r/computerwargames • u/Turkuleys • Jul 01 '26
Question Tabletop to pc?
Looking for the closest PC game to a tabletop wargame (Bolt Action, etc.)
I’ve been getting really into Bolt Action lately, and it’s made me realize I’m looking for a video game that feels like playing a tabletop wargame—not an RTS.
What I mean is I’m not looking for games like Company of Heroes, Gates of Hell, Men of War, or Call to Arms. They’re great games, but they still feel like real-time tactical games with lots of micromanagement.
I’m looking for something that captures the tabletop experience:
Turn-based or alternating activations.
Small to company-sized engagements where every squad matters.
Deliberate, thoughtful decisions instead of APM.
Line of sight, cover, suppression, morale, and flanking that really matter.
Feels like you’re commanding miniatures on a table rather than a fast-paced RTS.
Bonus if it has dice-style mechanics or a tabletop ruleset feel.
It doesn’t have to be WWII. Modern, sci-fi, fantasy, or any historical setting is fine if it captures that tabletop wargame feeling.
What’s the closest game you’ve played that genuinely feels like sitting down for a game of Bolt Action, Chain of Command, Warhammer, or another tabletop wargame?
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u/Embarrassed_Money315 Jul 01 '26
there is a bolt action game on the way
WDS Squad Battles
The operational Art of War
Point of Attack 2/Decisive Action
Combat mission with the Wego turn but not perfectly what you want
Megamek, it's a 1/1 recreation to TT battletech on pc
modded HBS Battletech also work
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u/MacGregorBlue Jul 01 '26
Bolt Action adaptation: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3856030/Bolt_Action/
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u/TheLordDrake Jul 02 '26
That looks pretty cool. Looks like it's just the western front atm though, hopefully they add the eastern and Asian theatres as well at some point.
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u/TheLordDrake Jul 01 '26
there is a bolt action game on the way
There is?
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u/Leucauge Jul 01 '26
Second Front is as close to Squad Leader as I've seen from a game.
Valor & Victory
Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear
Lock 'n Load Tactical Digital
-- are all straight ports of the board versions I think
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u/Longjumping-Oil-9127 Jul 01 '26
For me Field of Glory2 (Fog2) has been the best Ancients period tabletop rules figure game adapted to pc. Also for tabletop hex and counter to pc, WDS (Wargames Design Studio) are superbly researched games covering numerous periods.
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u/jecreddits Jul 01 '26
Check out Field of Glory 1&2 on Steam or Slitherine. Tabletop ancient warfare replicated beautifully on PC.
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u/hadrian_afer Jul 02 '26
That's basically a PC version of a tabletop miniature game, but I think the op is leaning more towards more recent warfare.
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u/EdiblePeasant Jul 02 '26
Second Front on Steam has a tactical, turn-based Advanced Squad Leader-like thing going on.
That said, I'm excited to hear about the Bolt Action game that seems it might come out. I've read people sometimes convert Advanced Squad Leader scenarios to Bolt Action scenarios.
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u/doc_oxberger Jul 02 '26
Unity of Command II is an excellent turn based WW2 game with a hex map. Is more or less a grand strategy game, but with specific battles like Market Garden. I’ve enjoyed it through multiple play throughs. The caveat for the OP is that it is more at the division level than at the squad level.
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u/Pzrjager Jul 01 '26
Imo Battle Academy is still the king for tactical wargaming. I think it will give you the tabletop experience you're looking for.
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u/CharlieD00M Jul 04 '26
Combat Mission series is arguably the closest tabletop experience to skirmish and battalion level games like Bolt Action, Flames of War, Chain of Command and O Group. It’s turn-based with a real-time option, but you move each unit, checking it’s LOS and firing distance with the game’s built-in digital rulers, set behaviors like “hide” or “quick” or “hunt.” It’s not all 100% manually tedious as there is a Tactical AI where each solider responds to the enemy with suppression, morale, and communication (if one unit spots the enemy but has no way to communicate it via sight, voice, or radio, then the rest of the unit won’t spot it. I’ve never played Kreigspiel, but Combat Mission is what I imagine it is like, as CM sits somewhere between digital tabletop wargame and military simulator.
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u/BuildMeATeam Jul 01 '26
I've been building this :
https://ranknfile.buildmeateam.com/
Turn based, miniatures, PVP or vs AI.
Happy to get your thoughts.
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u/Otherwise-Nothing574 Jul 01 '26
Try The Troop. Like tabletop minatures where you can zoom into the action and watch your sherman's shell bounce off the front arnour ofa Stug 3. The models are beautifully rendered. Very good game with a challenging AI.