Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865)

About

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) is a single player real-time strategy game with warfare and historical themes. It was developed by Grand Engineer Corps and was released on September 24, 2021. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Grand Tactician: The Civil War " is a real-time strategy game that combines a strategic campaign with tactical battle game-play, allowing players to choose their side in the American Civil War and participate in historical battles. The game features five campaign scenarios, twenty stand-alone battles, and the ability to change history through various what-if scenarios. Players must manage and support great armies, maneuver them to defeat the enemy, and consider the morale of their citizens.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) screenshot

+16

Skip User Reviews

75%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,942 reviews

gameplay48 positive mentions

stability144 negative mentions

The game offers a unique blend of grand strategy and real-time tactical battles, providing an immersive experience for Civil War enthusiasts.
The attention to historical detail is impressive, with accurate maps, unit customization, and a complex economy that reflects the realities of the Civil War.
The developers are actively working on updates and improvements, showing a commitment to enhancing the game based on community feedback.

The AI is often inconsistent and can behave irrationally, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences where units do not follow orders or retreat unexpectedly.
The user interface can be clunky and unintuitive, making it difficult for players to manage their armies and navigate the game's many systems.
The game suffers from performance issues, particularly during large battles, which can lead to lag and a decrease in frame rate.

gameplay
258 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
73%
8%
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players noting a steep learning curve due to poorly explained and clunky mechanics. While some appreciate the depth and realism offered by features like order delays and supply systems, others criticize the AI's performance and the presence of bugs that disrupt the experience. Overall, the game shows potential but requires significant improvements in mechanics and user interface to enhance playability.
- “The command delay mechanic—where orders take time to reach subordinate units—adds a level of realism that makes battlefield control feel authentic and challenging.”
- “The gameplay mechanics are quite in-depth and intriguing, offering a rewarding experience as you learn and adapt to the complexities of the game.”
- “The real-time nature of the game makes it immediate and thrilling to play, while also providing a historical context that allows for creative strategies.”
- “The gameplay is incredibly clunky, and desperately needs a UI/mechanic overhaul to be made more intuitive.”
- “The game has several major flaws in the mechanics or at least how those mechanics are implemented.”
- “The tutorial is completely useless, and there is no rhyme or reason to any of the mechanics.”
graphics
162 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
67%
12%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many players noting that they are outdated and reminiscent of early 2000s titles, leading to a lack of immersion during battles. While some appreciate the aesthetic and detail in the campaign maps, others criticize the performance issues and poor optimization, especially during large-scale engagements. Overall, while the graphics may not meet modern standards, the gameplay experience is often deemed more important by players.
- “This is a truly beautiful game as I am going to call it, strictly on the aesthetic level.”
- “The graphics are beautiful in that everything was crisp.”
- “The graphics and detail are stupendous.”
- “At the highest zoom level, the graphics are from the 90s.”
- “The graphics are a pathetic joke.”
- “The concept is amazing, but what we got was essentially mid-1990s graphics, AI, and mechanics for a 2021 game.”
stability
151 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
5%
95%
The game's stability is a significant concern, with numerous users reporting persistent bugs, glitches, and AI issues that detract from the overall experience. While some players appreciate the game's depth and potential, many express frustration over its clunky mechanics and frequent crashes, suggesting that it remains in a very buggy state. Overall, the consensus indicates that while the game shows promise, it requires substantial updates and fixes to reach a more stable and enjoyable condition.
- “In any case, it's not that buggy and vastly surpassed by the superlative design and the effort of the devs to update and upgrade.”
- “The best part is that the developers are always answering questions and responding to issues with the game very quickly, so I would not worry about bugs in the long term.”
- “If one is expecting a polished, bug-free experience, I would wait; some things such as save slots or mid-battle saves aren't yet implemented and that is a deal breaker for some.”
- “The game constantly jumps and glitches around and shows wildly incorrect army positions on the map.”
- “It's a buggy mess right now.”
- “Unfortunately, the game can be quite buggy as I've lost an entire Confederate campaign save when a battle I was playing didn't load past the battle results screen.”
music
81 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
49%
5%
