Over the last decade, Paradox Interactive has become one of the titans of the strategy games genre. Focusing mostly on historical titles. Paradox has blown all others out of the water in their depictions of the historical periods their games are set in.

The mechanical and strategic depth present in some of these games is truly astounding. There’s no better tribute to Paradox’s fine work then that their fans measure their playtime, not in hours spent. But in how many thousands of hours were spent playing a game.

Stellaris

Stellaris is a 4X grand strategy hybrid that Paradox Interactive released in 2016. You take the reins of your civilization beginning in 2200 with your people’s first discovery of FTL technology. 

You begin by creating a species where you can choose their appearance, traits, and ethics. For appearance, you have the option to choose everything from humans to weird fungal-tree people. There are also plenty of mods that add new races to the game. 

You will order your ships, to explore, conquer, and exploit the star systems around you. Eventually, you’ll meet other civilizations and have to engage in diplomacy or go to war. Combat is more about proper ship design and fleet composition than any sort of tactical maneuvering. 

The game has found its footing over the years. Becoming both more focused on its mechanics and more expansive in terms of the customization of your civilization. The game is unlike other Paradox titles that focus purely on Grand Strategy. Stellaris mixes elements of 4X games into its gameplay.

Stellaris is well worth the time of any Sci-Fi fan who’s looking to build up a civilization to conquer the galaxy.

Hearts of Iron IV

Hearts of Iron IV is a WW2 grand strategy wargame that was released in 2016.

The game covers the period of World War II from 1936 to 1950. This is considerably shorter than most Paradox grand strategy games. It is this intense focus that allows Hearts of Iron IV to cover its period in much greater depth than other games.

The main focus of the game is to supply and control the military forces of your nation. With the hope of leading them to victory, of course. Most of your time in the early game will be spent gathering resources, building factories, and training your troops. All in preparation for the ultimate struggle.

Military forces are divided up into land, naval, and air. You’ll have to effectively manage all three branches to gain success on the battlefield.

Your nation’s path will be guided by a focus tree which is a set of missions that take a certain amount of time to complete. Once done give your nation some sort of advantage.

Focus missions are meant to mirror either the historical reality or historical possibilities. Allowing you to take history off in a different direction.  

Unlike more expansive Paradox games, The game is very focused on the period of WW2. Gameplay-wise the production capabilities of your nation. The game relies heavily on the “focus trees” for gameplay pacing. If you don’t have the DLC adding the focus tree or that nation doesn’t have a focus tree, the game flounders. 

If you’re at all interested in World War 2 Hearts of Iron IV is a must-try game for you. The ability to play as any nation during the era, and see what decisions you would make is an exceptional experience.  

Imperator: Rome

Imperator: Rome is set during the ancient Diadochi period when Alexander’s empire has split between their successors.

The map is absolutely gorgeous and there are tons of different city-states, tribes, and kingdoms to choose from in the ancient world. Combat has also seen improvement from earlier Paradox games allowing for some more hands-on tactical decisions before the battle.

Often it seemed to be trying to be both Crusader Kings 2 and Europa Universalis 4 rolled into one without the core focus of their games. 

While there are tons of different nations to choose from, many noted that playing as a tribe in Germany is almost identical to playing a tribe in Iberia or Britain.

Same with Rome which played like any other republic and didn’t even have two consuls in the head of its government at launch, though this was later patched in. 

Since launch, the game has much improved, Paradox has added mission trees, new religious mechanics, and completely reworked the population system.

While all this is for the better the game still suffers from a lack of core tension: maybe it’s that conquest is too easy, or that no other state seems to be able to match your rate of expansion, or that the internal politics don’t have the same bite as Crusader Kings.

March of Eagles

March of the Eagles is a Paradox Grand Strategy game released in early 2013.

It is the greater focus on Warfare, something that’s been fairly static in most Paradox games. To help with this, Paradox had AGEOD come in to help consult for the game. 

