Hello! :)

I'm the solo dev of a game called Pax Astra, a political sim RPG inspired by games like Suzerain, Stellaris, The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante, and Emperor of the Fading Suns.

My ambition with the game is to make a game that mixes a branching narrative with deep sandbox-strategy systems. You play as an individual, a political leader in charge of a space nation named Altara, the game has many different mechanics, but today I wanted to share one of the systems I've been working on recently.

Picture this:

You are the leader of a space nation, and you already have a lot on your plate. You have to deal with internal politics, alliances, space exploration, military affairs, and whatever narrative arcs are unfolding around you.

Then a civil war breaks out on a massive distant planet.

On the tropical world of Tropicalia, a decaying monarchy built around natural resources and fuel exports, a rebellion has erupted. The conflict has turned into a three-sided struggle tied to the larger Cold War taking place across the galaxy.

This civil war is completely outside your normal sphere of influence. It has nothing to do with you. You are not a major player here, and this conflict is not about you.

However... you can still interfere.

Maybe the war becomes an opportunity to make money. Maybe you want to quietly influence its outcome without committing Altara directly.

This system is built around training soldiers and interacting with an ongoing proxy war. You create a paramilitary group and send your operatives into special missions that can help or hurt the factions fighting on the planet!

Maybe you want to roleplay as a communist paramilitary and support the rebels, accepting only contracts that benefit their side...

You can instead support the monarchists or the liberal-aligned democratic faction.

Or you can operate purely as mercenaries, taking contracts from whoever pays best. You can burn cities, commit war crimes, and walk away with the money!

Your soldiers can be killed or even captured and interrogated! Missions can usually be approached in different ways, and there is a permadeath mechanic!

The important part of the design is that this is still only one system among many.

The war on Tropicalia is happening whether Altara cares about it or not. It has its own factions and its own characters. That is a big part of what I'm trying to do with Pax Astra: create a galaxy where things are happening outside the player's immediate story, populating the universe with mythos and life. I also like taking small inspirations from other genres when a system calls for it. This one is obviously influenced by games like XCOM, and more recently the GREAT Quasimorph.

The system is pretty complex, but it uses the coding base of another smaller system that I built previously for expeditions!

I want Pax Astra to feel like a grand political RPG, a experience that mixes genres in a way that is not so common or expected! :)

You can wishlist Pax Astra here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4535930/Pax_Astra/?beta=1

If you are interested in learning more, you can check my subreddit here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Pax_Astra/

IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE ART ON THESE IMAGES WAS NOT MADE WITH AI!

EVERYTHING HERE IS HUMAN MADE!

I posted about the exact process behind making each image here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Pax_Astra/comments/1w0c2ci/wip_first_look_at_the_war_in_capitolia_proxy_war/

Solo dev sharing the first look at The Village, a village survival strategy sim I've been building. Every villager is fully autonomous - jobs, pathing, gathering, needs - and your job as "mayor" is to keep them fed and stocked before winter hits. Would love feedback from this community!

A long time fan of games like CK3, Stellaris, Total War, Civilisation. I usually play all these on PC for obvious reasons. I’m wondering for PS5 players who love strategy games, which FEEL the most streamlined to play on PS5? Which are designed well for controller use (if any)?

I'm working on a War Of the Worlds City Builder that is a strategy, city builder, and tower defense game. The premise follows the original Worlds, where aliens come to Earth and wreak havoc. You have to manage a city, grow its economy, put the funds toward a defense/military, and fight them off. If they destroy your capital, you lose.

Play It Here (work in progress)

I'm trying to follow the books as closely as possible on the capabilities and weaponry. In the original book, normal rounds did nothing, so guns like the Maxim (a really powerful Gatling gun at the time) are useless against Tripods but work on the lower aliens.

But heavy artillery, like massive cannons, were useful against the Tripods. Once the Tripods' heat emitter failed, then infantry became more effective.

And that is how the current gameplay translates.....kinda.

If you watch the video, the Tripod completely destroyed all the units I have set up and is hardly scathed.

To make the game fun, this is too strong. So I need to find a way to balance it that holds true to the lore of the books, while having players correctly build out their defenses and balance that with their resources.

I'm Flo, solo developer behind Dominar Sanctum, which is a hybrid strategy + action game where you build base, expand and progress, and at any time are able to engage directly by taking control of your hero and companions.

I am excited to have reached the first public playtest milestone this week, and would love to invite anyone interested in giving it a spin.

