Calling All Strategists

If you love planning, plotting and organization in your gameplay, then strategy games could be the games for you. Strategy games are for those who relish the painstaking management of complex, interconnected systems in your gameplay.

Strategy games let you unleash your inner battle genius. You don’t always have to be on the front line to make a big difference, and by choosing to play a strategy game you can show the importance of your skills in the early, preparatory stages of war, rather than the moment-to-moment bloodshed of the battlefield.

Of course, just as in the classic strategy game of Chess, you will find yourself engrossed by the details too—a great strategist needs to worry for the life of every pawn, even as they adjust their grand plans to meet the actions of their opponent.

The Roots of Strategy

Strategy video games can trace their roots directly back to classic tabletop strategy games like Chess and Go, or more modern boardgames like Risk. The first strategy video game was released with the world’s first games console in 1972, so it’s a type of game that has existed since the very beginning and remains important to this day.

Strategy Video Games

Almost all video games involve an element of strategy. No matter what you play, you’ll be making quick decisions on-the-fly while also keeping part of your mind on the overall progress of your game. In strategy games, however, resource management, logistics and the broad sweep of play are the biggest part of the experience.

Games Within Games

Strategy video games fall into two basic categories; turn-based strategy and real-time strategy. Turn-based strategy games honor the old pattern of their boardgame ancestors—you take a turn, then your opponent does, then you repeat. Turn-based strategy games give the machines they run on more time, and so they can be incredibly detailed and realistic. They are also slower-paced! Gameplay completely stops each turn while the player considers their next move.

In real-time strategy games, or RTS games, you and your opponent both act at the same time, with neither of you needing to wait your turn. This makes RTS strategy games faster paced and you’ll need to think quickly if you want to prevail. RTS games are usually a little more action-focused than turn-based games and have been more popular over the years.

Of course, with the games industry being as big and varied as it is, there are now sub-types and off-shoots of strategy games, such as turn-based tactics games, 4X games and MOBA games. These hybrid game types tinker with the strategy formula to offer differing blends of strategy flavor.

MOBAs and E-Sports

MOBA—Multiplayer Online Battle Arena—games are a hugely popular sub-genre of strategy game that emerged in the 2010s. Although the word “e-sport” might make you think of shooter games, MOBA tournaments are big business! Some estimates put the MOBA share of yearly e-sports prize pools at 40%, making strategy games successful spectator games.

The Ingredients of Strategy Games

There are strategy games out there for almost any conflict you can think of, as well as any fantasy setting imaginable. Some have you managing teams of superheroes or dinosaur theme parks. Others have you managing a farm or corporation.

As different as the settings and premises may be, all strategy games have certain elements in common—they all emphasize control from a distance, giving you a zoomed-out overview in which to make the big decisions that will change the outcome of the game. It’s this focus on the “big-picture” of the game, rather than the fate of individual units, that makes strategy games what they are.

That literal big-picture view is one of the most sure signs that a game is a strategy game. Almost all strategy games feature a map covering a large area, which usually ends up covered in units as the opposing sides struggle to control it.

Strategy Games at Gamepix

Here at GamePix, we have brought together some of the best strategy games to test your skills. As with all of our free games, our in-browser strategy games will play on any device with a web browser, without the need for additional software downloads. Moreover, they are all totally free to play and unlocked.

Whether you want an RTS, a tower defense game or something far more unusual, we have a huge selection to choose from. Whether you want to run a fast-food restaurant or an airport, we have a strategy game for you. And with all of our browser-based strategy games being free, there’s nothing to stop you trying them all.

Maybe you like playing as a military general from history or maybe you prefer to create your own. Maybe you want to fight it out on a traditional battleground of wide-open fields or perhaps you prefer the claustrophobic combat of forests or cities. Maybe you’d prefer to test your strategy mettle somewhere completely different, like the merciless silence of a space battle. Whether you want to command ancient armies, armed with rudimentary weapons or a force from the future equipped with fantastical technology, there’s a strategy game that will scratch the itch.

In the end, whether you’re facing soldiers from another country or the mythical beasts of another realm, what matters is rallying your resources and formulating a game plan that will crush your opponents as quickly and effectively as possible. Then, it’s up to you to invest in your troops and make sure you have an arsenal that will strike fear into the hearts of your enemies.

In strategy games, the choices are always yours but the goal remains the same—plan the battle, execute the fight and emerge the victor. Have you got the stomach for war?

FAQs
Do strategy games make you smarter?

While most off-the-shelf video games won’t improve cognitive function, strategy games are certainly among some of the most mentally challenging. The complexity of high-level strategy and the mastery of detail needed for planning make a game experience that will test your brain power to the limit.

What is a strategy game?

A strategy game is any game that demands thinking and planning from players rather than, for example, quick reflexes or physical skill. Strategy video games usually focus on resource management and maneuvering of forces, putting you in the position of a general or manager rather than a front-line soldier or shop-floor employee.

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