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Post by The Pletch on Sept 12, 2009 8:05:35 GMT 10
So I've got an RTS jones going and would like to check out some good games in the genre. I've already got Supreme Commander and Age of Empires 3, but beyond that, my selection is limited. Anyone know of some good RTSes out there? I don't care if they're newly-released or classic stuff.
Post away, Vegemites.
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Post by iBishyT on Sept 12, 2009 8:11:21 GMT 10
Go slightly retro and get Age of Empires 2. It's still a classic even after all this time.
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Post by CoolCorky on Sept 12, 2009 8:17:51 GMT 10
Empire Earth. It's not as good now that Sierra closed down all the online servers, but the range of war devices and campaign creator is enough to keep you interested.
Also it came out in 2001 so sohuld be dirt cheap by now.
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Post by The Pletch on Sept 12, 2009 8:20:12 GMT 10
Oh, hey, I actually have Empire Earth and AoE2 somewhere around here. They're probably buried deep in the basement. Those were definitely good games.
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Post by Sergeant Dull on Sept 12, 2009 8:28:17 GMT 10
Make sure you got the AOE3 expansions. War Chiefs and Asian Dynasties.
Other RTSes...
Rome Total War, Empire Total War, Rise of Nations Gold : All on my friends' recommendation
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Post by iBishyT on Sept 12, 2009 8:46:12 GMT 10
Populous: The Beginning is another good one. You can actually torrent a hacked version that'll not only work on modern day PCs (provided they're 32-bit), but also supports modern day mulitplayer and custom maps.
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Post by stupid hos is my enemy on Sept 12, 2009 9:23:55 GMT 10
*rolls up sleeves*
Get yer SupCom expanded, yo. The expansion's a pure buzz.
Sins of a Solar Empire is a pretty easy-to-manage space RTS. Not a huge variety of units, but the scale's dayum impressive and you get snazzy flagships.
Getting one of the Dawn of Wars is always a good bet. The first and it's expansions (3 good ones, 1 KIPPERLY one) are more large scale, proper WAAAAGH-like battles, while DoW2 is a far more micromanagement squad-based affair. I still prefer the first.
STARCRAFT, YO. F*cking beast of a game.
Believe me when I say Rise of Nations is pure solid. You have so many SMASHINGLY things to manage at once it's just ridiculous, but if have a throbbing, alien brain capable of multitasking like 10 things at once, it's a damn good RTS.
AoE is pretty much a classic. Cannae go wrong with it.
It may be a turn-based/RTS mix, but the Total War series is a pretty unique stratagy game if you're looking for a one that has a far different combat system from normal. As an extention of that, Warhammer: Mark of Chaos is pretty much a ripoff of the same except with lots more grimdark.
Pretty sure I gots some more, and some turn-based offerings if you're interested.
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Post by Vinushka on Sept 12, 2009 10:36:00 GMT 10
And of course, if you want a fast RTS, try the Command & Conquer: Red Alert series. Especially 2, it's a classic in this field.
Also, if you have the expansions for AoE 1 and 2, even better, they add a lot to the game. Just be careful, the computer is murderous on somewhat high-spec machines, for all the obvious reasons.
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Post by The Pletch on Sept 12, 2009 11:22:59 GMT 10
A mildly confusing but amazing game I recently found is Nexus: The Jupiter Incident. It's a 3D (that is, units can move vertically as well as horizontally like in normal space), mission-based RTS that operates at a fairly slow pace, but is totally the hella fun to play. It does offer a real challenge, especially on escort missions, so it's not for the faint of heart. The graphics, plot, and voice acting are all excellent, especially considering the time it was released, but despite all this, it's one of the most overlooked games in the genre, for reasons I can't fathom.
If you're going to try to buy this game, do so online. Almost no stores, including the one I work at (which specializes in classic games), carry it or ever did.
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Post by Breaker on Sept 12, 2009 11:29:19 GMT 10
And of course, if you want a fast RTS, try the Command & Conquer: Red Alert series. Especially 2, it's a classic in this field. QFT |
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Post by Admiral Mundane on Sept 12, 2009 12:19:13 GMT 10
Also, if you like the idea of simulating global thermonuclear war, try Defcon on Steam. I know there's a demo, and I think the only restriction is that you can only host 2-player games, and only one demo user can join a game at a time.
