Before open-world RPGs and cinematic shooters dominated my screen, I spent my earliest gaming hours commanding virtual armies, constructing fortresses, and outwitting enemy lords in the real-time strategy (RTS) realm. If you were a gamer in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, chances are your brain got rewired by the same blend of tactical thinking and kingdom-building addiction that shaped my childhood.

This post is a nostalgic trek through the RTS games that helped define my love for gaming—and maybe yours too.

⚔️ Age of Empires (1997–2005): The Beginning of an Obsession

The journey started with Age of Empires—the RTS franchise that made history fun.

• Age of Empires (1997) threw me into the ancient world, letting me guide civilizations from the Stone Age to the Iron Age. It wasn’t just a game—it was my first lesson in micromanagement and macroeconomics.

• Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings (1999) perfected the formula. Set in the medieval era, it gave us knights, castles, trebuchets—and LAN party memories I’ll never forget.

• Age of Empires III (2005) shifted focus to the colonial era, introducing a unique home city system and jaw-dropping visuals for the time.

These games made history feel alive. They weren’t about winning—they were about building something, whether it was an empire or a love for strategy games.

🏰 Stronghold & Stronghold Crusader (2001–2002): Castles, Cow Poop, and Glory

Enter Stronghold—a series that swapped conquest for castle simulation and really leaned into the feudal grit.

• Stronghold (2001) wasn’t just about troops—it was about peasants, food chains, and managing morale. Your archers might be strong, but if you didn’t keep the bread baking and the ale flowing, your empire fell apart.

• Stronghold: Crusader (2002) took the formula to the deserts of the Middle East, mixing fast-paced skirmishes with historical flavor, and giving us The Rat, The Snake, and The Caliph—AI foes we loved to hate.

These games made me feel like a real lord—micromanaging my medieval world and defending it with flaming pitch and murder holes.

🌌 Star Wars: Force Commander (2000): 3D Ambition Before Its Time

Okay, Star Wars: Force Commander was... ambitious.

Released in 2000, it brought the Star Wars universe to RTS in 3D, long before 3D RTS controls had been perfected. The camera was clunky, but the idea of commanding AT-ATs and stormtroopers in real-time battles was more than enough to win over 10-year-old me.

It was my first real introduction to sci-fi strategy, and despite its flaws, Force Commander had vision.

🌠 Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds (2001): The Galaxy Meets Age of Empires

This one hit so right.

Built on the same engine as Age of Empires II, Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds let you command the Galactic Empire, Rebel Alliance, Wookiees, Gungans, and more in classic AoE-style battles. It was familiar, fast-paced, and full of laser-shooting nostalgia.

There was something surreal about mining carbon instead of wood, or building turrets on Naboo with the same rhythm I’d learned in medieval Europe.

🚀 Star Wars: Empire at War (2006): The Strategy Saga Reborn

By the time Empire at War arrived, it was like Star Wars and RTS had finally matured together.

• A galactic campaign map let you control multiple planets

• Real-time space battles featured X-Wings, Star Destroyers, and planetary reinforcements

• Ground battles included hero units like Darth Vader and Obi-Wan

Empire at War was epic in scale, gorgeous in design, and the best Star Wars RTS experience we ever got. It balanced macro-level empire control with micro-level real-time combat, and I still go back to it today with mods.

🏛️ Rome: Total War (2004): When Tactics Met History on a Grand Scale

This game changed the genre for me.

Rome: Total War merged turn-based empire management with real-time massive battles. Watching legions clash in glorious 3D felt cinematic—a far cry from sprite-based peasants.

The diplomacy, politics, and ability to zoom from your entire empire down to a swordfight was mind-blowing for the time. It was the first game that made me care about the map as much as the battle.

🏗️ Empire Earth II (2005): All of History, One Game

Imagine Age of Empires on steroids.

Empire Earth II took players from prehistoric to futuristic warfare. You could go from slinging stones to launching nukes—and somehow it all worked. The weather system, territories, and citizen automation added layers of realism and complexity.

While it didn’t reach mainstream fame like AoE, it carved out its niche as a gargantuan, satisfyingly nerdy RTS that gave you the whole timeline to play with.

🧠 Why RTS Still Matters

These games didn’t just entertain me—they sharpened my critical thinking, planning, and improvisation. They taught me how to manage chaos, how to think several steps ahead, and most importantly—how to fail, regroup, and try again.

In an age where fast action and reaction time dominate most gaming trends, I still find a unique joy in slowing down, zooming out, and strategizing my next move—whether I’m building a cathedral in Stronghold or leading stormtroopers across Hoth.

🕹️ Final Thoughts: Strategy Is Eternal

RTS games like Age of Empires, Stronghold, and Star Wars: Empire at War gave me more than victories—they gave me a lifelong love of games that challenge the mind as much as the reflexes.

If you grew up commanding tiny troops across pixelated battlefields like I did, then you know: those games weren’t just strategy—they were storytelling, creativity, and logic woven together.

And while the genre isn’t as mainstream as it once was, it’s very much alive—and I’ll be exploring more of its modern revival in future posts.

Until then, keep building, keep battling, and keep thinking three steps ahead.

—
George Griffin
Writer. Web Dev. RTS Commander Since '97
https://www.george-matthew.com