Star Wars: Zero Company isn’t out until 2026. You probably already know the pitch: small-unit tactics in the Clone Wars era, a customisable squad of clones, and decisions made on the ground, not from orbit. It’s one of the few Star Wars strategy games with a focused design and a clear setting.
But it’s a long way off. There’s no public demo, no early access, and no confirmed release date beyond the year.
In the meantime, there’s plenty worth playing. The games listed below won’t match Zero Company exactly, but each one hits something close. Some offer tight tactical play. Some give you Clone Wars content. Some are here to sharpen your instincts before launch.
Star Wars Games That Scratch the Itch
1. Star Wars: Republic Commando
Released in 2005 for PC and Xbox, Republic Commando is a first-person shooter set during the Clone Wars. It puts you in command of Delta Squad, an elite four-man clone commando unit operating behind enemy lines. You play as RC-1138, the squad leader, known as “Boss.”
The game follows Delta Squad through a series of covert missions, including the invasion of Geonosis, a derelict Republic ship overrun by Trandoshan slavers, and a final operation on Kashyyyk. Each mission emphasises small-unit tactics, coordinated assaults, and quick decision-making under pressure.
While it isn’t a strategy game, the moment-to-moment squad control is strong. You give simple orders like breach, snipe, and revive, and your squadmates follow through with competence. Each member of Delta Squad has a distinct role and personality: Scorch handles demolitions, Fixer focuses on slicing and electronics, Sev is the sniper. Their banter, voice acting, and in-mission chatter are still held up as a high point.
It’s a linear shooter, but the structure and tone align well with what Zero Company appears to be building toward. You’re not leading faceless soldiers, you’re responsible for a team that works together and feels human. The 2021 remaster is available on PC, Xbox, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch, and runs without issue on modern systems.
2. Star Wars: Empire at War (With Clone Wars Mods)
Empire at War was released in 2006 for PC. Developed by Petroglyph, it’s a real-time strategy game that lets you control ground forces and space fleets across a galactic campaign map. The base game covers the conflict between the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire, but the Clone Wars modding scene has turned it into something else entirely.
Two major Clone Wars conversions stand out:
Republic at War drops you straight into the conflict between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems. It features large-scale battles with clone troopers, B1 and B2 droids, Republic walkers, Venator-class Star Destroyers, and iconic heroes like Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Count Dooku. Campaigns follow the full Clone Wars timeline, with dozens of planets and scripted missions. It’s ambitious, cinematic, and packed with content, though it can be rough around the edges and demanding on performance.
Fall of the Republic is a more modern take, built on the engine of the long-running Thrawn’s Revenge mod. It focuses on strategic pacing, better balance, and a cleaner interface. The scope is just as large, but the execution is tighter. It also performs better and receives regular updates.
These are full overhauls with new factions, units, audio, UI, and campaign logic. You’ll command massive fleets, deploy legions of troops, and fight for control of the galaxy. It’s not the tactical, squad-level experience Zero Company promises, but in terms of Clone Wars scale and atmosphere, nothing else comes close.
Tactical Strategy Games (No Lightsabers)
3. Marvel’s Midnight Suns
Released in 2022 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, Marvel’s Midnight Suns is a turn-based tactics game developed by Firaxis, the studio behind XCOM. It blends squad combat with a card-based ability system and a character-driven story focused on relationships, upgrades, and personal choices.
You control a custom hero called the Hunter, alongside a rotating squad of well-known Marvel characters including Blade, Ghost Rider, Iron Man, and Nico Minoru. Each hero brings a unique deck of combat cards, which you draw from each turn. These cards dictate attacks, buffs, debuffs, and combos. Instead of grid-based movement, combat focuses on positioning, environmental use, and skill sequencing.
Outside of combat, the game shifts to the Abbey, a hub area where you can train, craft, upgrade decks, and build friendships with other heroes. These relationships unlock additional abilities and stat boosts, adding depth to how you build your squad over time.
It’s slower-paced and less punishing than XCOM, but still carries Firaxis’s core design philosophy. If Zero Company includes downtime systems, character growth, or tactical customisation between missions, this is a useful reference point. The tone leans into supernatural Marvel lore, but the structure offers a clear example of how squad tactics can combine with RPG elements.
4. XCOM 2
Released in 2016 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, XCOM 2 is a turn-based tactical strategy game developed by Firaxis. It puts you in command of a resistance force fighting to overthrow an alien occupation of Earth. The game focuses on small-squad missions where positioning, ability use, and long-term squad management determine success.
Each mission is built around tight combat scenarios. You’ll use cover, flanking, overwatch, suppression, and grenades to deal with enemies. Soldiers level up over time, unlocking class-specific abilities and equipment. Mistakes are costly. Soldiers can suffer permanent injuries or die outright, and every death matters.
The structure balances two layers: tactical combat missions and a strategic command layer where you manage resources, research alien tech, and respond to global threats. It demands careful planning across the entire campaign, not just within individual missions.