So first, you get randomly assigned to either North America, Europe, Russia, Asia, or Africa. Then you place your missile silos/radars/battleships/subs/aircraft carriers/etc. and there's a timer that indicates which DEFCON the game is currently in. At DEFCON one, you can only move units around, and as you get to DEFCON 5, you can start nuking and bombing the hell out of everyone else. The game has a few speeds, going from real time (games take SIX HOURS) to 4x regular speed (I think). Speeds are changed based on a vote amongst the players at the top of the screen.
The point of the game is to have the smallest amount of people dead in your region. Hell, the slogan of the game is "DEFCON: Everybody Dies"
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Post by Squirrel Hero on Sept 12, 2009 22:54:21 GMT 10
Sins of a Solar Empire is a pretty easy-to-manage space RTS. Not a huge variety of units, but the scale's dayum impressive and you get snazzy flagships. This. I love this game. |
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Post by Vinushka on Sept 13, 2009 5:05:35 GMT 10
Also, if you like the idea of simulating global thermonuclear war, try Defcon on Steam. I know there's a demo, and I think the only restriction is that you can only host 2-player games, and only one demo user can join a game at a time. So first, you get randomly assigned to either North America, Europe, Russia, Asia, or Africa. Then you place your missile silos/radars/battleships/subs/aircraft carriers/etc. and there's a timer that indicates which DEFCON the game is currently in. At DEFCON one, you can only move units around, and as you get to DEFCON 5, you can start nuking and bombing the hell out of everyone else. The game has a few speeds, going from real time (games take SIX HOURS) to 4x regular speed (I think). Speeds are changed based on a vote amongst the players at the top of the screen. The point of the game is to have the smallest amount of people dead in your region. Hell, the slogan of the game is "DEFCON: Everybody Dies" Far too true. It's extremely simple, yet incredibly fun. It even has that retro vector graphics trend going on. Very nicely done. And, uh, the demo has other restrictions, but I can't remember what they are. Just try it out, I'm sure you'll enjoy it. |
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Post by Oberstleutnant Insipid on Sept 13, 2009 21:19:11 GMT 10
Do what I did: torrent the full version and download a WarGames mod for it. It's perfect. (the mod's called WOPR, you can download it if you google for defcon mods) *rolls up sleeves* Get yer SupCom expanded, yo. The expansion's a pure buzz. Sins of a Solar Empire is a pretty easy-to-manage space RTS. Not a huge variety of units, but the scale's dayum impressive and you get snazzy flagships. Getting one of the Dawn of Wars is always a good bet. The first and it's expansions (3 good ones, 1 crapty one) are more large scale, proper WAAAAGH-like battles, while DoW2 is a far more micromanagement squad-based affair. I still prefer the first. STARCRAFT, YO. F*cking beast of a game. Believe me when I say Rise of Nations is pure solid. You have so many ninjaing things to manage at once it's just ridiculous, but if have a throbbing, alien brain capable of multitasking like 10 things at once, it's a damn good RTS. AoE is pretty much a classic. Cannae go wrong with it. It may be a turn-based/RTS mix, but the Total War series is a pretty unique stratagy game if you're looking for a one that has a far different combat system from normal. As an extention of that, Warhammer: Mark of Chaos is pretty much a ripoff of the same except with lots more grimdark. Pretty sure I gots some more, and some turn-based offerings if you're interested. This post is very good. I recommend and have played almost everything in it. I recommend the obscure Homeworld series, SMASHINGLY amazing. Sins of a Solar Empire is in the same vein, so if you liked that, go SMASHINGLY get Homeworld and Homeworld 2 if you want, although the second one isn't as good. I think Nexus: The Jupiter Incident is also very similar, since I've heard it mentioned before in a Homeworld thread, though I've never played it. Another obscure game I enjoyed is War Front: Turning Point, you might have heard me going on about it last year. It's very good considering I'd never heard of it, though it's not as solid as the more popular ones. I also recommend, though these are not traditional RTSes: Hearts of Iron series. It's a grand strategy game, so completely different to everything else here, so torrent Hearts of Iron 2 or pick up the anthology from a retro gaming store (I got mine, the whole set for $10, came with a tactical map of the world and a medal). Since it's a grand strategy, there's a BLARGHload of menus and statistics, and the tutorials don't go into much, but if you muck around a bit you may grow to like it. The UFO/X-Com series. It's technically a turn-based strategy, and it's very hard, but I still like it although I'm more of an RTS/shmup/flightsim fan. If you liked UFO: Enemy Unknown, skip the next two games because they're apparently not as good, and go for the latest ones, that's right there's now at least three new UFO games. You can tell them apart since they're all called 'UFO: After___'. I picked up Afterlight for about $30 at gametraders, and they had another one there but I didn't get it since I am spending too much money anyway. |
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