War of Dots

About

War of Dots is a multiplayer casual strategy game. It was developed by TeaAndPython and was released on January 16, 2026. It received positive reviews from players.

War of Dots is a minimalist real-time strategy game where you command light and heavy units to capture cities and outmaneuver rivals. The simple economy revolves around managing unit production and supply through city control. Engage in tactical battles across diverse maps to achieve victory with straightforward yet strategic gameplay.

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84%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,244 reviews

gameplay23 positive mentions

stability19 negative mentions

The game is simple yet addictive, making it easy for new players to pick up and enjoy.
It offers a unique blend of strategy and fun, with engaging gameplay that encourages tactical thinking.
The game is free, providing great value and potential for improvement as it develops.

The multiplayer experience is plagued by lag and connection issues, making it frustrating to play with others.
Controls can be clunky and unintuitive, leading to misclicks and confusion during gameplay.
There are several bugs and issues, such as problems with account creation and unit pathfinding, that detract from the overall experience.

gameplay
95 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
72%
4%
The gameplay of the game is characterized by its simplicity and accessibility, allowing players to quickly grasp mechanics without extensive tutorials. However, many users express frustration with clunky controls, unintuitive unit movement, and a lack of depth in strategic options, particularly regarding offensive play and troop management. While the game is enjoyable and offers a fun experience, it is noted that improvements in UI, multiplayer functionality, and additional mechanics could enhance the overall gameplay experience.
- “The gameplay is smooth, fun, and relaxing. The UI doesn't help the game much; I'd say it's the only factor that's dragging it down, along with the too simplistic graphics.”
- “It's simple, smooth, and entertaining, with great gameplay and good vibes all around.”
- “Amazing and unique game with simple but addictive gameplay, one of the greatest free games I have ever played.”
- “I wouldn't call this a strategy game; more like have fun for 20 minutes after raging about how stupid some controls are. If this was to get to a more advanced stage, I would recommend implementing a lot of the mechanics in HOI4, especially when it comes to how you control/move units. The inexistence of a frontline is brain damaging.”
- “Although I've run into one massive issue with the gameplay - you cannot go on the offense. The whole time you must stay on the defense due to morale and health mechanics. It makes it so that if you attack, you lose more morale, and your units essentially die faster. Heavy units will be stopped by just two light units and maybe killed or nearly killed by one, and heavy vs. heavy will never work, so you must stay on the defense until your enemy attacks.”
- “Since the launch, they had terrible problems with servers. The troop control system is quite frankly in a terrible state; the frontline mechanic just doesn't work right. It creates random holes in the back of your line when you get a little bit too far from your city, causing your entire army to die. Simply put, doing any offensive in the game is literally impossible, and I've had better luck simply defending until the attacker gets those problems and their army collapses.”
graphics
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
68%
11%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many players noting their simplicity and minimalism, which some find charming while others see as a drawback. While a few users appreciate the straightforward design and its effectiveness, others feel that the graphics detract from the overall experience and suggest that improvements could significantly enhance the game's potential. Overall, the consensus is that while the graphics are not cutting-edge, they serve the game's concept, though many hope for future updates to elevate the visual quality.
- “I like the graphics, and I must say I am impressed with the AI work.”
- “Proof that you don't need 4K graphics to make a brilliant game.”
- “I know it's supposed to be minimalistic, but this game truly does have potential to be one of the best strategy games, if you can ignore the Microsoft Paint graphics which honestly, give the game its charm.”
- “The gameplay is smooth, fun, and relaxing, but the UI doesn't help the game much; I'd say it's the only factor that's dragging it down, along with the too simplistic graphics.”
- “Overall really good game idea, bad graphics but lots of potential.”
- “It's blocky, it's in the way, it takes away from the visual aesthetic of the game which is actually pretty nice.”
stability
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is a significant concern among users, with many reporting frequent bugs, glitches, and connection issues that hinder gameplay, especially in multiplayer modes. Players have experienced random freezes, unresponsive controls, and lost custom content, making the game frustrating at times. While some acknowledge its potential and find it enjoyable despite these issues, the overall consensus is that the game requires substantial improvements in stability to enhance the user experience.
- “I vote down because in the current state, playing with friends is very buggy.”
- “The glitches and disconnects sometimes make it unplayable.”
- “The game is really buggy; trying to play with a friend is virtually impossible because it bricks your game upon joining a server, and you can barely last more than a minute straight in a basic 1v1.”
story
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
73%
16%
The reviews indicate that the game lacks a cohesive story, with players expressing a desire for a more structured narrative rather than a series of skirmishes. Many feel that the gameplay resembles a puzzle-solving experience, and there is potential for a more engaging story campaign in future updates. Overall, the current narrative elements are minimal and do not contribute significantly to the gameplay experience.
