Out now, Every Day We Fight is a time-looping, wartime twist on XCOM strategy

The narrative setup to XCOM 2 - humanity has lost, the aliens have won, and our entire species now faces destruction - is a masterstroke by Firaxis. Being on the back foot is terrifying, and that peril drives every minute of the game's tense atmosphere. So it is with Every Day We Fight. In this new strategy game, developed by Signal Space Lab and published by Manor Lords studio Hooded Horse, the extraterrestrial threat interrupts an ongoing global conflict, trapping your small squad of civvies in a neverending time loop and forcing them into a daunting role as humankind's last hope.

Signal Space Lab doesn't put an exact timeframe on things, but Every Day We Fight is visually pulling from the early-1900s and the eras of World War I and II, leaning perhaps more towards the latter. It's very much learning from XCOM, no shame there, given that it's one of the best turn-based strategy games of all time. Things are slightly different here, however. You're in control of a small squad of three, and everyone around you has been seemingly frozen in time by the invading Rifters, who are eager to harvest the planet's valuable resources.

While you've been spared from the stasis, your fate may be even worse. Trapped in a loop, when you die, it makes time rewind, forcing you to relive the moment. Thankfully your learned skills remain, turning what begins as a band of terrified civilians into an elite task force of war-toughened veterans. As you explore the city, you'll also be able to secure weapons, mods, and equipment that can be carried over to the next loop, helping you to survive.

Much like XCOM, positioning and movement on the battlefield are crucial to success, but Signal Space also has a really satisfying solution to the perpetual accuracy argument. When you take your shots, you'll take control and look down the sights directly, with your hit chance and effectiveness determined by your aim and reactions. Each member of your crew also boasts unique reflex actions, which can be triggered outside their usual action-point limits to intercept foes, assist allies, or scramble away from incoming attacks.

Success will mean shutting down the Rifter harvesters, defusing their explosives, and killing as many of them as possible. Manage to eliminate an enemy leader, and the time loop will jump ahead, bringing you closer to your goal. You'll also be confronted with tough decisions. Faced with a limited time to complete a key objective, can you afford to spare precious seconds rescuing other civilians frozen in time, or will you sacrifice their lives to help save humanity as a whole?

Every Day We Fight is out now in early access via Steam, GOG, and the Epic Games Store. It's priced at $29.99 / £24.99, but buy it by Thursday July 24 and you'll get it at a 35% discount, paying $19.49 / £16.24. Grab it right here if you're ready to survive the forever war.

For more tales of conflict, we've highlighted the best war games on PC today. If you want to make sure you're ready for any occasion, take a look through our picks for the best gaming keyboard to grab an upgrade.

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