Tide and Territory

Tide and Territory asks you to settle a chain of islands, manage shipping lanes, and keep rival factions from boxing you in. It's slower and more thoughtful than most mobile strategy fare, which is exactly why it works on a phone: you make a few meaningful decisions, then let the clock tick while you go about your day.

The interface deserves praise. Everything important is one tap away, and the tutorial trusts you to learn by doing instead of locking you in a cage for an hour. There's a genuine strategic depth once alliances come into play.

Longer sessions did warm up our test phone, and the map can get busy enough that smaller screens feel cramped. On a tablet it sings.

What we liked

• Thoughtful pacing suited to phones
• Clean, readable interface
• Real depth in the alliance mechanics