Best Real-Time Strategy Games That Require Deep Thinking, Ranked

In the early days of strategy gaming, where turns could take as long as the player liked, thinking under pressure wasn’t an issue, but with video games came the popularization of real-time strategy games which not only required players to think deeply about their decision, but think about it fast as well.

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Whether it’s the very best of RTS gaming where speed and cerebral thinking comes in equal measure or grand strategy stories that play out over the course of hours, all real-time strategy games, even if they have a pause, require quick and deep thinking.

8

Halo Wars

Top-Down Master Chief

Real-Time Strategy

Tactical

Systems

Released

March 3, 2009

ESRB

T For Teen Due To Mild Blood, Mild Language, Violence

At the very height of Halo’s popularity as a franchise in the late 2000s, it’s still hard to imagine that the next game following Halo 3 would be a console-based RTS Halo Wars, instead of the FPS format the series was well known for.

However, would-be haters were proved wrong time and again with an RTS game that not only introduced a whole new audience into the genre, but also executed perfectly on that genre, demanding quick strategic thinking as the players leads their crew of powerful units through a game that would become incredibly important to the lore 15 years later.

7

Stronghold Crusader

The Great Siege Engine

Stronghold Crusader

Systems

Released

July 31, 2002

ESRB

t

Though RTS games typically start in bases, a lot of the combat comes in the field, or on strategic offensives. Few RTS games have taken the base as the fundamental bedrock of the game design and stuck with it quite like Stronghold Crusader.

Set during the Crusades, Stronghold Crusader is an RTS that stands apart by focusing on siege mechanics and the asymmetrical combat experience between defender and attacker. Players need to think fast to exploit weaknesses in their enemy and think deeply about how best to lure out a breach in the wall, or to fend off a horde of attackers for good.

6

Age of Mythology: Retold

Control the Gods Themselves

Systems

Released

September 4, 2024

Developer(s)

World’s Edge, Forgotten Empires, Capture Age, Tantalus Media, Virtuos

OpenCritic Rating

Strong

The RTS genre is absolutely dominated by historical-set games, for good reason, because that is where the wargaming lineage of the genre first began. However, in the early 2000s when the RTS was experiencing a massive boom, some wanted to take the genre in an entirely different direction.

Enter Age of Mythology, and its 2024 remake Age of Mythology: Retold, which took the fundamental tenets of RTS gaming but introduced the mythology of ancient civilizations into the fray. Players need to carefully consider which powerful mythological creatures and gods to take into battle in wars that constantly shift the balance of power, demanding constant deep thinking and quick reactions to change strategies.

5

Crusader Kings 3

An Immortal Dynasty

Released

September 1, 2020

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

Though Paradox games aren’t RTS games in the typical fashion, they do run in real-time and play out over the scale of centuries, with each campaign taking quite a while to complete. In the world of Crusader Kings 3, the longest campaign length can see the player build their dynasty for nearly 600 years of Medieval history.

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In order to survive in Crusader Kings 3, particularly if the player picks a weak country, they need to think generations ahead if they want to succeed, figuring out family trees, alliances, lineages, and plots, in order to bring master plans centuries in the making to fruition. It’s a game that rewards deep thinking more than a few others.

4

Total War: Warhammer 3

Let The Hammer Strike

Systems

Released

February 17, 2022

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

The Total War franchise has always had a rocky relationship in terms of their quality, but despite some community consternation, it’s hard to deny that Total War: Warhammer 3 is perhaps the best Total War game ever made, with an expansive scale that puts every other strategy game to shame.

Over the course of its campaign, players need to think carefully about how to best use the unique mechanics and advantages of their chosen faction to conquer the world, picking fights carefully, building army compositions designed to beat unique enemies, all while rewarding high-skill decision making.

3

Hearts of Iron 4

Forge the Bloodiest War

Systems

Released

June 6, 2016

OpenCritic Rating

Strong

More than any other Paradox game, Hearts of Iron 4 demands a massive amount from the player in terms of mechanical complexity and near countless shifting factors in the simulation of WW2 that can go in any direction.

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Every nation in the game has a unique set of strengths and weaknesses, where war is a game of bluff, planning, and tactical decisions based on industry made hours before the fighting begins. The game requires deep thinking and consideration over every aspect of your nation’s military if success is to be remotely achievable.

2

Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition

The Old Classic

Systems

Released

November 14, 2019

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

Despite being over 20 years old, the original Age of Empires 2 remains one of the most beloved RTS games ever made, not due to its complexity, but due to its immensely high skill-ceiling (but also perfectly welcoming for beginners) and game design perfection in its deceptive simplicity.

As in many RTS games, players need to build up their base to fuel a military to conquer other players who are doing the exact same thing at the same time. The player needs to think tactically about terrain, military compositions, unit buffs, the resource economy, transportation, and countless other factors, all in real-time. It’s stressful to play at a high-level, but it clearly rewards deep thinking at every turn.

1

Starcraft 2

The Best There Ever Was

Systems

Released

July 27, 2010

ESRB

T for Teen: Blood and Gore, Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco, Violence

If Age of Empires 2 is the critical darling of the RTS world, then Starcraft 2 is likely the popular darling, introducing leagues of new players into the genre while telling an incredible story and a roster of iconic characters alongside it. Starcraft 2 may well be the popular pinnacle of the entire RTS genre as a whole.

However, that doesn’t mean it’s simplistic. Instead, the game is renowned for its incredibly demanding requirements on speed, efficiency, and resource allocation, where players need to think out their battles far in advance in order to succeed, all while making hundreds of interactions a minute. Starcraft 2 tests the mind like few other games ever made.

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