Ironhold Tactics

Ironhold Tactics is a lean strategy game built around defending and expanding a fortress. You command a handful of units on a hex grid, and each battle is a puzzle: where do you stand your archers, when do you commit your knights, which chokepoint do you give up. It asks you to think two moves ahead.

I liked that it doesn't overload you with menus. Upgrades are meaningful but few, so you spend most of your time on the actual tactics rather than number juggling. Some later maps are genuinely tough and made me restart a few times, in a good way.

Everything is offline, and matches are self-contained, so you can play one skirmish while waiting for a kettle to boil. A solid pick if you like slower, thoughtful strategy.

What we liked

• Clean, readable grid combat
• Tough but fair later maps
• Quick self-contained matches