5 – Iron Harvest
Iron Harvest can best and easily be described as a dieselpunk Company of Heroes with mechs, set in the 1920s. Despite a rough launch, the team managed to put their best effort into improving the game and after several years of patching and two very good and cheap DLCs, the game has finally reached its full potential. It has a big single-player campaign, as well as a dynamic one, controls are tight, and the cover mechanics work as they should. Seeing these massive, lumbering units clumsy travelling the battlefield squaring off against men and bone humans is something both terrifying and spectacular to watch. I love it when a strategy game does something unexpected and forces me to consider new tactics, and battlefield mech certainly does the trick.
4 – Age of Empires IV
Age of Empires IV certainly came as a surprise for me, in terms of quality, but also because it managed to innovate on the classic Age of Empires formula without losing its identity, something I thought was pretty much impossible to do, given how high of a standard that was. However, Relic Entertainment managed to prove me wrong by releasing one of the more exciting historical RTS of the last decade. A game that respects its roots, respects history, and built fantastic single-player campaigns around some of the most impactful historical events of the Middle Ages, peppering the in-between missions with documentary-level information on various subjects, from warfare to day-to-day life. For 15 dollars, I think Age of Empires IV is worth a go. There’s also an active multiplayer scene if that’s what you’re looking for. It also looks like the team is finally starting to release some much-needed DLC, with two new ones announced for 2025.
3- Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Anniversary Edition
Here’s a new inclusion on my recommendations list, usually because I tend to like Dawn of War 2, but I guess it’s time to let its older brother Warhammer 40,000 – Dawn of War shine for a bit. This landmark real-time strategy game came out in 2006 and brought a new level of brutality and intensity to the RTS scene, by breathing digital life into the iconic battles of the Warhammer 40K universe. A classical base-building RTS through and through, if you never played it, it’s a fundamental piece of history of the genre you should be giving a go, and by costing only 5 dollars, it’s an absolute steal for the amount of content it has. Also, there’s still a thriving modding scene keeping the game alive, almost two decades later.
2 – Company of Heroes 2
My standard recommendation when it comes to the Company of Heroes franchise tends to go to the first game in the series, but I know that’s because of nostalgia and the fact that I love games set on the Western Front of World War 2. However, if you’re looking for the more complete title in the series, both in terms of single-player content and an active multiplayer community, Company of Heroes 2 should be your go-to game, and for less than 5 dollars, it’s an absolute no-brainer. If you can, get the Singleplayer Bundle as well, as it comes with the best expansion pack for the game, Company of Heroes 2 – Ardennes Assault, which features a dynamic campaign set in the titular battle.
1 – Command & Conquer The Ultimate Collection
I don’t think there’s a better deal this Steam Easter Sale when it comes to RTS other than the whole Command & Conquer: The Ultimate Collection. For less than 10 dollars you get every game in the series, from Red Alert, Tiberian Sun, Generals, Generals: Zero Hours, until Tiberian Twilight 4. Even Command & Conquer: Renegade is in the mix. I paid full price for it when it came out and don’t regret it one bit, and for half of what I paid, you won’t either!
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