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Top best strategies that can be played online or online with friends and random opponents, description of ways to play

Strategies are games in which you can feel like a king, ruler, and even God. They do not feature dynamic gameplay (as in shooters), but they force the player to think logically, develop tactics, and make various decisions. Victory in them depends on the user's ability to foresee the future actions of the opponent, coordinate the actions of his army and calculate his strength.

At other times, strategies are not only battles between thousands of troops. Behind the entertainment lies a complex economic system, the development of which will also bring you victory in the game. And sometimes there are no battles at all - some developers produce exclusively economic strategies based on some business (or in other areas).

In any case, the strategies can keep you glued to the screen for a long time. In this article, we have presented the TOP best strategies on PC of all time, in which you will find decent games. They can be played with friends, teaming up against AI, alone, or against other users. For convenience, the strategies are presented in the form of a list that describes their main advantages.

Of course, you can express your opinion in the comments on the articles, and those who don’t have time to download strategies on a PC can look at the list of the best rated online browser strategies that you can start playing right now.

Warcraft III - online

Out: 03.06.2002

Genre: real-time strategy with RPG elements

The essence of the game lies in the uniform construction of a base, pumping up heroes and recruiting an army. For each game stage and situation, different actions are prioritized, of which there are an inexorable variety, which in itself determined the incredible success of the game among gamers. It is worth noting that different races have different priorities, which creates a certain abstract balance.

Of course, the game achieved success primarily because the history of Warcraft is quite old, and the first game in the series was released back in 1994 on DOS, which allowed it to win crowds of fans at the dawn of the gaming industry. The entire Warcraft series has a deep and thoughtful history, on which the plot of Warcraft III is based, although it is not important here, it is necessary for the full perception of the game.

For the most part, the game received recognition for its good balance of races and atypical gameplay for those years, which marked the beginning of a new era of strategies.

• Balanced hero leveling system;
• Balanced economic system;
• Interesting solo company;
• Balan races;
• You can play online;
• The graphics are outdated.

You can play Warcraft online on servers: Tangle, Garena, iCCup.

Heroes of Might and Magic III - online

Out: 28.02.1999

Genre: Turn-based strategy with RPG elements

Although the series of “heroes” is quite old, it has never acquired a significant plot. First of all, in the games of the series, the gameplay and gaming component are valued, and the plot is not at all important.

The gameplay itself boils down to the fact that the player needs to destroy all opponents on the map. Initially, the player has an undeveloped castle and one hero under his command. The castle is gradually upgraded by constructing new buildings, which opens up access to hiring new creatures. The hero can be upgraded in battle, or by distributing gold from chests to your troops. To win, it is enough to destroy all enemy heroes and capture all castles.

There are a total of 9 races in the game (specifically in the third part), including:

• Castle – people;
• Stronghold - elves;
• The tower is the residence of magicians;
• The fortress is a swamp;
• Citadel - barbarians;
• Inferno - demons;
• Necropolis - undead;
• Dungeon - command underground creatures;
• Conjugation - command the elements of the elements.

Each race has its own orientations, advantages, and special skills. For example, necropolis can raise the dead, inferno can turn its defeated fighters into demons, and so on.

Only the 3rd and 5th parts of the game are in demand among players, while the rest either fall short in gameplay or have too good graphics that make your eyes bleed out. We are talking about the excessive detailing of the 6th and 7th parts of the game, which played a disservice. The players did not like the fourth part because of the terrible models and textures.

It is the third part of the heroes that is considered the genius of the series, which is why large tournaments are still held for it and there is a significant gaming community. The problem with online play in Heroes 3 is the length of the matches, because some games lasted up to a month in real time.

If you want to try your hand at online play, we recommend visiting the heroesworld portal, which contains all the useful information.

• Expanded economic system;
• Developed leveling of heroes;
• Balance of gaming needs (in leveling, construction, hiring creatures, etc.)
• You can play online;
• Balanced combat;
• The presence of an unofficial team that is constantly improving the game.

Civilization Series

Out: 1991-2016

Genre: global turn-based strategy

Initially, the game captured the minds of players with its interesting gameplay, which boils down to balancing the army, economy and development (and later culture) of the nation. The game also has a certain historicity, because all nations actually existed.

To win this game you need to skillfully create cities, build trade networks between them, enter into alliances and betray allies, create an army balance that matches your economic development and wisely develop technology.

A simple example: if you only invest in the army, there may come a time when your soldiers will fight with sticks, and the enemy will already have tanks. You can also invest only in development, but then your civilization can be destroyed by ordinary barbarians, and you will never have time to develop.

It is precisely because of the diversity of the gameplay and the variability of development that many call Civilization the best strategy of all time.

At the moment, an online game with random participants is available on Steam, allowing you to test your strengths and skills.

• Unique economic system;
• Unique research system;
• Balance of nations and play styles;
• Advanced multiplayer;
• Expanded political system.

In 2016, a continuation of the legendary series was released, Civilization 6 became the best turn-based strategy of the year on PC.

XCOM series

Out: 1993-2016

Genre: step-by-step strategy

The famous strategy about protecting the earth from the invasion of alien invaders. You are a special squad of professionals, the only stronghold of humanity in the struggle for survival. Study alien technologies, take them into your arsenal and destroy your enemies!

The gameplay of the game is tied to the tactical and economic components. Tactical includes battles with opponents, flights to the landing site or landing site of alien ships, development of fighters, choosing the right perks for them, and so on. Economic - development of the base, the right choice of technology, additional rooms, waste of resources and other things. Also, after the battle, the player receives trophies from the dead, which can then be sold on the black market or used independently in battle.

Many highlight XCOM as one of the best strategy games on PC.

• Interesting system leveling up fighters;
• A variety of game cards;
• Many battle strategies;
• An interesting system of research and leveling up the base;
• Extraordinary endings.

Command & Conquer: Red Alert

Out: 1996-2008

Genre: real time strategy

The so-called “cranberry” strategy. For reference, cranberries are considered to be an unrealistic presentation of the inhabitants and ideology of the USSR, including its territory after the collapse. The game is built on this non-existent ideology. The action takes place in a parallel universe where there was no World War II, so all nations, including the USSR, were able to develop and become incredibly strong.

Later, a time machine was invented that allowed one to change the course of history. For example, the third part of the game takes place when the Russians decide to kill Albert Einstein in the past. Sending to the past was successful, the USSR captured almost all of Europe, but the war did not end - it was just the beginning.

The gameplay is standard for games of this genre, namely, you need to develop your base, hire soldiers, equipment to completely destroy opponents on the map.

• Fascinating plot;
• Balance of Nations;
• Unique combat units;

Space Rangers

Out: 23.12.2002

Genre:“epic game” with elements of RPG, turn-based strategy, arcade, text quest.

A game about a war in intergalactic space between intelligent races. The player can play almost all races, except for the Klisans and Dominators - hostile semi-intelligent races that receive orders from the main ships, which control their behavior. The entire plot of the game tells about the war of the peaceful races of the commonwealth against the above-mentioned invaders.

The main advantage of the game is the gameplay. As you may have noticed, the game does not have a specific genre, since it is absolutely difficult to classify it into any genre. But the game is often singled out as the best strategy game because players spend most of their time controlling their spaceship in separate systems. There are also arcade elements in the game, namely, when flying between systems, you can stumble upon hostile nodes, where the game turns into real-time battle.

RPG elements manifest themselves in leveling up the skills of your captain, playing the role of a good ranger or an evil pirate smuggler. Elements of a text quest appear in some tasks that NPCs give to the player, or, for example, during visits to prisons, where the player balances between being released as quickly as possible and not dying at the hands of fellow inmates. In the latest versions of the game there are also battles with robots on planets in real-time strategy mode.

As you can see, the potential of the game is incredibly high, and it can rightfully be called one of the best RPGs of all time, not only due to the unique gameplay, but also nice graphics, random generation of maps, planets, tasks and other things, which allows you to start the game again and again .

• A unique game world that is randomly generated in each new game;
• Developed system for playing a game role;
• A good mix of many genres;
• Exciting text tasks;
• Nice graphics.

Stronghold: Crusader

Out: 2002-2014

Genre: real time strategy

A classic strategy game in which you act as the ruler of a small city. Your task is to equally develop military and economic power. In gaming companies you can play both the role of the cruel Arab ruler Saladin and the role of the King of England Richard the Lionheart.

The gameplay, as mentioned earlier, lies in the equal development of the army and the economy. Due to its unusual gameplay, the game received recognition. Some of the game's features include:

• Your servants need to build personal houses that determine maximum amount armies;
• Needs to be developed food industry, because your entire military machine may perish simply due to hunger. This also creates the possibility of prolonged sieges of castles, forcing the enemy to decay from hunger;
• Almost all fighters cannot be hired just like that - they need to create weapons and armor, and for this it is necessary to collect resources.

