"I can see my house!"

December 6, 2005 12:30 PM

Looking for a fun strategy/war video game.

I've been getting back into Starcraft/Warcraft 2 recently. What are the best strategy/war games out there right now? Are there any good turn-based types of these games out there (as opposed to click-as-fast-as-you-can-build-stuff-up)?

I haven't kept up too much with the new-fangled games... the titles I have played in the past are: Warcraft 2, Starcraft, Command & Conquer, VGA Planets.

Suggestions can be commercial games but it would be fun to find a freeware one. Multiplayer is also a preference.

posted by starman to sports, hobbies, & recreation (28 comments total)

Have you played Empire Deluxe?
posted by Fat Guy at 12:40 PM on December 6, 2005

I used to play Starcraft way too much in my youth, and in terms of traditional RTS titles there hasn't really been anything that has topped it since then.

The most interesting and enjoyable strategy title I've played recently has been Darwinia. It's going to be ported to Steam soon, if you can't acquire a copy of it another way. They should have the demo back online when that happens.

It's hard to explain, but it's not really a game you can easily classify into a single genre. It has elements of puzzle, third person action, squad combat and strategy games. The experience is very fluid, there is no traditional "fail-state" and the environment (much like the gameplay) is lush and beautiful in its own unique, abstract way.

Other than that, I can't think of much out there besides rehashes of series like Warhammer, AOE, Civ, Etc.
posted by prostyle at 12:45 PM on December 6, 2005

Oh, and here's an Advance Wars clone that's online, flash and multiplayer. I never owned the handhelds so it was nice to be able to see what all the fuss is about. I haven't played it in a while, but I remember it being fairly well done.
posted by prostyle at 12:54 PM on December 6, 2005

If you have a Nintendo DS or a GameBoy Advance, Advance Wars is a lot of fun. It's a turn based war game. I've been playing it recently. It's very addictive.
posted by chunking express at 12:59 PM on December 6, 2005

On the top of my list are..

Rome: Total War, mixes turn-based strategy with detailed RTS style combat resolution. There's nothing more satisfying than turning your wardogs loose on a group of peasants.

Civilization 4, newest version of Sid Meyer's classic turn based 4X game. Very pretty; just as addictive as its predecessors. Includes multiplayer now (though I've yet to play much of it.)

Galactic Civilizations, space based 4x, turn based, very in depth, not too much micro management required.
posted by Loser at 1:30 PM on December 6, 2005

Ditto on advance wars
posted by Infernarl at 1:30 PM on December 6, 2005

If you're interested in turn-based combat on a smaller scale, I'd highly recommend Jagged Alliance 2, where you have to control a small group of mercenaries and invade a third-world dictatorship. It's graphically rather sub-par (even when it was released six years ago it looked dated) but the gameplay is top-notch.
posted by neckro23 at 1:35 PM on December 6, 2005

Fat Guy: Thanks for the link. Downloaded and tried it. Looks like a game I would have enjoyed years ago. Looking for a little bit more though.

Darwinia looks very interesting. I will download the demo. Is it multiplayer?

I don't have a DS but have heard good things about Advance Wars.

Thanks for the ideas so far; I'm going to look into them...
posted by starman at 2:03 PM on December 6, 2005

I'm backing Loser.

Gal Civ - graphics aren't particularly pretty, pace is a little slow, but a very well balanced game (especially with all the free add-ons and expansion packs).

Rome: Total War - great game, looks good, lots of different units/tactics. Incorporates strategy as well as legion-level tactics. Seeing is believing - 3D terrain, w/ individual 3D units, 100's of units in each legion, each army having up to 16 such legions. Breathtaking. The naval simulation aspect is pants, though. There is a very large modding community devoted to R:TW. However, I got tired of it after winning it a couple of times using different factions. Medieval:TW had meatier play.

Civ4 - very pretty, very addictive. The combat is very much different to War/Star-craft (designing/researching the units plays more into it than actually using the units). However, it's a hardware hog and many people report severe stability issues, especially with the latest patch. I've got it where I can actually play it on my system (which is above recommended spec) but it still crashes every 30 or 40 turns. Very frustrating. If you're not particularly computer savvy, it's a complete hit-miss on whether Civ4 will entertain or frustrate.
posted by PurplePorpoise at 2:24 PM on December 6, 2005

Dune II is still the best RTS out there (right alongside Warcraft II). The engine eventually became the basis for the Command & Conquer series -- which I think are lesser games -- but it's at its purest and most playable in Dune II. In my opinion, the Amiga port was better than the DOS version, but it's still very good.

Next to that, my utmost favorite RTS in the whole wide world is Homeworld. (There's also a UNIX port out there). The sequel is horrid, unfortunately.

An interesting twist on the RTS is BattleZone, which may have too many shooter elements for your taste. I found it an enjoyable title. I've heard disappointing things about the sequel, but haven't tried it.
posted by majick at 2:31 PM on December 6, 2005

Oh, and X-Com is the best turn-based game, ever. Period. No arguments.
posted by majick at 2:32 PM on December 6, 2005

I liked the last Command and Conquer series Generals. Its less sci-fi than the original and based more on current events. Some of new elements make for interesting challenges like taking out suicide bombers before they take your troops. I guess its a bit old, but the expansion pack for it came out fairly recently so there's a lot of game there. You can probably get Generals and the expansion pack for a fair price today.

The only free game I can think of is FreeCiv. Ugly as sin and low on features, but hey, its free.
posted by skallas at 3:11 PM on December 6, 2005

A few additions to the titles other folks have mentioned:

I've had a lot of fun with the incredibly over-the-top Dawn of War when I want a twitchy RTS. The single player campaign is a bit weak, but your units actually seem to be part of the world and the combat feels really visceral.

