Best Tactical Games on Steam
Steam currently has 4,596 Tactical games available to download and play. Explore our list of the best picks ranked by Player Score. Our Player Score rankings are calculated directly from reviews left on the Steam store and will be updated in real-time as more players leave their feedback. Tactical game rankings were last updated on 4/23/2024.
Looking for more? Explore other lists such as:
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1. Left 4 Dead 2
Set in the zombie apocalypse, Left 4 Dead 2 (L4D2) is the highly anticipated sequel to the award-winning Left 4 Dead, the #1 co-op game of 2008. This co-operative action horror FPS takes you and your friends through the cities, swamps and cemeteries of the Deep South, from Savannah to New Orleans across five expansive campaigns.
Left 4 Dead 2 holds the #1 spot for "best Tactical game on Steam" with a Player Score of 97. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 852,328 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 831,295 positive reviews and 21,033 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $9.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. Valve has also verified it as playable on the Steam Deck and will run well.
2. Counter-Strike
Play the world's number 1 online action game. Engage in an incredibly realistic brand of terrorist warfare in this wildly popular team-based game. Ally with teammates to complete strategic missions. Take out enemy sites. Rescue hostages. Your role affects your team's success. Your team's success affects your role.
Counter-Strike has achieved a Player Score of 96, placing it in the #2 spot for the best Tactical games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 236,606 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 230,588 positive reviews and 6,018 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $9.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Counter-Strike on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
3. Plants vs. Zombies GOTY Edition
Zombies are invading your home, and the only defense is your arsenal of plants! Armed with an alien nursery-worth of zombie-zapping plants like peashooters and cherry bombs, you'll need to think fast and plant faster to stop dozens of types of zombies dead in their tracks.
Plants vs. Zombies GOTY Edition has achieved a Player Score of 96, placing it in the #3 spot for the best Tactical games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 124,739 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 121,684 positive reviews and 3,055 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $4.99 to play and can be played and ran on both Windows and Mac systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Plants vs. Zombies GOTY Edition on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $4.99 |
| Release Date | 5/5/2009 |
| Franchise | PopCap EA |
| Developer | PopCap Games, Inc. |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 3590 |
4. STAR WARS™ Empire at War - Gold Pack
Command or corrupt an entire galaxy in the definitive Star Wars strategy collection. It is a time of galactic civil war. Will you take up the reins of the Rebellion, assume control of the Empire, or rule the Star Wars Underworld?
STAR WARS™ Empire at War - Gold Pack has achieved a Player Score of 96, placing it in the #4 spot for the best Tactical games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 35,699 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 34,844 positive reviews and 855 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $19.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play STAR WARS™ Empire at War - Gold Pack on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $19.99 |
| Release Date | 5/25/2010 |
| Developer | Petroglyph |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 32470 |
5. Ravenfield
Fight upon the Ravenfield together with your Blue allies! Take down those pesky Reds using helicopters, tanks, guns, and active ragdoll physics!
Ravenfield has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #5 spot for the best Tactical games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 66,788 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 64,712 positive reviews and 2,076 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $17.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Ravenfield on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $17.99 |
| Release Date | 5/18/2017 |
| Developer | SteelRaven7 |
| Publisher | SteelRaven7 |
| Steam App Id | 636480 |
6. Phasmophobia
Phasmophobia is a 4 player online co-op psychological horror. Paranormal activity is on the rise and it’s up to you and your team to use all the ghost-hunting equipment at your disposal in order to gather as much evidence as you can.
Phasmophobia has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #6 spot for the best Tactical games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 673,517 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 646,604 positive reviews and 26,913 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $13.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. Valve has also verified it as playable on the Steam Deck and will run well.
| Steam Price | $13.99 |
| Release Date | 9/18/2020 |
| Developer | Kinetic Games |
| Publisher | Kinetic Games |
| Steam App Id | 739630 |
7. Counter-Strike: Source
Counter-Strike: Source blends Counter-Strike's award-winning teamplay action with the advanced technology of Source™ technology.