If you play against the computer, you will notice that it creates monotonous castles, which, however, are not so easy to break through if the enemy is one of the strong ones. Still, this is one of the disadvantages that can quickly discourage the desire to play. The main potential of the game is revealed in multiplayer maps, which can be played online using Hamachi or Tangle. It is also worth noting that a clear disadvantage is that the player is tied to the starting point - it is impossible to build buildings near the enemy’s castle.

• Unique production and economic system;
• Expanded construction capabilities;
• Not a bad company;
• You can play online with friends.

Kings bounty

Out: 2008-2014

Genre: real-time strategy role-playing game with turn-based battles

An unusual combination of genre makes the game quite interesting for beginners, and beautiful graphics without excessive detail it is pleasing to the eye. It is worth noting that in the later parts of the game it is possible to enable a 3D game mode, which must be played with appropriate glasses.

The player can choose between three classes: warrior, paladin and mage. Each of them conducts battles in their own way. For example, a warrior has an increased number of creatures, a mage attacks opponents with spells, and a paladin is something in between.

The game takes place in a fictional fantasy world, which is inhabited by fairly canonical magical creatures such as vampires, demons, and elves. The player acts as a treasure hunter, on whose shoulders rests the fate of preserving the world. First, he will have to become a great hero, recruit an army of mystical creatures in order to fight the evil henchmen.

The gameplay looks something like this: you walk around the world map in real time, and when you come across enemy units, a turn-based battle mode starts, where the hero can use a book of magic and spirits. Looks like a classic turn-based battle. As you walk around the map, you can communicate with the characters that inhabit the world, complete tasks for them, receive rewards, hire troops, buy items, and so on.

• Interesting character leveling system;
• Many artifacts and unique creatures;
• Interesting combat system;
• Not boring quests;
• Nice cartoon graphics;
• Many games in the series are made in the same style.

StarCraft II - online

Out: 26.06.2010

Genre: real time strategy

No less exciting game from the creators of Warcraft - Blizzard. The plot of the game tells about the battle of three cosmic races: the Zerg, the Protoss and the Terrans. Unlike Warcraft, the game is more dynamic and lacks heroes, which completely changes priorities in battles.

StarCraft also has a rich story, but it is presented to players during story cutscenes, making you merely an observer rather than a maker of the story.

Each playable race has its own advantages and disadvantages. For example, Protoss units have many additional abilities that must be used at the right time, otherwise the army will be quite weak. Considering that the game itself is very fast, you need to have fast playing and thinking skills to succeed in the game.

StarCraft can rightfully bear the title of the best strategy game on PC of all time.

The game can be played online through the Blizzard game downloader.

• Race balance;
• Balanced economy;
• Fast pace of the game;
• You can play online;
• Regular tournaments from official developers.

Warhammer 40,000 series of games

Out: 1999 - 2009

Genre: real time strategy

Warhammer is a fairly popular game not only in computer form, but also in card form. The history of the game appeared long before the development of the computer sphere (in 1983) in America, which determined the success of the series.

The history of the world tells of bloody wars for control of the galaxy, grandiose betrayals and ascensions, and so on. The games in this series are not tied only to the strategy genre, because there are both CCG and action branches.

The most famous games in the series for the general public: Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War, tell the story of a war for control of one designated planet between the game races. The player chooses one of the sides in the war, which has unique units and battle tactics. In the future, your task will be to seize control of the entire planet. Some games in the series divide the gameplay into two stages: global turn-based control and real-time strategy. The first mode is simply choosing a point of attack, and the second is the actual battle. In battle, you need to rebuild your base, capture key points that bring one of two resources - influence, strengthen them and attack enemy bases. It is worth noting that the main objective of the game is to destroy all enemy buildings.

Almost all Vakha strategies can be played through hamachi.

• Deep history;
• Race balance;
• Each race has its own unique characteristics;
• Interesting system for improving units;
• Interesting company.

Company of Heroes

Out: 2006-2009

Genre: real time strategy

The plot of the game follows such films as “Saving Private Ryan”, “A Bridge Too Far” and the television series “Band of Brothers”. The action takes place during the Great Patriotic War.

The gameplay is a classic RTS with wargame elements. Many note that the game is reminiscent of the Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War series due to the fact that the player can independently choose the weapons with which his platoons will fight. Troops also have a combat morale scale, which affects the effectiveness of soldiers. For example, if a platoon comes under machine gun fire, its morale drops sharply, which reduces its shooting and running speed. In addition, when a squad member who was holding a weapon dies, it does not disappear, but remains on the ground where it can be picked up. The next feature of the game is the system of unit ranks, which with each increased level of fighters allows them to improve their characteristics, which creates a certain convention that units are not just meat.

Wargame elements also include the fact that the player can install defensive structures himself, increasing the effectiveness of fighters. All the ditches, sandbags, etc. can be occupied by your fighters to increase their effectiveness. Since the game can maintain a small limit, and the combat speed is quite low, the result is an entertaining combat simulator. Of course, this game is not singled out as the absolute best strategy, but it deserves to be at least a nominee.

• Interesting game missions;
• Unusual gameplay;
• The feeling of real battles is created;

Cossacks Series

Out: 2001-2016

Genre: economic strategy

The game stands out for its gameplay, which is based on the balance of economic and military power. The correct construction of the economy has a key role in the game, because even if you skillfully use military forces, skillfully withdraw them, divide them into groups, opening the horizon for a volley of guns, then sooner or later, with a weak economy, you will lose to the player who is more focused on economic component. Firstly, a player with a strong economy can simply spam units - he does not need to think about their safety, because there are always resources. Secondly, the availability of resources such as coal and iron determines the ability of shooting units to attack. If there is no coal or iron, the fighters cannot shoot. Food also plays an important role, as it is a constantly consumed resource. Therefore, if your population is growing, then your food infrastructure should grow accordingly.

The game also stands out in that each player can recruit a huge number of troops, which allows the use of diverse gaming strategies. Among the types of troops you can find: cavalry, melee units, ranged units, artillery. In addition, the game has technical development that allows you to recruit stronger and more technologically advanced troops.

Many players are betting that the third part of the series will be the best strategy game of 2016!

• Addiction military power from the economy;
• Many battle strategies;
• The need to balance economics and military strength.

Anno 1404

Out: 2009-2010

Genre: economic strategy

The plot is tied to a parallel reality, which, however, repeats real historical prototypes, such as the Crusades, the dawn of early forms of capitalism, and so on.

The gameplay is tied to economic warfare and the development of colonies and settlements. You, as an effective ruler, need to correctly calculate the distribution of resources for the development of cities and conduct diplomatic relations. The combat component of the game is divided into sea and land battles, however, the opportunity to wage war is not immediately open, but later becomes one of the elements that helps to defeat opponents.

All states are divided into two types: European and Eastern. A European country cannot fully develop without spices and quartz, produced only in the east, which naturally determines the need for active trade, which is also one of the main ways to earn gold. One of the key tasks in urban planning is the construction of large cultural elements such as cathedrals or mosques.

• Developed economy;
• An interesting process of urban planning;
• Advanced diplomacy system.

Total War series

Out: 2000-2015

Genre: global strategy

Some semblance of historical strategy. Actions take place on the global world map in different periods of time - it all depends on the part of the game. The player can choose any of the presented countries and subsequently capture the entire map, depending on the established victory conditions.

But it is not for its plot and historical component that this game is singled out as the best strategy on PC, but for its gameplay. It is built on the step-by-step movement of armies, the development and capture of cities in various countries. Battles take place in real time, where the player acts as a commander, places his troops on the map and directly leads the battle. There is also a politics mode where the player makes alliances, declares wars, exchanges resources, and so on.

• Interesting policy system;
• Interesting in-game battles in real time;
• Developed system of internal events ( crusades, jihads, etc.);
• An advanced system for improving cities, depending on their location.

Disciples

Out: 1999-2010

Genre: turn-based strategy with RPG elements

The game takes place in the cruel fantasy world of Nevendaar, where dark forces constantly strive to awaken. Companies for all nations are available to the player to complete. It turns out that the player himself weaves the whole story. There are a total of five nations available in the game, including:

• Hordes of undead - servants of the ancient goddess of death Mortis;
• The Empire is a race of people under the protection of the supreme angels;
• Legions of the Damned - Betrezen's demonic minions;
• The Elven Alliance is a united army of elves led by Queen Ellumiel;
• Mountain clans are harsh foothill people led by a high king.

The gameplay is classic strategy. The player’s task is to intelligently explore the territory and upgrade the army. Oh yes, unlike other strategies, here you can only hire minions of lower levels, who then need to be upgraded, gaining experience in battle. Overall, the combat system in Disciples is unique, which is what made the game so successful. At the beginning, the player starts with one capital and a hero. The capital is a unique city guarded by a very strong creature, so it is almost impossible to break through the capital from the very beginning. The war is being waged over sources of magic - one of the resources and separate outposts that allow you to hire troops far from the capital.

