Ironclad Dominion

Ironclad Dominion asks you to run a small territory, balance resources, and send out armies on timed campaigns. It's slower and more thoughtful than the usual tap-fest, and that's the appeal. You plan your production queue, decide what to build next, and come back later to see how it played out.

The interface is dense, which is the one thing that might scare people off. There's a lot on screen, and on a smaller phone the buttons get cramped. We'd recommend a device with a bigger display, and definitely dig into the settings to turn off the animated background that quietly eats battery.

Once it clicks, though, it's genuinely satisfying. We appreciated that the game runs its timers whether you're online or not, so you can check in during a lunch break and feel like you made progress.

What we liked

• Rewards planning over clicking
• Works around your schedule
• Satisfying long-term goals