looking to try a strategy game...suggestions?

Hey guys!

After recently watching the Civ 6 expansion quick look, I've in the mood to really jump into a strategy game. I think I've narrowed it down to either Civ 5 or the Console Edition of Stellaris that comes out this week. I have a PS4 and a Mac Mini that I think can play Civ 5, from what I've researched online. I've also heard good things about the console version of Stellaris from various youtube clips, etc.

Any other suggestions for somebody jumping into the strategy world?

**EDIT** remembered a few other series/games I've tried...

I am a fan of Starcraft 1/2 and Command and Conquer. I would LOVE to be able to play Warcraft 2 somehow again, but I wouldn't know how or where to start. I also have played XCOM 1 and 2 on the PS3/4. I enjoyed the first, but didn't get into the sequel near as much.

Feel free to keep throwing our more options. Valkryia Chronicles is another one I've been meaning to take a look at.

I actually went back and watched the quick looks for both Stellaris and Civilization V and both look like a blast. I just hope I don't get bogged down with all the systems.

*cracks knuckles*

Alright, since you seem more console focused, I'll try and recommend stuff that's either on consoles or that should play pretty well on slightly older PC hardware. Sorry in advance, I will have no clue if this stuff is out for Mac or not.

Age of Empires 2 HD is plenty good and should have a Mac version. It's a great RTS about managing resources, building a small base, and destroying your opponents. Similar to StarCraft. If this is your genre also try Company of Heroes or Rise of Nations. They Are Billions is also somewhat similar, but is more focused on defending the base you build up from zombies.

In the more turn based, cup of tea on a Sunday morning kind of game look into the Total War series. These come out every few years and Total War: Rome and Medieval are both renowned and old enough to run on older PCs. If you can handle beefy graphics try Total War: Shogun. These are turn based grand strategy games with two modes. One is building up towns, creating units, and moving those units around a map and the other is a battle mode where you engage your units in a battle. Think Civ, but with battles you control.

If you're only in a Civ mood, then any of the older Civs back to 3 would be fine. Three might be pushing it on how dated the graphics look, but 4 and 5 were both pretty well liked. Civ V really started off in a different, more stylized, simplified direction. Not easier, just simplified and sleek.

There's a ton more, but it all depends on what kind of strategy sub genre you're into. I think Total War is most accessible when coming in from Civ and should since it's turned based you can take your time with it.

I found Stellaris to be a great introduction and learning tool for grand strategy. I used it as a stepping stone to get more into Europa Universalis and the terrifyingly complicated and rewarding Crusader Kings 2.

I'll be honest I have absolutely no idea how Stellaris is going to function on a console but I'm also seeing really good things about it so maybe give that a shot.

I'll second They Are Billions, it's all the base building and unit production without having to be aggressive or micro manage too much. Stellaris is also good. I haven't tried the other Total Wars, but I really enjoyed Total Warhammer. This is an oldy, but I really liked Sword of the Stars which is a 4x with some really interesting ideas I would have liked to see in other games.

Personally wanted to recommend Stellaris, but it seems like there's quite a bit of that already. If you're looking for some golden oldies, make sure to check out Age of Mythology if you're into the idea of commanding heroes & troops directly, and Heroes of Might & Magic 3 if you want to see a whole different take on strategy (almost boardgame-like). HOMM5 seems to be regarded fairly well as well, but i'm fairly certain that 3 is seen as the peak for this franchise.

Warcraft 3 & Starcraft: Brood War are evergreens as far as i'm concerned. Starcraft 2 is quite good as well, but probably a bit pricier than you want it to be at this point. and war3 is getting a remake soon-ish

Since you have a PS4, I'll recommend Valkyria Chronicles with it's interesting blend between real time movement & turn based combat. It features a lengthy anime storyline in a pseudo world war II setting.

