Best Value Grand Strategy Games Under $20

The Grand Strategy games on Steam games under $20 that deliver the most playtime per dollar: median reviewer hours divided by current price.

By price

Price divided by median reviewer playtime — how much you pay per hour of gameplay. Lower is better. Reviewers tend to sink more hours in than the average owner, so treat this as an optimistic estimate. Free games are excluded because there's no price to divide by.
  1. 1Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword$0.03/1hr
  2. 2Sid Meier's Civilization V$0.03/1hr
  3. 3Sid Meier’s Civilization VI$0.06/1hr
  4. 4X4: Foundations$0.06/1hr
  5. 5Sid Meier's Civilization III Complete$0.09/1hr
  6. 6Galactic Civilizations IV$0.11/1hr
  7. 7Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance$0.15/1hr
  8. 8Supreme Commander 2$0.15/1hr
  9. 9Age of History II$0.15/1hr
  10. 10Sid Meier's Civilization: Beyond Earth$0.17/1hr
  11. 11Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition$0.24/1hr
  12. 12Victoria II$0.25/1hr
  13. 13Heroes' Vow: Three Kingdoms$0.26/1hr
  14. 14Sid Meier's Civilization IV$0.27/1hr
  15. 15Airships: Conquer the Skies$0.27/1hr
  16. 16Total War: ATTILA$0.30/1hr
  17. 17STAR WARS Empire at War - Gold Pack$0.30/1hr
  18. 18Anno 1404 - History Edition$0.31/1hr
  19. 19Age of History 3$0.35/1hr
  20. 20Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition$0.37/1hr
  21. 21Terraforming Mars$0.43/1hr
  22. 22Heart of the Machine$0.48/1hr
  23. 23Dummynation$0.49/1hr
  24. 24Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion$0.55/1hr
  25. 25Fantasy Map Simulator$0.58/1hr
  26. 26Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition$0.64/1hr
  27. 27A Total War Saga: TROY$0.65/1hr
  28. 28Hexarchy$0.85/1hr
  29. 29A Total War Saga: THRONES OF BRITANNIA$0.89/1hr
  30. 30Breachway$1.67/1hr
  31. 31Ultimate Epic Battle Simulator 2$2.47/1hr

How the math works: we sample each game’s Steam reviewers, take the median of their total recorded playtime (lifetime hours, not hours at the time of review), and divide it by the game’s current price in your selected currency. Reviewers usually sink more hours in than the average owner, so the numbers run generous. Free games aren’t listed because there’s no price to divide by, and a game needs playtime data from at least 20 reviewers before it qualifies. All prices are Steam’s own regional prices, never exchange-rate conversions.