Real-time strategy

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A real-time strategy game (RTS) is a type of computer game which does not have "turns" like conventional turn-based video or board games. Rather, game time progresses in "real time": that is, it is continuous rather than discrete.

The first RTS game was The Ancient Art of War from Evryware (distributed by BrÃÂÃÂ¸derbund) in 1984, followed by Herzog Zwei for the Sega Genesis in 1989, and Cryo's Dune in 1992. However, the genre received its biggest boost with the release of Dune 2, which at once introduced a whole new generation to the concept of real-time strategy games, and introduced the concept of resource-building, a concept which breathed new life into the genre and spawned a slew of knock-offs such as Warcraft, Empire Earth, Command and Conquer, Total Annihilation, StarCraft, Age of Empires and .

Because of the generally faster-paced nature (and the usually shallower learning curve), RTS games have exceeded the popularity of conventional turn-based computer games. Many traditional strategy gamers regard RTS games as "cheap imitations" of turn-based games because of the tendency of RTS games to devolve into "clickfests", in which the player who is faster with the mouse generally wins, because they can give orders to their units at a faster rate. Also because the faster pace masks the generally poor artificial intelligence of the computer player.

The more recent generations of RTS games usually have features which reduce the importance of fast mousework, enabling the player to focus more on overall strategy.

Generally, most RTS games follow the same general pattern:

Build up your base and forces (your economy)
Acquire more resources
Attack the enemy, attempting to deprive him of resources and destroy his infrastructure

However, some games do not allow the player to create new units, or build bases. Some of these games include Myth and Ground Control. These games are purely tactical, forcing the player to make do with the units he or she is given.

Most modern RTS games also feature single player campaigns -- a series of missions where each mission has a different style of play, sometimes dramatically so.

Of the games that do allow the player to build up a base and an army, they seem to be diverging into at least two main camps: micro-management and macro-management.

Micro-management games allow an army and base to be built, but they limit the size of the army (sometimes, rather severely). The purpose of this is to create more of a tactical atmosphere, and to prevent one side from simply cranking out units and throwing them at the enemy until he collapses.

By limiting the size of the army, the game requires the player to intelligently utilize his "partially" limited troops. This is more similar to the purely tactical Myth-style games. A good example of this type of game is Warcraft III.

On the other end are the macro-management games. These games encourage the creation of more massive armies, and often automatically take care of the "details" of individual unit control by organizing them into formations, intelligently maneuvering them, or using their special abilities automatically. Some examples of these types of games are Kohan and Kessen.

Massively multiplayer online real-time strategy (MMORTS) games combine aspects of massively multiplayer with real-time strategy.