First Strike

About

"First Strike" is a mobile-friendly strategy game that simulates nuclear warfare between nations. Players must carefully manage resources and technology to achieve global dominance, while avoiding retaliation and environmental catastrophe. With a variety of customizable options and a sleek, intuitive interface, it offers a tense and thought-provoking exploration of modern military conflicts.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

74%

Audience ScoreBased on 523 reviews

gameplay17 positive mentions

stability15 negative mentions

The game offers a fun and engaging experience with a unique take on nuclear warfare strategy.
Graphics and sound design are appealing, enhancing the overall gameplay experience.
The game has a good level of replayability with various nations and superweapons to unlock.

The PC version suffers from bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay, such as issues with the UI and progress not saving.
Many players feel that the game lacks depth and becomes repetitive after a few matches.
The requirement to sign up for a newsletter to unlock content is seen as predatory and frustrating by players.

gameplay
59 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
63%
8%
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players enjoying the strategic elements and smooth controls, particularly on PC, while others find it repetitive and lacking depth after a few hours. Many users have noted issues such as clunky mechanics, bugs, and a lack of clear instructions, which detract from the overall experience. Suggestions for improvement include adding more mechanics, enhancing replayability, and addressing the frustrating aspects of gameplay progression.
- “The gameplay feels well refined on PC, and I often feel much more in control of what's going on compared to the mobile version, thanks to the mouse controls and the level of precision I gain from that in interacting with the UI and game world.”
- “It's a perfect mix of captivating, frustrating, and humorous gameplay.”
- “The overall gameplay is just so fluid and fun to do as you're always kept on your toes to keep up with the constant enemy threat.”
- “I wanted to give it the benefit of the doubt and try to power through the clunky and boring mechanics, but I was left with a sour taste when I was asked to sign up for a newsletter before I could even play.”
- “Core gameplay is pretty meh, overall user experience pretty terrible, there are no clear instructions or information available, shortcuts are unintuitive, there are game-blocking bugs in the menu, and it prevents you from playing to try and force you to sign up to a newsletter.”
- “The mechanics are just so dull and the controls frustratingly clunky.”
graphics
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
46%
13%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the improved visuals and sleek art style that enhance the gameplay experience, while others criticize the downgraded graphics compared to the original PC version and report glitches following recent updates. Overall, many find the graphics enjoyable and fitting for the game's arcade-style, though some note a lack of depth in the visual presentation.
- “Awesome gameplay and stunning simple graphics.”
- “The graphics have been improved, feel smoother, and the UI style has changed, which is good.”
- “The art style is sleek—almost like a board game—and gives a perfect feel with the UI as well.”
- “In comparison to the original PC version, the controls are unpolished, the graphics downgraded to a more childish art style, several features were removed, and the AI is severely dumbed down.”
- “This game isn't hard, and its visuals are not super impressive.”
- “A recent update has had them rewrite the entire game from scratch, and after playing, the visuals are very glitchy.”
stability
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous reports of bugs causing crashes, freezes, and unresponsive interfaces. Players have noted that objectives often fail to track, achievements do not register correctly, and various menus, including diplomacy, exhibit erratic behavior. Overall, the game's stability is a major concern, hindering the overall experience.
- “The game is buggy; I put shortcuts for things and sometimes after playing and clicking on a province, it glitches out.”
- “Very buggy; objectives often don't track, which makes it impossible to progress.”
- “It crashes often and freezes.”
music
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
40%
20%
The music in the game is generally well-received, with players appreciating the nice soundtrack that enhances the gameplay experience. However, some users note that the music can become repetitive over time, and there are suggestions for smoother transitions and more variety. Overall, the soundtrack is considered one of the game's strong points, contributing positively to the strategic atmosphere.
- “Simple but fun game with a nice soundtrack and now has multiplayer functionality which is great.”
- “I like those soundtracks anyway <3 never get bored in this game.”
- “The game has its strongest points in its soundtracks, strategic thinking, and improvisation.”
- “The game can get repetitive at times, which is why I recommend listening to music or a podcast while playing.”
- “The menu sounds are a little annoying (not the music but noise when it displays some text).”
- “You don't hear a crying woman and the music doesn't slow down as millions die on Samuel Barber's 'Adagio for Strings' playing in the background like you do in 'Defcon'.”
replayability
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
45%
27%
Overall, the game's replayability is viewed as decent to high, with many players appreciating the variety of achievements, playable nations, and multiplayer potential that enhance the experience. However, some critiques highlight issues like frustrating mechanics and limited replay value in certain aspects. Despite these drawbacks, the presence of unlockables and engaging gameplay contributes positively to its replayability.
