I still fondly remember the first time I played Lamplighters League. Sat in a warehouse near downtown San Francisco at GDC, the first level of this XCOM-style turn-based strategy game ensnared me. As the developers at Harebrained Schemes watched from behind (I didn’t realize this until afterward), I snuck around a 1940s pulp-inspired dockyard, before going loud and engaging in combat.
If you love XCOM, Lamplighters League is the game for you. Trading the blank soldiers for vibrant characters, an alien invasion for an Indiana Jones-style adventure, and sprinkling in some real-time stealth on top, the turn-based strategy game is a personal favorite of mine. From Harebrained Schemes, the studio behind BattleTech and the Shadowrun trilogy, unfortunately, the Lamplighters League sales weren’t great and led to publisher Paradox and the developer parting ways, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try the game.
While the gameplay loop is similar to the XCOM reboot, Lamplighters League sets itself apart with real-time stealth. You’ll wander between cover and tall grass as patrols make the rounds, surveying the environment and enemies to plan a strategy while carefully placing your own people. Then when it’s time to strike, the game flips into turn-based combat, offering up the more traditional experience.
This is a great idea, and it creates a new relationship between the setup and execution of missions that I really enjoyed. You can get accidentally spotted while laying out your chess pieces, with the enemy then shooting a bishop off the board and forcing you to readjust. It’s a cool mechanic that adds a new dimension to combat, and is well worth trying for yourself.
If you want to hear another perspective, our Lamplighters League review scored the game 7/10. We applauded how “its simplicity puts it into the more approachable realms of turn-based tactical games and is a great choice for anyone looking to try the genre for the first time.”
Lamplighters League has a new historical low on Steam at 50% off, so expect to pay $24.99 / £20.99 until Thursday May 23. You can find the game right here.
Even with a steep sale, Lamplighters League is still available on PC Game Pass at no extra cost. So if you’re a subscriber and like the sound of this pulpy ‘40s adventure, you can try it before you buy it on Steam.
If Lamplighters League has you hungry for more tactical action, we’ve broken down the best strategy games and grand strategy games you’ll want to add to your backlog. From historical re-enactments to grand sci-fi space fleets, you’ll still need to be calculated to succeed.
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