Enlisted is Darkflow Software's free-to-play WWII squad shooter, published by Gaijin Entertainment. Its central idea sets it apart from every rival: you don't control a single soldier, you command a squad. You play one member directly, the rest follow as AI, and you can switch to any of them — or into a tank or aircraft — mid-fight.
What it does well
The AI-squad hook is more than a gimmick. It means you always have bodies on the objective, even playing solo, and it lets one player meaningfully influence a large battle. The combined-arms scale is the other draw: infantry, armour and aircraft share the same map across historical fronts from Moscow and Stalingrad to Normandy and the Pacific. It looks the part, and the moment-to-moment combat is punchy.
Where it frustrates
Progression is a grind. Since the December 2023 "Merge" you research per-nation tech trees, and while that unified a messy old system, the climb — plus premium squads and a Battle Pass — can feel heavy. Balance also shifts front to front and Battle Rating to Battle Rating, so some brackets feel better than others. None of it is strictly pay-to-win, but time or money speeds things up.
Our take
Enlisted lands in an appealing middle ground: friendlier than a hardcore milsim like Hell Let Loose, richer and larger than a typical arcade shooter. Start on the Moscow or Berlin fronts, build Engineer rally points early, and give the systems time to open up. Do that and it's one of the most distinctive free WWII games you can install — a clear recommendation, with the grind acknowledged.