- “War of Dots has great potential for expansion in a theoretical sequel if the controls, pathing, and tutorial were improved, along with an actual story campaign that isn't just a series of skirmish games.”
- “If development keeps heading in that direction, this could (and should) eventually become a truly realistic war simulator—almost like an interactive version of the operational mapping you see on channels like Eastory.”
- “War of Dots has great potential for expansion in a theoretical sequel if the controls, pathing, and awful blabby tutorial were fixed, alongside an actual story campaign that isn't just a bunch of skirmish games and also a pause button was added.”
- “It always felt like every mission had a single way to complete it, and it was up to me to figure that way out. It felt like a puzzle, trying the same mission again and again to figure out what I need to do and when and how, and with some luck too, I could get through it.”
- “It feels like an interactive Eastory/Timeghost video.”
grinding
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
10%
60%
30%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessive and tedious, often requiring significant time investment to progress. Many express frustration with the lack of strategic options and clunky user interface, which further complicates the grinding experience. Despite these issues, some believe the game has potential if improvements are made.
- “It can be a bit grindy sometimes.”
- “This game offers no attacking strategy, unfair resources, and no benefit from killing enemy units as they can hold the line and keep farming units.”
- “After grinding it for twenty hours and playing the day 1 release version of it, I can conclude it is a mid game with a lot of potential.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
optimization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with users reporting frequent crashes, low frame rates, and overall poor performance despite its simplistic design. Many players find the optimization issues frustrating, detracting from an otherwise enjoyable experience, and suggest that the game lacks essential quality-of-life features common in other RTS titles. Overall, while the core concept is appealing for casual play, the technical shortcomings significantly hinder its potential.
- “Still a very fun game though; I hope the devs make it more optimized than HOI4.”
- “The core concept is good if you want a casual, low-performance, easy and simple RTS game. It's missing a lot of quality of life features you'd find in most other RTS games, especially map games, and has a few problems with the frontline system and troop movement.”
- “If you want to play a free RTS game just to kill time, this is fine. But if you want anything that's enjoyable for more than a few hours or more complicated, you're better off waiting for a Steam sale and getting HOI4 for something modern, or Vicky 2 / HOI3 if you need something that doesn't require a lot of performance.”
- “I really wanted to like this game, but the online is poorly optimized.”
- “There's also the 3-4 team mode, which somehow always gave me low FPS. Given how simplistic this game is, that's just ridiculously bad optimization.”
- “Sadly, the performance issues are quite annoying.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by its simplistic elements, such as a shared Google Drive document for the EULA and amusing textures. Players find the AI's occasional stupidity and the overall comedic style reminiscent of a funny video to be entertaining, contributing to a lighthearted experience despite the game's need for improvements.
- “Extremely simple, the EULA is a shared Google Drive doc, so that's really funny.”
- “It's a funny video topic, and I think this game recreated the style in the video almost perfectly.”
- “Also, the AI is really stupid sometimes, so it's funny.”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
20%
20%
The music in the game has received mixed feedback; while some players appreciate its nostalgic quality, likening it to Minecraft's soundtrack, concerns have been raised about the lead developer's unethical practices, including stealing music from others. Overall, the music adds a pleasant touch to the gameplay experience, despite the controversy surrounding its origins.
- “Good game also is the music based on the mind electric.”
- “Who would have thought that in this day and age with the plethora of games rich in graphics, music, and all the rest, a simple game with dots would be so much fun.”
- “The music is a nice touch though, almost reminds me of Minecraft when booting up the game.”
- “So you all really updated the music now... do you know that doesn't even matter?!?!”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
The game offers limited replayability due to its simplistic mechanics, making it more suitable for newcomers to the strategy genre. However, it has potential for increased replay value through multiplayer options and varied match outcomes, particularly appealing for fans of grand strategy games. Overall, while it may not have high replayability on its own, the social aspect and free access enhance its appeal.
- “Considering the replayability, potential fun with friends, and the fact it's free, I would strongly recommend this game to those who like grand strategy games.”
- “This game is great for newer strategy gamers and is a great introduction, although it lacks replayability due to its simplistic nature.”
- “Also, maybe invest more into multiplayer; a lot of replay value can be had from having multiple enemies to fight, like a better, real-time version of Risk.”
- “Replayability: no two matches play out the same way.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's monetization model is entirely free, with no in-game purchases, which sets it apart from typical mobile games that often rely on ads and microtransactions. Despite its initial appearance, it is developed by an independent studio, emphasizing a commitment to providing a cost-free experience.
- “The monetization model feels exploitative, with constant prompts to spend money on in-game items that should be earnable through gameplay.”
- “It's frustrating to see that progress is heavily gated behind paywalls, making it nearly impossible to enjoy the game without spending real money.”
- “The game is riddled with microtransactions that disrupt the experience, turning what could be a fun game into a cash grab.”