In my more sober, turn based moments Europa Universalis II is really enjoyable. The pace is pretty slow compared to lots of other conquer the world type games.

For those who like squad based strategy, Disciples 2 does a good job of giving you your fix. It's turn based, and building up your units from neophytes to powerhouses is satisfying.

Rise of Nations, a real time strategy game based on Civilization, is also really good if you like a bit of Civ but want a game you can play in less than a weekend.
posted by amery at 3:12 PM on December 6, 2005

A big vote here for anything in the Age of Empires series, as well as the not-really-in-the-series Age of Mythology. Age of Kings (AoE2) has been my favorite for quite a while, AoM never quite felt the same but AoE3 (recently released, set in the colonial Americas) combines the feel of the older games with the updated graphics and a few of the fun new concepts from AoM.

Wololo!
posted by luftmensch at 3:19 PM on December 6, 2005

I also really enjoyed WarCraft, StarCraft, and C&C, and my current favorite is Guild Wars, developed by several ex-Blizzard guys. It's a little different in that it's sort of like a multiplayer-only RTS RPG, but you can totally ignore the RPG side and do PvP combat only. It is heavily squad-based and real-time, but it's much more strategic than the how-fast-can-you-click RTS genre, as there is no building.
posted by trevyn at 3:20 PM on December 6, 2005

The best recent real time strategy game on PC is Rise of Nations. The expansion pack doesn't add a lot, but doesn't hurt either. Civilization IV is the hot new strategy game, but that's turn based and considerably more intricate.

For gameboys Advance Wars is awesome. Also check out the Fire Emblem series if you want more of an RPG experience.
posted by Nelson at 3:49 PM on December 6, 2005

Gate 88. Multiplayer freeware.
posted by mrgrimm at 3:53 PM on December 6, 2005

To those of you who enjoyed Galactic Civilization, GalCiv2: Dread Lords is coming out soon.

I used to really enjoy Sudden Strike, a WW2 RTS. There's no building, so no tank rush.
posted by djgh at 5:30 PM on December 6, 2005

I second majick, XCOM was going to be my next suggestion. I loved the turn-based combat in XCOM and just about everything else.

Sorry Empire Deluxe didn't float your boat starman. Here's a site with a lot of free computer wargames. I'm either going to get a PhD or learn to play Pacific War.
posted by Fat Guy at 5:34 PM on December 6, 2005

Check out the Combat Mission games if you're looking for turn-based strategy.
posted by furiousthought at 6:27 PM on December 6, 2005

Total Annihilation which is as old as Starcraft is still one of my favorite RTS games. The graphics look a little blocky now but the gameplay is great. It was designed by Chris Taylor who designed the Dungeon Seige games.
posted by octothorpe at 6:51 PM on December 6, 2005

majick- ah! Dune II... forgot about that one. That brings back memories. I might have to revisit that one. Probably can't play over the net, though, eh?
Thanks for the suggestions so far. I'm still checking them out!
posted by starman at 8:13 PM on December 6, 2005

Dune 2, def. X-com, def. Anyone play Centurion? Predated Dune, probably a proto-ancestor of the Total War series.

Too bad it can be difficult getting them (Dune2/X-Com - although there's a PCGamer version of X-Com that plays nicely with XP) to run under WinXP, so I'll throw in a Jagged Alliance 2 and an honourable mention for the genre in Silent Storm - spiritual descendant of X-Com (UFO Defense) and the descendant, respectively.

For War/Star-craft; yeah, Warhammer: Dawn of War is a nice game - after all, it is a computer version of the tabletop games which War/Star-craft got its original legs from, imho.
posted by PurplePorpoise at 9:30 PM on December 6, 2005

Oh, sorry - forgot to mention - the PCGamer version of X-Com is fully complete, fully functional, and freely distributable. If you can't find it on the 'webs, email me for a copy.

It doesn't run straight-out-of-the-archive, but I've gotten it to run stably on an XP rig.

Heck, would the original x-com might make a decent fpp?
posted by PurplePorpoise at 9:35 PM on December 6, 2005

Is there anything more modern on the market that's like Jagged Alliance 2? I've been looking for something like it for a long time, with no success.

I've been hoping for a long time that someone would do a video game adaptation of Necromunda.
posted by Yelling At Nothing at 2:26 AM on December 7, 2005

Majick, thanks for those great recommendations. I completely forgot about Homeworld and Battlezone, two absolutely fantastic games that I enjoyed greatly. You are correct about their sequels though, both of them were rather bad.

Your post made me think of also mentioning Sacrifice, a poorly received game that was an absolute riot to play. Great thread overall, I had forgotten quite a few of these titles!
posted by prostyle at 7:31 AM on December 7, 2005

Yelling At Nothing - Silent Storm has near-identical gameplay mechanics as JA2; but it's set in an alternate WWII universe and isn't quite as freeform (but has more "plot") as JA2 but still a solid game.

Ah, JA3 was announced last summer, but there's no new word out about it, which is a shame.

UFO: Aftermath is the spiritual successor to the X-com games. It plays ok but is a lot more shallow than the original and has some gameplay imbalances in and of itself. There's a sequal in UFO: Aftershock that promises to deliver more of the original X-com experience. Time will tell, though.
posted by PurplePorpoise at 11:31 AM on December 7, 2005

Thanks to the OP for this thread. I've also been looking for something new to play, and there are a lot of good suggestions here.

PurplePorpoise, I think an XCOM FPP would be great, but then again I'm a gamer, and I have played it. Some people might wonder about a FPP that is about a 10 year old Microprose game. Even if it is one of the best games of all time.
posted by Fat Guy at 12:43 PM on December 7, 2005