The music in the game is widely praised for its authenticity and ability to immerse players in the Civil War era, featuring a stirring original soundtrack composed by Wasyl Dvorak that includes traditional American folk songs and military marches. While many players appreciate the historical atmosphere created by the soundtrack, some note its repetitiveness and limited selection, leading them to supplement it with external playlists. Overall, the soundtrack significantly enhances the game's ambiance, contributing to a rich and engaging experience.
- “The historical atmosphere is further reinforced by a stirring original soundtrack composed by Wasyl Dvorak, which features period-appropriate arrangements of traditional American folk songs and military marches.”
- “The music is very nice, authentic civil war music that I actually keep on a lot of the time, unlike many strategy games.”
- “The soundtrack is awesome.”
- “The soundtrack has the music named incorrectly, please fix.”
- “There is no music or anything when playing battles, just generic battle sounds.”
- “Also, $9 for a soundtrack of music that is mostly royalty free is an embarrassment.”
optimization
70 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
63%
26%
The game's optimization is widely criticized, with players reporting severe performance issues, particularly during large battles, resulting in low frame rates and frequent stuttering. Despite the game's intriguing concept and potential, many users feel that ongoing bugs and poor optimization significantly detract from the overall experience, leading to frustration and a lack of engagement. While some updates have shown slight improvements, the consensus is that substantial work is still needed to enhance performance and stability.
- “This game uses real-life generals, with real statistics and debuffs and modifiers, many things that affect the performance of your generals.”
- “Really cool game if you enjoy the Civil War era, only a few bugs that really impacted my campaign, such as my armies retreating for no reason on the campaign map, but once those bugs are ironed out, and the game is optimized more, it will probably be the best strategy game during the Civil War era, and perhaps as a whole.”
- “With the recent update, graphics and optimization are much better, still rough around the edges and not anywhere near done, but fantastic game overall.”
- “In this current state, the optimization in battles is terrible; I'm getting a constant 5-15 fps with frequent pauses, moving units and battles is just so slow.”
- “Totally unacceptably bad performance to the point that it negates whatever gameplay it may offer.”
- “Currently there are glimpses of great things to come, but it’s too buggy, poorly optimized, and not intuitive enough to keep me coming back for more.”
replayability
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
54%
14%
The game's replayability is a mixed bag; while it offers numerous alternative historical paths and strategic choices that enhance replay value, some players find it limited due to the AI's predictability and the inherent constraints of the conflict's nature. Many appreciate the depth and variety in campaigns, but some express a desire for more options and improvements to the gameplay experience. Overall, the potential for replayability is high, especially with ongoing updates, but current limitations may detract from the experience for some players.
- “The game has great replayability by allowing for ahistorical but plausible paths such as British intervention on either side, industrializing the South, a more strongly abolitionist North, or what if the US took Cuba before the war and it seceded with the Confederacy?”
- “Excellent replayability, with numerous decisions on many levels.”
- “It has major replayability and you'll learn a lot of Civil War history just by playing this game.”
- “Inherent limited replayability due to the nature of the represented conflict, which does not allow for a lot of variations in tactics or strategy.”
- “For this reason, the replayability suffers.”
- “The AI makes the replayability of this game limited; even on very hard, you can stroll through them with little problems.”
story
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
70%
15%
The game's story aspect is a blend of historical context and player-driven narrative, allowing for a customizable backstory and choices that influence the campaign's outcome. Players can engage with various story elements, such as conversations and newspaper snippets, while experiencing battles that reflect the complexities of the Civil War. However, some find the repetitive nature of combat can detract from the overall storytelling experience.
- “I really love the idea of being able to choose the backstory before the campaign.”
- “The management and tactics portion are rather vast with sections including the military, policies, and finances which affects how the story plays out.”
- “There are some tidbits of newspapers with events that occur during the story which are fun to read as well.”
- “Even though it also is basically just a map with story elements.”
- “It's really boring after a while to fight the 18th battle of Missionary Ridge even if the conditions for engagement are always different every time; this isn't World War I.”
- “If you're looking for a bit of story with your Civil War game?”
grinding
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
5%
95%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be quite tedious, often feeling overwhelmed by repetitive battles and vague instructions that require significant time investment to master. While the game offers depth and strategic elements, many reviewers express frustration with the AI's behavior and the overall grindiness of the campaign, which detracts from the enjoyment. Despite these issues, some players still appreciate the game's complexity and engaging mechanics, provided they are willing to invest the necessary time and effort.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “It becomes tedious fighting the 6th battle of Chancellorsville in one month.”