The core combat system remains the same as Europa Universalis, there are quality of life features here that I’m surprised haven’t shown up in the later Paradox titles. “March to the Guns” allows nearby armies to automatically go to the aid of each other when one gets into a battle. 

This eliminates the often tedious micromanagement of armies in later Paradox games. The way that victory is now achieved is through Dominance. Which is a modifier that awards points to the most powerful nation in either Army or Naval power.

The game has a smaller historical scope like Hearts of Iron IV and executes on it reasonably well. 

If you like Europa Universalis 4 but are disappointed in the way the game reflects the Napoleonic era then this game is right up your alley. It’s not as polished as more recent Paradox releases but is fun nonetheless.

Hearts of Iron III

Hearts of Iron III was released in 2009.  The game is set during World War 2 from 1936 to 1947.

Whereas its sequel is a good game, Hearts of Iron III is more of a simulation of World War 2. The game is extremely complex, which provides a huge amount of possibilities for your decisions to have an impact. 

The game does have a problem where being an Allied country means you’ll be sitting around for the first few years waiting for the Axis nations to start being bad. 

You can cut down on the micromanagement by giving a single order to your HQ, which is less efficient but more time effective. The game is good if difficult to get into, the interface isn’t great and neither is the tutorial. 

The game is often derided for being overly micro intensive, which it certainly can be, but the depth of gameplay available and the overall simulation of the war is something every World War 2 fan should at least experience once.

Europa Universalis III

Europa Universalis III was released in 2007.  The game begins in 1453, right after the Fall of Constantinople, and continues to 1789, just past the beginning of the French Revolution.

The expansion of Napoleon’s Ambition extends the end game year forward to 1821.

Once you choose your nation you’ll have control over all the forces of your nation, as well as how the government is run, which is influenced by sliders. 

You’ll be conducting diplomacy, warfare, and exploration throughout your time playing, seeking to expand through any means necessary. You can set up a merchant hegemony, colonial empire, or anything you’d like your nation to be.

While the game is now considerably older and the graphics have not aged gracefully, there are still some interesting ideas here that didn’t show up in the sequel, Europa Universalis IV.

Things like the population, spies, the way monarch points and ideas worked are all interesting counterpoints to the current design featured in the sequel.

Victoria II

Victoria II was released in 2010. It gives you control of a 19th-century nation. You’ll lead your nation from 1836-1936, through the heart of the industrial revolution.

You can participate in the scramble for Africa, the Great War, and the rise of communism. 

Victoria II focuses on internal management, tasking you with keeping your country on the cutting edge of industrialization and political upheavals happening during this period.

The most important system by far is the economy, which is simulated with thousands of independent Pops each with their own needs, who will purchase goods. This creates a dynamic market system where the cost of goods is entirely based on demand. 

Pops will automatically change their profession based on societal changes or government programs, such as encouraging more clergymen to increase the overall literacy rate. You’ll also be tasked with either passing or opposing societal reforms like Minimum wages, and allowing for political parties. 

The game really shines when playing as one of the eight Great Powers. You’ll now be able to influence other nations and add them to your sphere of influence, essentially opening up their markets to you first. You’ll also be tasked with participating in crises, which arise when two great powers back different sides in a dispute and can lead to an all-out war. 

Victoria’s economic simulation is astounding on its own, but when paired with a great Grand strategy game it just gets even better. 

I’d recommend this game to anyone who’s tired of just having warfare and would rather see their country prosper under their enlightened leadership.

Favorite: Crusader Kings II

Crusader Kings II is a grand strategy game set in the Middle Ages that was released in 2012. 

The game takes place from 769 to 1452. Throughout the entire medieval period up until a year before the fall of Constantinople. 

Where in most Paradox games you choose a nation to rule, in Crusader Kings II you’ll be choosing a character, one of the medieval lords of Europe. And, instead of warfare and diplomacy, the game focuses on dynastic management and character relationships. 

You can take the role of anyone from Ghenghis Khan to William the Conqueror, or design your own custom character. The game only ends when your last dynastic character dies or you lose all your fiefdoms. 

