Where have all the RTS games gone?

[Rossiar]

I have a cupboard in my study; it is full of years of amazing RTS games that my dad has accumulated over the years.

Stuff like Age of Empires, Age of Mythology, Empire Earth, Supreme Commander, Command & Conquer 3, Dawn of War, Rise and Fall, Battle for Middle Earth 1/2/ROTWK

Where is the new stuff?

Supreme commander went down the pan with its sequel which to me looks shoddy. Age of empires and Empire Earth both tried to fix what wasn't broken and made some horrific sequels. Tha market for RTS is essentially dead with Microsoft prostituting the PC games market to hawk Xbox 360 games to a different user base.

Does anyone else find this distressing/fine/doesn't care?

 

[blackhole1]

I know this will be repeated a hundred times in this thread, but what about Starcraft 2? Seriously though that is the only RTS game I can think of that will come out this summer. It is sad, because this genre is so much fun. It just needs more attention from developpers.

 

[Cody211282]

Starcraft 2 is coming out soon, and Dawn of War 2 just came out with an expansion, so they are still out there you just have to look a bit harder.

 

[Benmonkey7]

Starcraft 2 is a RTS that is coming out really soon and Command and Conquer 4 came out earlier this year.

 

[Rossiar]

Starcraft 2 i did forget about; but is that it?

I also missed out Total War but I HATE Turn Based Combat SOOOO much. I cannot play those games and if the market goes that way then i don't want to follow it.

DOW 2 was shocking, shocking. More of an RPG than anything as you had no base at all to speak of any about 5 guys to control. While strategic was shocking.

 

[Trivun]

Halo Wars is arguably the first good RTS for consoles since the console releases of the Command and Conquer series (what? I liked them all, okay?). So I'd recommend that, the control system is remarkably well-adapted for the Xbox 360's controller and really does work well for the game.

As far as PC RTSs go, the entire Total War series is definitely a must play. I've heard some good stuff about R.U.S.E., but you do need a high-end computer to run it properly, and there's the whole Ubisoft shitty DRM to consider. And Dawn of War 2, and the original's three expansion packs, are definitely worth a look.

The RTS isn't dead, far from it. You just aren't looking hard enough. As with all genres, there's plent of muck out there, but search hard enough and you're sure to find some gold .

 

[Rossiar]

C&C is rush tactics; RTS games slot into that or games like Supreme Commander. I just wish that old games could get a graphics revamp. That's all they need. Age of Empires 2 has one of the best scripted campaigns I have ever played. Easily done.

 

[Daipire]

Gone the way of the PC.

Slowly dying.

 

[Kiju]

If you really think those are RTS games, then you need to be hit with a hammer.

Hard.

The only real "strategy" for those games is finding the quickest way to rush your enemy's base. There's no real strategy, so much as finding the way to your refrigerator.

Try playing some games from the Total War franchise. You might have an epiphany.

 

[Rossiar]

Hell no, console strategy games is a no-no. I played Halo wars and to my immense satisfaction i hated every minute of it. Consoles will NEVER be able to play RTS games like PC's do unless you stick a USB mouse in (why hasn't this been thought of?)

Dow WAS amazing, the expansion packs got progressively worse until Soulstorm when it just went to hell. That's why Relic and THQ made in an RPG instead of continuing.

 

[Jadak]

I also missed out Total War but I HATE Turn Based Combat SOOOO much. I cannot play those games and if the market goes that way then i don't want to follow it.

The Total War series isn't turn based combat.

 

[Rossiar]

If you really think those are RTS games, then you need to be hit with a hammer.

Hard.

The only real "strategy" for those games is finding the quickest way to rush your enemy's base. There's no real strategy, so much as finding the way to your refrigerator.

Try playing some games from the Total War franchise. You might have an epiphany.

I beg to differ; how can you say that Supreme Commander is a rush game? The only problem with that game is that its TOO good. Hard economy management and proper tactics have to be employed to survive a game, its only problem is that its too long. Far superior to total war.

Total war is trash on the highest scale and I resent it beyond belief. I have tried so very hard to like it: buying Total War medieval and borrowing Total War Rome to play.

Couldn't do it. I loathe it.

 

[veloper]

There is no problem.

So we had a few recent duds like Supcom2 and C&C4. The genre is still alive and studios are atleast trying to do new things with it.
Most RTS players are not graphics whores who want the same thing, but only prettier. Though SC2 doesn't innovate much, so that one should be to your liking.

 

[Rossiar]

I also missed out Total War but I HATE Turn Based Combat SOOOO much. I cannot play those games and if the market goes that way then i don't want to follow it.

The Total War series isn't turn based combat.

Not in the direct sense as there are RTS battles but I hate the bloody territory system. These battles can be good but on the whole just involve the enemy stomping on me with a bigger force than I have.

Maybe i'm just crap at Total War but as I said if this is what defines RTS then it is dead.

 

[Kiju]

If you really think those are RTS games, then you need to be hit with a hammer.

Hard.

The only real "strategy" for those games is finding the quickest way to rush your enemy's base. There's no real strategy, so much as finding the way to your refrigerator.

