Xenowerk Tactics

About

Xenowerk Tactics is a single-player Science Fiction Real Time Strategy game with compelling visuals and beautiful gameplay. Players manage and evolve a base camp and crew, completing missions in an infected zone to profit or save the world. The game features heavy grinding elements, allowing players to build and upgrade their squads as they progress through the pre-apocalyptic world.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

87%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,154 reviews

story40 positive mentions

monetization11 negative mentions

The game features a unique blend of tactical gameplay and engaging story elements, reminiscent of XCOM.
Controls are intuitive and well-designed, making it easy to learn and play.
The game offers a fair one-time purchase model without microtransactions, allowing for a complete gaming experience.

The content feels shallow and repetitive, leading to a lack of replayability after completing the game.
The game has a steep difficulty curve, especially in higher levels, which can be frustrating for players.
There is a lack of variety in classes and unique boss encounters, limiting strategic options during gameplay.

story
136 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
60%
11%
The game's story has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it engaging and immersive, while others describe it as repetitive and lacking depth. Many users noted that the missions feel grindy and similar, detracting from the overall narrative experience. Despite this, some appreciate the random events and character development, suggesting that while the story has potential, it could benefit from more variety and complexity.
- “If anyone's interested in an offline RTS game (it also has a pause button for more detailed strategies, but that's up to you to use it or not) with a good options-based story (at least from what I've seen so far), I'd recommend this game. Be mindful that it's free up until a certain point in the story; after that, it's pay to continue.”
- “The amount of detail, the graphics, and the storyline of the game is just beautiful!”
- “Moreover, the story unfolds beautifully and the gameplay is well balanced between tactics, action, and management!”
- “The story is actually pretty boring and not that engaging.”
- “Just didn't think it was compelling enough to buy this as it felt repetitive, there was not much at stake, there's no overarching storyline I should care about, and ultimately I wanted something badass like XCOM.”
- “Honesty, quite boring; most of the maps are quite linear and have nothing to offer. Also, the story feels boring and doesn't enhance the game at all; it feels like the story is just there because it needs one.”
gameplay
88 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
53%
41%
6%
The gameplay has received a mix of praise and criticism, with many players enjoying its tactical elements, fluid mechanics, and engaging combat. However, common complaints include repetitiveness, a lack of variety in missions and character archetypes, and a linear progression system that can diminish replayability. Overall, while the game is visually appealing and offers a solid core experience, players express a desire for more depth, unique loot systems, and improved mechanics to enhance the gameplay experience.
- “Excellent tactical game with great gameplay, modern graphics and impressive sound effects.”
- “A genuinely well-made game with fun dynamic tactical gameplay (sort of a mix between Xenowerk shooter and tactical RPG).”
- “Gameplay is exceptionally good fit for mobile.”
- “Pros: - very few glitches/bugs - decent, if somewhat repetitive core gameplay cons: - traveling is slow and filled with pauses due to the events - operative progression is very linear and there's no way to choose perks - lacking in the 'tactics' department - repetitive gameplay loop, lacks replayability - isn't Space Marshals 3, hopefully we'll see more improvements soon.”
- “Negatives: stop and go combat, uneventful missions, repetitive missions (gameplay wise), lack of enemy types, lack of interactable items.”
- “The game could be a lot better than it is, and I'm disappointed that it's actually less enjoyable, less polished, and has less variety in gameplay and weapons than its predecessor, Xenowerk.”
graphics
53 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
30%
6%
Overall, the graphics of the game receive a mixed reception from users. Many praise the modern, polished visuals and artistic design, highlighting the beautiful backgrounds and smooth performance, while others express dissatisfaction with lag issues and outdated aesthetics. Despite some criticisms, the majority find the graphics to be a strong point that enhances the gameplay experience.
- “The amount of detail, the graphics and the storyline of the game is just beautiful!”
- “Beautiful graphics with awesome creepy background music, excellent strategies and gameplay.”
- “Graphics are amazing, game is really smooth.”
- “The mix of old school 80s animation and computer graphics does not work here.”
- “When graphics are set to high or medium, the game lags badly.”
- “What a waste of money, don't download. The graphics are very poor and it's laggy.”
monetization
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
38%
32%
The monetization model of the game is generally well-received, with many users appreciating the absence of intrusive microtransactions and ads. Players can enjoy a significant free demo before deciding to purchase the full game, which is seen as a refreshing approach compared to typical free-to-play models. However, some users express concerns about the initial design possibly including microtransactions, and a few mention the presence of in-app purchases for unlocking the full game.
- “My favorite part is that this game doesn't shove microtransactions in your face; you don't have to pay money to do everything.”
- “It's definitely worth a try, no ads even for the free part (which is fairly long), and for tactical shooter buffs, you will be hooked by the time you need to purchase the full game.”
- “With no ads, extra purchases, or anything remotely scummy, this game is not only a wonderful breath of fresh air but a damn fun one!”
- “The reason I gave the game only three stars is: I don't like the in-app purchase of the game after a short trial.”
- “I feel like it was first designed with microtransactions in mind but then they got removed, which is possibly even worse than just having in-app purchases.”
- “So I downloaded it as it looks good, but as soon as it starts up there's a cash grab.”
music
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
47%
20%
