent of its small development team. Give it a try on Steam
Ash of Gods: The Way
PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One, Mobile
Ash of Gods: The Way, a turn-based deck builder game that offers a captivating story-driven experience. The game emphasizes the importance of choice both in and out of combat, with the outcome of battles directly impacting the narrative. As a young man seeking to prevent another war, players infiltrate a rival nation by participating in The Way, a war games tournament.
The game features fully voiced dialogues, bringing the characters to life and immersing players in the story. The music and sound effects enhance the overall experience, adapting to different settings and adding impact to combat. In terms of gameplay, Ash of Gods: The Way follows the deck-building pattern, allowing players to gradually expand their card collection and build unique decks with various factions.
Battles introduce dynamic rules and win conditions, constantly changing the strategies required for success. The game’s visuals are stunning, with detailed characters and visually satisfying combat animations. The attention to detail in the visuals, including subtle animations during conversations, adds depth to the overall presentation. Ash of Gods: The Way impresses with its engaging story, impactful choices, and ever-changing combat mechanics, making it a must-play for turn-based and story-driven game enthusiasts. On PC via Steam
Abalon
PC
Abalon is an indie roguelike game developed by D20Studios and published by WhisperGames. It combines grid-based tactical turn-based combat with strategic card mechanics and deck customization, drawing inspiration from Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering.
The game features intuitive controls, challenging battles, and a wide range of cards and playable characters. While it falls short in the graphics department, Abalon offers an engaging experience for players who enjoy tactical challenges and deck-building in a fantasy setting. With improvements in combat balancing and visuals, it has the potential to be even better.
Darkest Dungeon 2
PC
I’m in the midst of playing this game and getting my virtual butt kicked like never before in my entire existence, but guess what? It’s still not enough! Seriously, it’s like they’ve invented a magical formula for making me suffer, and boy, does it work like a charm!
But here’s the hilarious twist: despite the relentless punishment, I can’t help but admit that Darkest Dungeon 2 has somehow managed to outshine its predecessor. It is an immersive roguelike game that takes players on a desperate road trip through a decaying landscape to prevent the apocalypse. With a party of heroes and a stagecoach, players face internal and external threats in a refined turn-based combat system. Uncover tragic origin stories and unlock the heroes’ full potential.
Each expedition is a unique journey with its own story, providing resources for future improvements. Engage with upgrades and boons to devise new strategies. Manage the heroes’ stress and relationships as they bond or clash. Traverse nightmarish environments and explore five distinct regions. Find respite at the Inn to relieve stress and strengthen bonds. Confront terrifying manifestations of weaknesses on a journey to the Mountain. Experience the game’s improved art and be immersed in an audio feast with narration, score, and sound effects.
Showgunners
PC
Showgunners is a tactical, turn-based action game developed by Artificer that provides an addicting and engaging experience. Players control Scarlett, an ex-bounty hunter, as she competes in the cyberpunk gladiatorial show, Homicidal All-Stars, aiming to be the last one standing. The game excels in its combat, offering a tight, responsive, and fair turn-based system with an Action Point (AP) mechanic and strategic use of cover. The combat UI provides valuable decision-making information, satisfying the risk/reward aspects.
Showgunners also impresses with its comprehensive customization options, including violence level, keybinding changes, and built-in integration with Twitch, Discord, and Twitter. The “Iron Man” mode adds an extra challenge by imposing limitations on saving and introducing permadeath.
The gameplay is divided into exploration sections and combat arenas, with the latter featuring various hazards, enemy types, and bosses. The addictive nature of the game lies in its balanced gameplay that caters to both newcomers and genre veterans. Showgunners strikes a good balance between offering enough variety without overwhelming complexity. It is recommended for players seeking a casual yet challenging experience in a cyberpunk setting.
Together In Battle
PC
Together in Battle is a procedural strategy RPG and team management game that excels in several areas. Players embark on a secret mission in the island kingdom of Dese, recruiting loyal fighters and uncovering a sinister conspiracy. The game focuses on building relationships among diverse and procedurally generated characters, engaging in turn-based tactical battles, and encountering random events.
The standout features include the deep characterization, where each recruit possesses distinct traits and personal histories, and the vibrant combat system that offers a wide range of tactical options such as backstabbing, elevation advantage, and destructible environments. The game also offers a wealth of content with multiple playable species, branching class promotions, numerous skills, and procedurally generated weapons and armor.
Furthermore, Together in Battle provides a campaign creation suite, allowing players to craft their own SRPG campaigns, including character creation, map editing, cut scene composition, and dialogue tree writing.
Overall, Together in Battle offers an engaging and customizable gameplay experience with its vibrant characters, dynamic combat, and extensive content options.
Miasma Chronicles
PC, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series
Miasma Chronicles is the latest effort by the folks at The Bearded Ladies, the creators of Mutant Year Zero. The game setting recalls their previous title, where real-time stealth mechanics alternate with tactical turn-based combat in XCOM-Style. Players will take on the roles of Elvis and his faithful robot as they traverse a devastated America plagued by a dark evil called Miasma to uncover the reasons for its abandonment by their mother.
All the reviews so far have praised the storytelling and noted how the stealth mechanics, although similar to Mutant Year Zero, have been greatly improved, providing a sense of satisfaction when players successfully complete an assault in a few turns. Definitely, a title that all RPG enthusiasts should at least give a try.