Diplomacy is conducted personally, mostly through marriages. You will have to balance marrying for an advantageous political alliance with the genetic traits of the spouse since those can be passed to your offspring and affect your dynasty in the future. 

Crusader Kings II is my favorite Paradox game due to the amount of roleplaying options at your disposal, no strategy game is better at creating interesting emergent stories. Where CK2 does fall down is in some of its mechanics being easily exploitable, leading to the best Grand Strategy game being…

BEST: Europa Universalis IV

Europa Universalis IV is a grand strategy released in 2013.

You will take your nation from the late medieval period through the Revolutionary era from 1444 to 1821. You’ll manage everything from administration, trade, warfare, and diplomacy. Like most Paradox grand strategy games you can choose any nation in the world to start as.

The greatest draw of Europa is its detailed diplomacy system. You can create alliances, form coalitions, and conduct espionage against rival nations. Once you’ve had enough of talking then you can take your nation to war.

Combat requires strategic forethought, too choose the best terrain, army composition, and generals to lead your troops.  

You’ll also have to lead your nation through world-changing events like the reformation, colonization, and the birth of the printing press. Gameplay gets harder when not playing as a European nation, as the European powers will be looking to exploit any weaknesses they find to take your land. 

The great thing about Europa Universalis 4 is the freedom with which you can determine the path your nation takes. You can become a colonial superpower, establish trade monopolies, and conquer the world. 

Europa Universalis is the best grand strategy game Paradox has released, if only for the breadth of its features. The game also covers a huge period of time and has gotten a lot of love with DLCs and patches over the years. 

Conclusion

I absolutely love Paradox games, they provide an unheard of level of depth and decision making unmatched by almost any other game company.

Their Strategy games are truly strategic, requiring you to plan and execute on complex problems.

With the coming release of Crusader Kings III, I can’t wait to see what Paradox brings next.

This was my list of the Best Paradox Grand Strategy Games in 2020. Let me know what you think down in the comments.

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Most strategy games thrust you into the role of a civilized monarch or omnipotent overseeing god. This is all well and good but there’s an alluring charm to being the ruler of a small group of people struggling your way through the world. These are games where societies were no less complex and brutal survival was the order of the day.

Tribal games usually feature a smaller scale of play, focusing on a few hundred people instead of hundreds of thousands. Instead of sprawling empires, you’ll be managing a number of settlements.

It’s this smaller scale that helps with prevent the classic strategy game problem of growing too large to quickly and all challenge leaving the game.

All this creates the ability to get to know your tribe members more personally and allows for more rewarding character-based gameplay. 

Our List of the Best Tribal strategy games

King of Dragon Pass

There’s nothing quite like leading a tribe of fantasy Celts in a deeply hostile alien world. King of Dragon Pass set in Greg Stafford’s world of Glorantha. It provides perhaps the most convincing tribal management games ever made.

The game is part story-book adventure, part-resource management and blends the two perfectly. Unlike most strategy games, victory is brought not through conquests or vicious battles. Instead, it’s brought through having more cattle than your neighbors, by giving them generous gifts, and generally acting like a tribe. You have to coexist with your neighbors not destroy them. 

This isn’t to say you won’t be fighting. You will be doing plenty of that in King of Dragon Pass but the goal is not to conquer more land from your enemies. Like the good Orlanthi, you’ll be playing, you’ll focus on raiding other clans to steal cattle not to slaughter them.

Throughout the game, you’ll be guided by your Clan Ring who advise you throughout your the story-book decisions. Giving you valuable insight into the mysterious world around you. More often than not, your clan ring will disagree which adds a level of detective work in figuring out what you’re supposed to be doing.

Making the right decisions requires you to think like a real clan elder. You may not want to punish two young lovers for their misdeeds but if you go against tribal custom your ancestor spirits will be displeased. 

The tribal management mechanics mixed with the choose-your-own-adventure moments of guiding your tribe through its settlement in this new land. It is truly excellent.

