4 – Kriegsfront Tactics
I have recently published my first impressions on the freely available prologue for Kriegsfront Tactics, and boy, do I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by everything that was on display. The striking PlayStation 1 art style looks amazing, the turn-based strategy basics of the 2011 XCOM: Enemy Unknown are here, but with plenty of new strategic depth with the addition of mechs, modular damage, and the ability to equip more than just one weapon or weapon type per mech, giving players true flexibility when creating their forces. The 1970s Southeast Asian setting also makes for some very interesting and seldom-seen environments of lush and dense jungles, which are a tactical challenge and opportunity in and of themselves. I cannot wait to get my hands on Kriegsfront Tactics and play the whole thing. If you don’t already have Kriegsfront Tactics on your wishlist, then you should, because this one of the best turn-based strategy games to wishlist for 2026.
3 – MENACE
Now, I’m not going to lie to you, but I have been on quite a rollercoaster of emotions with MENACE, the first one being excitment when I head the developers of Battle Brothers were making a sci-fi turn-based strategy game with Hooded Horse as a publisher, then disappointment when no updates were given for months at a time, and recently, a massive spike of hype after having spent a couple of days giving it a whirl during its Steam demo. MENACE is shaping up to be one of the best turn-based strategy games of the 2020s, at least from what I was able to access with its turn-based tactical system. There’s a whole meta layer of grand strategy that’s yet to be revealed, so if the team manages to hit the nail on the head in that aspect too, things are shaping up amazingly for MENACE.
2 – Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era
I went into Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era with some expectations that it was going to be a decent turn-based strategy game. What I didn’t expect at all was the game opening a whole host of hidden memories I had from playing Heroes of Might & Magic on the Game Boy Colour as a kid, and how well my very limited knowledge from that experience translated instantly into Olden Era. The game is such a throwback to the Heroes of Might & Magic games of the late 90s and early 2000s that I think every fan of the series who has been here since those days is going to have a blast with this one. I spent nearly an entire week just playing its very limited map on the demo over and over again, trying out new army compositions, new factions, and looking out for new, exciting enemies. If the team manages to improve the UI visibility and can keep things from getting stale after a while, I sincerely think that Heroes of Might & Magic has the potential to be one of the best strategy games of 2026.