Simply the Best: Top Ten Online Strategy Games

There are many different kinds of online games to choose from. You could play online poker, a word game, or even solve some math problems, and that’s before we’ve even checked out all the different computer game options you could try. If you’re an avid gamer, the chances are that you’ve tested most, if not all of them out already:

Sandbox games: Open environments, lots of player choices, and non-linear gameplay.
Shooter games: First-person or third-person shooters where players must survive by taking out their opponents.
MOBA games: Multiplayer online battle arenas in which players compete and manage maps and resources to survive. Some strategy aspects.
Role-playing games: Including action, massively multiplayer online, computer, tactical, and roguelike role-playing games.
Simulation and sports games: anything from a flight simulator to racing games.
Puzzlers: In which players must work out puzzles and challenges.
Action-adventure: Lots of plot mechanics and involvement in the story.
Survival and horror games: enough said!
Last but not least; Real-Time Strategy games! These are otherwise known as RTS and are the focus of this piece.

There are strategy elements in many types of games, notably shooter, survival, and MOBA titles, but strategy is an absolutely essential factor in getting through an RTS title in one piece. Spending a few hours hunkered down over your keyboard, making plans, stockpiling resources, and sketching out lair and hideout designs that are the most likely to keep your enemy at bay. Playing strategy games is the most fun a gamer can have! In the unlikely event that you don’t already love strategy games, we’ve put together a list of the top ten ever made so you can try some of them out.

Contents

1. Age of Empires IV

The Age of Empires franchise, in general, is one of the best examples of classic strategy games that we could find, IV in particular. Though the premise of the game is simple enough (collect resources, build a safe base, grow your army, attack your opponents and come out on top), it’s not an easy game to play. Expect hundreds of hours of playtime and high replayability.

2. Starcraft 2

The multiplayer mode in Starcraft 2 is credited with spawning an enduring esports category. Watching a Starcraft competition will show you the true heights to which this impeccable strategy game can be taken. You can choose between three races and take on other players in one on one, 2V2, 3V3, or 4V4 games. The graphics are still spectacular.

3. Total War: Warhammer 2

Second versions of great games really seem to hit the spot, don’t they? Warhammer 2 brings the “real-time” to RTS. You’ll need to implement all your tactical and strategic knowledge to take down your opponents on the battlefield. Fantasy and strategy meet in a stunning example of the best of the genre.

4. Iron Harvest

If you’ve ever played Company of Heroes, you’ll love Iron Harvest. Step into a dieselpunk world in an alternate 1920s and experience giant mechs at their very best. You can play a co-op campaign or multiplayer. Immerse yourself completely in this exciting, fantastical world.

5. Northgard

Find all the Norse mythological creatures and gods that you love in Northgard. You play as a character who must lead one of the six Viking clans who are fighting each other for control of exciting, mysterious new lands. You’ll have to survive a harsh Northern winter, so collect your supplies and disperse your guards accordingly.

6. Factorio

If you’re into creating intricate systems and watching them work for you, Factorio is the way to go. You play as a character who has crash-landed on a strange planet, and you’re desperate to get back home. You’ll need to create many things to help you along the way, so there’s lots of building involved. Play with friends, PvP, or PvE.

7. Humankind

In Humankind, unlike many other similar games, you create a whole new civilization by intermingling several different cultures. The dynamic nature of the game means that you have to strategize carefully to keep all the different cultures in harmony with one another and living as one, rather than breaking off into factions.

8. MTG Arena

Adapted from Magic: The Gathering, the card game Magic: The Gathering Arena plays along very similar lines. The goals are more or less the same; collect the cards you want and build the perfect deck as you battle against other players. There are several ways to get new cards, including in-game transactions, but the game itself is free.

9. Total War: Three Kingdoms

Turn-based strategy games read along similar lines to games like Dungeons and Dragons, and that’s what makes Three Kingdoms so interesting. Travel to old-timey China and rule over Chinese warlords. You have a lot of responsibility; you’re helping shape life in China, after all.

10. A Call To Arms

FPS and RTS meet in the middle of this classic game. You’re the leader of a squad composed of a number of troops; you must position them well and make sure that you leave no unattended gaps.