Six Ages

Six Ages is the spiritual successor of King of Dragon Pass. Released in 2017, it is incredibly faithful to its predecessor, often to its fault. It follows the gameplay formula as King of Dragon Pass. You’ll have to manage resources and follow the storybook decisions which will affect the tribe.

Where Six Ages succeeds in making itself instantly more readable than its predecessor. King of Dragon Pass was often far too obscure in terms of how your tribe was actually doing. Besides that, the game changes very little in terms of how you actually play, there’s a new setting, new gods, and a new story but little else for gameplay. 

The game is much shorter than its predecessor. Although that’s not necessarily a bad thing it does mean that you’ll cycle through the events much quicker than in KDoP, and be able to experiment more with choices.

You’re more concerned with building houses and exploring the land than with pleasing your neighbors and completing quests for kingship.

It does improve on many of the obscure mechanics present in KDoP but has a much simpler story and less about leading your tribe through its rise to Kingship and more about leading your tribe through a short period of time. 

Crusader Kings 2: Old Gods

Crusader Kings is an expansive game. While the central mechanics focus on maintaining your feudal lordship and managing your dynasty. The Old Gods DLC adds the option to play as a pagan tribal chief. 

The core of the game remains the same: you are a character managing your family and expanding your realm. But now you’ll embark on raids, form massive barbarian armies, and attempt to reform your pagan faith. 

Tribal leaders will have to maintain good relationships with their sub-chiefs. Since any Tribal vassal may now refuse your call to arms if they don’t like you. 

The tribal mechanics shine when mixed with the Norse religious group. Allowing you to become a Viking warlord pillaging lands across the known world while building your power base back in Scandinavia is one of the finest achievements in strategy gaming freedom.

You must manage other tribal concerns like ensuring your succession as chief and building up the infrastructure of your lands. 

Banner Saga Series

Mixing story-book decision making, caravan management, and turn-based tactical battles is a blend that works well in Banner Saga. You’ll be leading a band of Norse-themed refugees through a fantasy world from a mysterious enemy called the Dredge. 

The Atmosphere of dread as your ragged tribal band make their way through this land is memorable along with a cast of well written characters. The game’s narrative is well written and it’s characters each have their own motivations. 

The management portion of the game is simple but effective as you lead your band through a hostile world. You’ll often need to make difficult decisions to stay alive, and not everyone will make it. 

The tactical battles require more fitness and are where the game really shines. Your units are divided up into different classes, and the massive giant-like Varl takes up multiple spaces on the board. You’ll need to balance between attacking armor or health to claim victory. 

John Shafer’s At the Gates

To me, the most fun part of civilization was always those first few turns, when you’re people had recently settled and things were still unsure. When you grow into a powerful empire is when the game starts to get more formulaic. John Shafer, one of the designers of Civilization V, decided to turn those first few turns of the Civ experience into an entire game. 

At the Gates puts you at the head of a barbarian tribe during the fall of the Roman Empire. You’ll direct your clans to gather resources, build up your infrastructure and raid your enemies. Survival itself will be tough, as winters hit especially hard and if you aren’t prepared can ruin your entire tribe. 

You’ll have to balance your characters’ traits to prevent inter-clan feuding. You’ll have to carefully manage this alongside the fact that  resource nodes are depletable meaning you’ll have to move along once those are exhausted. 

Something to note about the game is that it often still feels like an Early Access title, bugs are prevalent and not all the features have been fully implemented, leading to frustration when tooltips and menus are filled with placeholders. 

Age of Empires I & II & III

Age of Empires starts you off as a small tribe of people, as you collect resources and advance the ages you slowly start to build up your civilization and begin to dominate your enemies. The first slow moments of AoE as you begin that journey are so sweet. 

Leading your small tribe of Stone Age villagers fighting your enemies with clubs and primitive arrows is the sort of low-tech high-intensity gameplay which is what I find so compelling about these tribal games.

