This article should fix that - it's all about what games are best for introducing someone to the RTS genre.
What's an RTS?
RTS stands for real-time strategy. Any game with strategic elements that occurs in real-time can be considered an RTS, although many games that could, via technicality, fall into the genre are often considered to be primarily in other genres, be it puzzle games, adventure games, or RPGs.
(As an important clarification, real-time is really just a method of distinguishing between turn-based games - where everything happens in turns - and games where things are happening continuously. They don't necessarily occur in 'real' time, and many of them are best enjoyed with frequent pausing to admire what's going on.)
(As an important clarification, real-time is really just a method of distinguishing between turn-based games - where everything happens in turns - and games where things are happening continuously. They don't necessarily occur in 'real' time, and many of them are best enjoyed with frequent pausing to admire what's going on.)
What Makes a Good Introductory Game?
There are several qualities a game has to have for it to qualify as an excellent introduction to any genre.
First of all, it needs to be indicative of the genre as a whole. There's very little purpose in introducing someone to a genre by having them play a game dominated by non-standard game elements, as they will not get a solid grasp on what the genre usually entails.
(The one exception is when moving someone from one genre to another, in which case introducing them with a game that blends both genres is an excellent idea.)
Second, the game needs to be as simple as possible without sacrificing any core game elements of the genre.
As a great example of this, Supreme Commander is considered one of the best RTS games of all time and has an incredible array of units, factions, and maps. It also largely holds true to the core game elements of the archetypal RTS.
Third, familiar settings that don't require any extra attention to detail can be quite useful. A game set in a world roughly analogous to our own is much easier to accept and learn how to play than one set on, say, an alien world with no humans.
This is especially true for the RTS genre, where the purpose of various units, upgrades, and whatnot will be much easier to understand when they are familiar.
Fourth, the game should be fairly cheap and easy to run regardless of what sort of rig you are playing on. This is probably the least important condition in many cases, but in others can be the most important. Just something to keep in mind as a general rule.
Taking all of these into consideration, here is a list of some games I believe would make excellent introductions to the RTS genre, vaguely in order of how well they meet my criteria.
Age of Empires II
One of the old greats, AoE is a medieval-themed RTS with campaigns related to historical battles or specific generals. Tons of factions, but only a couple of differences between them. Units, buildings, technologies, and strategies are often quite self-explanatory - for instance, everyone knows Pikemen trump Cavalry, while letting Cavalry run amok in your archers is, generally, a bad idea.
Can also be run by nearly everything nowadays and the game with all expansions is less than $10.
Command and Conquer: GeneralsOne of the simplest - and also one of the best - in the Command and Conquer series, which could be considered to be set slightly in the future. Little emphasis on resource-gathering, greater emphasis on overall strategy and unit composition. Three factions with fairly significant differences between each. Again, most units, buildings, and technologies are fairly straightforward because they reference things we already know - tanks, helicopters, lasers, and missiles.
Can be run by nigh-everything, will run you $10-20.
World In ConflictZero resource gathering, constant combat, simple gameplay, and well-known setting. As it does not include any resource gathering or other economic development - which can be considered par for the course when it comes to the RTS genre - it's not quite the best of all introductory games, but it is both good and exceedingly easy to get into.
Yet again quite simple to run, and will - also again - only run you about $10.
Warcraft III
Incredibly similar to AoE, but in a fantasy setting. While most units and upgrades are related to something familiar, not everything will be immediately obvious. Largely important because it is the only one of these four that has a heavy emphasis on the hero unit, which is an important element in many RTS games. Also just an all-around excellent game, and you can always thieve the original DotA to play alongside it - not that I'd suggest that anyone new to RTS games should even try that out...
Will run on anything, again runs around $10-20 for the original and expansion.
And there we have it. Four games, all of which are pretty lengthy if you just want to go through the single-player campaign and some extras.
Apologies to anyone who isn't enjoying the spat of gaming articles. We'll see if I can't fix that in the near future. As always, you can follow to the right and all comments are welcome below.
First of all, it needs to be indicative of the genre as a whole. There's very little purpose in introducing someone to a genre by having them play a game dominated by non-standard game elements, as they will not get a solid grasp on what the genre usually entails.
(The one exception is when moving someone from one genre to another, in which case introducing them with a game that blends both genres is an excellent idea.)
Second, the game needs to be as simple as possible without sacrificing any core game elements of the genre.
As a great example of this, Supreme Commander is considered one of the best RTS games of all time and has an incredible array of units, factions, and maps. It also largely holds true to the core game elements of the archetypal RTS.
Third, familiar settings that don't require any extra attention to detail can be quite useful. A game set in a world roughly analogous to our own is much easier to accept and learn how to play than one set on, say, an alien world with no humans.
This is especially true for the RTS genre, where the purpose of various units, upgrades, and whatnot will be much easier to understand when they are familiar.
Fourth, the game should be fairly cheap and easy to run regardless of what sort of rig you are playing on. This is probably the least important condition in many cases, but in others can be the most important. Just something to keep in mind as a general rule.
Taking all of these into consideration, here is a list of some games I believe would make excellent introductions to the RTS genre, vaguely in order of how well they meet my criteria.
Age of Empires II
One of the old greats, AoE is a medieval-themed RTS with campaigns related to historical battles or specific generals. Tons of factions, but only a couple of differences between them. Units, buildings, technologies, and strategies are often quite self-explanatory - for instance, everyone knows Pikemen trump Cavalry, while letting Cavalry run amok in your archers is, generally, a bad idea.
Can also be run by nearly everything nowadays and the game with all expansions is less than $10.
Command and Conquer: GeneralsOne of the simplest - and also one of the best - in the Command and Conquer series, which could be considered to be set slightly in the future. Little emphasis on resource-gathering, greater emphasis on overall strategy and unit composition. Three factions with fairly significant differences between each. Again, most units, buildings, and technologies are fairly straightforward because they reference things we already know - tanks, helicopters, lasers, and missiles.
Can be run by nigh-everything, will run you $10-20.
World In ConflictZero resource gathering, constant combat, simple gameplay, and well-known setting. As it does not include any resource gathering or other economic development - which can be considered par for the course when it comes to the RTS genre - it's not quite the best of all introductory games, but it is both good and exceedingly easy to get into.
Yet again quite simple to run, and will - also again - only run you about $10.
Warcraft III
Incredibly similar to AoE, but in a fantasy setting. While most units and upgrades are related to something familiar, not everything will be immediately obvious. Largely important because it is the only one of these four that has a heavy emphasis on the hero unit, which is an important element in many RTS games. Also just an all-around excellent game, and you can always thieve the original DotA to play alongside it - not that I'd suggest that anyone new to RTS games should even try that out...
Will run on anything, again runs around $10-20 for the original and expansion.
And there we have it. Four games, all of which are pretty lengthy if you just want to go through the single-player campaign and some extras.
Apologies to anyone who isn't enjoying the spat of gaming articles. We'll see if I can't fix that in the near future. As always, you can follow to the right and all comments are welcome below.
For the record, Age of Empires II will soon (read: within the next week) be rereleased in an HD remaster. You can already preorder it on Steam.
ReplyDeleteI had been debating putting that in here.
ReplyDeleteAssuming you have a rig that can run it and aren't shy about paying a little extra, it should be well worth it. AoE II is, after all, one of the best RTS games ever made.