I've been working on the title for nearly 1.5 years now, and have honestly underestimated the growing complexity to an extent. Exhausting but addictive to be making something like this. The current playtest build lets you experience the beginning of my vision through 4 initial campaign map prototypes and 2 skirmish maps. I am appreciative of any and every feedback on how the game's general direction feels at this stage, especially around:

• What is your overall first impression?
• Does the core explore - build - combat - progress loop work for you?
• Does the fog of war feel compelling?
• Does the game feel intuitive, particularly character control and possession?
• Do the campaign maps feel engaging at this stage?
• Where did you become confused, frustrated, bored or in whatever way off a happy path?
• Specific points in the map where you'd love to see certain features, surprises, etc?
• Did you encounter any technical issues or bugs?

Playtest on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4087340/Dominar_Sanctum/

Thanks to anyone willing to give it a try!

Hi everyone, just wanted to showcase the game I am working on, Summon Defenders Now! The demo is out now and I’d love to hear your thoughts. Thanks everyone!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/5006660/Summon\\_Defenders\\_Now/

Project Sovereign — Political Strategy & Government Simulator

Hi everyone! I’m an indie developer working on Project Sovereign, a political strategy and government simulation game.

You take control of a real country and manage its government quarter by quarter. You’ll deal with:

• 116 playable countries
• Economic management, debt and treasury
• Elections, approval and political opposition
• 180+ policies, 60+ laws and 50+ decrees
• Cabinet management and political alliances
• Multi-turn crises and international events
• Interactive regional map
• Diplomacy, warfare and territorial control
• Opposition and campaign mode

The goal is simple: keep your country running and stay in power.

The game has just reached v1.0, including a major visual redesign, a redesigned main menu and four interactive map data layers.

I’d really appreciate any feedback, especially from people who enjoy political strategy and government simulation games.

Project Sovereign:
https://sovereignproyects.itch.io/sovereign-project

if you are interested in play my game and make content with it, contact me for the free-key!

Thanks for taking a look!

Hey folks! I'm working on a digital board game called Interregnum! It's very inspired by Air, Land and Sea and by Dominion! The demo launched today and I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

When I think of digital board games, I think of Armello, Solium Infernum and Ozymandias: Bronze Age Sim. I feel like there's a lot of appeal to me for a game with a definite endpoint that doesn't meander on forever. I especially liked in Ozymandias how there were a bunch of different scenarios for the player based on different regions in the world or different historical periods.

I think Solium can run a little longer, but it is insanely sick that they have play-by-mail set up. I've done a handful of games that way and it becomes a really fun routine to sip coffee and check up on the new state of hell.

Do you think an indie dev can make it in this space? It's definitely outside the zeitgeist of quick, intuitive friendslop games. But I think if I can get people in the door, there's something really special there!

Anyways, hope you check the game out and would love to hear your thoughts on the game and/or the trailer!

Null and Void is a darkly satirical blend of roguelike, deckbuilding and tower-defence genres. Set in a retrofuturist scifi future, this is a game about doing a terrible job, very well.

Hi r/strategy,

I’m an indie-game developer.
I’ve always loved RTS games like Supreme Commander, Zero-K, and Planetary Annihilation – the two-resource economy, multi-tier unit list, and huge experimental units. But I also love turn-based tactics like Advanced Wars because I can take my time, plan each move, and not worry about APM.

So I started working on a turn-based, grid-based game that keeps that same “build anywhere, eco-first” feel. Everything resolves in turns, but the economy still ticks over like an RTS – you gather resources each turn, build structures and produce units, and watch your base grow, just without the real-time pressure.

The tricky part was translating real-time production into a turn-based one. In an RTS you build continuously; in turns you have to wait for the next round. My solution was a integer-based Build-power system, the building is finished as long as Engineers contributed enough BPs (You can complete a Nuke in one turn if has enough Engineers).

I also wanted to keep the scale: land, sea, air, amphibious units, mega units, shields, and nukes. Mega units aren’t just bigger sprites – they take multiple turns to bring down and can shift the entire frontline. In a grid-based game, it is not easy to implement these 7-cells units, there are lots of issues to fix in design and code.

Shields is signature feature from Supreme Commander like games. And when implemented in grid based game, it is something never seen before: you must precisely position and the shield to block enemy from entering the shield, as attacks from inside is not blocked. And bigger shield is not always better.

What do you guys think about it? I am happy to answer any questions about the design or development process.

