SHYPIARD
RANKING · 16 TITLES

The 16 best indie strategy games on Steam in 2026

Among indie strategy games on Steam, Darkest Dungeon® leads right now, then Dwarf Fortress and FTL: Faster Than Light.

Ordered by fit with the genre, Steam review score, number of reviews and how each game plays. Steam figures checked 26 Sept 2026. How the order works

The 16 best indie strategy games, ranked

  1. 01
    Steam artwork — Darkest Dungeon®
    91.7% positive · 162,727 reviews · EUR 22.99

    Darkest Dungeon®

    Darkest Dungeon is a gothic turn-based RPG: you send a party of four heroes into dungeons, watch their stress as closely as their health, and lose them for good when they die.

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  2. 02
    Steam artwork — Dwarf Fortress
    94.8% positive · 31,493 reviews · USD 29.99

    Dwarf Fortress

    Dwarf Fortress is a colony sim: you dig a fortress into a generated world and manage dwarves whose moods, needs and mistakes write the story.

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  3. 03
    Steam artwork — FTL: Faster Than Light
    95.1% positive · 78,837 reviews · EUR 9.99

    FTL: Faster Than Light

    FTL: Faster Than Light is a space roguelike: you command one ship across eight sectors, jump from beacon to beacon, and manage crew, power and weapons in fights you can pause at any moment.

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  4. 04
    Steam artwork — Library Of Ruina
    94.5% positive · 44,499 reviews · EUR 24.99

    Library Of Ruina

    Library of Ruina is a story deckbuilder where receptions are fights and the library is the campaign map you keep walking. A guest list is a chapter, and the next book is a fight you already feared.

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  5. 05
    Steam artwork — Monster Train
    95.9% positive · 22,942 reviews · USD 4.99

    Monster Train

    Monster Train is a vertical deckbuilder: defend three train cars, stack units, climb a hell run.

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  6. 06
    Steam artwork — Into the Breach
    94.2% positive · 22,196 reviews · EUR 14.99

    Into the Breach

    Into the Breach is a tiny tactics puzzle: three mechs, a city, and perfect information for one more turn you can still undo. The island is a chess problem you refuse to rush.

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  7. 07
    Steam artwork — Northgard
    85.3% positive · 68,738 reviews · USD 9.79

    Northgard

    Northgard is a compact Viking RTS: expand a clan, survive winter, contest victory conditions.

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  8. 08
    Steam artwork — They Are Billions
    85% positive · 51,313 reviews · EUR 29.99

    They Are Billions

    They Are Billions is a colony RTS that ends when the horde finds the hole you left in the wall — a campaign of postponing that minute.

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  9. 09
    Steam artwork — Cobalt Core
    96% positive · 4,381 reviews · USD 19.99

    Cobalt Core

    You play cards that are also shots and repairs.

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  10. 10
    Steam artwork — Balatro
    97.8% positive · 198,424 reviews · USD 14.99

    Balatro

    Balatro is a solo poker roguelike: you play poker hands, then buy jokers that rewrite how a hand scores.

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  11. 11
    Steam artwork — Slay the Spire
    97.5% positive · 218,833 reviews · EUR 22.99

    Slay the Spire

    Slay the Spire is a roguelike deckbuilder: you climb a three-act spire, fight turn-based battles with a small deck, and pick one new card after each fight.

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  12. 12
    Steam artwork — Wildfrost
    82.9% positive · 8,819 reviews · EUR 19.99

    Wildfrost

    Wildfrost is a snowy auto-battler deckbuilder: you place companions on a grid, watch the round resolve, and hope the storm has not rewritten the clock.

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  13. 13
    Steam artwork — Among Us
    92% positive · 747,865 reviews · USD 4.99

    Among Us

    Among Us is a short social-deduction party game. The Steam history is two quiet years, then a creator cascade in 2020 — no feature update that 'fixed' the game.

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  14. 14
    Steam artwork — Inscryption
    96.8% positive · 148,498 reviews · USD 19.99

    Inscryption

    Inscryption is a deckbuilder that keeps changing the table — and the room around the table. Treat the first act as a tutorial in unease, not as the whole game.

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  15. 15
    Steam artwork — IT Startup: Tech Fodder
    97% positive · 33 reviews · USD 9.99

    IT Startup: Tech Fodder

    IT Startup: Tech Fodder is a roguelike deckbuilder about running a shabby IT company.

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  16. 16
    Steam artwork — Raft
    93% positive · 377,108 reviews · EUR 20.49

    Raft

    Raft is an ocean craft loop: expand the floater, dive, do not get sharked. The base is a square of wood that grows, and the island is a stop you chose with a sail.

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How this ranking works

Territorial or systemic decisions: Northgard winters, Dwarf Fortress moods, Among Us votes.

How this list is ordered →

Related rankings

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