Narcos: Rise of the Cartel Switch review

Brief your team and prepare to take down the drug lords in Narcos: Rise of the Cartel from the team over at Kuju.

Narcos is a challenging turn-based action strategy game that is based on the hit Netflix series. Set in Columbia in the 1980s, you can play as the DEA in an attempt to take down the drug cartels or as the cartels themselves as they defend their business. The cartel side of the story is unlocked after a few short missions that help to get you familiar with the basics. Players can choose up to 5 agents that make up a squad, each of which has their own play style and abilities. From DEA agents with shotguns, Nimble but weak police and Spec Op officers with machine guns, different squad member classes allow players to find a play style that suits them. After setting up your team, players can take on a variety of missions that vary in difficulty and rewards to try and bring down these drug cartels or fight back against the Americans.

Playing of the game itself will feel very familiar to those with experience playing other turn-based strategy games such as XCOM. Players get one movement and one action, including firing at an enemy, reloading or carrying out a special action or skill, per turn and then it is off to the opposition for the same. Some missions require cash to deploy a team too but often yield greater rewards while others are free but are usually easier with little to gain. At the end of each encounter surviving team members are rewarded with a point that goes towards leveling up that character, eventually allowing the player to unlock better skills for each class. Any characters that die in the course of a successful mission are lost for good.

Levels are well set out giving players plenty of tactical options to try and there is some nice diversity in the themes including jungle drug labs and seedy neon city districts.

Narcos has some nice nods to the series it is taking influence from and includes live action story scenes that really add to the overall feel of the game but also doesn’t overstay its welcome. Just like the drug war in the 1980s, Narcos is very brutal and a level’s outcome can turn at a moment’s notice. With no easy way to restart a mission from the beginning, players will either have to live with their choices or do things the hard way. We also found on occasion that the character pathfinding will not always take the fastest or shortest route when moving, putting your team into danger needlessly.

Overall Narcos is a fun tactical game with plenty of intrigue, even for those not familiar with the series. While the unforgiving nature of the game may put off the casual player, those looking for a challenge will find it quite enjoyable.

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Mat Panek, Chief Reporter
Retromancer – Collector, repairer & fan of retro games & tech. Atari to Amiga, Nintendo to Sega! LD, Zip, Beta and a proud dad! One half of the TiredParents on Twitch.