As you begin to expand you’ll grow out of the tribal roots and eventually become a medieval powerhouse in your own right. The Age of Empires games are classics of the RTS space and well worth your time. 

Age of Empires III also features the Native American tribes, who are playable and use less advanced tech then the European nations.

Dawn of Man

Dawn of Man sees you in charge of a group of neolithic people who have just set down their roots to form a settlement, abandoning their hunter-gatherer lifestyle in favor of the sedentary lifestyle. 

You’ll need to balance resource production with defending your settlement from raiders, natural disasters and plague. You’ll also be able to hunt boar, bears, and mammoths. The prehistoric world is filled with danger. You’ll want to take every precaution with your vulnerable settlers but even still you won’t be able to save all of them. 

The progress in advancing through eras is rewarding. You’ll go from a few hunters fending off wolves with simple sticks to a bustling settlement surrounded by thick stone walls. 

The struggle for survival and constant challenges you’ll face along that path will keep the game interesting, although the lack of any significant endgame challenge is disappointing. 

Upcoming Tribal Strategy Games

Ancient Cities

Ancient Cities is a city-building survival game in the same vein as Dawn of Man. You will have to lead your prehistoric people through the late Neolithic era into the dawn of civilization. 

You’ll be doing standard things like researching new technology, surviving, and defending your settlement but the game will feature politics, religion, social classes and family structure in an attempt to simulate ancient society.

From the Alpha footage so far the game looks promising, you’ll start out building small wooden huts and eventually advance up to stone buildings as your society increases in complexity. 

Neolithic: First City-States

Neolithic is a city-building based on the likes of Age of Empires I, Civilization & Caesar III. The game looks promising, featuring warfare, character building, and an open world with multiple cities and villages. 

You’ll be able to customize your citizens’ appearances but your main focus will be on keeping your people happy and prosperous to attract more migrants to your city.

Since the game is open world, you’ll be able to conquer other settlements on the map, forcing them into vassalage, or trade and conduct diplomacy with them.

The developers plan on featuring an endgame where you will be tasked with building a giant temple or ziggurat and then defend it from invaders during the bronze age collapse. 

Conclusion 

We need more tribal games.

The draw of tribal games is not necessarily managing a sprawling empire but instead a group of small closely-knit people with relatively simple tech which increases the stakes for your decisions. 

These where my top picks for the best tribal strategy games, let me know what yours are in the comments below.

The post What are the Best Tribal strategy games? appeared first on StrategyFront Gaming.

Those that do choose to focus on the period run the gambit in terms of combat, historical accuracy, and gameplay. 

Here we’ve chosen our top picks for what the best Napoleonic War games are. 

Our List of the Best Napoleonic Strategy games

Scourge of War: Waterloo

Have you ever felt like Total War battles are a bit too flashy, too quick? That they’re over before you can really implement your strategy? If so, then Scourge of War is for you. Scourge provides real-time battles similar to Total war but allowing a greater depth of tactical and strategic decisions. 

Following the previous Scourge of War games set in the American Civil War. Waterloo takes us to the most iconic battle of the Napoleonic era. This is by far and away from the most comprehensive and detailed game about the Waterloo campaign.

Following the French, Prussian, and British armies through 20 scenarios, including individual sandbox battles and a campaign. 

The game gives the most realistic command in a Napoleonic wargame, allowing you to command from the saddle, sending couriers to give orders to your subordinates, orders which can be intercepted or lost. The game gives an extraordinary amount of control over the positioning and formations of your troops. This is an extremely deep strategy game with well-implemented realism mechanics that add more to the game then they take away. 

It’s only brought down by poor scenario design, where the name of the game is capturing objectives you can sometimes take and hold 1 of 3 potential objectives and win the scenario without the enemy ever counter-attacking you. This is a small critique that only some scenarios suffer from in an otherwise great game. 

Wars of Napoleon

AGEOD games generally come with several caveats, the game will crash, it will likely be slow, and the UI is absolutely atrocious, nevertheless, they are some of the best Grand Strategy Wargames out there. 

