Fit check
Is Civil War: 1865 worth it for you?
We tell you who should skip it, too.
Play it if you…
Good fit- Civil War enthusiasts who want battles set during the conflict's final 1865 campaigns
- Strategy players who prefer commanding historical military units over controlling individual characters
- Players interested in choosing Union or Confederate forces for missions outside the tutorial
Skip it if you…
Saves you a refund- Players seeking an open-ended campaign rather than a set of listed missions and one optional scenario
- Players who want a larger unit roster or more than three difficulty settings
- Players looking for a World War II strategy game with direct, hands-on combat, as described for Men of War: Assault Squad
Our take on Civil War: 1865
Players looking for an open-ended war simulation may hit a wall when they reach the fixed campaign structure: 7 tutorial missions, 5 Twilight missions, 8 Dissolution missions, and one optional scenario. The focus stays on the final 1865 campaigns, with eight unit types and three difficulty settings.
What is Civil War: 1865?
Civil War: 1865 is a strategy game about the final campaigns of the American Civil War.
It includes a 7-mission tutorial, a 5-mission Twilight Campaign, an 8-mission Dissolution Campaign, and one optional hypothetical mission about a breakout from Richmond. The game says that missions outside the tutorial can be played as either the Union or Confederate side. The listed battles include Fort Fisher, Monroe’s Crossroads, Averasboro, Bentonville, and Fort Stedman in the Twilight Campaign, and Lewis Farm, White Oak Road, Selma, Sutherland Station, and Namozine Church in the Dissolution Campaign. The eight unit types include infantry with smoothbore or rifled muskets, artillery, generals, and mounted or dismounted cavalry.
Formations and tactics can be changed. Generals can attach to units to increase morale; veteran units are more capable, while raw units are unreliable. There are three difficulty settings and detailed combat analysis.
How Civil War: 1865 plays
- 01Campaign missions
- The game includes a 7-mission tutorial, a 5-mission Twilight Campaign, an 8-mission Dissolution Campaign, and one optional hypothetical Richmond breakout mission.
- 02Two playable sides
- Missions other than the tutorial can be played as either the Union or Confederate side.
- 03Eight unit types
- The roster includes smoothbore- and rifled-musket infantry, artillery, generals, and mounted or dismounted cavalry.
- 04Changeable formations
- The game allows unit formations and tactics to be changed.
- 05General attachments
- Generals can attach to units to raise their morale.
- 06Unit experience differences
- Veteran units are more capable, while raw units are unreliable.
- 07Three difficulty settings
- Players can choose among three difficulty levels.
- 08Combat analysis
- The game provides detailed analysis of combat.
Civil War: 1865 compared to similar games
Men of War: Assault Squad is described as a World War II strategy game combining large-scale strategy with direct, hands-on combat. Civil War: 1865 instead covers the final campaigns of the American Civil War, with missions that can be played as either the Union or Confederate side outside the tutorial.
Civil War: 1865: platforms & release
Is Civil War: 1865 worth it?
It is worth it if: civil War enthusiasts who want battles set during the conflict's final 1865 campaigns. Skip it if: players seeking an open-ended campaign rather than a set of listed missions and one optional scenario.
Where can I download Civil War: 1865?
Use the Download Now button on this page: it opens Civil War: 1865's store page, where you can choose how to get it.
What platforms is Civil War: 1865 on?
Windows and macOS.