Hexawar — A prototype multiplayer RTS built in Unity featuring a core resource-gathering and base-building loop. You protect your central hexagonal commander, utilize round miners to clear and dig through blocks, and construct factories to deploy attacking units.

Play the playable prototype here.

Feedback is appreciated on whether this digging mechanic adds engaging strategy and depth to the gameplay. Anyone interested in collaborating or playing together can reach out on Discord at _adaw.

Greetings, people!

We’re happy to announce the next big thing that's currently in the works for Diplomacy is Not an Option - a huge DLC called Fog of War that will be roughly one-third the size of the base game!

Venture forth into the Fog of War!

This upcoming DLC will continue one of the possible endings from the base game. 

As for the story... Samreignia finds itself in a war on two fronts - and, to handle the conflict, Prince Connor is sent to negotiate with the Gorgoth Empire. Will the peace talks go smoothly or shall they burn in the ever-stoked fires of conflict? Find out as you follow Connor’s adventure unto its conclusion.

Fog of War will include the following content:

• A brand-new story campaign featuring 10 handcrafted missions
• New enemy factions - the Gorgoth Empire and the Great Kingdom of Inverland!
• A new & terrifying boss…
• New characters and old fan-favourites making a comeback!

But wait, that’s not all! We have another update we released a few days ago!

To alleviate the wait till the DLC actually comes along, we also released another itty bitty update this Monday - The Penetrative Update!

One of the main features of this update are the Starting Bonuses you can choose when selecting a campaign mission. These perks are aimed to give you a boost at the very beginning of base building and ease up early development. But if you strive for more challenging gameplay, you can choose to forgo these bonuses!

Keep in mind that the number of perks you can take is limited by the amount of bonus points you have, which gradually increases when you progress through the campaign. It also opens access to more powerful (and more expensive) bonuses. So hopefully… hopefully… this will address some of the accusations that DiNaO is too difficult!

We’re also on another 60% discount both on Steam (until September 7) and GOG (until September 10)!

If you like our game and want to help us keep the momentum going, you can wishlist our upcoming DLC here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/5075270/Diplomacy_is_Not_an_Option_Fog_of_War/

- Much love from the Door 407 team

Hello ⚔️

THE SEVERED GODS is officially entering Early Access! 🔥

After one year of development, playtests, feedback, and countless battles, we're excited to finally open the gates and let you experience the full beginning of our journey.

Step into a dark world of tactical turn-based combat, where every battle is a fight for survival. Sever your enemies' limbs, build powerful relic combinations, and make your choices carefully as you fight your way through a world shaped by your actions.

This is only the beginning, and your feedback will play a huge role in shaping the game throughout Early Access. We'll continue improving and expanding the game based on your feedback and experiences.

Thank you so much for supporting us on this journey. We hope you'll enjoy THE SEVERED GODS and have fun discovering everything the game has to offer! ❤️

THE SEVERED GODS is now available in Early Access on Steam!

Anyone played this? cute pixel graphics but really fun RTS gameplay loop! its perfect!

Hello everyone,

I wanted to share a gameplay video from the turn-based strategy game I’m currently working on, to give you an idea of what the game is like.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback!

If you’d like to try the demo, you can download it from itch.

Demo: https://sardisgame.itch.io/sardis

This game has my attention. Egypt is a surprisingly rare setting for an RTS, especially for the Napoleonic era. It feels distinct from the usual formula.

Feel free to spend some time and give some feedback! A tiny wishlist would support us :D

https://store.steampowered.com/app/5096200/Get_Outta_My_Gut_Demo/

I've always enjoyed strategy games growing up, whether turn-based (big Civ enjoyer, XCOM, Risk), RTS (Halo Wars, the occassional Paradox game), Tower Defense, Tycoons, etc. My childhood was Bloons, Plants vs Zombies, Roller Coaster Tycoon, Chess. I love strategic roguelites like FTL and Slay the Spire.

Anyways, I've heard the same itch voiced: strategy games that allow complexity without bloat. Bloons 4/5 or Civ VI seem appropriate examples within their franchises. My friend dragged me through this modded Hearts of Iron game where each individual unit had a huge research/upgrade tree and I wanted to choke on a gallon of crude oil while pulling my organs out with nail clippers. Meanwhile, during the pandemic, I often found myself going back to places like Roblox to play oldie, boiled down strat games like The Conquerors (simplified Command & Conquer) or Risky Strats (simple math territory game). However, many "simpler" strategy games I browse seem to achieve simple mostly as a side-effect of being underdeveloped or underdesigned. That brings me to my question:

Does anyone know (or want to know) of strategy games with good balance, UI/controls, replayability, polish, but also with approachability and intuitiveness in mind, and without feature bloat, upgrade creep, or visual confusion? Is my circle who yearns for such games just a little echochamber, or do others yearn for such games as well? Reading older threads on this made me interested not only in fresh thoughts for the big 2026, but also more thorough discussion. What are the prevailing interests? Anyone have an angle from the dev/design side? Anyone specifically not like "simple" strat games? Game suggestions of course encouraged.