• A unique system for leveling up creatures;
• Races are not alike;
• Race balance;
• An interesting system for using magic;

Age of Empires game series

Out: 1997-2007

Genre: real time strategy

Quite an old game that can also claim to be the best PC strategy of all time. The main advantage of this game is custom tournaments with large prize pools reaching up to 100 thousand dollars. The reason for such sums for such an old game is its fans from rich countries who can afford to spend such sums on organizing tournaments.

The gameplay itself comes down to a balance between technology, economy and army. Each nation can move between 5 eras in battle:

• Age of Exploration;
• Age of Colonization;
• The Age of Fortresses;
• Industrial Age;
• Age of Empire.

Each era opens up new research, types of troops and buildings. If you switch between eras early, without spending money on an army, then most likely you will be crushed by “homeless people”, and if you focus only on hiring troops, then most likely the enemy will crush you with a more high-tech limit.

Many players argue that to play effectively in AOE, you just need to be able to move your troops away from volleys of siege weapons and archers, which leads to low army losses and increased economic development, due to reduced resource consumption to maintain the combat limit.

Play AOE online with friends or random players via Steam, Tangle or Hamachi.

• The need for skillful balancing of all game aspects (economy, troops, research, construction);
• Balance of all races (in the latest version);
• Tournaments with large prize pools;
• Average game speed.

Age of Mythology

Out: 01.12.2002

Genre: Real-time strategy

Age of Mythology is somewhat similar to the game described above, but still has different roots and features that allow you to build a more interesting game.

Key Feature The game is to replace eras with the worship of gods, granting special powers and new mythical creatures with special characteristics and skills, such as fiery or poisonous breath, freezing a key unit, etc.

Unlike AOE, where the player only has a human and siege limit, AOM also has a mythic limit, consisting of mythical creatures such as giants, dryads, rocs and others. AOM does not have such significant prize pools as AOE, but it also has its own community, among which relatively regular tournaments are held.

You can play AOM online via Steam, Tangle or Hamachi.

• It is necessary to correctly balance all game aspects (economy, troops, research, construction);
• Balance of all races and deities;
• You can play online;
• Average game speed.

Settlers 7

Out: 23.03.2010

Genre: RTS, city planning simulator

A simulator of building cities that subsequently create a vast kingdom. The main task of the game is to correctly place buildings and create transport connections between them. The player can develop his kingdom in three directions, including:

• Military production;
• Scientific approach;
• Trading perspective.

Each development path will ultimately lead the player to victory. For example, if you choose the military path, then the focus of your development will be the army, which will subsequently try to crush your enemies. The scientific path will help you defeat your opponents with technology, and the trade path will help you capture the best trade routes on the entire map, which will give you an advantage over your opponents. Each development path includes unique units.

Critics highlight good artificial intelligence, but a weak storyline.

• Good artificial intelligence;
• Expanded urban planning capability;
• Equality of development paths (economics, military development and technology).

Warhammer 40,000 series

Release date: 1992-2011

Genre: Real-time strategy

The Warhammer 40,000 series is the most popular and one of the best-selling games. Fans are constantly waiting for the release of a new game. The most famous is Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War. The player selects a race (Imperial Guard, Space Marines, Tau, Necrons, Orcs, Chaos, Eldar; new races appear with each game) for which he wants to play, after which he selects a place on the planet or planets that he wants to capture and fights with the race that owns it earth.

The battle takes place in real time on the terrain where the battle takes place. Players capture special points that give influence and build generators that provide energy; these resources are used to build structures, troops and make improvements. Each race has its own troops, super units and heroes and abilities. The goal of the game in the campaign is to capture all the lands and become the patron of all lands.

Civilization Series

Release date: 1991-2013

Genre: Global turn-based strategy

In Civilization, a complete model of human development has been created from the most ancient times to the present. The player must create and develop his mighty empire, among other competitors, the victory condition may be military victory over everyone, victory on points, The game ends in 2050, either culture or build a spaceship and fly to Alpha Centauri. The strength and development of civilization consists of the development and creation of new cities, the creation of production of troops in cities, scientific and military research. You can also create wonders of the world in the game.

For civilization to flourish, the player must be able to focus and balance between scientific progress, building up military power, replenishing the treasury, developing infrastructure and culture, diplomatic contacts and trade with other civilizations. The player can take part in historical events that took place, control leaders such as Stalin, Napaleon, Ramses II, Catherine II and so on. It's hard to say which of the series is the best. Some say that part is the best, others say the fourth. Adherents of graphics claim that the fifth is the best of this series.

Warcraft III

Genre: real-time strategy with RPG elements

Popularly known as "Varik" was one of the most anticipated games, with over 4.5 million pre-orders and over one million copies of the game sold in less than a month, making it the fastest selling computer game. a large number of positive reviews, many publications awarded the game with the titles “Best Game of the Year” and “Best Strategy of the Year.” The game also received high marks from players.

There are 4 races in the game: Alliance (humans), Undead, Horde (Orcs) and Night Elves. Each race has its own unique heroes, who gain experience and a new level in battles. With each level, new hero abilities are unlocked. Heroes can also buy or pick up items from killed mobs that improve combat characteristics heroes and the troops surrounding him. On different maps players capture gold mines and extract timber, use these resources to build a base and units and improve their characteristics.

Heroes of Might and Magic III

Genre: Turn-based strategy with RPG elements

Heroes of Might and Magic III is a turn-based fantasy game, the third part of the series has become a cult favorite and has gained many fans around the world. Despite the now outdated graphics, it is still played by thousands of players around the world. The fourth and fifth parts of the game came out with better graphics and improved gameplay, so if you are not a fan of old games and love graphics, then it is best to play the latest parts.

The player travels across a global map with heroes who control mythical creatures, exploring new lands, capturing cities and fighting enemies. On the map, the player moves only one hero and can only walk a certain distance or do one or more actions, after which he misses a turn and the computer-controlled enemies make their move. By attacking enemies, you move into combat mode, the army of enemies and your army of creatures stand opposite each other, moving combat units in turn to destroy the enemies. As cities develop, new opportunities and spells can be discovered. Hire troops.

StarCraft II

Genre: real time strategy

StarCraft II is the second part of the cult first part, released back in 1998. The second part of the game became the most anticipated game of the year due to the great popularity of the first part and fully met its expectations among players. Many Russian and foreign gaming portals gave the game scores of over 9 points out of 10. In the player rating it received 9.3 points.

The plot of the game and all the actions take place in the distant future, or more precisely the 26th century in a remote part of the Milky Way galaxy. The three races of Terran, Zerg, and Protoss are opposed to each other. Players extract two types of resources: minerals and vespene gas, which they then use to build buildings and hire combat units. The main task is the destruction of the enemy base. Each type of unit has its own strengths and weaknesses, so to destroy certain types of enemy troops you need to hire troops that are good at destroying them.

Total War series is the best Rome: Total War

Genre: turn-based grand strategy, real-time strategy

Total War rus. “Total War” is a series of games that already has seven games and various additions. Different games cover different historical periods and states. The most popular and iconic is Rome: Total War, released in 2004. The action takes place in Ancient Rome during the Republic period from 270 BC. e. up to 14 AD e. For example, Shogun: Total War takes place in Japan Shogun: Total War in the 16th century, where reigning dynasties oppose each other. Empire: Total War - during the European colonial wars and so on.

The gameplay of the game is very similar to Civilization. The player controls troops, cities and settlements on a global point. After completing all actions, the player misses a turn, after which the AI-controlled competitors make their move. If you or your enemy attack each other, then you move to the tactical map, where you control all your troops in real mode, attacking them and placing them in convenient positions on the map.

Command & Conquer: Red Alert 1,2,3

Release date: 1996 and 2000

Genre: Real-time strategy

Red Alert is a game that was released in the last century and captured the minds and souls of gamers around the world; thousands of people still play it, more than 30 million copies sold. The game takes place in an alternate history where Allied forces defend Europe from the aggressive Soviet Union. The player can choose one of two warring parties: Alliance or USSR. Accordingly, the goal of the game for the Allies is to stop Stalin before he takes over the whole world, for the USSR - to achieve the complete capture of Europe. Depending on the side chosen, the player's victory results in one of two alternative endings.

Battles in the game take place both on land, on water and in the air. Each side can have its own base and can train ground troops, Air Force and Navy. Each side also has unique features. The game mechanic is that now even a simple infantryman can destroy a tank. A tank can easily destroy a machine-gun pillbox; a small group of grenade launchers can just as easily deal with a tank if it is not covered by anti-personnel equipment or its own infantry, which forced them to use it in battle Various types troops.

