4 – Rise of Nations: Extended Edition
You know this one was coming; you just didn’t know when. Directly inspired by Age of Empires II, but attempting to elevate the genre with a dose of 4x, Rise of Nations masterfully combines the real-time action of Age of Empires with the grand strategy of a game like Civilization. While it shares the same core loop of building an economy and advancing through historical ages, its unique “territory” system and simplified income-based economy allow you to focus more on large-scale strategic decisions. The game’s “Conquer the World” campaign plays like a game of Risk, providing an addictive single-player experience. With 18 unique nations to choose from and a fluid progression from the Ancient Age to the Information Age, this game offers unparalleled replayability and an experience still unmatched two decades later.
3 – Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Definitive Edition
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Definitive Edition is the closest thing Warhammer 40,000 fans have to a classic real-time strategy (RTS) game like Age of Empires, and boy, is it an amazing one that I love! The game replaces traditional resource gathering with a unique territory control system and passive resource collection, forcing players to be aggressive and expand their control points across the map to build their economy. With that being said, the game still keeps the other basics the same, as base building and combat are still very much present. 0The squad-based combat and morale system adds a deeper layer of tactical decision-making, where the positioning and composition of your forces are more important than sheer numbers. With its highly distinct factions, the game offers a huge amount of variety and a high-quality campaign, making it a different but equally compelling RTS experience. Having played and reviewed the Definitive Edition, I can certainly say the formula of Dawn of War still holds extremely well.
2 – StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
I was really considering putting StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty in the number one position, but I just couldn’t, because while this is a must-play for fans of Age of Empires who are looking for a more fast-paced and competitive experience, there’s another game that I personally believe is a mechanic and spiritual successor in literally everything to Age of Empires II. Not to take any merit away from Starcraft II (it’s number two, after all), because it shares the same core RTS loop of resource gathering, base-building, and army production, but takes it to a new level with its focus on asymmetrical races. The three factions—Terran, Zerg, and Protoss—each play completely differently, offering a massive amount of strategic depth and replayability, and led to one of gaming’s most successful esports scenes ever, which is still very much alive and thriving today. While the game’s high skill ceiling and aggressive nature can be intimidating, the fantastic single-player campaign and co-op modes make it accessible to everyone. The Wings of Liberty campaign is also entirely free-to-play, so there’s no reason not to jump in and experience the pinnacle of the genre.
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