- “This game would be perfect for multiplayer, plus it would add so much to its replayability.”
- “The amount of achievements and playable nations add plenty of replay value.”
- “Interesting game with great replayability.”
- “This gives the game little replay value.”
- “Excellent interface and mechanic decisions are marred by frustrating territory selection and a diminishing replayability.”
- “Not a AAA title; however, there is fun to be had with enough depth to make it replayable.”
story
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
The reviews indicate a general consensus that the game lacks a meaningful story, with players expressing disappointment over the absence of specific missions or narrative depth. Instead, the focus is primarily on competing against opponents using superpowers, leaving many feeling that the storytelling aspect is minimal or non-existent.
- “I feel there's no story in here.. you only have to beat your opponents with your nuclear rockets, or you can search the story behind all of those superpowers.”
- “The game does not feature specific missions, instead just different playable and competing countries on the same globe setup.”
- “I was hoping for a multiplayer mode, some missions mode, better AI, and a lot more...”
grinding
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
57%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game excessively time-consuming and tedious, often requiring a significant investment of time to unlock rewards and achievements. Many express frustration with late-game mechanics that contribute to boredom, such as cooldowns on essential features and a cumbersome interface that complicates gameplay. Overall, the grinding experience is seen as a major drawback, detracting from the enjoyment of the game.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Not a fan - gets grindy, to the point of boredom in late game, even for easy games.”
- “Late game gameplay is also tedious; a basic radar feature that lets you see enemy-controlled countries has a cooldown, and wiping out almost eliminated countries feels like playing whack-a-mole.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted as a key feature, with players finding it both funny and engaging, particularly in its satirical take on nuclear war and war crimes. The gameplay combines elements of frustration and humor, often leading to hilarious scenarios, such as unexpected missile launches and absurd strategic decisions. Overall, the game successfully delivers a comedic experience while exploring themes of destruction and power.
- “Funny nuclear war game.”
- “It's a perfect mix of captivating, frustrating, and humorous gameplay.”
- “Hilarious game, it satisfies even the smallest dreams of world domination and being considered a superpower like Kim Jong-un.”
atmosphere
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
60%
The atmosphere in the game is described as a mix of exciting developments and destruction, with some players appreciating its fun and engaging qualities. While one game evokes a depressing, bunker-like ambiance reminiscent of the 1983 film *Wargames*, another offers a more uplifting, space-oriented perspective, creating a contrast in overall mood.
- “Love the strategies that can be used in this game, combined with the entire atmosphere of exciting developments and destruction key to the theme.”
- “A very fun and atmospheric game!”
- “Both generally draw inspiration from that old 1983 movie, [i]Wargames[/i]; the former more so: [i]Defcon[/i] gave us an underground, bunker-like, depressing atmosphere.”
- “Both generally draw inspiration from that old 1983 movie, 'Wargames'; the former more so: 'Defcon' gave us an underground, bunker-like, depressing atmosphere.”
- “The atmosphere in this game feels flat and uninspired, lacking the depth needed to engage players.”
- “The overall ambiance is dull and fails to create any sense of immersion or excitement.”
monetization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
The monetization model for the mobile version relies heavily on a freemium system with ad support and a monthly subscription to unlock all content, which many users find predatory. In contrast, the PC version offers a one-time purchase with no ads, providing a more straightforward experience, though it lacks some content available in the mobile version. Overall, players appreciate the absence of microtransactions on PC but note the trade-off in content availability.
- “Compared to the subscriptions and microtransactions on mobile, the PC version feels like a breath of fresh air.”
- “I came here expecting the mobile version on PC without all the predatory microtransactions.”
- “The mobile version employs a freemium model of ad-supported content by default, with a low-priced monthly subscription to remove them. This also unlocks all content by default, instead of having to grind every available superpower to unlock the newer ones. There is no option to pay once to remove ads and naturally progress through the game like you do on the PC version; you either pay monthly or don't pay at all.”
- “The PC version at least has the benefit of not having any ads at all and being a simple one-time purchase; however, as previously mentioned, it lacks a lot of the content in the mobile version, making it hard to recommend when talking exclusively about content.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviewers note that the game's interface is well-optimized for touchscreens, suggesting a strong potential for multitouch functionality on touchscreen PCs. However, the current PC version requires excessive clicking, indicating a need for further optimization for traditional PC gameplay.
- “Another thing that would be very cool would be multitouch mode on touchscreen PCs, so that it can be played like on a big tablet, as this game's interface is clearly optimized for touchscreens and requires a lot of clicking on PC.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional impact of the game is largely negative, with players expressing a lack of attachment or desire to retain it in their library.