The 26 Best Strategy Games To Play Right Now

• Developer: Eremite Games
• Rating: N/A

Billed as a city-building game, Against the Storm blends that genre with strategy and even "roguelite" elements to create a compact and addictive game. The depth here despite a short playtime is really impressive. You have to manage the "Scorched Queen’s" temper between the quiet phases of the "Blightstorm." The stakes always feel high and time will fly by with this one.

• Developers: Relic Entertainment, World's Edge
• Rating: T for Teen

The fourth installment in the Age of Empires had a lot to live up to because all of the games are held in high regard in the strategy genre. The gap between the last two games is over a decade and a half, which is a luxury you can afford when the games are so great. Relic Entertainment did a good job in this game by keeping the real-time strategy elements that a lot of gamers love.

• Developers: Oxide Games, Stardock Entertainment.
• Rating: E10+ for Everyone 10+

It might not have gotten a dynamite reception upon release, but if a large-scale real-time strategy game experience is your thing, then Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation does it very well. The game often has thousands of units all engaging in combat at the same time, but does it in a way that doesn’t feel cluttered and hard to manage.

• Developer: Harebrained Schemes
• Rating: N/A

Developed by Harebrained Schemes, BATTLETECH is a turn-based strategy game where players assume the role of a mercenary commander who is in charge of a group of four "Battlemechs." Once you pick each mech’s skills, it’s time for combat, where there are a bunch of options and ways to keep the battles interesting, including considering environmental factors.

• Developers: Petroglyph Games, Lemon Sky Studios
• Rating: T for Teen

Compiling and enhancing 1995’s Command & Conquer and 1996’s Red Alert plus all of their expansion packs, this remastered collection is a blueprint on how to bring a game that’s nearly three decades old back to life. Graphis are enhanced, controls are remapped, music is remastered, online features are added, and more.

• Developer: Relic Entertainment
• Rating: M for Mature

Released in 2023, the third main entry in the Company of Heroes series is set in the North African and Italian theaters of World War II, which is a fairly unique take on a cliche setting. The active pause system will be a relief to many and the scope of the campaign is great, especially for something pretty new. It's worth checking out the first two games in the Company of Heroes franchise as well for more finely tuned strategic militaristic action.

• Developer: Paradox Development Studio
• Rating: T for Teen

Like its predecessors, the third Crusader Kings game is set in the Middle Ages, beginning either in 867 or 1066. The game ends in 1453 and from wherever you choose to start until then, you can build a dynasty. It’s a grand strategy game where things like diplomacy, wealth, and even religious influence can play a part. 

• Developer: Star Drifters
• Rating: N/A

For those who are extremely familiar with your more generic conventions of strategy games, Driftland does an excellent job of keeping it familiar enough with those elements but branching out in ways that make it stand out from the pack. You play as a mage whose job is to merge the realms when all that’s holding the shattered pieces together is a spell.

• Developer: Shiro Games
• Rating: N/A

Developed by Shiro Games and published by Funcom, there’s no better time to start playing Dune: Spice Wars than now, as we approach the highly anticipated sequel to the first film. This game is set on the desert planet of "Arrakis," with your job being to explore it and harvest resources. The game does a surprisingly efficient job of capturing the essence of the books and movies.

• Developer: Amplitude Studios
• Rating: T for Teen

Your goal in ENDLESS Legend is to dominate "Auriga" with a race through war or diplomacy. Empires are built with exploration and research and the game lends itself to players staying with it with the goal of control. The visuals here are immersive and look realistic for a game that contains a bunch of fantastical and magical elements.

• Developer: Subset Games
• Rating: E10+ for Everyone 10+

Becoming the captain of a spacecraft has never been quite as immersive and imaginative as it is in FTL: Faster Than Light. Players pick a spacecraft and must jump between beacons in an attempt to deliver intel to an allied fleet. This is a roguelite and one that has been criticized by some for being slightly too difficult, but it’s equally as rewarding as it is punishing. 

• Developers: Splash Damage, The Coalition
• Rating: M for Mature

As its name suggests, Gears Tactics is indeed a spin-off from the classic Gears of War series. Set before the events of those games, this game is a top-down adventure where you command human soldiers to defeat enemies and complete various other objectives. At any given moment, players can explore the map freely. If you’re an avid Gears of War fan, or you’re at least familiar with the games, this is well worth picking up.

• Developer: Subset Games
• Rating: E10+ for Everyone 10+

For fans of the aforementioned FTL: Faster Than Light, Into the Breach is also done by Subset Games and was their follow-up to that one. Where that game was set in space, this one is set in the future where an army of giant monsters called the "Vek" reign terror and it’s up to you to battle them. You do so with giant mechs and have a certain number of moves in each battle to complete objectives. 

