Strategy games have spread to more platforms than ever. While the genre originally flourished on PC, now we find these games on consoles, handhelds, Facebook and our phones. It's debatable whether 2011 was the best year ever for strategy fans, but looking at what's come out it's definitely an amazing one.
Let's just get the bad out of the way. The biggest disappointment was Sword of the Stars II. The original was generally well-received, delivering a good 4X title with "quirky" visuals and lauded RTS combat. This year's sequel, though, was terrible. With innumerable bugs, Sword of the Stars II was basically unplayable at the time of our review. Could it be better with more patches? Sure, but it released in a state that certainly didn't warrant anyone's money.
Sword of the Stars II may be this year's low point, but several middle-of-the-road strategy titles came out this year that offer cool experiences for certain niches. Men Of War: Vietnam, a brutally difficult RTS, may not be for everyone, but fans of micro-management and a lot of failure can get satisfaction from its challenging levels. Additionally Age of Empires: Online offers a unique experience for strategy fans this year, combining "some of the most addictive parts" of MMORPGs and RTS titles into a game that won over our reviewer despite A.I. and balance issues.
But who has time for only good games in a year when so many amazing ones came out? If you loved Dawn of War 2, then the Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II -- Retribution expansion is a treat. Taking the same fantastic gameplay mechanics from the other Dawn of War games, Retribution tells an all-new story that seemingly concludes the narrative for the Blood Raven space marines. Best of all? It released at $30 and includes multiplayer. No Warhammer -- or RTS fan -- should pass on that.
Other beloved series also made triumphant returns. Might and Magic Heroes VI, spiritual successor to the PC Might and Magic series, garnered a "Great" score. It hasn't changed all that much over the many years, but its combination of entertaining turn-based combat and RPG like campaign map won me over, sucking me in for dozens of hours. It also offers near-infinite replayability, stealing hours of my life like only the Civilization series has done before it.
Maybe you're not into the fantasy or campy settings of Warhammer and Might and Magic. That's OK; other games brought a more true-to-life take on strategy this year. Tropico 4 still has all the silly writing and jokes of its predecessors, but requires a skilled manager (or dictator) to successfully build an economic super power through force, politics, and infrastructure. Who knew building housing (or murdering workers who protest the building of said housing), thwarting 20th century American politicians, and secretly building nukes could be so addictive?
While Tropico 4 may have taken us back in time to the age of the Cold War, developer Blue Bytes' Anno 2070 takes us into a distant, plausible future. Here humans have divided about how to best use resources, and you must manage your colony in a way that either reaps the most from the world around you or lives in harmony with it. Oh yeah, and you also have to make sure to build armies to blow crap up, too. Managing colonies both above and below the ocean, fighting epic battles, and having to think about the consequences of your actions are just a few of the many reasons Anno 2070 earned our Editor's Choice award.
2011 was an incredible year for gaming, and a great one for ...