Best PC Strategy Games of All Time
Children often can’t grasp strategic thinking, which is why you’re unlikely to hear a bunch of school kids on the bus chatting about tactics in Europa Universalis 4 or Crusader Kings 2. For them it’s all about the latest FIFA or Call of Duty.
Whilst you could argue that both FIFA and COD require a level of strategy, the list of the PC’s Top Strategy Games of All Time doesn’t dabble which such simplicities. In addition to the aforementioned hardcore titles, PC strategy games are dominated by long-term franchises such as Total War, StarCraft, XCOM, Command & Conquer and Civilization. These are games so in-depth that you’ll be weeks into the experience and likely yet to have scratched the surface.
So if you want to feel more cleverer than the average Joe you should stop signing into Xbox LIVE to play Call of Duty against a bunch of teenagers, and instead load up Steam and download any of the games from our list of the Best PC Strategy Games of All Time. By the time you’re done you’ll have bumped your IQ up a few notches.
- All Genres Action Action Adventure Action RPG Adventure Arcade Battle Royale Beat 'em Up Board Games Card Casual City Builder Collection Combat Dance Educational Family Fantasy Fighting First Person First-Person Shooter Fitness Flight Football Horror Indie Management Massively Multiplayer Massively Multiplayer Online Metroidvania Mini Game MOBA Multiplayer Music Open World Party Pinball Platformer Puzzle Quiz Racing Real-time Retro Roguelike Roguelite RPG Science Fiction Shoot 'em Up Shooter Side-scroller Simulation Singing Soccer Space Sport Sports Stealth Strategy Survival Survival Horror Tactical Third Person Turn Based Virtual Pet Virtual Reality Visual Novel Wrestling
- All Platforms 3DO Android Apple II Atari 2600 Atari 5200 Atari 7800 Atari 8-bit Atari Lynx Atari ST Atari XEGS Classic Macintosh Commodore / Amiga Dreamcast Game Boy Game Boy Advance Game Boy Color Game Gear Gameboy Advance GameCube Genesis Google Stadia iOS Jaguar Linux macOS Neo Geo NES Nintendo 3DS Nintendo 64 Nintendo DS Nintendo DSi Nintendo Switch PC PlayStation PlayStation 2 PlayStation 3 PlayStation 4 PlayStation 5 PS Vita PSP SEGA 32X SEGA CD SEGA Master System SEGA Saturn SNES Test Platform Web Wii Wii U Xbox Xbox 360 Xbox One Xbox Series S Xbox Series S/X Xbox Series X
- All Time 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009
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101
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-2
Plants vs. Zombies
Reviewed on:
Platforms: Android, iOS, Nintendo DS, PC, PlayStation 3, PS Vita, Xbox 360, Xbox One
-
93
Card Hunter
A free-to-player, browser based card game that isn't rubbish. Whatever next...Reviewed on: 07 October 2013
Platforms: macOS, PC
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-4
-
-5
-
96
Empire: Total War
The biggest, grandest Total War yet.Reviewed on: 12 March 2009
Platforms: Linux, macOS, PC
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97
-
98
Supreme Commander
Does Supreme Commander live up to its immense hype?Reviewed on: 15 February 2007
Platforms: PC, Xbox 360
-
99
Sid Meier’s Civilization IV: Colonization
Conquering America? It's all about the money...Reviewed on: 22 September 2008
Platforms: PC
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910
XCOM: Enemy Unknown
XCOM works best as a panic management simulator.Reviewed on: 08 October 2012
Platforms: Android, iOS, macOS, PC, PlayStation 3, PS Vita, Xbox 360
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911
Might & Magic Clash of Heroes
Sparks will fly.Reviewed on: 15 March 2010
Platforms: iOS, Nintendo DS, PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
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912
FTL: Faster Than Light
Even on easy mode, FTL is another capital-D Difficult game and its random nature means even the most careful of explorers might find themselves unexpectedly asphyxiated.Reviewed on: 25 September 2012
Platforms: iOS, Linux, macOS, PC
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913
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914
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915
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War
Our rather belated review for the first truly great game based on the Warhammer universeReviewed on: 14 January 2005
Platforms: PC
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916
Football Manager Live
The natural evolution of Football Manager.Reviewed on: 20 January 2009
Platforms: PC
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917
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II – Chaos Rising
The corrupting influence of chaos is a powerful thing.Reviewed on: 10 March 2010
Platforms: PC
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918
DEFCON: Global Thermonuclear War
Nuking your mates in the face has never been so strategic.Reviewed on: 15 June 2007
Platforms: Nintendo DS, PC
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919
Football Manager 2005
We check out Sports Interactive's latest football management sim. Addiction has a new name...Reviewed on: 14 December 2004
Platforms: macOS, PC
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920
-
921
World in Conflict
Level a battlefield and your social life in this intense RTS.Reviewed on: 21 September 2007
Platforms: PC
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922
-
923
Company of Heroes
Relic cements its place into the pantheon of exceptional RTS developers with this brilliant World War II offering.Reviewed on: 31 October 2006
Platforms: iOS, PC
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924
The Sims 2
It's the return of the little people in our slightly belated review...Reviewed on: 22 December 2004
Platforms: Classic Macintosh, Game Boy Advance, Gameboy Advance, GameCube, Nintendo DS, PC, PlayStation 2, PSP, Xbox
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925
Rome: Total War
Has the Creative Assembly given RTS fans a real reason to feel gladius with Rome: Total War?Reviewed on: 06 March 2005
Platforms: PC
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926
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Winter Assault
Relic has produced a red-hot RTS that betters the original gameReviewed on: 11 October 2005
Platforms: PC
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927
World in Conflict: Complete Edition
Massive's Director's Cut nukes all.Reviewed on: 19 March 2009
Platforms: PC
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928
StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm
The campaign probably won't reach the audience it deserves, but Heart of the Swarm is Blizzard on top form.Reviewed on: 18 March 2013
Platforms: macOS, PC
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929
Civilization IV
Sid Meier returns with his latest installment of turn-based heavenReviewed on: 17 November 2005
Platforms: macOS, PC
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930
Football Manager 2008
Think you can do better? Prove it.Reviewed on: 12 October 2007
Platforms: PC, PSP, Xbox 360
