Summary
Strategy gamesare one of the oldest genres, with hit titles that go all the way back to the 90s, but they became a powerhouse of PC gaming in the 2000s and beyond. Nearly every year, at the start of the 21st Century, it featured some sort of strategy game on its best games of the year lists, and many massive franchises had their first game or a popular sequel release.
Many of thebest strategy gamesfrom the 2000s are still a blast to play today, with a handful of them still receiving DLC or updates on Steam despite being well over a decade or two old at this point. Even the best old strategy games that haven’t stood tall in the test of time, are still beloved for the impact that they have had in the genre, and for paving the way forward to inspire hundreds of amazing strategy games ever since.
The first installment in thelong-running grand strategy series. Originally based on a French board game from the 90s,Europa Universalisputs players on a two-dimensional map of Europe, where they will control a nation across multiple scenarios spanning from 1492 to 1801. The game features a real-time clock system that has the years fly by, forcing players to make decisions semi-quickly. It was also one of the first to include resource allocation on a global scale. If a player doesn’t carefully spend their nation’s money, the other nations will advance past them and pose a competitive or combative threat.
The game was a massive hit and has sequels that are still wildly popular today including 2013’s EuropaUniversalis 4which features more updated systems of the original. Whilst the first in the series isn’t accessible for being trapped on inferior devices, EuropaUniversalis 4sits as a best seller for strategy games on Steam, with its developers, Paradox Interactive, creating even more amazing titles likeCrusader KingsandStellaris.
By 2001 theCivilizationseries was already on its third main entry. This grand strategy series hasreinvented itself over and over.The reception to Civilization 3 was great, and it propelled the franchise to even greater heights than it already was, allowing for the franchise to flourish, with fans waiting eagerly for the next installment, albeit with patience.
The reason that fans adored Civilization 3 was due to the convoluted mechanics that make the game harder for new players. Players must build a kingdom from the ground up in 4,000 BC and bring it all the way to the modern age. The time frame and pure scale of the game was larger than anything before it. It’s a classic for those who remember it, and a true challenge for all, with strategy and politics abound.
Before players knew the world of Azeroth throughthe hit MMOWorld of Warcraftor the CCGHearthstone, they knew the fictional universe full of Orcs, Elves, and other fantasy creatures from the RTS games in theWarcraftseries. This classic refined the systems that would go on to be in nearly every RTS. Simultaneously building, defending, and attacking with a large variety of troops was the core of the game, and was far ahead of nearly every other strategy game that year.
WhileWarcraft 2,Starcraft, and especiallyStarcraft 2have all had moments in the sun, this third installment has aurguably the biggest cult following, with players still creating and sharing content for it 22 years after its release. It also received a remaster in 2020, proving that there is still an audience for an utter classic.
Famous for innovative mechanics,Rise of Nationsblended RTS gameplay with turn-based strategy elementssimilar toCivilization.One of the only games on this list to not be part of a bigger franchise, this gem at least got a remaster in 2014. What set this game ahead of others its year was the amount of strategic options available to the player. With terrain, weather, and formations all altering the way a skirmish can play out, players were able to explore new possibilities that they hadn’t seen before.
This remaster brought the game to Steam and added modern multiplayer as well as Steamworks compatibility so that players can add their own content to the game, increasing its lifespan even further.
The tabletop war gameWarhammerhas become one of the most well-known brands in all of gaming, and arguably the best of the universe’s digital adaptations is theDawn of Warseries. The game won a multitude of awards its year, being applauded for its balanced multiplayer and impressive visuals. With cutting edge graphics and hundreds of individual animations for each unit type, RTS battles had never been so cinematic.
Set in the brutal futuristic 40k universe, this RTS allows players tocommand all the races and alliancesofWarhammerin massive open battles. It’s the most alive the classic universe’s carnage has ever been, and clearly wowed players when it was first released twenty years ago.
Another third entry in a famous franchise.Age of Empiresburst onto the scene in 1997 and immediately established itself as amainstay in the strategy genre. Players take their town through ages, gaining land, troops, and technological advancements.
Upon its release, it was lauded for its depth and detail, with outlets highlighting how much historical accuracy was in the game. Still popular, nearly every entry in this franchise has gotten a rerelease and new DLC in the last few years, with this particular title even getting new content in 2023.
It’s tough to convey just how lovedCompany of Heroeswas upon its release. It won multiple game of year awards and felt likea new fresh take on the RTS genrethat would have ripple effects for quite a while. Players command a squad of soldiers, making tactical choices as fast as possible while utilizing every piece of the environment.
The intense presentation and gritty combat was clearly the bolt of electricity RTS fans of the era wanted, The ripples are still being felt today, as the game has had two sequels and a remaster, and all three titles are still receiving updates and DLC as recently as 2023.
A spiritual successor to a 1997 strategy game calledTotal Annilhilation, Supreme Commandermade waves by bringing classic RTS gameplay to consoles. PC and Xbox 360 players could command their futuristic armies across massive battlegrounds.
Players would also have access to one massive mech, which they would need to strategically move around the map as to protect it while also dealing out the massive damage it was capable of. This unique idea of making the player’s base a mobile war machine created a brand new dynamic that was more interesting than any other strategy game of the year.
A wildly popular entry from a wildly popular RTS franchise,Red Alert 3takes place in a world where the Soviets have used time travel to start a technologically advanced World War III. The game focuses on base building,defending, and attacking, all simultaneously.
The story then plays out through the live-action cutscenes that this series is known for, with over an hour of fully performed scenes bridging the missions. This series has always been known for using RTS gameplay to tell strong campaigns, and this entry is considered the gold standard, made clear by the fact that it was released to great success on nearly every platform.
The second Xbox 360 game on the list and one of the biggest surprise hits of the 2000s, this RTS takes the characters, locations, and technology made famous in theHalofranchise and allows players to fully control the action across massive battles far bigger than players had seen in the FPS entries that came before it.
The game was considered the best of its year in strong part due to the fact that it was considered by many to be the first fully successful console RTS. It was instantly a new classic that still received support and had a consistent player-base until the sequel finally came out in 2016.