Jump into the hellhole that's called grand strategy i advice you trying out Europa Universalis 4 or Hearts of Iron 4. At first it just looks like a bunch of excel sheets but boy did i waste way to much time to these games if your more of a medieval guy you can always check out Crusader Kings 2 Aka i am gonna marry my own cousin for the 7th time. I don't know if they got mac versions, Stellaris is a more casual version of the games i mentioned above and more user friendly so i would hardly recommend Stellaris.

AOM has a TON a problems still on Steam. Its my favorite RTS of all-time but I still cant get it to work on Steam. There are supposed work arounds for newer Windows OS, but I cant get it to work. People are still having issues with it.

@atastyslurpee: oh man that sucks :(

@onemanarmyy: Yeah, I guess because it was a direct port and when it was made it was made for XP? Not really sure, but you basically have to go into the game files and launch it after changing certain things. I could never get it to work.

One thing to keep in mind is that strategy games is quite a broad term. Just 'cause you like one thing doesn't mean you'll necessary like others. I, for instance, absolutely adore Total War Warhammer 1/2. Yet I couldn't get more than 30 minutes into Stellaris before falling asleep and all RTS games stress me out to no end. Point being, there are so many sub-genres that fall under the term 'strategy' and they all scratch very different itches.

I am in no way steering you away from Stellaris, but just something I thought was worth pointing out.

As for low-end spec strategy games, I recommend Endless Legend. If you enjoy Civ, I think you'll enjoy this as well. I think you'd be okay running it on low settings (pretty sure it's available for Mac via Steam). It is an exceptional 4X strategy game, and all the factions play very differently from each other.

If you want something for consoles, the XCOM series is spectacular. Can't go wrong with either of the console releases that come out in the last decade.

XCOM is the best RTS on consoles imo. Especially 2 and the expansion, are just fantastic. Also SC2 is mostly ftp now. The Wings of Liberty campaign and versus at least. Should run on old(er) hardware just fine too.

Might not be what you're looking for, but XCOM 2: War of the Chosen and Valkyria Chronicles 4 are fantastic strategy games.

Thank you all for the feedback! I super appreciate it!

I am a fan of Starcraft 1/2. I would LOVE to be able to play Warcraft 2 somehow again, but I wouldn't know how or where to start. I also have played XCOM 1 and 2 on the PS3/4. I enjoyed the first, but didn't get into the sequel near as much.

Feel free to keep throwing our more options. Valkryia Chronicles is another one I've been meaning to take a look at.

I actually went back and watched the quick looks for both Stellaris and Civilization V and both look like a blast. I just hope I don't get bogged down with all the systems.

Real Time Strategy: Never been all that into them but I would 100% recommend Age of Empires II.

Turn Based Strategy: Other Civ games are an easy recommendation, the only one I didn't like was 3 (and there's not much reason to go back to 1 these days). Civ has been all I've ever needed to scratch my micromanaging & meta-strategy itch so I haven't tried others yet.

Turn Based Tactical: Sooo many choices,

Frozen Synapse is pretty hard to get into and quite different but is immensely satisfying when you nail it,

Invisibe Inc is a whole lot of fun with a lot of replayability,

Valkyria Chronicles is something you should definitely check out, I enjoyed the first one a lot.

Banner Saga has some light strategic decisions but mostly plays like a tactical game and is worth a look imo,

Into the Breach is perfect for bite size tactical fixes, short simple levels and well defined and communicated rules,

If emulation is an option there's the likes of Fire Emblem, Final Fantasy Tactics, Tactics Ogre & Advance Wars, which are all great for the most part.

Stellaris is a ton of fun, as are the Civ games, and I have to throw Endless Legend in here too. It's an older title, released in 2014, but it's a great game! It has a lot of depth to it, and they added tons of expansions and content over time.

For strategy on a larger scale, you can't go wrong with Civ V. If you are looking for a smaller scale, Invisible Inc., Into the Breach, and that old classic Final Fantasy Tactics are all great games.

Jagged Alliance 2, it is old but its maybe the best turn based strategy game of all time. If you want a real time check out Majesty or 7th Legion. All of these games are on steam and cheap. I would recommend Master of Orion 2 over Stellaris.