The War of the Chosen expansion adds sub-factions, soldier bonds, and enemy champions that evolve over time. It also improves squad personality and replay value, making the game feel less like a system and more like a narrative built from player decisions.
Zero Company isn’t confirmed to follow this exact formula, but the influence is clear. Squad tactics, battlefield control, and persistent character development are likely to play a key role. If you want to get a feel for what the core gameplay might resemble, XCOM 2 is the best starting point.
Other Games That Might Hit the Same Nerve
5. Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden
Released in 2018 for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and later Nintendo Switch, Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden is a turn-based tactical strategy game developed by The Bearded Ladies. It combines stealth exploration with XCOM-style combat and is based on the tabletop RPG of the same name.
You control a squad of mutants. Bormin, a talking boar, Dux, a crossbow-wielding duck, and other unusual characters. Each has unique mutations that unlock specialised abilities like silent takedowns, mind control, and area-of-effect attacks. The combat scenarios are challenging, often pitting your small team against much larger groups. Success depends on positioning, scouting, and engaging on your own terms.
Outside of combat, you explore ruined towns and wilderness areas in real time. You scout patrol routes, pick off isolated targets, and choose when to initiate combat. Once a fight starts, the game shifts to turn-based mode. This hybrid system rewards planning and precision rather than brute force.
Progression is tied to scavenging, upgrades, and unlocking new mutations. The tone is bleak but grounded. The squad banter is low-key, the setting is grim without being overdone, and the pacing gives weight to every fight.
Of all the games on this list, this one comes closest to how a Firaxis-led Star Wars tactics game might play. It is small-scale, character-focused, and designed around hard choices with lasting consequences.
6. Hard West 2
Released in 2022 for PC, Hard West 2 is a turn-based tactics game set in a supernatural version of the American frontier. You lead a posse of outlaws and gunslingers through cursed landscapes, haunted towns, and encounters with demonic forces.
The core mechanic is called Bravado. If a character lands a kill, their action points reset. This encourages you to play aggressively, chaining attacks and pushing forward instead of turtling behind cover. It shifts the tempo of combat from cautious to fast-moving and calculated.
Each character in your posse has a distinct skillset. You’ll combine trick shots, area effects, and status debuffs to keep the momentum going. Outside of combat, the game includes a light story layer where choices affect your route, loyalty, and loadouts.
Compared to XCOM, it’s less methodical and more focused on sequencing and risk management. You’re still dealing with positioning and cooldowns, but the pressure comes from maintaining your kill chain, not holding a defensive line. It’s a different kind of tactics game, but one that still values squad coordination and clever play. Worth picking up if you want something less rigid and more kinetic.
For the Lore-Hungry
7. Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008–2020)
This animated series is the foundation for everything Zero Company is drawing from. The Clone Wars ran for seven seasons, first on Cartoon Network and later completed on Disney+. Set between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, it covers the Clone Wars from both military and personal perspectives.
The clones are shown as individuals, not identical units. Characters like Rex, Fives, and Echo develop across multiple arcs, with distinct personalities, roles, and doubts. You see how they think, how they question orders, and how they relate to the Jedi and each other.
The art style is stylised but consistent, and the visual design has become standard for anything set in this era. Armour variants, battlefields, Separatist machinery, and Jedi command roles are all established here. If Zero Company reflects any part of this universe accurately, it will be because this series laid the groundwork.
It also captures the complexity of the war. Behind every mission is a political decision or hidden cost. The action is sharp, but the emotional weight and ethical questions are what set it apart. If you want to understand the tone and scope Zero Company might aim for, start here.
8. Star Wars: The Bad Batch (2021 – 2023)
The Bad Batch picks up immediately after The Clone Wars, following Clone Force 99 as they operate on their own terms in the early days of the Empire. Each squad member has a specific function: Hunter leads, Tech handles systems, Wrecker brings the muscle, and Crosshair takes the long shots. Their bond and specialisation make them effective but unpredictable.
The show focuses on character development over galactic scale. It explores how clones deal with changing loyalties, eroding command structures, and the slow disappearance of the Republic they were created to serve. Missions are smaller and more personal, often with consequences that affect the team directly.
This isn’t about Jedi or grand strategy. It’s about a squad trying to find purpose while staying alive. The tone is more contained, more emotionally direct, and often more effective for it. If Zero Company takes anything from recent Star Wars, it will likely come from here.
Stand By for Deployment
You won’t find a direct replacement for Zero Company. The game promises something tightly focused: small-squad tactics, clone customisation, and decision-making under pressure. That combination is rare, but the options above each bring something useful.
Some teach pacing and battlefield control. Others show the human cost of the Clone Wars through character-focused stories. A few shift your perspective on clones, presenting them as people with agency and conflict, not just soldiers in identical armour.
The goal isn’t to match Zero Company. It’s to sharpen your instincts, revisit the source material, and get comfortable thinking in terms of unit cohesion, role assignment, and long-term consequences. When the game finally lands, you’ll already be operating like a squad leader.