Try playing some games from the Total War franchise. You might have an epiphany.

I beg to differ; how can you say that Supreme Commander is a rush game? The only problem with that game is that its TOO good. Hard economy management and proper tactics have to be employed to survive a game, its only problem is that its too long. Far superior to total war.

Total war is trash on the highest scale and I resent it beyond belief. I have tried so very hard to like it: buying Total War medieval and borrowing Total War Rome to play.

Couldn't do it. I loathe it.

What? Was playing Total War games too much work?

Managing an economy on Supreme Commander was indeed a very...very interesting twist in the whole resource rush.

But that's just it: It's still a simple resource rush, to see who can get the most, first. There's no real depth to the battles, so much as finding the best combination of units to throw at an enemy's position.

Total War actually puts you in control of a fighting force, right down to the formation. It has admittedly gotten better and better over the years, with me really looking forward to Total War: Shogun II.

Sadly, you played the two worst games of the franchise; there are some community mods out there that make them tollerable, but all-in-all, you should try either Medieval II, or Napoleon before you make your impression of the series. No laser-rifles, but it's definitely a real RTS in my opinion.

 

[The Madman]

DOW 2 was shocking, shocking. More of an RPG than anything as you had no base at all to speak of any about 5 guys to control. While strategic was shocking.

Multiplayer plays much more closely to the basic rts formula, although there's still no base building. But you know what? Good. Sure I enjoy building a nice base in games like Age of Empires 2, constructing a nice series of walls surrounding my center, towers for defence, and mobile defensive forces to defend it.

But in most other RTS base building is just a means by which the developers artificially pace the speed of the game. RTS like Dawn of War, with it's higher focus on tactical combat, cover mechanics, and micromanagement are just plain better without the blatant padding, plus the fantastic UI ensures every second is spent watching over battles rather than hotkeying between buildings and queuing up build orders.

Still, there's plenty of other RTS. Sins of a Solar Empire is a sort of hybrid game, but it's absolutely fantastic and most certainly still an RTS. World in Conflict is another, although, gasp, it doesn't have base building either so you might not like it. Doesn't change that it's a fantastic RTS though.

The trend with major RTS these days is to try new things, and I'm fine with that. Besides, if you're really looking for a classic style RTS Starcraft 2 is only a short distance away.

 

[Rossiar]

There is no problem.

So we had a few recent duds like Supcom2 and C&C4. The genre is still alive and studios are atleast trying to do new things with it.
Most RTS players are not graphics whores who want the same thing, but only prettier. Though SC2 doesn't innovate much, so that one should be to your liking.

SC2 being Supreme Commander 2?

The game scaled down ridiculously both graphically and in its complexity, enough to actually go the other way and become too simple. While I did say that I wanted better graphics any revamp would also include modern comforts such as better multiplayer and tweaks like squad systems.

Also of course I like to see studios innovate but not when it results in disaster such as Empire Earth 2/3, Age of empires 3 and expansions.

 

[blankedboy]

You can't be serious!
http://us.starcraft2.com/

How could you not know?

 

[veloper]

There is no problem.

So we had a few recent duds like Supcom2 and C&C4. The genre is still alive and studios are atleast trying to do new things with it.
Most RTS players are not graphics whores who want the same thing, but only prettier. Though SC2 doesn't innovate much, so that one should be to your liking.

SC2 being Supreme Commander 2?

HAHAHA!

SC2 is always Starcraft2.

Supreme commander2 is shortened to supcom2.

You know about Starcraft right?

 

[Rossiar]

If you really think those are RTS games, then you need to be hit with a hammer.

Hard.

The only real "strategy" for those games is finding the quickest way to rush your enemy's base. There's no real strategy, so much as finding the way to your refrigerator.

Try playing some games from the Total War franchise. You might have an epiphany.

I beg to differ; how can you say that Supreme Commander is a rush game? The only problem with that game is that its TOO good. Hard economy management and proper tactics have to be employed to survive a game, its only problem is that its too long. Far superior to total war.

Total war is trash on the highest scale and I resent it beyond belief. I have tried so very hard to like it: buying Total War medieval and borrowing Total War Rome to play.

Couldn't do it. I loathe it.

What? Was playing Total War games too much work?

Managing an economy on Supreme Commander was indeed a very...very interesting twist in the whole resource rush.

But that's just it: It's still a simple resource rush, to see who can get the most, first. There's no real depth to the battles, so much as finding the best combination of units to throw at an enemy's position.

Total War actually puts you in control of a fighting force, right down to the formation. It has admittedly gotten better and better over the years, with me really looking forward to Total War: Shogun II.

Sadly, you played the two worst games of the franchise; there are some community mods out there that make them tollerable, but all-in-all, you should try either Medieval II, or Napoleon before you make your impression of the series. No laser-rifles, but it's definitely a real RTS in my opinion.

Yes i will admit that most RTS games are decided by who has the biggest army or the most resources. I don't like that in the genre and THIS is where I wanna see the innovation come from. If Total War is the best offering for this...

What i'm saying is that why hasn't the industry really made any breakthroughs? Starcraft 2 by most people's admittance will be "Just another rush game"