Civ V and XCOM Enemy Within/Enemy Unknown are fine starting points. I have yet to try XCOM 2, it looks a little too random for my taste.

Lately I have also been toying around with Warhammer 40k Gladius, it is way more combat focus, might or might not be your taste.

RTS is not really in vogue these days I mean Star Craft II is pretty much the only recent one.

Like others, I'd recommend Stellaris COnsole edition. Been playing it the past few days when I can and thinking about it when I can't.

My other recommendation is Thea: The Awakening. You're a god that controls the villagers in a single town. It's up to you to command them to produce food, make tools, and go out on expeditions to scrounge for resources to build more buildings and tools. Your townspeople are individuals that you can customize with jobs, or clothes, or weapons. The battle system is a card minigame so ymmv on that aspect of the game, but I found most of everything fun with this title.

Only other console strategy I really like is Planar Conquest, but the reviews seems to hate it, so ymmv on that too. I like it because you can create your own wizard. WIth a little experimentation, you can throw out some badass spells and summon some pretty monsters to fight other monsters and soldiers in a tactical grid map.

@memonk Oh man, I played through two games of MoO2 last week(lost both times) while waiting for Stellaris. So much fun and easy to understand. My favorite part of the game is that when you upgrade your planets, the buildings actually show up on the planet so you can see it slowly improving.

Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume is a pretty underrated tactical RPG. It's not a 4X game but I liked the gameplay and story a whole lot.

And that Warcraft III remaster is coming soon. Can't really go wrong with Starcraft: Remastered because Brood War rules so much.

Does anyone know if Front Mission 3 holds up?

Civ V Complete is definitely my pick. Total War: Shogun 2 is also available on Mac.

I know it’s a Tactical RPG, but Divinity Original Sin 2 is absolutely worth considering. That’s available on PS4, and Mac.

@csl316: I have zero nostalgia for the series, but I checked out Front Mission 3 on Vita a few years ago, and thought it held up quite well.

Keep an eye on Industries of Titan, I have a feeling it's gonna be a banger.

I'll start with some good strategy games I've found on the PS4:

Jurassic World Evolution, it's not the deepest of strategy games but is still very cool and fun in my opinion.

X-Morph Defense, a tower-defense strategy game with shooter elements, very unique. Likewise, Aegis of Earth offers something rather unusual, sort of like tower defense but with a twist (lol)

I have a soft spot for Blood Bowl 2, although it doesn't feel like "strategy" 50% of the time but pure randomness. Still it's a game that pulls you in with it's humor and presentation. Like XCom EU meets Madden.

Nobunaga's Ambition Taishi, if you have some interest in Japanese history and culture. It wasn't that difficult learning the game, plus it has a good narrative for a game of this nature.

Aven Colony, as the name implies it's a colony-building game, it plays really well with a controller. It's one of my favourite games for the PS4.

8-Bit Armies/Invaders/Hordes, they are quite expensive on the PS4, but offer a lighter and more casual take on RTS. Easy to learn, straightforward to play, but with plenty of options for customizing the experience.

Attack of the Earthlings. The best description I've seen of this game is' X-Com EU meets Aliens' (the movie).

Valkyria Chronicles 4 is definitely worth picking up. It's special in many ways, especially in the visual design, narrative, and how it combines RPG elements with tactical combat.

As for PC, some good games to start with if you are new-ish to strategy games: Master of Orion (2016), Age of Wonders 3, Sid Meyer's Civilization Beyond Earth, Stars in Shadow, Stellaris, Star Ruler 2, and Tropico 5. I think these games offer a pretty smooth intro to the genre. However, most modern strategy games aimed at a wider audience will have a rather good 'new to strategy games' mode or set-up. Games that are more niche and hardcore, like Hearts of Iron or Europa Universalis, will be more difficult to learn.

Crusadee Kings 2 is excellent.