Top Five Favorite Strategy Games Of All Time

Tuesday, 19 July 2011 17:54

Many of my favorite games didn't have large, traditional ad campaigns and only became popular by the use of social media marketing campaigns and word-of-mouth, proving that great games can stand on their own. With that said, here are my top five favorite realistic (or semi-realistic) strategy games.

Released in 2003 for the PC, this is an older game, but it has a depth that makes it one of my all-time favorites. Players can choose from 18 different civilizations and, like the Civilization series, must expand their territory by building settlements and researching upgrades. Gameplay is real-time and players must balance offense, defense and economy building if they want any hope of victory. With over 200 unique unit types, players have a wide array of choices for building their forces. Though it can take a while to truly master the game, Rise of Nations is still a fairly straightforward RTS.

4. Civilization Revolution

Civ Revolution, an Xbox game released in 2008, is a bit different from its PC brethren, though it still holds true to its roots. Players choose from 16 cultures, including the US, China, England and Japan, and must explore the map, extending their influence through planting cities, diplomacy or battle. War in this game is decided by numbers, not strategy, so players merely need to position the best army for the desired fight and the game will determine who wins. The control scheme in the game is simple, making it easy to pick up, and the game is definitely streamlined compared to the PC versions. At the end of the day, though, it still requires quite a bit of micromanagement, which is why it only ranks at #4.

3. Rome: Total War

Rome: Total War, released for PC in 2004, has proven to be a heavy hitter in the genre. Set in Europe, North Africa and the Near East from the late Roman Republic through the early Roman Empire, players take control of the turn-based campaign and manage population, train and deploy armies, build infrastructures and engage in diplomacy. When players go into battle, they're transported onto the field where they arrange their infantry, cavalry, archers and artillery into their desired formations and attempt to defeat their opponents through superior strategy. If players don't want to participate in a real-time battle, they can choose to auto-resolve, which lessens the need for players to develop sound tactics. Overall the game is nearly as complex as the Civilization series and the individual battles are decidedly more so. Victory hinges on proper unit selection, deployment and tactics.

2. Shogun 2: Total War

Another game in the Total War series, Shogun 2 was released this year and is set in 16th century feudal Japan, where the player assumes control of a warlord in control of a Japanese province battling for control of the island nation. The gameplay is roughly the same as Rome: Total War, but features improved graphics, more diverse troops and an AI reflective of Eastern warfare strategy, so it edges out its older brother in my list.

1. Catan

The main reason Catan gets my vote for the #1 spot is that I love the board game it was based on. Available since 2007 for Xbox and PC, Catan faithfully recreates Settlers of Catan, an engaging turn-based strategy game based on achieving economic dominance over other cultures on the unsettled island of Catan. Building roads and settlements enables access to resources--or blocks others from them--and gives players the opportunity to upgrade to cities or purchase development cards in the hopes of reaching 10 victory points and winning the game. The rules are easy to learn--many people understand the basics of gameplay within a matter of minutes--but can take years to master.