Kaiju Wars

Excellent Game - A loving re-imagining of the NES Classic "Godzilla 2: War of the Monsters" using Royalty Free characters. Jokes aside, this game is incredibly fun, but it's not exactly the kind of game you'll play for hours on end, day after day, but rather it's the type of game where you do a level or two a day every once in a while, forever. In this game you play as the Military fighting off a Kaiju invasion, it does this in a remarkably similar way to the NES Classic I mentioned prior. At it's core it's kinda like a game of chess, in the sense that yes you can finish a level or even the whole campaign but that doesn't mean you're not going to sit down and do it do all again tomorrow. The game sounds more complicated than it is. Between the initial tutorial levels, which basically function as a way to slowly introduce you to everything individually and one at a time, and between all the cards available in the game, and even tiles themselves just state what they do. Which is to say it's not hard to pick up on how this game works and how best to play each level. Everything is clearly explained and if you forget it just tells you, so there's not much room for error from a gameplay point of view. Thankfully, yes, your units do get stronger later on. You do feel like a peashooter throughout the entire game and that is on purpose as to one tap a 80ft Kaiju as a tank is just a bit stupid, so I can respect why they limit you. You upgrade your units after winning a level and collecting medals, while it's by no means mandatory, there will be times where you feel as though you simply aren't strong enough to win on your own. The cards do give you bonuses but it is helpful to be able to upgrade your units stats permanently, in the form of having an ACE Unit. I kind of have mixed feelings on this as since it only applies to one unit of a type you can summon during a level (I.e if there's three tanks, there's only going to be one that spawns with extra counter damage) it never makes any kind of real impact. I'd have much rather these been across the board personally, which is probably my only real con here. This game also has a level creator, and a moderately sized workshop. The game is designed around a modular cityscape through the use of tiles, which is why I haven't really talked about it, there's simply not a lot to comment. There's no real memorable stages visually speaking because of this, so there's nothing really there for you to gawk at or anything like that. Certain tiles have buildings or hazzards that can spawn on them that will either give you resources, will give you bonuses along with tactic cards or will hinder or destroy your unit. I think for this game, the tiles work well and is what carry the game from feeling samey. The soundtrack is also extremely good, I really enjoy just listening to some of these jams in my free time nut after the 30th loop on a particularly hard level, it will be one of the things you will attribute to your frustration surprisingly. The last thing I want to cover is - the main menu and my bias as a reviewer? This game drips with so much charm from a team that clearly enjoy Kaiju/Tokusatsu movies from all across the planet. It wouldn't have mattered if the game itself was ♥♥♥♥ tbh, the menu for me is a clear indication that a lot of passion when into this game. I'd never in a million years expect to see snippets of Pulgasari right along side Tarantula off all things, but the fact that I can sit and watch these iconic scenes that defined my childhood from a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ menu screen is kinda bewildering to me in the best way possible. As a person, I am extremely cheap, and sustain myself off sales before I buy anything ever, I am very pleased with this and would gladly pay full price for this any day of the week, which is quite frankly the highest honour I could give a game ever. Exactly how much its worth depends if you like this sort of strategic game and others like this. The game is only like £16 usually, but I probably bought this when there was a sale on or through a key site. Admittedly, I myself am not hugely into this kind of strategy game, so I wouldn't be in any kind of rush to over the £7/8 threshold ordinarily (I said I'm cheap), but this is worth the full asking price and then some. Would love to see some DLC down the line if possible.

An utterly unique indie game, Kaiju Wars is a wholehearted tribute to classic tokusatsu cinema and is stuffed to the gills with references borderline copyright infringement. A puzzle strategy game that takes some getting used to, and undeniably creaky around the edges, you can't find a game like this anywhere else and the adoring affection towards its inspirational genre is infectiously enjoyable. Big thumbs up.

I agree with the consensus that this game is too puzzle-y instead of strategy.

I really enjoyed the start of it but the longer the game went on the more of a drag it became. Missions were becoming longer and longer not because of things getting complex but because I was just waiting for all of the enemy animations to finish while I slowly moved units across the whole board. Constantly felt like a hurry up and wait situation where you aren't fighting to win but just running down the clock and the clock is very long. There's just so little to do while you're waiting to do something

