Best Turn-Based Tactics Games on Steam

Turn-based tactics is the genre of the small, terrible decision: one soldier out of cover, one grenade thrown a tile short, one percentage roll that costs you a character you had grown attached to. Unlike grand strategy it stays at squad scale, and unlike a full RPG the fight itself is the whole game. The best entries make every turn feel like a puzzle you are allowed to lose. These are the sharpest turn-based tactics games on Steam, and most of them pair the campaign with achievement lists built around ironman runs, clean missions and no-casualty clears.

1

XCOM 2

The modern benchmark for the genre, and meaner than its predecessor thanks to mission timers that punish turtling. The War of the Chosen expansion adds recurring rival characters and is the version most people should play.

View achievements & guides →

2

Into the Breach

Tactics stripped to a perfect-information puzzle: you can see exactly what the enemy will do next turn and must rearrange the board to stop it. Runs are short, restarts are cheap, and it is the most approachable game here.

View achievements & guides →

3

Jagged Alliance 3

A genuine revival of the mercenary-squad formula, with a strategic map, funny well-written mercs and satisfyingly granular gunfights. Long campaign, and the personalities carry it as much as the combat.

View achievements & guides →

4

BATTLETECH

Slow, weighty mech combat where you target individual limbs and heat management matters as much as accuracy. The mercenary campaign layer of contracts and repair bills gives every fight financial stakes.

View achievements & guides →

5

Wasteland 3

A post-apocalyptic RPG whose combat is full turn-based tactics, complete with cover, ammo types and squad synergies. The writing is bleak and funny and the party build variety is enormous.

View achievements & guides →

6

Invisible, Inc.

Turn-based stealth rather than turn-based combat: you are avoiding guards and hacking systems on a countdown, not winning firefights. Tense, elegant, and unlike anything else on this list.

View achievements & guides →

7

Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden

Combines real-time stealth positioning before the fight with turn-based combat once it starts, which makes the ambush setup half the game. Short and focused, with a striking post-apocalyptic world.

View achievements & guides →

8

Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate - Daemonhunters

Grey Knights tactics with wonderfully brutal execution animations and a campaign layer racing against a spreading plague. More aggressive than XCOM - your squad is meant to charge.

View achievements & guides →

9

Tactical Breach Wizards

Compact puzzle-tactics about kicking wizards through windows, with a rewind button that removes almost all frustration. Very funny, and every level has an optimal solution worth chasing.

View achievements & guides →

10

Hard West 2

Weird-western tactics built around chaining kills for free turns and bouncing bullets off metal objects. The Bravado mechanic rewards aggression in a genre that usually punishes it.

View achievements & guides →

11

Marvel's Midnight Suns

Card-driven superhero tactics that plays far better than its premise suggests, with environmental attacks and a surprisingly deep hero relationship layer between missions. Give it a few hours before judging it.

View achievements & guides →

Updated 2026-08-15. Every game links to its full SteamVault page with achievement stats, rarity and community completion times.