I will say, BOOTSTRA.386[0] may be a good substitute; per it's name it's just bootstrap. I've actually used it in production[1] and it works just as one would expect.
[0] - https://github.com/kristopolous/BOOTSTRA.386
[1] - At the time it was just a gag prototype, and while I told everyone "if you don't like it feel free to switch it to normal bootstrap or one of your choice" but nobody bothered to do so since it wasn't a very complex UI and, frankly, it kept things clean.
If anyone creates the spiritual successor to Darklands, I’d buy it in an instant. There is a mobile game called Occidental Heroes that’s loosely based on it, but a bit too simplified to capture its magic.
It's continuous, not grid- or turn-based like X-COM.
A lot of the maps feature police, antagonistic to all syndicates, and civilians, whose death or injury can attract the police. This aspect can require some management. I don't recall this kind of mechanic from any of the RTSs I played around that time.
Also worth noting: it ran in 16-colour 640x480 VGA (or maybe it was 640x400...), so it looked nice and intricate. Sure, you take a slight colour count hit compared to 320x200 - but UK games artists in the early 90s were well practised at dealing with that, after years of doing ST and Amiga games. (The Amiga had a 32 colour mode, but it came with a performance penalty.)
There was also a money and equipment/weapons buying and upgrade system that was very cool, similar to some of the top down shooters or racing games.
Source: https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/twinsens-little-big-adventu...
Also love hearing perspective of folks outside the US about retro gaming. Much like "DOS Nostalgia".
