Expeditions: Conquistador

Expeditions: Conquistador is a squad-based Tactical RPG developed by Danish studio Logic Artists (Which includes several veterans of The Nameless Mod's team) and released by BitComposer for Windows, Linux and Macintosh on 30 May 2013. The player takes the role of a Spanish conquistador leading an expedition to Hispaniola and the New World, more specifically where Mexico is today. The game features resource management, a branching storyline, and interactive fiction elements. It has also been partially supported by crowdfunding, via Kickstarter.

The game is set during the Age of Exploration. The player's goal is to mount an expedition from Spain to Hispaniola and Mexico, amassing gold and influence while building and sustaining a strong expedition force. During the course of said expedition, the player has the opportunity to influence the fate of the explored lands, be it the natives or the colonists. The player character does not participate in combat, however, with a squad fighting in your - and Spain's - stead through turn-based hex combat. The game also includes text and dialogue driven quests with branching storylines.

It can can be found on Steam.


 * Alternate History: Subtle, at least initially. Your expedition is stated as arriving on Hispaniola in 1518, beating Hernan Cortes to the New World. From there on, changes from history start getting more pronounced, depending on your actions.
 * Authority Equals Asskicking: The titular conquistador can be from a noble family, although said conquistador doesn't actually fight in combat personally. Many of your initial followers are mentioned as having been in your family's service or gratitude in one way or another.
 * Big Bad: The Aztec Empire is framed as this, though depending on your choices and affiliations, it's possible to align with them.
 * Deliberate Values Dissonance: The main character may avert this, but NPCs and party members have all manner of views that wouldn't remotely fly today.
 * Early Game Hell: Coming into the New World unprepared or ill-equipped is a guaranteed way of making the start of the game even more difficult than it already is.
 * Gender Is No Object: There are quite a few female characters who can be recruited into the expedition (from medics to soldiers) and otherwise join your squad. It is lampshaded however in-game how this is rather unusual and contrary to the usual expectations of women in Spanish society at the time.
 * Multiple Endings: The game has various branching paths and endings, depending on your choices.
 * Relationship Upgrade: It's possible to romance various NPCs.
 * Rule of Cool: Word of God is that this is partially the reason why the developers chose Spanish exploration and colonialism as a major theme, at least compared to other European colonial attempts in the New World.
 * Screwed by the Network: The publisher delayed the Spanish release for a long time. The inability of Spaniards to play a game based on Spanish history was a noted irony by the developers.
 * Shown Their Work: An in-game encyclopedia explains the historical basis for some things and what liberties were taken.
 * Wretched Hive: Santo Domingo, the colonial capital on Hispaniola isn't in the best of shape. Justified in that it's still a relatively "new" settlement at the fringes of Spanish rule and that the ruling governor is corrupt. And none too pleased with your expedition on his doorstep.