Europa Universalis series of games

Release date: 2000-2013

Genre: turn-based global strategy,

Continues the series of global strategies Europa Universalis. Like previous games in the series, the third part invites you to lead one of the states of the world . The essence of the game: to develop national ideas that give the game power certain advantages; As new government technologies are discovered, it becomes possible to choose one of the national ideas. The game takes place in real time, but the player’s reaction speed is not required, since the game can be paused at any time. The game takes place on a schematically depicted world map, divided into more than 1,500 sea and land provinces.

The player can take control of any country that existed during this historical period (about 200 states in total). Under his control are the country’s economy, the formation and management of armies and navies, diplomacy, the introduction of new technologies, domestic politics states, changing the state religion and colonizing new lands.

A special feature of the game is its connection to real history (note that in the third part of the series it is no longer tied to history and the gameplay is more free); there are historical rulers predetermined for each country, each of whom has certain abilities that influence the game, real-life commanders (such as Suvorov or Napoleon I Bonaparte), pioneers, explorers and sailors (such as Columbus, Ermac and Ferdinand Magellan ), and historical events, which usually occur in the same country and at the same time as in real history (for example, in 1517 an event occurs that makes it possible to convert to Protestantism)

Company of Heroes 1.2

Release date: 2006

Genre: Real-time strategy

The gameplay of Company of Heroes is very similar to Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War. The player commands entire squads of fighters, but there are some unique units. Each unit has a life scale (not an individual fighter), and if the unit’s lives are damaged when the unit is damaged, the entire unit dies. The player can equip infantry units with various weapons, choosing which weapon is more promising in battle. After the death of a squad, weapons remain that can be picked up and equipped with them for another squad. This even applies to stationary type weapons such as anti-tank guns, heavy machine guns and mortars.

Each side in the game is divided into three unique directions - infantry, airborne and tank for the Americans and defensive, offensive and propaganda for the Germans, advancement in which gives access to new combat units and attacks (for example, a stormtrooper raid). Another important difference is that squads and units in the game have three levels of experience. After destroying an enemy, a new level is obtained that increases the damage, speed, health, armor or viewing range of the combat unit, depending on its type.

There are three types of resources in the Game: weapons, fuel and personnel. Personnel are used to construct buildings, recruit new combat units, both infantry and armored vehicles, fuel, in turn, to build buildings and armored vehicles, and weapons - to provide units with additional weapons, such as a grenade launcher, for artillery and air strikes, or for to give your equipment new capabilities. Replenishment of resources is carried out using checkpoints.

Age of Empires III

Genre: Real-time strategy

Age of Empires III is a strategy game that has earned worldwide recognition thanks to its innovative and exciting gameplay. Age of Empires received high ratings on gaming portals and magazines. A special feature of this game is its well-developed artificial intelligence (the opponent is controlled by a computer). The player controls one of the powers (Great Britain, Prussia, Holland, Spain, Portugal, Russian empire, Ottoman Empire, France), which set off to conquer the new world (America).

The main action takes place in the colonies, on a map familiar to such games, but now each power has a hometown in the Old World. He serves the sole purpose of helping his colony. There are three resources in the game: food, wood and money. Which produce various buildings. Transitions between eras, five eras: exploration, colonization, fortresses, industrial and empire. He trains military academies, bandages soldiers and sends them to colonies. The infantry depends on the nationality of the city, for the Spaniards it will be rodellers, and for the Russians it will be archers and Cossacks. The academy is also improving the parameters of the troops.

Battles take place in real time. The maximum size of a detachment and group of soldiers highlighted by a “frame” is 50 units. The shooting infantry has four formations: a regular line, which is convenient for firing in volleys, a sparse formation, which reduces losses from artillery fire, hand-to-hand combat and square. Melee infantry has three formations, two of the same, melee and square, and a circular formation to cover the riflemen. The cavalry learned three formations - the same close combat and square, as well as an offensive mode with reduced speed, but with damage inflicted over an area.

XCOM: Enemy Unknown

Genre: Strategy, Turn-Based Tactics, Tactical RPG

The game is a remake (remake) of the popular and old game X-COM: UFO Defense, released back in 1993. Aliens attack planet Earth and begin an alien invasion. The game is played from the perspective of the secret commander international organization XCOM (anti-alien division), which has the most advanced technologies, weapons and scientific developments of mankind. It employs the best specialists in the world - military men and scientists. The organization must lead fighting against aliens threatening the existence of human civilization.

The player is provided with the central XCOM base, from which the strategic management of the organization is carried out: monitoring the actions of aliens on the global world map using a satellite network, distributing funding for the development of scientific and technical potential, arming and deploying interceptors to destroy flying saucers, as well as conducting combat operations against aliens using existing fighters in ground skirmishes. The base is presented to the player in the form of an “ant farm” - a section of soil that allows you to look at the premises from the side.

In Tactical combat, fighters perform up to two actions in turn - running, shooting, throwing a grenade, using a first aid kit. Each fighter has only three characteristics: accuracy, willpower and health points.
After the first promotion in rank, a soldier receives a specialization. This could be an attack aircraft, a sniper, a heavy infantryman or a support soldier.

Homeworld

Genre: real time strategy

Well-developed graphics and three-dimensional gaming space - the implementation of six degrees of freedom (you can view the battlefield, the battle fleet from different angles) of the movement of game objects and the presence of thoughtful fleet management in three dimensions. A rich and complex plot that gradually reveals itself during the game. In the next game mission, the player receives the fleet with which he completed the previous one.

At the beginning of the game, the player can choose a fleet of two races, Kushan or Taidan: this does not affect the further plot in any way, only the combat units change. A key feature of both the Kushan and Taidan navies is the presence of a main mothership that serves as the main base of operations. The mothership has its own weapons and a hyperdrive, which allows it to overcome significant space.

The entire space fleet is divided into a combat fleet and a support fleet. The support fleet includes special ships, such as a resource collector and controller, a research ship, a probe, a stealth ship detector ship, and a gravity well generator. The combat fleet is divided into classes: Small ships - fighters, corvettes, Heavy ships - frigates, Super-heavy ships, Flagships.

Stronghold game series

Release date: 2001-2014

Genre: real time strategy

The game system of all games in the series is based on an economic simulator of a medieval city or castle. The games have a number of unique parameters that are typical only for games in the Stronghold series. Thus, in the first Stronghold, the “popularity” parameter was introduced for the first time, affecting the performance and population size. The combat system is standard for strategies - direct control of groups of units. The economic component is one of the main ones in the games of the series. There are quite complex and long production chains. As a rule, in the games of the series, more attention is paid to the economic rather than the military component of medieval castles.

All games in the series, except Stronghold Kingdoms, have campaigns (a series of story-related missions) and a map editor mode. Stronghold has a single campaign, while other games have multiple campaigns.

All games except Stronghold and Stronghold Kingdoms allow you to play against computer opponents on a selected map. Stronghold and Stronghold 2 have a siege mode (siege or defend a castle without running an economy). In the first games in the series (up to and including Stronghold 2) there is a free construction mode (running an economy without war).

Spore

Genre: Real-time strategy, god simulator

Spore game is a simulator of the evolution of life on the planet, as well as a strategy and space simulator. The goal of the game is to develop a creature from a microorganism to an advanced space race. While progressing through the game, it is possible to make changes to the creature, improving its characteristics. Also, as it develops, the player will independently create various equipment and buildings, or choose ready-made options from the catalog.

At the beginning of the game, the player takes control of a microorganism living in aquatic environment. At this stage of the game - To survive, the microorganism needs to feed on pieces of meat or algae, and also try not to be eaten by other carnivorous creatures. When food is eaten, the cell grows and turns into a microorganism. After which the creature gets out to the ground, where it also develops. Over time, under your leadership there will be a tribe, civilization and space that you will have to manage.

Ground Control 1.2

Release date: 2000, 2004

Genre: Tactical real-time strategy

This game was the forefront of its genre and won many awards. Ground Control has 3D graphics and a freely rotating camera, allowing the player to view the battle from any angle. The game completely lacks resource collection, base development and research. The player's goal is to control a limited number of combat units and perform various tasks with their help.

The main goal of the game is to destroy enemy troops and buildings using the terrain features and strengths own army. Combat units include various types of armored vehicles, aircraft and soldiers, delivered to the battlefield by orbital shuttles. After the start of the next mission, the player cannot call for reinforcements, which requires careful selection of units and their configuration before the battle.

The most important element of the game is the requirement for a tactical approach in any situation. Each squad has its own distinct strengths and weaknesses. Combat units are united into squads. The player can only give orders to units, although the units themselves will fight and take damage separately. There are four categories of units: infantry, armor, support, and aviation. The player can choose the configuration of each individual unit before the battle. For example, a Craven Corporation tank squad can exist in four configurations: reconnaissance, light, main, and heavy. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages, so different configurations are suitable for different tasks.