Wars of Napoleon is set, of course, in the Napoleonic era, allowing you to jump into several different time periods and campaigns throughout the period. The game has been refined to be focused intently on managing and organizing armies, no small feat in this era. 

It’s said logistics win wars, and that’s especially true in Wars of Napoleon, supply, troop condition, and command ability have far more impact on success than whichever tactics you choose.

But it’s not all war, the game allows you intricate political settings to develop your empire, raise troops, and quell unrest to ensure the homefront is solid as you march across Europe.

While the clunky interface of AGEOD games is a given, the strategic challenges and freedoms presented in the game make it well worth your time. 

JTS Napoleonic Battles Series

JTS is known for its depth of gameplay, accuracy, and strategic challenge which are all present in his Napoleonic Battles Series, along with the trademark terrible UI. Like AGEOD, This is another set of clunky, yet extremely rewarding wargames that allow you to play out the greatest battles of the era.

The games are played out through either a zoomed out view showing NATO-counters or a zoomed-in view of the actual units.

The games use a hex-based system of movement, which works well. These games are deceptively simple, there are only a few things you can outright do during a turn but each decision has a cascading effect on the battle. 

There are multiple games in the series each for a pretty hefty price but what you’ll be getting is a deep and historically accurate rendition of the Napoleonic Wars. If you don’t care about graphics and just want the detail and decision making then these games are right up your alley.

Austerlitz: Napoleon’s Greatest Victory

Austerlitz, and the previous entry Waterloo: Napoleon’s Last Battle, are solid Napoleonic wargames. They use the Sid Meier’s Gettysburg engine transporting you now to the battlefields of Europe. The game is both historically accurate and provides difficult strategic situations to solve.

Thankfully, the interface is clean and gives you everything you need to take the reins of command. Austerlitz’s best feature is the ability to hand over your command to sub-generals and have them carry out your orders. These commanders will attempt to interpret and execute your orders and each has their own idea of how it should be done. 

The battle itself is difficult for the French, as it should be. Austerlitz was a masterpiece victory by Napoleon and it’s easy to see where it could have all gone wrong. 

March to Glory

March to Glory often feels more like a puzzle game than a strategy game. Instead of freely moving your units around you instead move them through various tiles. The game features 14 scenarios from the Napoleonic era as well as non-historical skirmish battles.

You can determine the tactics and formations of your troops, and it’s all pretty straightforward. You can charge, fire, form a square or column, your standard stuff. With the simplicity of the game, the terrain becomes an important factor in your success. Taking and holding strategic terrain is critical to your overall success. 

The game’s 2D graphics and overall interface make it easy to recommend, although you won’t get as much strategic depth out of it as other games on this list. It’s great for those looking for a more laid back turn-based experience.

March of the Eagles

March of the Eagles is a Paradox Grand Strategy game. Before Europa Universalis 4 and Crusader Kings 2, Paradox released smaller games as a proof of concept for these staples. For Europa Universalis 4 that predecessor was the Napoleonic March of the Eagles. 

Like all Paradox games, you’ll choose a country on the map and attempt to conquer your neighbors. The difference in March of the Eagles is the greater focus on Warfare, something that’s been fairly static in most Paradox games. To help with this, Paradox had AGEOD come in to help consult for the game. 

The core combat system remains the same but there are several quality of life features here that I’m surprised haven’t shown up in the later Paradox titles. March to the Guns is a great feature that allows nearby armies to automatically go to the aid of others.

This eliminates the often tedious micromanagement of armies in later Paradox games. The way that victory is now achieved is through Dominance which is a modifier that awards points to the most powerful nation in either Army or Naval power.

If you like Europa Universalis 4 but are disappointed in the way the game reflects the Napoleonic era then this game is right up your alley. It’s not as polished as more recent PAradox releases but is fun nonetheless.