Counter-Strike: Source has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #7 spot for the best Tactical games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 169,792 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 163,501 positive reviews and 6,291 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $9.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Counter-Strike: Source on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
8. Sid Meier's Civilization® V
Create, discover, and download new player-created maps, scenarios, interfaces, and more!
Sid Meier's Civilization® V has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #8 spot for the best Tactical games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 197,262 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 189,666 positive reviews and 7,596 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $29.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Sid Meier's Civilization® V on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $29.99 |
| Release Date | 9/21/2010 |
| Franchise | Civilization Franchise |
| Developers | |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 8930 |
9. Left 4 Dead
From Valve (the creators of Counter-Strike, Half-Life and more) comes Left 4 Dead, a co-op action horror game for the PC and Xbox 360 that casts up to four players in an epic struggle for survival against swarming zombie hordes and terrifying mutant monsters.
Left 4 Dead has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #9 spot for the best Tactical games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 55,415 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 53,380 positive reviews and 2,035 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $9.99 to play and can be played and ran on both Windows and Mac systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Left 4 Dead on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
10. Kingdom Rush - Tower Defense
Get ready for an epic journey to defend your kingdom against hordes of orcs, trolls, evil wizards and other nasty fiends using a vast arsenal of towers and spells at your command!Fight on forests, mountains and wastelands, customizing your defensive strategy with different tower upgrades and specializations!
Kingdom Rush - Tower Defense has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #10 spot for the best Tactical games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 12,875 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 12,521 positive reviews and 354 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $9.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Kingdom Rush - Tower Defense on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $9.99 |
| Release Date | 1/6/2014 |
| Franchise | Ironhide Game Studio |
| Developer | Ironhide Game Studio |
| Publisher | Ironhide Game Studio |
| Steam App Id | 246420 |
More Tactical Games
Explore even more rankings for the 100 best Tactical games available on Steam.
| Image | Name | Actions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 10,234 | 11/16/2009 | 97 | $9.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 6,148 | 11/1/2000 | 96 | $9.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 3,518 | 5/5/2009 | 96 | $4.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1,187 | 5/25/2010 | 96 | $19.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 464 | 5/18/2017 | 95 | $17.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 4,430 | 9/18/2020 | 95 | $13.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 8,033 | 11/1/2004 | 95 | $9.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 10,197 | 9/21/2010 | 95 | $29.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 226 | 11/17/2008 | 95 | $9.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 187 | 1/6/2014 | 95 | $9.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 60 | 6/16/2021 | 94 | $19.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 2,049 | 4/9/2013 | 94 | $19.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 96 | 12/6/2016 | 94 | $39.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1,147 | 4/21/2022 | 94 | $29.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 60 | 6/16/2020 | 94 | $39.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 11 | 11/19/2021 | 94 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2,091 | 11/15/2006 | 94 | $4.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 10,028 | 11/14/2019 | 94 | $19.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 148 | 8/7/2007 | 93 | $12.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 84 | 7/8/2009 | 93 | $9.99 | Steam Charts |
Soures & References
Steambase has best-in-class data powered directly by Steam, our data partners, and in-house experts. Reviews and rankings are enriched, analyzed, and updated in real-time to ensure we surface the most up-to-date insights. Learn more about the Steambase approach to data collection and our review methodology.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, April 23). Steam Store. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, April 23). Left 4 Dead 2 on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 22). Counter-Strike on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, February 28). Plants vs. Zombies GOTY Edition on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, May 6). STAR WARS™ Empire at War - Gold Pack on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, May 7). Ravenfield on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, May 7). Phasmophobia on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 22). Counter-Strike: Source on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 21). Sid Meier's Civilization® V on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, May 1). Left 4 Dead on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, April 30). Kingdom Rush - Tower Defense on Steam. Steam Store.