Kaiju Wars offers an inventive twist on the turn-based strategy formula by placing players in charge of defending cities from towering monsters instead of controlling the monsters themselves. Inspired by classic kaiju films, the game casts you as a mayor coordinating emergency responses while scientists race to develop technology capable of stopping the seemingly unstoppable threat. This premise immediately separates the game from more conventional strategy titles, as success is rarely measured by eliminating enemies outright. Instead, every mission revolves around surviving long enough to complete research, evacuate civilians, and minimize destruction. Combined with colorful pixel art and a lighthearted comic-book presentation, the game captures the charm of old monster movies while delivering an experience built around thoughtful planning rather than overwhelming force. The tactical gameplay emphasizes intelligent positioning and careful management of limited resources. Military units such as tanks, aircraft, artillery, and support vehicles are not designed to overpower the invading monsters but to delay their advance. Every turn becomes a puzzle in which players must predict a kaiju's movements, sacrifice expendable units when necessary, and strategically use buildings to influence the monster's path. This unconventional approach transforms each battle into a tense balancing act where every decision matters. The game consistently encourages players to think ahead instead of reacting impulsively, rewarding careful planning while punishing careless mistakes. Because monsters grow more dangerous as cities fall into ruin, maintaining control over the battlefield becomes increasingly challenging throughout every scenario. As the campaign progresses, Kaiju Wars gradually expands its mechanics by introducing new monster species, advanced military technologies, and unique mission objectives that keep encounters from becoming repetitive. Each kaiju presents different strengths and behaviors, requiring players to adapt their tactics instead of relying on a single successful strategy. Scientific research unlocks experimental weapons and defensive capabilities that can dramatically alter the flow of battle, but these powerful tools require precious time to develop. The campaign strikes an effective balance between accessibility and complexity, offering enough variety to remain engaging while steadily introducing new concepts that build upon previously learned mechanics. The escalating difficulty ensures that victories feel genuinely earned without becoming unfair. Visually, the game embraces a retro-inspired aesthetic that perfectly complements its cinematic inspirations. Detailed pixel art brings cities, military forces, and colossal monsters to life with plenty of personality, while expressive animations give battles an energetic pace. The soundtrack reinforces the atmosphere with dramatic themes that heighten the tension during monster attacks while maintaining the game's playful tone. Storytelling is delivered through illustrated comic-style sequences that add humor and character without interrupting the action for extended periods. Beyond the main campaign, Kaiju Wars also provides lasting value through a robust map editor, Steam Workshop integration, community-created scenarios, online leaderboards, and recurring weekly challenges, ensuring that strategy fans have plenty of reasons to return after finishing the story. Although the game excels in creativity and strategic depth, it may not satisfy everyone. Players expecting explosive battles where military forces eventually overpower gigantic monsters could find its defensive focus unusual. The core gameplay revolves around delaying disaster rather than achieving overwhelming victories, and some missions require repeated sacrifices that may feel restrictive to those who prefer more aggressive tactics. The challenge also ramps up considerably in later stages, demanding patience and careful experimentation before optimal strategies become apparent. Nevertheless, these aspects are intentional parts of the game's design philosophy, reinforcing the desperate struggle that defines classic monster films. Kaiju Wars successfully transforms the familiar spectacle of giant monster attacks into a compelling strategy experience built on smart decision-making and creative problem-solving. Rather than following established genre conventions, it confidently builds its own identity through distinctive mechanics, memorable monster encounters, and a clever blend of humor and tension. Its polished presentation, satisfying tactical gameplay, excellent replay value, and faithful tribute to kaiju cinema make it one of the more original independent strategy games available. While its unconventional design may not appeal to every player, those looking for a fresh and rewarding tactical challenge will find plenty to appreciate. Rating: 7/10

A great strategy/puzzle game. I see a lot of people bashing it because "it isn't what I thought it was" but this is pretty unwarranted. I think people were looking for a game where you nonstop kill kaiju, but I feel that Kaiju Wars is very unique compared to its contemporary "Into the Breach" in that respect. Like classic Kaiju movies, you're simply trying to delay the kaiju until the scientists save the day by inventing a solution (building up a science meter that wins the stage). The kaiju are unstoppable threats that you have to strategize and build around, where even having two on the stage is an apocalyptic event. The game is packed with tons of love towards the source material, and should definitely not be passed up.

It has potential, but currently it's a slog. Most of the game feels like waiting for starting animations or title card animations to pass. There are a few options to skip some things, but no where near enough. The game's optional missions are an absolute slog because of this, they seem to be design around not fighting kaiju (in a game named Kaiju Wars, which is very unsatisfying) and delaying and leading them around, turning the entire level into just clicking and waiting and repeating it again and again because if you don't get the obtuse answer right, then you need to restart (you can't recover during these missions, it's 100% correct or guarantee failure) and sit through the entire tedious clickfest again. There's some bizzare choices here too, like every unit only being able to attack adjacent tiles which results in the same tactic level after level after level; move your units into what is melee range functionally, do a single round of damage, then get insta-killed the next turn when it attacks, although you're more likely to have the unit, or all adjactent units, instantly die to the kaiju's special move that doesn't count as an attack. I also experiences a very annoying, repeating bug too; I defeat the kaiju and run it off but the game won't end until it get the science breakthrough limit, there's no enemy anymore but it won't count it as defeated, resulting in me losting the secondary objective of completing in a certain amount of turns in a few missions. Final thing, the game's main menu reads terribly. I thought I had been mislead into buying some public domain monster flicks while looking at it. If you're curious, get the demo, it lacks the tedious optional missions and you get the jist of it all and it's fun enough, but past that it becomes real tiresome, real quick. I can't recommend you buy this game. I wish I could, as I said earlier it has potential, but I just don't consider it to be fun to play. Especially not for nearly $30 australian dollars, I wouldn't recommend it for even $10. If you can snag it for $5 then go for it, but be preapred to spent a lot of time waiting.