• Developer: Firaxis Games
• Rating: T for Teen

For gamers who like turn-based strategy games, Marvel, and deck-building games, there is no better option out there right now than Marvel’s Midnight Suns. Despite a wide variety of Marvel superheroes that are characters in the game, you’ll play as The Hunter, which you can build with a choice of dozens of superpowers. The game’s combat truly puts a focus on being tactical, using the environment to your offensive & defensive advantage, and relying on superpowered abilities to incapacitate the villainous side of things.

• Developer: Shiro Games
• Rating: N/A

Northgard came out in 2018 and has had a steady player base ever since. The game is inspired by Norse mythology and is centered around you, a Prince, who looks to get revenge for the death of his father. Some have been critical of the story here but in terms of gameplay, Northgard is truly special in the strategy genre. The dynamic seasons mean that there are new angles to gameplay that you’ve probably considered in any strategy game in the past. 

• Developer: Flashback Games
• Rating: N/A

Played on a hex grid, Panzer Corps 2 focuses on combat and has you in charge of keeping units supplied as they invade enemy territory. The game is set during World War II from a German perspective, but the setting is secondary to the action. If you were a fan of the original Panzer Corps, this one elevates almost every feature, including introducing 3D graphics, more than 1,000 units, and a valuable undo system, which has been desired for a long time.

• Developers: Creative Assembly, Feral Interactive
• Rating: T for Teen

Developed by The Creative Assembly and originally published by Activision, this is the third offering in the successful and revered Total War series. Taking place from 270 BC to 14 AD, the game covers the end of the Republican period and the beginning of the imperial period in Ancient Rome. It’s widely considered one of the best strategy games of all time. In its definitive remastered form, it looks better, sounds better, and has a way more refined gameplay feel that makes a classic game more accessible to veterans and newcomers.

• Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
• Rating: T for Teen

If you like to ease into games while you learn the controls and mechanics, then StarCraft II may not be for you. There’s very little handholding going on here, but that’s also a big part of why it’s beloved. If space elves and armored cowboys sound like your sort of thing, then you can give it a try for free.

• Developer: Paradox Development Studio
• Rating: E10+ for Everyone 10+

Stellaris nails all of the key aspects of strategy games, namely giving players a lot of freedom and choice and having fun consequences no matter what. You’re in charge of a large region of the galaxy and when you come across other civilizations, it’s your job to decide whether to engage in diplomacy, trade with them, or fight them. You can enter this game's galactic warfare via the Stellaris: Console Edition if you'd prefer, by the way.

• Developer: Bytro Labs GmbH
• Rating: N/A

Supremacy 1914 offers a genuinely unique take on a World War game. Here, you’re online with up to 499 other players and you all take control of different countries to see how things play out. Each country has different resources specific to them and the historical accuracy is pretty impressive.

• Developer: EA Los Angeles
• Rating: T for Teen

It says a lot that this game takes liberties with J.R.R. Tolkien’s work and it’s still appreciated by fans of his work. Battle for Middle-earth II consists of a good campaign and an evil campaign, the former opening after Fellowship of the Ring and the latter focusing on an alternative version of the War in the North. The scale of the combat in the films lends itself to a great strategy game and both this game and its predecessor do it justice. 

• Developer: 2x2 Games
• Rating: N/A

The second Unity of Command game does a fair bit different from the first, but that reinvention is a large part of its ongoing success. There’s a new headquarters mechanic here that allows stragglers to be rounded up and put to use in existing units, which was a relief and much-welcomed introduction to the game. As far as wargames go, Unity of Command II sits among the elite.

• Developers: Blizzard Entertainment, Lemon Sky Studios
• Rating: T for Teen

This remastered release from Blizzard combined the original game with its Frozen Throne expansion. Reign of Chaos was the developer’s first foray into 3D graphics and it was a great success. To this day, even the original version of the game’s design style holds up well. It also boasts one of the better soundtracks amongst strategy games, which might not seem like a main concern or priority, but does a whole lot for adding to immersion with those epic battles.

• Developers: Chucklefish, Robotality
• Rating: E10+ for Everyone 10+

Wargroove 2 is an ideal sequel in that the elements from the first game that players liked went largely unchanged, but enough was improved that it was a worthy successor. This game keeps the core gameplay, but reintroduces the "Groove" system, adds a roguelike mode, and tweaks the highly lauded campaign editors.

• Developer: Black Lab Games
• Rating: N/A

Admittedly, Battlesector didn’t get the rave reviews of some of the previous entries in the series, but as one of the newer offerings in the Warhammer 40,000 franchise, it does a commendable job of rounding out the gaming experience for newer gamers. The campaign is fun, even if the mission design could be a bit better. Plus, the PvP mode is memorable and quite an addictive endeavor.

• Developer: Firaxis Games
• Rating: T for Teen

XCOM 2 offers the best of both worlds, combining turn-based combat and strategy elements where you oversee the combat. It’s set two decades after the events of the first game, but if you’re unfamiliar with the story, you can still have a lot of fun here. The War of the Chosen expansion has specifically been praised too.