5 Best Strategy Games to Play for Fans of Total War

The Total War series has long since dominated much of the strategy genre. Its penchant for large-scale battles with thousands of soldiers clashing on screen at once, in-depth campaigns, diplomacy, skill trees, and the like have made it easily one of the most compelling and, crucially, accessible grand strategy games to date. It offers so many distinct eras, each with its own unique gameplay mechanics and ideas, so it is hard to get bored with it or find an entry point you won’t enjoy.

However, as the series has matured, it has changed in ways that long-time fans and even newcomers have come to resent. As a result, while Creative Assembly figures out exactly what it wants the future of the franchise to look like, there are a plethora of alternatives for fans to enjoy. From some truly legendary strategy games that perfectly replicate the style and gameplay of the Total War series to hidden gems that fans are sure to love, there are more than enough games to entertain us all while we wait for the upcoming and highly-anticipated Total War: Medieval 3 and beyond.

5. Roma Invicta

I had always wondered what a true indie Total War experience would look like; it turns out exactly like Roma Invicta. This short but incredibly satisfying strategy game puts players in the role of the Roman legion as they attempt to conquer Gaul. You’ll send armies across the game’s small world map in an attempt to take over and bolster territories and then duke it out in small-scale battles. Everything feels like a condensed version of the Total War experience, which really isn’t a criticism. I actually love it.

Roma Invicta is the perfect game for those looking for a Total War-style campaign that can be completed in an evening. With plenty of unit variety and dynamic, strategic battles, there is a lot to get stuck into with Roma Invicta, but not so much that newcomers will be overwhelmed. There’s plenty to love about this truly underrated strategy game, including its very low price, which makes it all the more accessible. Roma Invicta may lack the blockbuster stylings of Total War, but it more than makes up for it with its great gameplay and phenomenal visuals.

4. Tabletop Tavern

Tabletop Tavern is one of my most anticipated strategy games of 2026, in large part due to its heavy Total War influences. However, as its generously sized demo is still available for people to get stuck into, we can already declare it a great Total War alternative. While skewing on the fantasy side, much like the Total War: Warhammer series, Tabletop Tavern fairly faithfully recreates Creative Assembly’s iconic approach to large-scale battles. It features numerous factions, all of which play differently from one another, a huge swathe of unit types, and all the core features you’d expect with this type of real-time strategy combat.

What makes it really stand out is its campaign. Rather than also adopting a world map you need to conquer, Tabletop Tavern is a roguelike game in which you progress across a board, picking up new units and leveling them up in an attempt to defeat a huge army at the end. It is a fairly challenging game, but one that really rewards you for great army composition and skill in battle. Tabletop Tavern also helps keep this style of combat feeling fresh, and the somewhat random nature of units you acquire makes you rethink your strategies each and every time. You can’t just line everyone up and hope for the best as you can in Total War. Tabletop Tavern really elevates the combat side of Creative Assembly’s masterpiece, and as a result, it is a very easy recommendation.

3. Strategos

Strategos takes Total War’s scale and ramps it all the way up to 100. Each battle is truly enormous, simulating thousands of soldiers clashing across giant battlefields. There are over 100 factions to choose from across the classical antiquity age, and 250+ units to control. The complexity of battle simulation in Strategos is made all the more impressive by the need to send out orders to individual units. It really tests one’s abilities as an armchair general in a way that Total War never really has.

Strategos, at the time of writing, is in Early Access, but it still has a plethora of content to engage with. There are five campaigns to play, as well as the ability to create custom battles and master historical ones. If you ever felt that Total War’s battles were lacking, then Strategos is undeniably the game for you. I’ve never quite experienced warfare on the scale that it provides, nor the strategic depth it offers either. It is immensely impressive with each and every battle, and something I suspect will only get better with time.

2. Ultimate General: Civil War

Ultimate General: Civil War is probably the most distinct entry on this list in that it doesn’t quite borrow any particular Total War feature. Unlike Strategos and Tabletop Tavern, which directly adopt Creative Assembly’s approach to battles, or Roma Invicta, which utilizes its campaign map, Civil War focuses more on the granular nature of battles. You’ll have to deeply consider ammunition, reinforcements, placement of troops, and your escape routes. Battles aren’t won by merely having more soldiers or by having a better-formed line. Flanking, morale, and positioning are utterly crucial in Civil War in a way I never felt was true of Total War.

You’ll likely lose many of your first battles in Ultimate General: Civil War as you come to grips with how seriously it takes each aspect of warfare. Fortunately, its progression systems aren’t particularly punishing as you replenish armies, buy them better equipment, and improve your skills as a general. There’s something immensely satisfying about just how complex Ultimate General: Civil War can be, and how overcoming its skilled AI is truly rewarding. Civil War is not for the casual Total War player, but for those seeking a better challenge, I cannot recommend it enough.

1. Master Of Command

Master of Command, much like Tabletop Tavern, takes the core battle mechanics of Total War: Napoleon specifically and remixes them with a unique approach to its campaign. Of course, you’ll still take part in some truly terrific large-scale battles which are, undoubtedly, as close to Total War as you’ll ever get. These look absolutely stunning in motion and require a far greater level of tactical brilliance than most Total War titles do, even with mods. Like Ultimate General: Civil War, there’s a need to strategize far more than simply outgunning your opponent, but it is never so punishing that it feels insurmountable.

However, what distinguishes Master of Command from its contemporaries is its campaign, which sees you lead an army across three separate maps, with each one increasing in difficulty. You’ll start off battling smaller foes as you build up your customizable units, collecting gear to increase their stats, and loot to sell at nearby towns. Eventually, you’ll be thrown into the throngs of battle against monolithic forces that will crush you if you’re ill-prepared. Master of Command has a really nice pace to it, one that encourages replayability across its numerous factions and creates many emergent moments you’ll remember long after you’ve turned it off. I cannot recommend Master of Command enough as it is easily my favorite alternative to Total War.

Which Total War-esque strategy games do you recommend? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

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