You start all over again when you’ve lost, which is the roguelite element. The problem here is that unlike a traditional roguelite where there is some form of memorisation, so that you do better in the next run, Bad North’s procedural nature means you won’t be able to play the same scenario again.

So the only way you’ll do better than the last run is to simply... get good. Mastering the different units and knowing the different types of enemies will be key to victory.

But there is definitely some element of luck involved here. Throughout my playthrough of Bad North, I’ve found the difficulty of each new island can be quite inconsistent. You might come across an island further down your campaign that simply isn’t as challenging as the previous islands.

Perhaps this is the game’s way of giving the player a break from the frantic action and difficulty. Or maybe it comes down to issues with the randomness of the levels not working quite perfectly.

There are branching paths throughout the campaign that sometimes reward you with rare items that give your units a buff.

As you’ll be facing greater odds in later levels, getting these rare items help to give you a small advantage.

The Battles

Bad North doesn’t have a huge variety of strategic depth. In terms of the different units you have and will face or the abilities you can use.

The limited scope doesn’t hold Bad North back though. The game just the right amount of variety to offer a challenge in each playthrough.