No aliens this time, just two human factions fighting for control and freedom on Mars. On one side, Capital’s corporate army; on the other, Labor’s revolutionaries. In between, the Red Planet and plenty of XCOM-style tactics.
This is, in short, Mars Tactics, the Takibi Games project I’ve been following for a long time and can’t wait to play.
It was missing a release date, and even though I hoped it would arrive in 2025, publisher Hooded Horse released a new trailer during the PC Gaming Show: Tokyo Direct 2025, indicating May 2026 as the launch window, so there’s still a bit of a wait.
While showing more of its layered structure and tools of the trade. The new gameplay trailer highlights the campaign’s two-front design: a broad strategic layer that moves forces across the planet, and tactical battles where squads clash in tight, destructible spaces.
It shows the real-time strategic map where players decide movements and logistics before dropping into turn-based encounters.
In the field, units use artillery, drones, and improvised solutions to break stalemates. The publisher calls out management and squad customization, a gunsmith mode for weapon tweaks, call-in airstrikes, and even a jackhammer drill, another way to open a path or deny cover when explosives aren’t ideal.
Mars Tactics also leans into the setting’s faction split. Players choose between Capital, the corporate military arm with resources and reach, or Labor, the revolutionaries who fight with limited supplies and adaptable tactics.
That choice affects what you build on the strategic layer, who you train, and how your squads evolve.
Environments are fully destructible, so cover never lasts long, and that equipment variety matters, drones for scouting or strikes, conventional artillery for area denial, and kits you can modify through gunsmithing to fit a role rather than chasing abstract stats.
The updated release plan moves the game to spring next year. Hooded Horse and Takibi Games now list May 2026, with distribution across Steam, GOG, and the Epic Games Store. Below the new gameplay trailer.
