Hey everyone,
Last week was all about celebrating Real-Time Strategy games here on Steam! Being part of RTS Fest brought us a lot of joy. It was an honour to be listed among so many games that inspired us and pick up some titles that’ll inspire us in the future!
To celebrate the festival, we wrote a blog highlighting a handful of our favourite RTS! Some of these games - particularly Age of Empires and Warcraft 3 - greatly impacted how we work on and think about our games!
If you missed that blog, we’ve got you: we wrote an abridged version, so you can still dive into our favourite RTS!
Warcraft 3 boasts the best 4-player Free For All mode in any RTS, thanks to its hero-centric gameplay. Heroes gain power through battles, creating a compelling reason to engage rather than play passively, which often leads to stale matches.
Age of Empires 1 and 2 hold a special place in our hearts. We spent countless hours playing the AOE1 demo campaign, and reveled in being immersed in AOE2’s fantasy of being a medieval king!
Total Annihilation was one of Luminous dev Mihkel’s first RTS experiences. Its innovative unit command system, impressive 3D physics, and diverse units captivated him, despite its steep hardware requirements and less intuitive mechanics compared to traditional RTS games. Who could forget the thrill of sea planes landing underwater and flying builders constructing cannons?
We’d also like to shine a light on some underrated gems that fly under the radar from time to time. Knights and Merchants features a unique economy system, and fans have even created a complete remake called KamRemake. And then there’s Beasts and Pumpkins, which offers a fascinating live economy where characters age, eat, and engage in battles, adding a quirky twist to the RTS genre.
These are just a handful of the games that inspired us throughout the years. As we work on Circle Empires 2, revisiting the games we grew up with and figuring out what makes them tick has been incredibly helpful!
What are some of your favourite RTS’? Old or new, we wanna hear about them!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3093020/Circle_Empires_2/