Independent strategic games that embarrass opponents with a large budget

Strategic games with a large budget may feel as if they were made by a committee: safe and a little too predictable. But independent strategic games? They risk. Violate the rules. And more often than not, they will surprise you in a way that big boys will not be.

After I sank hundreds of hours on both sides of the spectrum, I found that the most memorable strategic moments often come from minor studies willing to be strange, courageous or deeply personal. It could be a mechanic I have never seen before, or a story that hits harder than expected. Either way, they often remind me why I fell in love with strategic games.

10

Under violation

Every decision hurts (in a good way)

Until violation is a game of rare tactics that feel more like chess than war. There is no random chance. Every hostile move is telegrapated. So, if you lose, unfortunately you're a mistake. This kind of decision on high betting is exactly why I love strategic games.

I spent hours repeating one unsuccessful turn in my head and wondering what I could do. It is a perfect example of how independent games get rid of fluff and force you to really think. No alignment of trees or movie bloating. It's just an elegant (and painful) decision -making.

9

Slipways

A great strategy without war

It took a small team to ask, “What if Stellaris had no fight?” And Slipways is an answer. Instead of driving the empires through diplomacy or battle, you combine planets together with trade routes in puzzles that are more zen than zero sum.

I did not expect to love it (I assumed that I would miss high lives on the line), but the optimization of the economy across the stars is surprisingly satisfactory. It is a refreshing peaceful and at the same time requires some high decision -making.

8

Against a storm

Building a city with real tension

Most city builders are cozy until they are. Against the storm, they throw you into a roguelet loop, where you build settlements that they know that an eternal storm will eventually swallow them. These upcoming hours add real tension and somehow will never get old.

I lost an overview of how many beaver colonies I built and watched Fall. Replayability is an unrivaled and rotating challenge has employed me much longer than I originally expected.

7

Wargroove

Magic and challenge to the same extent

I grew up with Advance Wars, so Wargroove was an immediate nostalgia, but it's more than a clone. His art and animation of pixels feel handmade and special capabilities of commanders add another layer of tactics.

What really connected me was a campaign. It's hard enough, but never completely unfair. I remember losing the same mission three times in a row, every time I tuned my strategy slightly until it finally clicked. This kind of stimulating and teaching curves is rare and Wargroove nails it without a giant team of Dev. It's hard but feasible.

6

Shadowhand

Tactical Solitaire is now a real genre

Yes, Shadowhand is a strategic game based on Solitaire (and yes, rules). You play as a nobleman-outlow-outlaw, solve the puzzles of cards when equipment and tensile fighting equipment. I expected it to be a trick, but the clocks flew while I was obsessed with armor statistics and combo chains.

What AAA by Greenlight “Historical Solitaire-RPG with pistols”? None, so it works. It is a completely idea in the left field with a heart and a surprising mechanical depth. It's not a game that works on paper, but somehow does it.

5

Rimworld

A fun kind of disaster

I lost colonists for fires, plague and one guy who got about 25 deer. Rimworld is not about victory; It is a story of stories. Everything is governed by systems that interact in chaotic ways. A large budget version would add cutscenes or forced targets.

But Rimworld works just because it allows you to choose your own goals and then spoil terribly. It's somehow a story based on a story without any real campaign. You will remember the names of your colonists many years later. This is not just a strategy. This is a narration.

4

Syx song

From a pile of dirt to the realm

This happens if one person sits between urban builders for 20 years and then creates his own. Syx songs start small. I had 12 farmers and the only shack. And then it turns into large cities with more than 10,000 people, each simulating with complete plans.

Places are absolutely clumsy. However, I would take it to streamline the same modern city Simus. Looks like you're playing a new game. It is not a version of the game you played 10 years ago. Each system of interconnection: education, hygiene, crime, culture. It's a depth I didn't know I wanted.

3

Bad north

Brutality

Do not be fooled by soft pastels. Bad North is ruthless. You defend small islands from the Viking invasions in tactical skirmishes in real time, where each lost unit is permanent. I love how quiet it is. No bombastic music or dramatic cutscenes. Just wind, waves and sudden violence.

Very few games trust silence, especially when war is involved. But the bad north somehow makes it beautiful. Every island feels like a minimalist puzzle, and when something goes wrong, you will have nothing but smoke (and then try again.)

2

Battle of Polytopia

Strategy at a break for lunch

Polytopia is what happens when you cook 4x mechanics into a pure concentrate. The turns are anxious, the maps are tight and there are only enough technologies and wars that scratch it itching without demanding six hours of your life.

At first I played it on my phone on the whim and expected it to be discarded. Instead, I got into the optimization of cities and the timing of the invasion down on the move. It is the most entertaining in a minute I had in a strategic game, and it is proof that you do not need 200 systems to make the domination satisfactory.

1

Warpips

Chaos but do it tactical

Warpips resembles a children's game with robust tanks and BobBleead soldiers. But below it is a tight RTS with some serious depth. You manage the economy, unit synergies and deployment across short messy battles. What distinguishes is the way it cropped fat. No micromanagement of base building, no endless technological trees.

Instead, it is just raw decision -making in a 15 -minute doss. I played a lot of RTS games that feel bloated. This game feels that it chooses the best parts of the genre and leaves the rest.