Tiberium Command & Conquer series

Release date: 1995-2010

Genre: Real time strategy

a series of successful computer games with the highest sales among strategy series. The game takes place in an alternative time reality, conditionally modern to ours, in which there is a war all over the world between two global groups - the international UN troops united in the Global Defense Initiative, and the military-religious Brotherhood of Nod, led by its charismatic leader Kane, fighting for possession of the alien substance Tiberium, slowly spreading throughout the planet.

The gameplay of the game is based on the principle of collecting resources, building a base, destroying the enemy. The only source of money (credits) in the game is Tiberium. Another important resource in the game is electricity, produced only by power plants. The various structures and units produced by the player collectively form a technological tree, in which access to technologically more advanced, and therefore more expensive, structures and units. The base can be protected by various structures, including defensive fortifications.

Good day, dear readers!
Now the time has come to draw a line under the next material from the “TOP 10: Your Choice” series, the topic of which was the best strategies. If anyone missed the beginning, let us remind you that the selection of the top ten was done exclusively by our users, who first proposed their options on the forum, and then voted for the best one. Our task now is to talk about the results in this material and, in fact, show them in the video attached to the article. That's what we'll do.
So, let’s meet – the best strategies according to our users!

Just a few years ago, the industry was experiencing a deluge of games with the age-old WWII theme. It’s even scary to think how many projects have been produced, and are still being produced, with the same Third Reichs, the endless Battles of Kursk and the triumph of the Red Army. Standing out from this crowd is difficult, but nothing is impossible.

Relic Entertainment proved once again that it can compete with the grandees of the strategic craft. And the secret is very simple - add Spielbergian intensity to the battles, equip the game with wow effects, destructibility and stuff all the Hollywood grace with excellent balance and tactical tricks. Voila!

Company of Heroes does not fall into infantilism, proposing to plan the soldier's barracks, fill the bins with barrels of fuel and ammunition - everything looks much more serious than in any strained one. And then we take the army put together locally and go crush the fascist reptile with our boots, giving orders to each unit and occupying strategically important points in the cities. It sounds simple, but it’s impossible to count how many heads were killed in all these virtual battles. That's why it's attractive Company of Heroes.

"Age of Empires"- a name familiar to many strategists. If your gaming journey dates back to the mid-90s, then you know that without Age of Empires It's hard to imagine an RTS horizon. Without exaggeration, the first two games in the series were truly brilliant and amazing in every aspect. Countless players spent their time recruiting enemy mounts to priestly forces, hunting deer, collecting berries from fruitful trees, chopping down trees, and mining for gold.

At one point, when tons of resources accumulated in the bins of civilization, the leader had the opportunity to step into a new century that would elevate his country above others. Stone tools were replaced by copper ones, the cavalry acquired armor, new combat units hatched, and the number of workers grew exponentially. Leading this entire celebration of life was so interesting that ten-hour marathons were worth it.

Age of Empires 3 did not become a big breakthrough for the entire series and, by and large, did not surpass its predecessors. Not to say the fans AoE We were disappointed, but little has changed since the second part. A nostalgic tear, of course, rolled down a cheek that had grown stubble over the years, but it failed to become a new standard for the strategy genre.

Nevertheless, we pay our respects to the now dead Ensemble Studios. She deserved them.

Massive Entertainment paid for sensible strategists who snort at the sight of tank rushes has earned itself a reputation in the ancient Ground Control. IN World in Conflict it did not change its principles and created, one might say, an ideal tactical component and a grandmaster balance of troops - infantry, aviation, heavy ground equipment and support units.

No bases, no construction - only a limited number of points with which you can call for help. Every combat unit V World in Conflict need to be valued, protected and not thrown into meaningless attacks. Every move and decision here needs to be weighed and only then rush to go on the attack, unleashing a blow on the enemy’s fortified positions both from the air and from the ground.

The paranoid wars between the “Soviets” and the homeland of freedom and democracy, the USA, may seem a little hackneyed, too “noble”, but the multiplayer World in Conflict for sixteen commanders more than makes up for all the hackneyed plot devices. The joint command of the army and the ranking system are done here at such a level that at some point you begin to feel some similarity with multiplayer action games like. Meanwhile, it’s a nice compliment, if you remember that we have a serious strategy here.

Slow, drawn-out turn-based strategies will never die. Write it down like that. This unwritten rule proves itself every time "Civilization", which comes out every four years, but always gathers millions of managers and rulers under its banners. Otherwise! Everyone wants, at least for half an hour a day, to feel like the ruler of the world and lead their country to world domination.

Religion, travel through the tree of inventions and the birth of geniuses that will lead civilization forward - all aspects play an important role in Civilization 4. If digging through all these menus gets boring, you can always unwind by concluding an alliance with brothers in mind or attacking careless neighbors, wanting to take resources from them. And then - new technologies, a new era and new horizons to strengthen the position of a superpower. And it would seem that just half an hour ago prehistoric people were running across the screen and did nothing but fight with each other.

This year, “Civilization” will dawn again and, without a doubt, will take its personal throne on strategic Olympus. Firaxis Games will not let you down.

There wouldn't be StarCraft– strategies would look completely different today. No jokes. Blizzard Entertainment moved the entire RTS genre forward. Although on the one hand, the recipe StarCraft well, very simple - create several races, put resources into the game, dilute everything with the construction of bases and different landscapes. Stretch the plot into three separate companies and go ahead - sell boxes of the game for 60 bucks apiece.

At first glance, it’s a trivial matter, but it’s bad luck - until Blizzard Entertainment no one was able to work out the balance of each race well, provide the game with a decent plot (very rare to this day, ask certified strategists PG!) and divine multiplayer. .net has become a home for millions of people, and for some it still is twelve years later. It's no surprise that the exit StarCraft 2 They are waiting for the coming of Jesus - after him the end of the world is not terrible.

In short, an icon for all fans of good strategic games. Neither add nor subtract.

Another step by step lady on the list! Series Total War Since the time of the samurai war, it has snatched a significant part of the audience from its venerable rivals. IN Rome: Total War merits of the shogunate and the Sengoku period Japanese history were squared. Or even into a cube!

All fundamental parts have grown both in breadth and height. Managing armies on the global map has become more meaningful. Diplomatic relations now made much more sense to develop, building alliances and preparing conspiracies. The spies and assassins roaming around the European map were of great help - it was easy to kill one of the important members ruling family and demoralize the troops. How much room for imagination! And how pleasant it was to besiege cities, going behind enemy lines and breaking his army ranks with one cavalry charge - words cannot describe.

Rome: Total War gave everything that fans of turn-based and thoughtful strategies had wanted for so long, combining a slow and measured exchange of moves and dashing RTS battles, not devoid of tactical manners and military tricks. Creative Assembly, eternal gratitude to you for this!

Any fan Command & Conquer agree - Red Alert 3 Well, it doesn’t deserve the title of “great and terrible” and will easily lose the battle to its predecessors. There is not enough strategic depth, the arcadeiness comes out and sticks out from all places, and the best tactic is throwing hats. In short, the claims can be listed for a very long time.

However, the degree of madness in the new part, which has always been famous for its simultaneously idiotic and very serious plots, has not dropped. The war between the descendants of Soviet leaders and allies was diversified through naval battles. The balancing of the units’ characteristics may not have been ideal, but anyone could understand the workings of the strategic mechanism in a few minutes Red Alert 3. It’s not yet degradation, of course, but it’s no longer a revolution. That did not, however, prevent the game from taking fourth place.

Bury the series Command & Conquer It's too early. We don’t argue, receiving slaps and slaps hardly indicates a good life C&C, however, nothing stops us from dreaming that someday “She” will return.

Ha! The third “Heroes” - how would we be without them? Many people hung out for days at this fantasy splendor. They rebuilt castles, recruited an army and set off to travel through huge levels, defeating monsters blocking the path and collecting chests and resources. And if a whole group of friends gathered at one computer, then that’s it - you had to calculate every step of your horse, fill your pockets with experience, recruit new heroes in the tavern and level up faster than your rivals. Why, there are still a lot of people playing today. This is true immortality!

For the “heroic” creators from New World Computing Unfortunately, things didn't work out so well. It existed in the development arena for almost twenty years, and then at one point declared itself bankrupt and very quickly disappeared from the radar. But her business lives and prospers!

Continues the path of life, despite the death of his fathers and mothers. Yes, the last “large-scale” release in the series dates back to 2007. But Ubisoft Not one of those companies that throws old series into the dustbin of history. Who knows, maybe the French will announce something this summer. Cross your fingers.

Quite unexpected! Second project Relic Entertainment, who made it to the top, managed to climb almost to the top. I must say that it is deserved - Dawn of War It didn't reinvent the genre, but it managed to infuse an unfunny strategy game with adrenaline and action. And also the Imperium, Orcs, Eldar and Chaos!

