Can you recommend any strategy games?

[CitrusLover]

I recently found my love for strategy games after purchasing XCOM Enemy Unknown and now I would like to further expand.

Could you recommend some good strategy games for me?

My gaming platforms are: Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC, DS, PSP.

Thank you.

 

[Tallim]

Age of Wonders : Shadow Magic
AI War
Solium Infernum
Galactic Civilzations 2
Frozen Synapse
Warzone 2100

Probably my favourite ones

 

[BlazeRaider]

Any of the total war series, now that's some good strategy right there. Most RTSs are more about tactics as opposed to strategy and are limited to individual battles, the total war series is one for the few game where massive troop movements and diplomacy are combined with real time battles.

 

[Pink Gregory]

Civilization goes without saying, does it not?

Yeah, but for XCOM-similar gameplay Frozen Synapse is yer best bet.

Oh, and Jagged Alliance/Jagged Alliance 2 if y'don't mind a graphical downgrade.

And the original X-Com series is a given, I assume.

 

[Jason Rayes]

Silent Storm and its expansion, also Sins of a Solar Empire.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

I recently found my love for strategy games after purchasing XCOM Enemy Unknown and now I would like to further expand.

Could you recommend some good strategy games for me?

My gaming platforms are: Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC, DS, PSP.

Thank you.

Assuming age is of no relevance, and your sole determining factor is quality, I can unreservedly recommend the following:

X-Com: UFO Defense*
X-Com: Terror from the Deep
Jagged Alliance
Jagged Alliance 2*
Civilization (all of them, although 4 is usually viewed as the zenith)*
Alpha Centauri*
Master of Magic*
Master of Orion
Master of Orion 2*
Galactic Civilizations 2
Total War: Rome
Total War: Medieval 2*
Starcraft*
Starcraft 2
Warcraft 3: The Frozen Throne
Heroes of Might and Magic II
Heroes of Might and Magic III
Sins of a Solar Empire
Age of Wonders: Shadow Magic
Fantasy General
Railroad Tycoon
Populous
Sacrifice
Myth
Myth II

If I've put a * beside a game, it's because I consider it an essential classic or high watermark of the genre.

Some of these are quite old. Others, like Starcraft, are very similar in their updated incarnations to the original, so you might as well just enjoy the sequel. In other cases, like JA2, the "sequel" is a crushing disappointment and the original is vastly superior.

I may have left a few off here, I don't have a perfect memory.

 

[Yokillernick]

I can't believe this. No one has said Age of Empires 1 and 2. Also try Empire Earth, only the original one because the others suck so much ass. Here's an example in Empire Earth you have around 29 different Eras, in Empire Earth 3 you have 6 Eras also less units. Other recommendations are Civilization 5 and the Gods and Kings Expansion. Don't try Civilization 4 if you are not ready for a life lesson about how life would often fuck you hard, as I played it on Normal and managed to get killed in less than 100 turns. If you want a story to go to the strategy try Red Alert 2 and 3. For war strategy you could always play Company of Heroes and its expansions. Yep, that's about it and if you want to try Empire Earth, best strategy game in my opinion, get it from GOG as I think they have it with all the extra content from a fiver.

Captcha: kiss me. ALright getting a little creepy there Sentient Captcha.

 

[Bostur]

Strategy games is a wide genre, and technically XCOM is a tactical game. Strategy games tend to be more abstract and broader in scope.

XCOM style tactical games are rare. Frozen Synapse is very good, but may be too low-budget and simple looking for some.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/98200/

Jagged Alliance Back in Action is a fairly new remake of JA2. Fans of JA2 gave it a hard time because JA2 is better in pretty much every respect except for the graphics. Back in Action does have some issues, but it's not a bad game and may be more accessible due to the modern graphics.
http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/jagged_alliance_2
http://store.steampowered.com/app/57740/


If we widen the criteria to 'real' strategy games there is a bit more choice.

Unity of command is a new game that got fairly good reviews across the board. It seems to be relatively easy to pick up. I haven't had time to try it myself yet.
http://www.matrixgames.com/products/417/details/Unity.of.Command

The Civilization series is an undying brand of the 4x sub-genre. Civilization V is the most recent, and pretty decent as long as you get the Gods & Kings expansion, otherwise I wouldn't bother. I still think Civilization 3 is the best so far. Civilization IV is not too bad though.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/3910/
http://store.steampowered.com/app/3900
http://store.steampowered.com/app/8930/

Among RTS games I would suggest either Company of Heroes for the single player campaigns, or Starcraft 2 for the multiplayer. The single player campaign in SC2 is decent as well, but not as good as the first one.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/4560/
http://us.battle.net/sc2/en/

