I’ve been reminiscing about the heyday of real-time strategy games, especially classics like Warcraft, StarCraft, Command & Conquer, and Total Annihilation. Supreme Commander really stood out to me for its ability to let you build massive armies and bases without any CPU limits. But now, it feels like the RTS genre has dwindled down to a few indie games that can’t quite capture what made those classics special. The last solid RTS I enjoyed was Supreme Commander back in 2007. What led to this decline, and is there any hope for a revival in the future?
3 Answers
The RTS genre has become quite niche, especially after MOBAs came in and changed the landscape. Many players are now leaning towards games that focus on single units or smaller teams rather than managing whole armies. There are still some titles out there like Beyond All Reason and Planetary Annihilation, but they often lack the depth and polish of older games.
Despite the genre feeling dead, there are recent new titles arriving, and some like Age of Empires are still thriving! However, many new RTS games focus primarily on the 1v1 competitive scene, so if you’re more into casual, large-scale gameplay, it could be tough to find those experiences. Keep an eye out for upcoming games like Tempest Rising and Sanctuary: Shattered Sun. They might bring back that classic RTS feel!
I really hope those games deliver! I miss the feeling of commanding huge armies in epic battles.
A lot of RTS games shifted their focus to PvP, which turned many players off who preferred building huge armies and crushing AI opponents. The esports craze especially pushed competitive play to the forefront, making it feel like there’s no room for casual fun anymore. Campaigns became less prioritized, and that really disappointed fans looking for that strategy vibe.
Esports ruined it for me as well. Bring back classic single-player RTS!
Totally agree! I miss the grand scale of these games. It’s all about the inconsistencies in quality now.