For the devoted servants of the 40,000 universe, the battle cry of the Space Marines would be enough to kiss the game to death. Relic Entertainment I could have cheated. However, the sacred development principles and the desire to fashion an excellent RTS still outweighed the destructive attraction to profit. All the hallmarks of the strategic genre are present - several races, building a base, purchasing upgrades and attentive attention to the strengths and weaknesses of each side of the conflict. Filigree!

Warhammer 40,000: Made adjustments and big changes to this system. Some people liked them, others not so much, but the main thing is that Dawn of War is alive, does not complain about her health, and someday she will definitely acquire a third part.

Blizzard Entertainment. Well what can I say? She is a recognized leader, the main custodian of PC traditions and the initiator of great achievements in the strategic arena. Both technological and financial. Blizzard is definitely not complaining about sales of PC games.

Marked for the entire franchise WarCraft the beginning of a new era. Two new races were added to the universe, diversifying the hero’s life with role-playing elements, artifacts and magic spells that can and should be cast on the heads of enemies. Building a base, collecting resources - the traditional elements have not gone away. But the field of their application has expanded. And not least due to the weighty multiplayer mode - the godlike Battle.net did not disappoint here either, having built WarCraft 3 to the rank of legendary games. Natural result.

Congratulations WarCraft 3. The golden cup has already been sent by diplomatic mail to the den Blizzard Entertainment!

Well, that’s all for today regarding texts, but there is still excellent video material ahead, which you will find just below. All we can do is say thank you for your participation and say goodbye until May 1st. I was with you today Evgeniy “Mumby” Molodov.

In addition, we remind you that right at this moment the first stage of preparation of the next material from the series “TOP-10: Your choice” began, in which you can take part. The topic was games that PISS YOU WILDLY.

From the early 90s to the mid-00s, strategies dominated the minds of players, receiving well-deserved honor and respect. Alas, their golden age is over: RTS (real-time strategy) cannot compete in entertainment with the next Battlefield, with the dynamics of Overwatch or the plot of Witcher 3. Therefore, gamers have to be content with another replay of the good old classics or wait for the release of the new “Civilization”.

However, not everything is so pessimistic. Our rating of the best strategies will allow us to identify the most worthy representatives of the genre, as well as learn about the latest releases that have given some classic strategies a second life. We hope this TOP 10 will be informative. If not: comments and voting at the bottom of the article will help.

Rating of the best strategies

Stronghold was released during the golden era of RTS - in 2001. At the time, most strategy games tried to emulate either C&C or Warcraft, but Stronghold had other plans.

The game had a well-developed economic component. Although the number of available resources is not far from the standard “wood/iron/gold/stone/food”, an unusual parameter has appeared - “Popularity”. It provided an influx of new residents to the city and depended on many factors: taxation, variety of available food, entertainment.

To hire soldiers, it was not enough to build a barracks. It was necessary to erect buildings that produced weapons. Provide gunsmiths with what they need building material. Wait until the limping grandfather, with an imposing gait, delivers a planed bow to the arsenal... Now you can hire one archer. And so with all types of troops! You can’t just set up a barracks and “click” any units - this was preceded by the organization of a full cycle of production of weapons and ammunition. It is not surprising that the game had a number of economic missions that were not inferior in complexity to military ones.

However, it was not the first part that gained particular popularity, but its sequel: Stronghold Crusaders, which appeared the following year, 2002. As the name suggests, the game was dedicated to the confrontation between the Arabs and the Crusaders. Unfortunately, the castle attack/defense mode disappeared (the only thing worth paying attention to in the first part), but more units appeared, some of which could be hired for gold without producing weapons. Only desert warriors were hired for money, while European soldiers had to continue to be equipped with weapons of their own production.

The game remains popular to this day thanks to multiplayer and the release of the Crusaders Extreme add-on. This is also facilitated by a simple but quite diverse system for constructing fortifications: Stronghold allows you to surround the castle with battlements and high towers, equip them with defensive weapons and archers, install additional traps and dig a moat with water.

The first part of Command & Conquer was released in 1995, becoming at that time a real breakthrough in the genre and posing serious competition to Warcraft and Dune. Many now familiar gameplay features looked revolutionary at that time:

• Selecting and directing a group of units with just one click;
• The presence of neutral units, buildings and other objects with which you can interact (read “smash into trash”);
• System for dividing units by class. The principle of “rock, paper, scissors” appeared - the first type of unit is effective against the second, but vulnerable to the third, etc.;
• The game began to use videos and animated screensavers. Paired with a cool soundtrack, they allowed players to “get into” the history of the C&C universe, and not perceive it as just another nameless chessboard to hone their tactical abilities;
• The presence of only one resource, Tiberium, is what all the wars in the universe of this game are fought for.

C&C turned out to gain popularity with all that it implies: many gameplay elements were spread across other games, becoming familiar elements of most strategies. In addition to the classic C&C series, which still delights its fans with new releases, two “alternative” versions of the game universe have appeared over time. These are Command & Conquer: Generals (2003) and the Red Allert line of games that have become very popular.

• Red Allert

Red Allert deserves its own article. This game has absorbed an incredible amount of madness and cranberries on the theme of the Cold War and the confrontation between NATO and the USSR. Here's a brief description of the backstory of the game's universe: after seeing enough of the horrors of World War II, in 1946, old man Einstein decides to build a time machine and go back in time to destroy Hitler. As a result, the scales swung in the other direction: Comrade Stalin decides to build his own, communist Reich, and Europe, together with its allies, still has to fight.

Judge for yourself how successful the game was: 35 million copies were sold worldwide. An entry appeared in the Guinness Book of Records stating that Red Allert is the best-selling RTS in the world. Red Allert 2 and Red Allert 2 were released in 2000 and 2001: Yuri’s Revenge, which are still a classic choice for oldfags. However, for fans of more modern graphics, there is a third part of RA.

Warhammer is a vast fictional universe on which many books, comics, films, computer and board games are based. However, there are two versions of this universe: Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40,000. In the first case, as the name suggests, Warhammer is faithful to the canons of fantasy and pleases fans of Tolkien and other “elves.” And Warhammer 40,000 creates a kind of mix of fantasy and fantasy, pushing the confrontation closer to the stars.

There are about 20 games related to Warhammer 40,000. But only one of them is always associated with the word “Warhammer” by any strategy fan: this is the one and only Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War, released in 2004.

Strategy, in the usual sense of the word, is not given much space: the focus is on tactics. Buildings are built quickly, and there are only 2 resources: energy, for which you need to build generators, and special points that you can get by holding checkpoints under enemy pressure.

From the very first minutes, the creators of the game directly state: leave all this fuss with base construction and economic development for the nerds. The WH40K universe was created solely for the purpose of forcing armored paratroopers to fight various monsters (from orcs to more exotic creatures). So no long-term economic development is expected in it: only battles from the first to the last minute.

In 2009, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2 was released, which received high ratings from players and was thoroughly praised by many gaming publications, but... suddenly it turned out to be not a strategy. Loyal fans of the first part were horrified to discover that the long-awaited Dawn of War 2 began to resemble a Diablo-type RPG more than it did 5 years ago. True, this did not prevent the game from finding its fans, who claim that the multiplayer has retained all the necessary elements of an RTS and is quite satisfactory.

7. Total War

It's funny that Total War and Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War are located next door in the ranking of the best strategies, because just in May of this year Total War: Warhammer was released - the first TW dedicated to the Warhammer universe. True, not Warhammer 40,000, but Warhammer Fantasy - so it will, first of all, appeal to fans of fantasy worlds. However, let's talk about everything in order - after all, the release of this game was preceded by 9 other parts, which brought TW worldwide fame.

The main distinguishing feature of Total War is the successful combination of turn-based mode and RTS: the level of each of them is selected separately. The main action takes place on a global map of the world, in which everything happens step by step. But battles are loaded separately and rapidly develop in real time. Players will have to wisely use the terrain and different types of units, which allows them to gain an advantage even over superior enemy forces.

The first TW came out in 2000. But the series' worldwide fame was brought by its third part, Rome: Total War, which used a 3D engine. As the title suggests, the story took place during the Roman Empire. In addition to the “classic” European nations, Arab empires (Egypt) and even barbarians were available in the game. Depending on the side chosen, not only the units, but also the architecture of the cities differed. Subsequent TWs were never able to surpass the popularity of this part.

In 2013, Rome: Total War II was released - initially buggy, but later brought to mind with the help of numerous patches. Perhaps inspired by Civilization, the developers of Rome 2 added the ability to win not only through conquest, but also through culture and trade. However, this is not the only part worthy of attention: Napoleon, Attila, Shogun 2 and the previously mentioned Warhammer are also interesting in their own way.

If I had managed to create a product as successful as Warcraft, I would have rested on my laurels for 20 years, wasting all my money in some completely senseless way. But the guys from Blizzard are not like that: having received a well-deserved ovation after the release of Warcraft 2, Blizzard got to work on a space RTS. True, as a result, they still ended up with Warcraft: the beta version was mercilessly criticized and perceived as “orcs in space.” Fortunately, the developers listened to the criticism and completely redesigned the graphics engine and setting. Thus, in 1998, the legendary StarCraft was born.

