Tidewatch Command

Tidewatch Command is a slower, thinky strategy game about managing a stretch of coastline. You place watchtowers, decide how to route supplies between ports, and react to raid waves that come in from the sea. The clever part is that you never have enough resources to defend everything, so every turn is a small argument with yourself about what to sacrifice.

It plays fine in short bursts because it's turn-based, but the campaign missions have enough moving parts that I preferred sitting down with it properly. The tutorial is a little dry, and the first hour undersells how good the mid-game gets once you unlock the full logistics map.

Once it clicks, though, it's genuinely tense in a quiet way. Watching a supply line you set up three turns ago save a besieged port is a great feeling.

What we liked

• Real resource tension in every decision
• Satisfying logistics puzzles
• Tense raid waves that reward planning