Need More Troops

Unlike a lot of games I give negative review to, this one actually seems to do everything it is meant to do quite well. It just isn't meant to do very much. In fact, it feels like a piece, maybe 20%, of a really fun game, a solid piece, but one lacking a lot of the things a real game should have, be and do. Games, for me, are defined by the options and choices the players has. Here, there just aren't many, and they seldom feel like decisions as much as picking the obvious setting for the next battle. For example there is a unit that can either do better against melee or non-melee units. 90% of the time, you know exactly what you are going to fight, an army made up totally of one unit type. The only exception is the portal attacks that happen every 30 rounds, and those are mixed. In addition it is beyond fluff-light and pretty much fluff-free, not something you expect from a fantasy setting. You have a hero, but they are nameless, faceless and you have no clue what they add to a battle, even though they level up. I could go on and on about what it lacks, but I think anyone who has read this far gets the point. It lacks decisions, it lacks flavor, and it lacks fun. Sorry, tw…

Need More Troops is a compact but surprisingly engaging strategy title developed and published by Challenging Games. Built around the idea of assembling an army and surviving through a succession of battles, it combines elements of roguelites, auto battlers, and tactical management into a package that is easy to understand but difficult to master. Instead of relying on an elaborate story or extensive world-building, the game focuses entirely on its gameplay loop, inviting players to experiment with unit compositions and discover increasingly effective strategies through repeated playthroughs. The game's premise is refreshingly straightforward. Players recruit soldiers, arrange their positions on the battlefield, and watch as combat unfolds automatically. While this may initially suggest a passive experience, Need More Troops places considerable emphasis on planning and decision-making. Every run introduces different opportunities and challenges, forcing players to adapt their tactics rather than relying on a single winning formula. The variety of available units and upgrades creates a sense of discovery, and finding powerful combinations becomes one of the game's biggest strengths…

Felt fairly shallow. And I found the UX kind of unintuitive.

I don't get it. Super boring and confusing.

A solid blend of the Auto-Battler, Strategy (HoMM-style, in particular), and Roguelite genres. There isn't a ton of content, and it isn't perfectly polished. I played a couple hours and feel done with the game, more or less. But for a dollar, that's perfectly fine. Those couple hours were good fun. I mentioned a lack of polish, but nothing about the game was buggy or frustrating, either, and that's more than I can say for most AAA games. Definitely worth a spin if you've got a dollar burning a hole in your pocket and enjoy simple strategy games.

Nice and fast gameplay. Cuts out the fat and gets to the point. There are a few choices to make as you play, but balance could use a bit of tweaking. Got a couple hours of entertainment out of this. Unlocked all there is. Definitively worth the $0.99 USD it cost me. It's got a good base. Would love to see more.