Paradox Interactive specializes in some very advanced strategic/economic games that are 'pausable real-time'. The most recent "Crusader Kings 2" is by many people considered one of their best so far, and it's also one of the easier ones to pick up. I'm using the term 'easy' in the relative sense here, because Paradox games tend to have notorious learning curves. Even experienced players will need to use several hours to get accustomed to their games.
http://www.crusaderkings.com/

A lot of people like the Total War series. I can't say I fancy them much, they tend to be buggy and have poor AI. I find that Napoleon is the only playable one, but fans disagree and think thats the worst game. Make of that what you will.
http://www.totalwar.com/en_us/

Age of Wonders is a neat series of games inspired by the old Master of Magic. It's a special flavor of games that combines traditional strategy with spell casting. That mix can sometimes result in a unique gameplay style.
http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/master_of_magic
http://store.steampowered.com/sub/6365/

A few days ago a game called "Fallen Enchantress" was released with some of the same flavour. I have yet to decide how good it is, but so far it feels pretty decent. Unfortunately it is getting murdered on Metacritic, I have no idea why.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/216390

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Strategy games is a wide genre, and technically XCOM is a tactical game. Strategy games tend to be more abstract and broader in scope.

XCOM (and JA) have both a tactical and a strategic layer. And even on the tactical layer there are some very basic elements of resource allocation. I think they qualify as strategy titles.

Paradox Interactive specializes in some very advanced strategic/economic games that are 'pausable real-time'. The most recent "Crusader Kings 2" is by many people considered one of their best so far, and it's also one of the easier ones to pick up. I'm using the term 'easy' in the relative sense here, because Paradox games tend to have notorious learning curves. Even experienced players will need to use several hours to get accustomed to their games.

THANK YOU. I forgot this one.

 

[Bostur]

Strategy games is a wide genre, and technically XCOM is a tactical game. Strategy games tend to be more abstract and broader in scope.

XCOM (and JA) have both a tactical and a strategic layer. And even on the tactical layer there are some very basic elements of resource allocation. I think they qualify as strategy titles.

In the original X-Com and JA definately, and there's always some overlap between strategy and tactics. RTS games are exceptionally hard to classify for instance.

I think the distinction makes sense when talking about preferences. Some people like to have most focus on strategic gameplay and others like tactical gameplay more.

 

[scorptatious]

Well there's Valkyria Chronicles for the PS3. It's sort of a Turn Based Strategy mixed with a third person shooter. In battle, you use a limited pool of command points to take control of your units and have them do certain actions, like shooting, healing, repairing stuff, ect. Movement isn't restricted by grids either, you can move your characters as far as their movement guage allows them. Once you use up all your CP, the enemy gets a turn to do the same thing to you.

Outside of battle, you can pick out from several different recruits. They are all named, voice acted, have their own back stories, and each have their own strengths and weaknesses. They all level up by class too. So if one of your recruits dies or you don't want to use him/her anymore, you can pick out another character without having to worry about having him/her grind to catch up with the rest of your troops.

The story and characters are nothing to sneeze at either. I personally got really attached to the main cast as the game went on.

It's kinda difficult to find in retail stores, so you're best bet is to buy it online.

 

[Coffeejack]

Anno 2070. It may take up to a week to grasp the basics, though. Its main focus is resource management. Combat is not its strongest point.

 

[Yureina]

Shogun 2 Total War
Crusader Kings II
Europa Universalis III
Warcraft III
Company of Heroes
X-Com UFO Defense

Just a few, but those are good ones as far as I am concerned.

 

[Wolf In A Bear Suit]

Age of Mythology, with expansion and also
Battle for Middle Earth 2, rise of the witch king (Expansion)
Two of my favorite games, both addictive

 

[Lectori Salutem]

Ground Control 1 & 2 are now on sale on GOG, they're not like X-COM or anything, but still great games nonetheless.

You could also try grabbing. the original X-COM games from steam, if you're willing to look past some archaic controls

 

[MammothBlade]

Welcome to the fold...

I'm going to suggest some of the more historical grand strategy games:

Victoria II
Europa Universalis III
Crusader Kings II
Hearts of Iron III
Shogun II Total War

Though if you're looking for more tactical turn-based, Disgaea and Valkyria Chronicles are two I love.

 

[sextus the crazy]

Along with the excellent Valkyria Chronicles series, I recommend Advanced wars (especially the DS ones) and Fire Emblem (Sextus, recommending Fire Emblem? No fucking shit.)

These games should keep you busy on the bus.

Also, Company of Heroes/ eastern front mod. Because that game is fucking awesome.

 

[omicron1]

To get you started, I'd like to suggest a melange of RTS classics:

Homeworld - one of the better videogame stories, and still-awesome gameplay.
Age of Empires (1, 2, 3, M - take your pick) - The pseudo-historical alternative to Warcraft.
Rise of Nations - a truly brilliant game from the late Big Huge Games.
Rise of Legends - the semi-sequel to Rise of Nations. Fun setting, good gameplay, odd story.