10 best RTS games of all time, ranked

Which are the best real-time strategy games of all time?

Which are the best real-time strategy games of all time? Ask that in the right circle and you’ll trigger an explosive debate that can go on for days. The RTS genre may be a small niche in the overall gaming ecosystem today, but there aren’t many communities that are more passionate. It’s also more fragmented than the anti-Roman resistance groups in The Life of Brian – and that’s saying something. The big split manifests itself primarily in two questions. Firstly, should micromanagement or macromanagement be emphasized? Secondly, how mechanically deep can the game be?

For some players, the RTS genre is at its best when you can spend an hour calmly building an army in an AI skirmish and then have it wipe out the enemy with a single attack move. For others, however, this is mind-numbingly boring and fast-paced battles against human opponents, where speed and precision are as important as tactical understanding, are their RTS essence. It is often difficult to reconcile these ideas. An important aspect of a truly great RTS game is finding a place for both groups.

[mm-video type=video id=01fpk4yz0r146dwndmsn playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fpk4yz0r146dwndmsn/01fpk4yz0r146dwndmsn-d3d68f76d53465b125a83a60ac3dce70.jpg]

This line-up will take that into account, as well as the cultural influence of the games and the general consensus in the community. There is one rule: each series will be represented only once, to give a broader representation of the diversity of this genre. Alright then: collect your maps, tap into the mineral reserves and get ready for the ten best real-time strategy games of all time.

Age of Empires 2 and 4 are coming to Xbox

The classic RTS series is bound for Xbox consoles soon.

If you love real-time strategy but aren’t keen on PC gaming, worry not — multiple Age of Empires titles are heading to Xbox.

As part of the franchise’s 25th anniversary celebration on Tuesday, Microsoft announced that Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition will release for Xbox consoles on Jan. 31, 2023. The company didn’t specify if that includes Xbox One, but Xbox Series X|S is a given.

That’s not all, either. The much more recent Age of Empires IV is also coming to Xbox. No specific date for that one yet – but it’ll arrive sometime in the latter half of 2023.

There’s also a cute trailer for this announcement chronicling the (many) port requests from fans. Check it out below.

Naturally, both titles are launching on Xbox Game Pass. Not that there was much doubt since every first-party game from Xbox makes it on the service.

Microsoft still needs to clarify how a mouse and keyboard-heavy experience like Age of Empires will work on a traditional controller, but other studios have made it work. Halo Wars, for instance, figured this out more than a decade ago.

Rumors have been swirling around regarding these ports since the beginning of 2022, so this has been a long time coming.

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF.

[mm-video type=video id=01fpk4yz0r146dwndmsn playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fpk4yz0r146dwndmsn/01fpk4yz0r146dwndmsn-d3d68f76d53465b125a83a60ac3dce70.jpg]

[listicle id=1331177]