The music in the game has received high praise for its atmospheric quality and strong 80s influences, particularly reminiscent of John Carpenter's work, which enhances the overall creepy vibe. While many players appreciate the soundtrack and sound effects, some have noted that the music can become repetitive and expressed a desire for more variety. Overall, the music significantly contributes to the game's immersive experience, with many players eager to access it outside of gameplay.
- “Can we just take a minute to appreciate the ode to Carpenter with the soundtrack?”
- “Great 2D art, 80s music (it references Carpenter's The Thing and does it great), and amusing writing.”
- “The music is pretty atmospheric and it's smooth to play.”
- “On the downside, the music gets repetitive.”
- “Would be nice to have more different music to fit it.”
- “Like the very classic music, similar to XCOM: UFO Defense.”
replayability
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
31%
23%
Overall, the game's replayability is a mixed bag; while some players appreciate the long campaign, multiple endings, and unique character development that offer decent replay value, others criticize the repetitive gameplay and linear progression that diminish its long-term appeal. Despite some positive remarks about the variety and mechanics, many users feel that the game lacks sufficient depth to encourage multiple playthroughs.
- “The game is really long to begin with, and has tons of replayability.”
- “High replay value, long campaign, I'd absolutely vouch for this game and hope they keep making more.”
- “Excellent strategy RPG with lots of variety and replay value.”
- “But it's repetitive and has little replay value.”
- “Your mechanics lower the replay value of this game.”
- “Replayability is decent.”
grinding
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be significantly tedious and repetitive, often leading to boredom as they complete mission after mission to level up characters and bases. While some appreciate the initial fun and concept, many express frustration with the grindy nature, describing it as a major drawback that detracts from the overall experience.
- “It's significantly grindy - mission after mission only to level up the characters and base enough to be able to take on the next campaign mission.”
- “The game also suffers from the boring and tedious repetitive grinding.”
- “It was a good concept, even fun at the beginning, but it gets grindy quite quick.”
optimization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
38%
38%
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while many users report smooth performance and high-quality visuals on advanced hardware, others experience significant issues on lower-end devices, including poor battery management and overheating. There are calls for improved graphics settings and better support for a wider range of devices to enhance accessibility and performance.
- “A few hours into the game, quite fun to play, seems well optimized and the learning curve seems good.”
- “Runs smoothly and looks great; I wish I could zoom in a greater amount to enjoy it more.”
- “This game on certain phones is very poorly optimized and should only be available to phones with advanced hardware in mind.”
- “Need to work on optimizing the heat for high graphics.”
- “Just improve performance on lower-end devices.”
character development
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
Character development in the game is perceived as inconsistent, with some players finding it random and slow to engage with their characters. However, the unique character progression system, interesting dialogue, and satisfying leveling mechanics contribute positively to the overall experience, though there is a desire for more development options and mission variety.
- “Rts tactics, unique character development, replayability, interesting dialogue, roguelike random encounters, a satisfying leveling up system.”
- “Would like to see more character development options and a better variety of missions.”
- “Character development is completely random.”
- “Missing a little character development; it takes a while to get to like your members, but otherwise a really good game.”
- “I would like to see more character development options and a better variety of missions.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Overall, the game's stability is mixed; while some users report very few glitches and a decent gameplay experience, others experience frequent freezes and crashes, particularly on certain devices. The linear progression and repetitive gameplay further detract from the overall stability, leading to frustrations during missions. Improvements are hoped for in future updates.
- “Looks like a great game, but it freezes halfway through a mission and goes to a black screen.”
- “(Device: Motorola E5 Cruise) freezes frequently, and after a while of playing, the screen locked up completely while in the middle of a mission, preventing me from bringing up the built-in UI of my phone to close the app or return home.”
- “Buggy and not free if you want to progress.”
atmosphere
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
75%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised, characterized by a compelling blend of mutated monsters and faction loyalties that enhance the immersive experience. The music complements the intense gameplay, particularly during challenging encounters with relentless zombies, creating a captivating and engaging environment. Overall, players find the atmosphere to be a standout feature that significantly contributes to the game's appeal.
- “The music is pretty atmospheric and it's smooth to play.”
- “Awesome in every way; gameplay is intense, especially on hard. Slaughtering the unending onslaught of zombies creates a very atmospheric experience.”
- “The atmosphere of mutated monsters and loyalties to one faction or another adds depth to the game.”
- “The atmosphere feels lifeless, lacking any real sense of danger or intrigue.”
- “Despite the promise of a rich world, the atmosphere is flat and uninspired.”
- “The game fails to create a compelling atmosphere, leaving players feeling disconnected from the environment.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is generally well-received, with players appreciating the funny missions, such as guiding a tourist through the jungle. While some find it less enjoyable compared to similar titles like Space Marshals due to its darker tone and minimal humorous elements, it still offers a fun and entertaining experience overall.
- “Decent, easy to get into; I like the classes and the funny missions, like taking a tourist through the jungle.”
- “Seriously difficult to play, but really funny and entertaining.”
- “Perhaps not quite as enjoyable as Space Marshals (partly because it has only very minor humorous bits and a darker feel), still a fun experience.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
While the game may struggle with controls, players still find it emotionally engaging, suggesting that the narrative or character development resonates deeply despite the gameplay issues.