The game features 3 races: Zerg, Protoss and Terrans, which are borrowed from the Warhammer 40,000 universe (Tyranids, Eldar, Imperial Guard). However, the similarity is extremely superficial: when StarCraft was born, it followed its own path of development - the universe of this game acquired its own characteristics and now has little in common with Warhammer.

In most strategies, in order to maintain a fragile balance, all nations have the same set of units and buildings + several unique buildings/soldiers, which add some variety, but do not fundamentally affect the tactics of the game. StarCraft doesn't care about these canons. All 3 races are completely different:

• Zerg far from technology and science, they achieve superiority solely in quantity.
• Highly spiritual protoss are the complete opposite of the zerg: each protoss considers himself an important person with a rich inner world, therefore it costs a lot of resources, but also hits, respectively, painfully and strongly.
• Terrans(from the word “terra”) represent people in the game. They are the “golden mean” between zerg and protoss.

Such striking differences between the races gave the game a solid advantage over other RTS, earning it a reputation as a “smart” strategy, in which you not only need to “generate” as large an army as possible, but to think through your actions in advance, demonstrating strategic and tactical skills. Microcontrol also plays an important role: if the Protoss are not particularly demanding on precision control, the success of the offensive operations of other races, especially the Zerg, directly depends on the speed and accuracy of the player’s reaction.

StarCraft II was released in 2010. Modern graphics and excellent multiplayer allowed the game to return to its former glory and take its rightful place in e-sports. Although the oldfags claim that the unique balance of the first SC has been partially lost, StarCraft 2 received high ratings from a variety of gaming publications (an average of 9 out of 10) and gave it a second life.

5.Age of Empires

In 1997, the first part of Age of Empires was released: the same Warcraft, only in profile. Instead of fantasy races, the game featured 12 human nations that could develop from the Stone Age to antiquity. This game did not make a splash in the gaming world, but on the whole it was received favorably, which inspired its creators to start working on the second part.

2 years later, Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings was released, which became truly legendary. It eclipsed not only the first part, but also many of the then “whales” of this genre, winning over a decent army of fans. In 2000, the add-on Age of Empires II: The Conquerors appeared, which added 5 new nations with unique units, as well as additional missions and technologies to the game. It was this part of the game that became the most popular in the Age of Empires series. What is the reason for its success?

• Diversity of nations. There were 18 nations in The Conquerors, many of which were quite exotic: Huns, Teutons, Saracens, Celts, Persians, Aztecs, Mayans, etc. In fact, it was this game that started the fashion for strategies with many different civilizations.
• Opportunity for development. The second “feature”, which was implemented for the first time among strategies in AoE 2, is the transition from one historical era to another. All this was accompanied by a fairly extensive tree of technologies, for the research of which it was necessary to build various buildings and spend resources.
• Balance. Of course, the nations differed not only in color and different design of buildings. Each of them had its own bonuses and unique units. Some had an economic advantage, others had stronger cavalry, others had excellent siege weapons, others had long-range fleets, etc. All this variety was fairly balanced with no clear favorites. As a result, Age of Empires 2 attracted many fans of online battles.

Age of Empires III was released in 2005. She wasn't bad, but she didn't come close to the success of her predecessor. As a result, after several addons, Microsoft gave up and, to the delight of fans, returned to Age of Empires 2. In 2013, they released Age of Empires 2: HD edition, and then 2 more addons: The Forgotten (5 new nations, including the Slavs) and The African Kingdoms (4 more nations and “African” campaigns). So today, AoE 2 continues to develop and delight fans with new additions.

4. Cossacks

The success of Age of Empires attracted the attention of many game makers: they stopped trying to create their own "Warcraft" and switched to "Age of Empires" (which was undoubtedly inspired by Warcraft). So the guys from the Ukrainian company GSC Game World created an RTS, which conceptually has a lot in common with AoE.

The game "Cossacks", released in 2001, turned out to be so successful that in the eyes of many domestic strategists it overshadowed "Epoch" for a long time. If you believe "Gaming Mania", then at one time "Cossacks" became the best-selling domestic game (more than 1 million copies).

"Cossacks" continued the idea of ​​numerous gaming nations. In the second addon of the first part, which was called “War Again,” 20 different countries were available. And if in the “Epoch” there was not a single Slavic nation, then in “Cossacks” not only Russia, but also Ukraine was available (which is logical, following from the name and geographical location developers). There were also more sophisticated nations, like Piedmont and Saxony.

Unlike other strategies, in “Cossacks” resources were spent not only on acquiring units, but also on their maintenance. Without food, famine began, and mercenaries, purchased for gold, rebelled as soon as the treasury was empty. To use firearms, iron and coal were needed - without them, riflemen and artillery were defenseless.

Also in the game it was possible to capture some enemy buildings, artillery and peasants (except for Ukrainian ones, with them as usual: will or death). Compared to Age of Empires, Cossacks seemed more dynamic, allowing you to create an incredible number of some crazy and fearless units - in a network game, the battles of such hordes looked epic and exciting.

• Cossacks 2

In 2005, “Cossacks 2” was released: despite the high ratings of many gaming publications, the game did not evoke the same enthusiasm as the first part. Absolutely everything in it has been redesigned: it has become more realistic and thoughtful. No “disputed” nations, raids by hordes of fearless madmen and upgrades of ancient guns to such a degree of efficiency that even Kalashnikov becomes envious.

The battles in “Cossacks II” forced you to take into account the terrain, reload your guns for a long time and monitor the morale of the soldiers, who could become cowardly and rush into chaos. It sounds like a good idea, but in the online game there is no trace of the former fun left.

• Cossacks 3

And on September 21, 2016, the long-awaited “Cossacks 3” was released, which no one had even dreamed of. And everything would be fine if it weren’t for the number 3 in the title - everyone was expecting a continuation of the series, but they received a remastering of the first part. The old game was transferred to a new graphics engine, the gameplay was completely taken from the original “Cossacks”. Add to this a decent number of bugs that GSC Game World actively corrected after release using various patches, and you can understand why many gamers felt deceived. Still, GSC should have announced that the game is a remastering of the first part before release, not after him.

3. Heroes of Might and Magic

The first part of the turn-based strategy Heroes of Might and Magic was released back in 1995. Its predecessor was King's Bounty, which appeared back in 1991. But universal love and recognition for HoMM came gradually, covering Heroes of Might and Magic III somewhere closer to 1999.

The action of all “Heroes” takes place in a certain fantasy universe. There are races, but the player is not tied to them: the hero can conquer castles of any factions and hire any available units. So, under one banner the most diverse and wild brethren: elves and skeletons, centaurs and dragons, people and elementals.

Battles take place on a field divided into tiles (hexagons). Units of the same type occupy one cell, regardless of their number. The moves are carried out in turns, while the hero looks at this action from the outside, from time to time trying to help his army by casting various spells. Gradually, the hero gains experience, learns new skills and collects various artifacts that make him better and higher.

HoMM IV came out in 2004 and was received, to put it mildly, ambiguously: there were too many innovations. The main and key innovation concerned the heroes: from passive observers they turned into active participants in battles who could move, cause damage and be attacked like other units. Heroes could travel without troops at all: alone or in a gang of 7 characters. Having pumped up properly, a lone hero could independently take out a large army.

There was also the other side of the coin: if you managed to kill the enemy hero at the beginning of the battle, you could get a solid advantage. For example, it made sense to organize a sabotage attack on the enemy, kill the leader of the army and retreat - the headless army lost the opportunity to capture mines and castles, which forced it to retreat and drag the lifeless carcass of the commander home.

All these innovations have given rise to countless opportunities for controversy and hollivars: since 6 years have passed since the release of the third part, a new generation of gamers has appeared who had never seen “Heroes” before - they liked HoMM4. But those who grew up on the previous parts experienced mixed feelings.

• Heroes of Might and Magic V

The debate between supporters and opponents of the fourth part was stopped by the release of Heroes of Might and Magic V, which took place in 2006: yesterday's opponents joined forces in a common impulse to express complaints about cartoon graphics for anime fans. If you close your eyes to the picture, the gameplay of “Heroes 5” was a modernized copy of the third part - obviously, the developers did not experiment in order to make money on the nostalgia of fans of the series.

This is where the classic “Heroes” ends and something completely incomprehensible begins. HoMM 6 and 7 have turned into some kind of alternative product, so far from the original that even “Heroes 4” looks like a standard of kosher against their background. Therefore, most fans of “Heroes” prefer to play the earlier versions, from 3 to 5. But the Third HoMMs remain the most popular. Moreover, the HD version of this game was released in 2015.