Cossacks II: Napoleonic Wars

While never as popular as the similar Age of Empires series, Cossacks II is a strong RTS which mixes Age of Empires style scenarios with Total War regiments and morale systems.  

You play as one of the European Great powers during the era. Three is a campaign that plays fast and loose with historical accuracy but features some fun scenarios. You can also jump into the Battle for Europe Mode which is a meta-campaign that allows you to conquer Europe and adds context to your RTS skirmishes. 

Unlike many RTS, the addition of a morale system means that not all fights are to the death. This encourages flanking and other useful tactics to break the enemy instead of just annihilating them. 

The game overall does a good job of managing the balance between micromanaging units and making interesting strategic decisions. While it’s not as historically accurate as others on this list it is a great time. 

Campaigns on The Danube

Campaigns on the Danube is an interesting hex-based operational wargame. Instead of fighting in a single battle or managing an entire empire, you’ll be focused on a single campaign.

The game features two campaigns; Napoleon’s Austerlitz campaign of 1805 and the 1809 Wagram campaign. The scenarios of both campaigns present interesting strategic options, with 1805 being much easier for the French and 1809 having Allies on a more even footing. The map is wide but not tall as you’re looking to drive east towards Vienna. 

The game is unique in its dedication to the historically accurate depiction of a campaign instead of battles. It’s an interesting change-up to the usual wargame, and fans of board games will feel right at home. 

Napoleon: Total War

If other games on this list surpass Napoleon: Total War in historical accuracy, the depths of tactical decisions, or overall realism, none can match up to it in terms of the pure spectacle it provides. I’d easily call Napoleon: Total War the prettiest game on this list and beyond that it’s also an amazingly fun game. 

Napoleon: Total War has you both on the turn-based strategic campaign and in the real-time battles. The game features a series of mini-campaigns detailing Napoleon’s rise and eventually culminating in a grand campaign to take over all Europe.

Players can also jump into the historical battles and test their own skills against Napoleon, although these are not really historically accurate, with Austerlitz being a notable disappointment. 

No other campaign captures the whizz of cannon and epic proportions of the battles during this era in a graphically pleasing way. The gameplay is smooth and intuitive allowing for easy pick-up and play without having to read pages of the manual.

The game also features a DLC depicting the Peninsular War which is often neglected in Napoleonic era wargames.

Fields of Glory

In 1993 MicroProse released Fields of Glory (not to be confused with Field of Glory), anticipating both the Total War and Sid Meier’s games. The game simulates tactical battles during the Waterloo campaign through its beautiful pixel art style.

While the game looks good, the AI is completely incompetent even on harder difficulties, and there’s very little tactical depth once you know what you’re doing.

This game is an absolute classic which I would recommend for anyone who would like to see just how far Napoleonic wargames have come. 

Ultimate Admiral: Age of Sail

Ultimate Admiral is certainly one of the most unique games on this list. Blending both naval and land combat Ultimate Admiral follows up on the excellent Ultimate General: Gettysburg, and the not so excellent Ultimate General: Civil War.

The game takes you through two campaigns one following the career of Horatio Nelson up to Trafalgar and the other during the American War of Independence. Both campaigns feature a mix of naval and land warfare, which is similar to previous entries in the series. 

Gameplay-wise, you’ll be dragging arrows around for units to follow until they make contact with the enemy. Then you’ll sit and wait until one side runs away. The tactical combat is simple with the only real option being to charge, otherwise, it’s all about positioning. 

One thing to note is that if you’re looking for a savvy AI opponent then this game is for you, the AI is both aggressive and uses terrain to its advantage. If you like a mix of tall ships and land warfare then this game is for you. 

Conclusions

Napoleon was a titan of his era. His generalship changed the face of warfare in Europe and affected almost every country in Europe.

It’s no wonder then why playing back his triumphs and defeats are so fun. The era is one of dashing romanticism, where the scale and bloodshed were on a scale never before seen. 

We gave our top picks for the Best Napoleonic Strategy games tell us what yours are in the comments down below. 

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