Broken Lines (v1.4.1.1)

A stranded unit fights through an alternate-history Eastern Europe where every village, forest, and ruined stronghold feels hostile. Broken Lines is a compact tactical RPG built around the pressure of leading soldiers who have lost their command structure and need to survive long enough to find a way home. Its war story stays personal rather than grandiose, focusing on exhausted troops, difficult decisions, and the psychological toll of watching a plan go wrong. The tone is grim and grounded, although the included The Dead and the Drunk expansion pushes the setting into bizarre occult horror as zombies and supernatural forces invade the conflict.

Battles use a distinctive simultaneous-turn structure: you pause to issue movement, aiming, healing, and positioning orders, then watch several seconds of action unfold at once. Success depends on reading sightlines, using cover, flanking entrenched enemies, and anticipating where opponents will be when the action phase begins instead of simply reacting one unit at a time. Each soldier has individual strengths and equipment, while campaign choices affect the squad’s route, conversations, morale, and eventual outcome. Missions reward caution and scouting, but situations can quickly demand aggressive pushes, especially when the expansion lets you manipulate undead hordes into attacking enemy forces or turn heavy weapons on clustered threats.

The strongest idea here is how it combines real-time tension with the clarity of turn-based planning, creating firefights that feel less mechanical than grid-bound tactics games. Decisions outside combat give the campaign more weight, and multiple endings encourage another run with different priorities and squad dynamics. The Dead and the Drunk adds a deliberately unruly layer through grotesque bosses, occult mysteries, and a drinking system that grants powerful perks at the risk of making soldiers harder to manage. Fans of Mutant Year Zero, XCOM, or Commandos-style positioning who want a shorter, story-led campaign with a novel combat rhythm should find plenty to enjoy, while tactical veterans will get the most from mastering its timing and terrain.