- “Overall the game is pretty good, but there are things that need work, like enemy AI on campaign and in battle, where if you defeat an army they will typically regroup and keep attacking after a day or two even if they lose over 10,000 men. The campaign can get grindy as the enemy can and will constantly attack an invading army (I have fought the Battle of Washington DC 15 to 20 times right now) and the AI will recover remarkably quick.”
- “The graphics are last generation and despite its much hyped 'complexity' is really just ponderous and tedious.”
atmosphere
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
9%
27%
The game's atmosphere is highly praised, characterized by a compelling historical setting enhanced by an original soundtrack featuring traditional American folk songs and military marches. Players appreciate the immersive graphics and sound effects, which contribute to a deep and engaging experience, despite some challenges in information accessibility. Overall, the atmosphere is a standout element that significantly enriches gameplay.
- “Only a few hours into my first 1861 campaign, there is a great atmosphere and feeling in the game (especially when the music plays).”
- “The historical atmosphere is further reinforced by a stirring original soundtrack composed by Wasyl Dvorak, which features period-appropriate arrangements of traditional American folk songs and military marches.”
- “The real reason to embrace this simulation is the atmosphere.”
- “Ambitious with tons of depth and atmosphere.”
humor
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
89%
33%
The humor in the game is derived from its numerous bugs and AI mishaps, which often lead to absurd and comical situations, such as artillery units blindly charging into enemy lines or naval squadrons getting stuck in mountains. While players appreciate the ambition and passion behind the game's development, the overwhelming complexity and broken mechanics can detract from the experience, making the humor feel unintentional at times. Overall, the game's flaws provide a source of amusement, even as they highlight the need for significant improvements.
- “Can be buggy and is imperfect, and the AI isn't great, but overall it's hugely ambitious and clearly made with a lot of care and passion for the subject matter, which is funny because the devs are European.”
- “It's actually hilarious to turn on AI control as your myopic artillerists will simply push their guns right into enemy lines because they can't see them from 10 meters away.”
- “I found it particularly funny to imagine General Grant being attached to a Zouave formation, making him wear bright red fluffy pants!”
- “They are making a game that is so overly complicated it's not funny.”
- “The jokes fall flat and feel forced, lacking any real wit.”
- “The humor tries too hard to be edgy but ends up being cringeworthy.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the game emotionally engaging through its integration of historical context, which enhances the immersive experience of the war. However, some reviewers express frustration with the game's design and tutorial, feeling it detracts from the emotional impact and overall enjoyment. The mix of strategy and RPG elements is noted for its potential to stimulate both intellect and emotion, though not all players resonate with this approach.
- “These tracks, along with newspaper headlines, speeches, and changing political climates, help immerse players in the cultural and emotional context of the war.”
- “The fusion of real-time strategy and RPG elements creates a gaming experience that is both intellectually stimulating and emotionally engaging.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy of the game is criticized as being overly focused on profit, with some users labeling it a "cash grab." Additionally, there is a suggestion that the game's visibility on platforms like Steam is more beneficial for its promotion than any inherent value it offers.
- “This game at this point is nothing more than just a cash grab.”

Skip Game Offers

Buy Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865)

29h Median play time

191h Average play time

15-210h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 27 analyzed playthroughs

Skip Videos

Videos

Skip Games Like Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865)

87%5.1kreviews

Ultimate General: Civil War

2017

Tactical Real-time Strategy

80%2.1kreviews

Ultimate General: Gettysburg

2014

Real-time Strategy

+12

77%1.3kreviews

Ultimate Admiral: Age of Sail

2021

Strategy

75%2.4kreviews

Total Conflict: Resistance

2023

Shooter

78%2.2kreviews

Fire & Maneuver

2023

Strategy

More games like Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865)

Skip FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) is a real-time strategy game with warfare and historical themes.

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 191 hours playing Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865).

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) was released on September 24, 2021.

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) was developed by Grand Engineer Corps.

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its stability.

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) is a single player game.

Similar games include Ultimate General: Civil War, Ultimate General: Gettysburg, Ultimate Admiral: Age of Sail, Total Conflict: Resistance, Fire & Maneuver and others.

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865)

Platforms

Buy Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865)