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Frozen Synapse

Mode 7 Games · May 26, 2011

PC

Teen

About

You've patched in to the enemy's security system: get ready to make your plan. Frozen Synapse is the ultimate strategy game: you have full control over your strike team, directing their every movement. At the same time, your opponent is plotting to defeat you. Plan your moves, then hit the "Execute" button: both you and your enemy's turns are executed simultaneously. Bite-size, hardcore strategy: a touch of X-Com and Laser Squad, with a striking sci-fi aesthetic.

Trailers & screenshots

Scores by platform

PC

Critic 8.6 (10 critics) · Gamer 8.6

8.3

Critic reviews

  • GameSpot

    Daniel Shannon · Aug 03, 2011

    8.5
    Frozen Synapse is a great game, thanks to its elegant mechanics, the depth of its tactical gameplay, and the tension of trying to get into your opponent's head. Minor matchmaking issues and the occasional disadvantageous starting location are only minor blemishes on an otherwise engrossing experience. While some may find the visuals too Spartan, on the whole, they are a great fit and accentuate the game's unique tactical focus.
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  • PC Gamer

    Tom Francis · Jun 15, 2011

    8.9
    Frozen Synapse comes down to wits, psychology, and thinking two moves ahead. There's an exquisite tension every time the outcome of a turn is loading. There's an evil satisfaction to watching an enemy do exactly what you predicted, and die the way you planned. And there's a surprising sense of respect for your opponent when they outplay you with something masterful. Because you're not struggling against the mechanics of the game, it's rarely frustrating and often very, very fun.
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  • IGN

    NATHAN MEUNIER · Jun 15, 2011

    8.5
    Instead of the drawn-out affairs so common to the turn-based strategy genre, Frozen Synapse delivers brisk tactical encounters that are loaded with risk and excitement. The subtle tension that builds as strategic plans are hashed out and executed simultaneously on the battlefield is priceless, resulting in a fresh, chaotic experience you'll want to dive into over and over again.
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  • The Escapist

    Justin Clouse · Jun 10, 2011

    10
    Honestly the developers could have stopped with just the multiplayer and had a shippable product that many would still enjoy thoroughly, but Frozen Synapse is crammed with even more elements that really combine to elevate it into greatness. On the single player side there is a 55 mission campaign in which you play as Tactics, a construct brought in to give orders to the otherwise mindless vatform soldiers. As the game describes it, they can move and shoot with the best of them, but try and give them a book and they are likely to eat it.
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  • Destructoid

    Maurice Tan · Jun 04, 2011

    9.0
    Frozen Synapse manages to turn the intricate nature of turn-based tactical combat into something that is deviously complex yet accessible for all, and it does so in style. You might break it a couple of times, but you'll always come back for more. Expect it to make a lot of people's Top 10 lists this year.
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  • Game Grin

    Kit Goodlife · Mar 12, 2014

    8.0
    Frozen Synapse is a deep and engaging strategy title that has a lot to offer players who are willing to take the time to learn their way around the complexities of the gameplay. The cyberpunk-themed narrative of the campaign is backed up with electronic music and simple but vibrant graphics which help to create an appropriately futuristic feel.
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