MENACE

I jumped into MENACE knowing Overhype Studios’ pedigree from Battle Brothers, and what I found is a turn‑based tactics game that actually dares to be both gritty and granular. You command marines, mercs and criminals from the mobile HQ TCRN Impetus, choosing which distress calls to answer and which fights to avoid. The game’s strength is its combined‑arms combat — tanks, walkers and infantry that behave differently and must be used together — plus memorable squad leaders who bicker, panic and grow. It’s not XCOM 2 redux; it feels closer to Jagged Alliance with vehicles, and that’s a very good thing if you like messy, readable tactical depth.

Fighting Across the Wayback System

Combat in MENACE plays like a slow, satisfying chess match where every unit type insists on being treated differently. You’ll alternate between moving infantry toward flanks, laying down suppressive fire, and calling in vehicle support to crack entrenched positions. Battles reward planning: check weapon effective ranges, light up cover with heavy ordnance, and don’t be shy to pin enemies with suppressing fire so your flankers can close. The game punishes reckless advances — permanent squad losses happen and they matter — so you learn to live with attrition and make hard choices about who to risk.

Choosing Sides, Upgrading Your Mobile HQ, and the Black Market Gamble

Above the battlefield, MENACE leans into campaign choices: you pick which distress calls to answer, which planets to visit, and which factions to cozy up to. Reputation with pirates, corporations and locals unlocks favors, gear and pilots — but being friends with criminals might cost you repair support. Your strike cruiser, the TCRN Impetus, is both base and character: upgrading it changes what resources and orbital strikes you can bring to a fight, and investing in repair teams or intel payoffs in different tactical advantages. Loot is vital; without your standard navy supply lines you’ll buy jury‑rigged war machines off the black market, strip enemy vehicles, and tailor squads around scavenged toys.

Range, Suppression and Why MENACE Isn’t XCOM in Disguise

Mechanically MENACE pivots away from overwatch staples and instead leans heavily on suppression, pinning and action‑point economy. You’ll calculate line of sight, probable suppression effects, and whether a long‑range sniper shot or an aggressive close‑quarters rush fits the moment. Vehicles bring a different tempo: a lumbering tank dishes immense damage, a walker rotates and responds faster, and transports let you insert or extract squads at a cost. Environmental effects and varied biomes also change playstyles — fog, weather and destructible cover all nudge you toward adaptive tactics.

Characters, Progression and the Joy of Brutal Promos

Squad leaders aren’t blank slates. Each comes with a backstory, a voice, and a promotion tree that gives meaningful choices in playstyle. Leaders gain perks that change how their squads behave and which tools shine; I had a veteran turn from a shaky, morale‑drained leader into a clutch, suppression‑heavy commander after a risky promotion. Losing a promoted leader hurts; keeping them alive and building a roster with complementary skills is half the meta.

Presentation, Sound and Early Access Rough Edges

Visually MENACE leans realistic with utilitarian UI and readable battlefields — the animated suppression and ragdoll impacts sell each firefight. Sound design is excellent: weapons feel punchy and squad chatter adds personality. There are rough spots: the management screens can feel sparse, some tooltips are missing, and the camera can be static during exciting moments. Performance on Windows is generally solid, but expect Early Access polish quirks and frequent hotfixes.

MENACE is already a compelling, often brutal tactics experience with enough personality and mechanical depth to hook strategy fans. It’s best suited to players who enjoy careful planning, combined‑arms puzzles and living with the pain of permanent losses. Buy on launch if you want to support a promising Early Access project, but expect to see improvements — and enjoy the ride if you like hard tactical games.