2. Civilization

The first “Civilization” appeared in the shaggy year of 1991 and, as they say, was a digital version of the board game of the same name from the early 80s. Since in those days ordinary mortals did not have computers, few people suspected the new strategic toy: mainly employees of research institutes and other interesting enterprises.

Nevertheless, the game turned out to be quite successful: what engineer could resist the temptation to try on the role of Stalin or Gandhi after a busy work shift? The presence of the Civilopedia, a detailed gaming encyclopedia, distinguished Civilization from other strategies of that time.

• Civilization II

In 1996, Sid Meier and company released the second part of Ziva, which, thanks to the increased prevalence of computers, became a completely successful commercial product. Despite the mediocre graphics, the game had cool moments: for example, during the construction of a wonder of the world, a video clip of a real newsreel was played. You could see the launch of Apollo or a nuclear rocket, filming of the Sistine Chapel or Notre Dame de Paris. In subsequent parts, cinema was replaced by regular animation.

• Civilization III

2001 was marked by the release of Civilization III: the first Civ with nice graphics. Even now she looks quite attractive, but in 2001 this picture caused real delight. The gameplay has also undergone certain changes. In Civ 2, players tried not to collect many units on one cell, because... in the event of an enemy attack and the death of one of them, everyone who stood on the cell died. In Civ 3, nothing like this happened: in order to clear the cell of enemies, it was necessary to destroy them all.

Therefore, the obvious and only tactic of waging war in the third Civ: creating a so-called stack - a crowd of motley units on one cell. From time to time a leader would appear who could unite 3 units under his banner. This formation was called an army and was a kind of thick unit with 20 HP. With the help of the army it was possible to cut out almost anything.

A signature feature of the second and third Civs was the situation in which a technologically backward unit, having more combat experience, could easily destroy some miracle weapon of the future. For example, in the order of things there was a situation when a spearman tore an enemy tank to shreds with a precise blow, or an archer, properly pulling the bowstring, shot down an enemy bomber. Particularly amusing was the fact that the plane was shot down equally successfully not only by an archer, but also by a swordsman. In subsequent parts this problem was partly solved, but in the first Civs such events gave rise to many attacks of hysteria.

Civilization III had a number of innovations that migrated to all subsequent games in the series: various resources on the map, the Golden Age, cultural influence on neighboring cities, with the help of which it was possible to assimilate a neighboring settlement, a technology tree (in previous parts you had to memorize or write down the sequence discoveries of various sciences).

• Civilization IV

Civilization IV, released in 2005, acquired a three-dimensional image. Players who were accustomed to the third Civa were wary of the unusual graphics, which were so different from the previous part. Religion and espionage appeared in the game (the Beyond the Sword addon), and aviation actions became more realistic: planes carried out raids from the city and could not be shot down by some harsh spearman. The problem of accumulation of a large number of units on one cell was partly solved precisely by aviation or artillery: all units in the stack received damage from their attack.

2010 came and Civilization V was released. Square cells were replaced by more convenient and practical hexes: with them, state borders got rid of the strange linear angularity and became more believable. The system of accumulating a huge number of units on one cell was completely demolished: now only one military unit could be placed on one hexagon. At the same time, they were made more efficient and stronger.

The maintenance of certain units required the expenditure of strategic resources: horses, iron, oil, coal or uranium. Without them at hand, the state risked being left without cavalry, battleships, nuclear weapons and aviation, which not only added realism, but also forced players to carefully manage resources instead of riveting in incredible quantities whatever they wanted.

The tactic of building as many cities as possible also became obsolete: large empires received penalties for culture and science, and the population began to show discontent. So several different tactics emerged: developing through 4-5 cities with more population, or building more settlements, but with fewer inhabitants in the cities. Victory became possible with just one city (greetings from Venice).

Another innovation: the emergence of city-states that do not claim world domination. Friendship with them brought various bonuses: resources, science, culture or religion points, units and additional votes in Congress.

It is worth noting that many of the functions, as in previous Civs, were added in addons: religion and espionage, caravans, the ability to pass various resolutions in Congress and the UN - all this was not present in the initial version without addons. Therefore, reading reviews about the game, it is not difficult to see how the anger of fans of the series gradually gave way to mercy.

Civilization VI was released on October 21, 2016. Among the notable innovations: 2 technology trees, cultural and scientific, which open independently of each other. Cells around cities must be built up with special areas: scientific, cultural, military, religious, industrial, etc. It’s definitely not possible to build everything - there won’t be enough cells. Moreover, each wonder of the world also requires a separate tile.

It is difficult to describe all the innovations and features of the sixth Civa due to its freshness. But the game has already received the highest ratings from various gaming publications, and reviews on Steam are, by and large, very positive. And this despite the fact that usually the first version of Civilization turns out to be somewhat damp and only over time, with the help of several add-ons, it turns into a masterpiece. But, apparently, the sixth Civilization may become the first representative of the series that is good from the very beginning.

The plot of Warcraft: Orcs and Humans is tied to the confrontation between humans and orcs. As in the film, orcs fall out of a portal into the human world and a struggle begins between them for a place in the sun. However, the first part did not attract much attention - all the glory went to its sequel, Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness, which was released just a year later. But just look at the changes in the schedule that have occurred in this short period! Add interesting videos and a good plot to a pleasant picture, and that’s it - a masterpiece is ready.

• Warcraft III

But we had to wait a long time for the continuation of the banquet - seven whole years. And the first reaction of the gaming community was ambiguous: too many suspicious innovations appeared in the game:

• 3D engine;
• 2 races grew into 4 (night elves and undead were added);
• Quite a lot of neutral units and monsters appeared on the maps;
• Heroes were added to the game, who accumulated experience, upgraded skills and cast all sorts of things (why not RPG?);
• The videos have become even brighter and more beautiful;
• The plot is even more twisted and pathetic.

The pinnacle of the evolution of the third part was the release of Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne in 2003, which gave birth to the memorable DotA game (I’m unlikely to discover America if I remind you that DotA was created in the regular map editor of Warcraft 3 and was not considered as a full-fledged independent game).

Was Warcraft the father of the RTS genre? Of course not. Can we say that this is the best strategy in the world? I'm sure many will disagree with this: C&C and Civilization, HoMM and Total War have solid armies of fans. But, undoubtedly, Warcraft made a significant contribution to the strategy genre and, since it ended up in first place in our rating, it means... *there should be a life-affirming thesis here, but I don’t have a single similar thesis related to Warcraft. Sorry, guys. There will be options - write in the comments*

Strategy games on PC are a genre that is a game where the player is required to be able to foresee the possible consequences of his actions in the future and try to prevent them. This genre is capable of developing tactical thinking, which can be useful not only during the game, but also in life. Today, there is a great variety of computer games in this genre, many of which can be found on torrents. In order to download strategy games via torrent to your computer, you need to go to the appropriate section on the site and select the game that interests you.

Strategy Games - Wonderful World

Before downloading strategies, we invite you to immerse yourself in the history and breadth of topics of this genre.

If we look at the history of the emergence of strategies, they appeared a very long time ago. The first such games can be called chess, where winning a game depends on a well-planned campaign. At the moment, there are several types of computer tactical games that may interest players.

1. The first type is step-by-step. Their meaning is that the gameplay is based on the enemy’s successive steps. A very striking example of this type of strategy can be called a simple arcade game, where players perform their actions one after another.


2. The second view is in real time. His idea is that all actions take place simultaneously and the winner is the one who can rally his army faster and better, strengthen the defense and conquer the enemy. This type of strategy can be played both with a computer and with each other using a configured network.


3. The third type is economic strategy. It is based on the fact that the process of war between two sides includes not only soldiers and uniforms, but also economic resources. Here it is important to take into account not only combat tactics, but also the process of distributing funds for certain needs. An example of such a game is.


4. Global strategy is the final, fourth type of strategy. Not only 2 opponents can participate here, but several at once. Here, all three of the above types of strategies are intertwined simultaneously, as well as the possibility of war on several fronts at once, and the opponents can be both the computer and a real player. An example of such a genre is the popular last years, which is based on real historical facts and confrontations.

This genre of computer games, such as strategy, can not only brighten up leisure time, but also help a person develop the thinking that is characteristic of strategists. This type of computer games overlaps with another very similar genre called “god simulator”. This type of game involves not so much managing people as pushing them along one path or another. As a rule, unlike strategies, this genre does not involve such a large number of warriors; it strives more to develop the evolution of man and human society.

Download strategy games via our torrent

If you are interested in the opportunity to play this type of computer games, then downloading strategies to your PC via our torrent for free will not be difficult. The corresponding section will offer you a large selection of strategies that will suit you. You can choose both the most popular strategies among other users of the site, and those that you just liked. Remember that this type of computer games will not only be exciting, but also useful. After all, using the skills that you acquire during the game, you will be able to predict events immediately, without making unnecessary mistakes for anyone.

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