5 – Warhammer 40.000: Dawn of War – Definitive Edition
The story behind Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War is a landmark moment in strategy gaming. Not just another licensed cash-grab (the early 2000s were full of those, remember that?), but a game that finally translated the grimdark fantasy of the franchise into a proper RTS experience. Developed by Relic Entertainment and released in 2004, it quickly became a beloved fan favorite because of how close it stays to the lore, the squad-based combat, the incredible campaign, and its several and substantial expansions. In 2026, the best way to experience Dawn of War is by getting the Definitive Edition, which is one of the best remasters you can play right now, and it’s amazing how well the game still holds up more than 20 years later. Having originally missed it when it came out in 2004, I finally played its campaign for my review and ended up falling in love with it. It’s my favorite Dawn of War game, that’s for sure.
4 – Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition
One of the biggest draws of Age of Empires 2 was its historical authenticity, and almost Hollywood-esque depiction of the medieval period that made you feel like you were in fact leading a nation through one of the most challenging and transformative periods in human history. From the mud and dirt of the Dark Ages to the shining plate armor of late game knights, and the wrought iron, bronze, and brass of early cannons, Age of Empires 2 perfectly captured that feeling of constantly innovating and soaring across history itself.
The Stronghold series took a different approach and grounded the player right in the middle of the Medieval timeframe, when gunpowder was yet unknown, and lances, bows, and castles dominated the battlefields. By giving the tools necessary for the player to design and create their own castles, as well as to introduce a more complex economic and supply system, Stronghold became unique in the sense that it took what made the Medieval era so special and really drilled down into it, creating specific game mechanics to more authentically recreate that timeframe. I was lucky enough to play Stronghold and Stronghold: Crusader in the years they came out, and let me tell you that those felt like true steps forward in the RTS genre. If you’re an avid visitor of Strategy and Wargaming, you probably already know that this is one of my favorite game series of all time, and that Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition is one of my favorite RTS of the last decade.
3 – Rise of Nations
I was lucky enough to see all of these games arrive one after another. Age of Empires, Empire Earth, and Rise of Nations, and I vividly recall seeing them come as genuine innovations built one atop the other. Rise of Nations, released in 2003, was the younger brother of the trio, and is a game that I consider to be one of the direct successors to the traditional AoE 2 formula. Rise of Nations takes the idea of the massive timeline seen in Empire Earth, and improves on the depth of real-time strategy elements by adding a new border system that limits player expansion, brought new units like Spies and Generals, and a replaced a traditional campaign for a new “Conquer the World” campaign, which was aking to something like Risky, rather than a campaign with traditional storyline.
2 – Empire Earth
The early 2000s were dominated by Age of Empires, Civilization, and the will of game development studios to experiment with new concepts, so it’s no wonder that someone came up with the idea for Empire Earth: A semi-historical RTS title that combined the massive chronological scope of Civilization, taking mankind from its infancy as cavemen, all the way to our distant future. What resulted was one of the most beloved RTS games ever made, and Empire Earth became an overnight success story with 2 million units sold. Despite the game being a quarter of a century old, it’s still one of my favorite titles of all time, and it went on to spawn Empire Earth II and Empire Earth III. The series has gone dormant ever since, but with Empire Eternal on the horizon, we might see a spiritual successor claim its vacant throne rather soon. Until then, Empire Earth is still the second-best real-time strategy title of all time if you’re looking to capture that early 2000s feeling.
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