Crusader Kings II
Crusader Kings II is a political strategy game. It’s as much about who your imbecilic niece is marrying as it is about leading armies into
battle. Every landed character is simulated, and each one has goals and desires. It’s complex – you can blame the feudal system for that
- but offers clear and immediate drama on a personal level. Its simulation corners you into desperate situations and encourages you to
do terrible things to retain power. One time I executed a newborn baby so that his older and smarter sister could reign instead. Feudal
TOP TIER
DEFCON
DEFCON’s sinister blue world map is the
perfect stage for this Cold War horror
story about the outbreak of nuclear
war. First, you manage stockpiles, and
position missile sites, nuclear submarines
and countermeasures in preparation for
armageddon. This organisation phase is
an interesting strategic challenge in itself,
but DEFCON is at its most effective when
the missiles fly. Blooming blast sites are
matched with casualty numbers as city
after city experiences obliteration. Once
the dust has settled, victory is a mere
technicality. It’s nightmarish, and quite
brilliant in multiplayer. Company of Heroes
Some games would try to step away from the emotional aspect of a war that
happened in living memory. Not Company of Heroes. It’s torrid and difficult and
brutal. Sure, its methods are pure Hollywood – the muddy artillery plumes could have
come straight from Saving Private Ryan – but the result is the most intense RTS ever
made, brilliantly capturing the tactical standoff between WWII’s asymmetrical forces.