Knightica is a roguelike autobattler with a surprisingly strategic outlook, coming soon to mobile

• Knightica is the latest release from Goblinz Studio
• It mixes roguelike and autobattler, allowing you to lay out vast fantasy armies
• Synergise, pick upgrades and choose your units to do battle

The autobattler genre has always been a bit mystifying to me. Having come from the legacy of Total War, I'm used to micro-managing individual units and adapting my tactics on the fly. So surrendering that control to the computer always seemed at odds with the core concept of strategy. But Knightica might just sway me to really give it a go!

Knightica, coming to iOS and Android courtesy of Goblinz Studio, is a roguelike autobattler. You lay out your units, synergise them for the best results, then hit 'go' and watch the battle unfold. But it's in that synergising and preparation that it offers something quite different.

The Art of War

Knightica allows you to lay out your units in a vastly different format to most other autobattlers. Rather than single heroes, you have entire units comprised of individual models, with a grid format that allows you to build the classic formations so familiar to players of the aforementioned Total War.

You know the deal: archers in the back, cavalry on the flanks, that sort of thing. It's not exactly reinventing the wheel, but just adding that bit of strategic depth already makes Knightica more intriguing to me than most other examples of its genre.

The roguelike mechanics are something I can see being a bit of a divisive choice. Personally, I've not had enough exposure to grow tired of it. But if you're unsure, you'll have plenty of time to think on it, as Knightica is slated for a rough September release date according to its iOS App Store listing.

In the meantime, if you want to hone your skills before having a go, why not check out our list of the best strategy games on iOS for some of our favourite picks? Armchair generals needn't fret when you can practice taking over the world from the comfort of your smartphone.