10 – Civilization VI – 88
To put Civilization VI at number 10 is almost criminal, but it was you guys that did this, not me! Not only is Civilization one of the most venerable series in gaming History, where every game was amazing (even Beyond Earth, yes!) up until the release of Civilization VII. The sixth entry in the franchise kept all of the major changes made from Civilization IV to Civilization V, especially the elimination of doomstacks, and added a fantastic district system to city management that finally leveled up one of the most boring aspects of the game. It’s the best of all worlds, and the best game in the series.
9 – Shogun Showdown – 88
Shogun Showdown was released in 2024 and went completely under the radar for most of the strategy gaming audience, so I hope this article will shine some light on it. A turn-based combat game with roguelike and deck-building elements (you’ll see how this trend became quite popular this decade), where you build your deck and fight the enemy on a 2D plane where both of you can only move left and right (simultaneously), and use that limited space alongside your moves to avoid taking damage while dishing out the maximum amount of punishment you can.
8 – Unity of Command II – 88
What is this? How come a wargame has landed here? Is this real-life? Apparently so! To be fair, if a wargame was going to show up in this list, it would have to be something that had a little bit of mainstream appeal, and it doesn’t surprise me one bit that it was Unity of Command II, one of the most accessible wargames ever made. The second entry in the franchise took everything that made the first one so special: the amazing art style, the perfectly designed UI, mechanical simplicity, and brain-scrambling puzzles masquerading as operational strategy, and took it to the Western Front. While not a personal favorite of mine, and that’s mostly because of its overreliance on puzzle-like mission design, I can easily see why it was a fantastic entry title for people who wanted to start delving into wargames as a genre. The game often goes on sale for pennies on the dollar, so don’t miss out if you see this one on a Steam Sale!
7 – Mewgenics – 88
The most recent release of this article is Mewgenics, a game from Edmund McMillen and Tyler Glaiel, the guys better known for creating The Binding of Isaac and The End Is Nigh. These two teamed up to create one of the most fascinating (and kind of disturbing) strategy games of the last decade. The player builds a cat army through breeding and then sends them into some of the most brutal turn-based combat we have ever seen. With over 1000 unique abilities, there’s plenty of improvement to do on your whiskered warriors. Like The Binding of Isaac, the goal is to experiment, build, and break the game to create the most powerful units possible.
6 – XCOM 2: War of the Chosen – 88
Like Civilization VI, it was my expectation to see XCOM 2 ranking top 3 in this list, maybe even occupying the golden throne that is the first place, but you guys wanted it to be number 6, so I don’t want to hear about it! What I found particularly interesting was how War of the Chosen was ranked higher than the base game itself, so I placed it here. The War of the Chosen DLC is one of the best DLCs in gaming history.
While most DLCs add a couple of new missions here, some new classes there, the War of the Chosen added a completely new way to play the base game, by adding all of the above, while including the titular Chosen characters. These are the most powerful units in XCOM history, and they act as a constant threat to your efforts. They’ll show up during missions and the strategic layer and lay waste to your best plans. With this addition also came several ways to deal with the threat, adding another layer of strategic (and tactical) complexity to a base game that was filled to the brim with it. I think that if you want to completely experience XCOM 2, you have to do it with War of the Chosen on.
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