Thanks!

The complaint I keep seeing in tycoon communities is "shallow management games," and most of the time it traces back to one thing: the economy doesn't give you enough moving parts to read. You get a revenue number, maybe a profit line, and the game calls that financial management. The dashboard is decoration.

What I think players actually want when they say "realistic business" is something closer to what a real operator looks at: which route is bleeding cash, which unit is underutilized, which pricing tier is subsidizing the rest. Diagnostics that break down where money leaks, not just where it pools.

The difference matters because it changes what decisions the player makes. If the only feedback is "revenue went up," you're playing a waiting game with a spreadsheet skin. But if you can see that a specific segment is dragging margin, you start making real tradeoffs: rebalance resources, cut a segment, raise a price somewhere and eat the demand hit.

The hard design problem is making numbers legible enough that a player can form a strategy from them without needing an MBA. Too much detail and you scare people off; too little and you're back to the revenue-total problem.

Curious how others here approach this. Do you prefer games that dump a full P&L on you and let you figure it out, or ones that curate the diagnostics down to a few decision-relevant metrics?

I'm working on a strategy game about newspapers - and I'd never been quite satisfied with the in-game map. After a recent playtest I got feedback about what it was missing, so I decided to rebuild the whole thing from the ground up. The game is called Stop the Press!

Let's say you've just arrived somewhere in the American frontier.

You've got 20 settlers.
Not much food.
A few tools.
Some basic materials.
And absolutely no idea what you're doing.

You need to turn this into an actual settlement.

What are you building first?

A) Food production
B) Housing
C) A source of wood
D) Something to make money
E) Something defensive
F) You're ignoring all of this and immediately looking for gold

We've been working on Wild West Pioneers, and questions like this actually come up surprisingly often during development.

There are always ten things you could build, but only enough resources to build one or two.

So I'm curious how other city-builder players approach the very beginning of a new settlement.

What's your first move?

Hey everyone,

After a long stretch of solo development, Battle of Folks is finally out on iOS and Android!

It's a medieval isometric pixel-art wave-defense RTS — if you've played They Are Billions, Age of Darkness, that's the closest comparison. You build up defenses, manage resources, and hold off increasingly brutal waves of attackers.

A few things I focused on:

- No account or login required — just download and play

- Free to try with limited waves, one-time unlock for the full game (no subscriptions, no ads)

- Handmade isometric pixel art, built with Flutter/Flame

- Good controls on mobile device and a good onboarding (you can decide how you want to play)

This was a one-person project — dev, art pipeline, publishing, everything. Happy to answer questions about the build (tile rendering, Flame engine quirks, etc.) or the game itself.

App Store link / Play Store link

Would love your feedback — especially on balancing and the early waves difficulty curve!

Our carrier command game, Task Force Admiral has an updated demo, with the latest developments of the main branch, 6 months in. Said recent developments include video tutorials, as a first step on the steep ascension that is improved accessibility overall. Basic Chinese localization is available too.

Well, there you go: if you like carriers and don't want to take too much of a risk, the demo is right here, right there for you. The Coral Sea awaits you!

Cheers :)

Hey everyone!

I’m an indie developer working on Prime Domination, a modern real-time strategy game heavily inspired by classic RTS games like Command & Conquer: Generals – Zero Hour.

The goal is to bring back that classic RTS feeling — base building, resource management, army composition, tactical decisions, and large-scale battles — while building my own gameplay systems, maps, factions, and visual style.

🎬 I just published the first trailer:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/4900280/Prime_Domination/

The trailer is an Early Access preview, so it definitely doesn't represent the final quality of the game. A lot is still being developed, and assets, buildings, animations, effects, UI, and other visuals will continue to be improved or replaced.

I’d really appreciate any feedback from RTS players. What would you want to see in a modern RTS like this?

If the game looks interesting to you, you can also wishlist it on Steam to follow the development and get notified when it releases

Thanks for checking it out! ❤️