Day of the Shell: Prologue - Review
Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3082100/Day_of_the_Shell_Prologue/
Developer: Duper Games | Publisher: Goblinz Publishing
Platforms: Steam (Prologue - Free) | Full game releases July 29, 2025 on PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch
Reviewed: Wednesday, July 2, 2025
The Perfect "One-Click, One-Turn" Hybrid You Didn't Know You Needed
After bashing my head against some bullet-hell in Hades 2 recently, Day of the Shell: Prologue offered the perfect respite—a brilliant hybrid between X-COM's tactical depth and Hades' addictive roguelike progression. This "one-click, one-turn" tactical rogue-lite with grid-based cover mechanics means that losing a run doesn't mean losing dozens of hours of commitment, and that's exactly what makes it so compelling.
What Works Brilliantly
Immediately Enrapturing Combat
The turn-based tactical combat hooks you from the first encounter. Balancing the value of cover versus kills versus movement creates a satisfying puzzle that evolves with each decision. Every choice feels crucial—do I take cover, or do I try to eliminate that enemy before they get a shot off? The system is complemented perfectly by the fact that most enemies only move every 2-3 of your turns, giving you time to strategize both defensive and offensive plays.
Beautiful Mediterranean Atmospuhere
The visuals are stunning, with gorgeous Mediterranean vibes that evolve as you progress through the map. The artistic direction immediately draws you into this world and keeps you engaged throughout each run.
Exceptional Learning Curve
The first few maps introduce pathways and strategies organically. Any mistakes I made felt like learning opportunities rather than game design flaws—always a sign of thoughtful tutorial design.
Promising Variety
While the current weapon selection is modest, the variety of skills and relics (with more promised) already offers exciting combo potential. I can envision wildly different playstyles emerging based on your relic and perk choices in each run.
Room for Growth
Quality of Life Improvements
The game would benefit from better preview systems—specifically hit percentages and danger zones for movement destinations. I often found myself caught off-guard, expecting to hit targets from cover positions that didn't provide the angle I anticipated. A ghost visual showing your next possible move from a selected location would be an excellent addition. The sleep mechanic also needs clearer communication about proximity thresholds for awakening enemies.
AI Balancing Act
While I appreciate the tutorial-friendly AI (and noticed the AI options in the menu), some maps allowed me to set up killzones that enemies would repeatedly run into. I understand this is likely a compromise between accessibility and challenge, but there's definitely room to find a middle ground that maintains engagement without frustrating new players.
Platform Optimization
The Steam Deck experience and controller controls could use refinement to match the polish of the core gameplay.
The Verdict
For the Prologue: Play it now. It's free, features a beautiful opening cinematic, and drops you straight into the action. There's only one way to discover if this game clicks with you.
For the full release: I'm wary of pre-orders, but I'm absolutely a first-week buyer. This is another solid win from Goblinz Studios, and I'm already itching for more levels and options.
The game creates an almost hypnotic flow state where you can get caught up in the bloodlust of tactical combat, sometimes missing crucial details like aim percentage changes or incoming artillery strikes. The destructible cover system forces commitment to engagements, and while the first island allows you to handle most threats by eliminating enemies before they can retaliate, the difficulty curve smartly escalates toward the end, requiring more careful positioning and movement management.
You'll Love This If You Enjoyed:
X-COM series
Hades
Tactical Breach Wizards
Other Goblinz turn-based strategy games
About the Full Release
The complete version of Day of the Shell launches July 29, 2025 across all major platforms (PC via Steam/Epic Games Store, PlayStation 4 & 5, Xbox One & Series, Nintendo Switch). If the Prologue hooks you like it did me, you can wishlist the full game now to get notified when it drops. Based on what's shown in screenshots and trailers, we can expect expanded islands, more weapons, and deeper progression systems.
Final Thoughts
The only real complaint? It's too short—but that's exactly the feeling a great prologue should leave you with, like a compelling cliffhanger in your favorite show. Day of the Shell: Prologue successfully demonstrates that there's still plenty of innovation possible in the tactical roguelike space, and I can't wait to see what the full game brings to the table.
Authors note: Hi! I'm Pat and this is my first review under the banner of The Turn Based Gamer! I'm trying to help fellow turn based strategy and tactics gamers find enjoyment in the niche as I have. Please feel free to leave any feedback or suggestions for how I could improve my reviews in the future, or any other games you'd like to see me try!