Searching for a RTS game that is not a clickfest but populated online

[WhipperSnapper]

Well, it looks like my current favorite game, Sins of a Solar Empire, is dead. It's a great game, but it just never took off for online multiplayer and now the online player counts are too small to sustain online multiplayer activity. It's not a surprise; the surprise is that it survived as long as it did. I didn't think it would die as quickly as it did after the release of Diplomacy, but one week after its release the regular pro players moved on to other games in mass.

Anyway, I'd like to find another RTS to play online that is not a clickfest. I know that nothing will replicate Sins, which is a slower-paced but more strategic 4x-RTS, but I'd like to find something that isn't nearly as click-festy as Starcraft. Also, it needs to have a thriving and active online multiplayer community. Any suggestions?

 

[ZzZGuy]

World in Conflict.

It's really a RTT (Real Time Tactical). You control a few units and get more points to buy/replace/offscreen support (eg, artillery) by capturing points and killing enemy units.

No base building, no managing dozens/hundreds of units/econ. It's not the size of your army, it's how you use it.

 

[jacc1234]

I have wanted to try WiC but i hear the online community is full of assholes that are not a fan of noobs playing with them. Because of this I held out. Its something I have heard over and over though, that at this point its not even worth getting WiC because of their community.

 

[WhipperSnapper]

I don't know anything about WIC at all, specifically, but just about every online multiplayer game is going to be competitive and have its share of jerks. You just need to put on a thick skin and refuse to let them kick you off the playground while you learn the game.

 

[mfenn]

You can get in on the last bit of the RUSE beta on steam right now. It's not a 4X game, but it's doesn't require huge APM either. The full game is coming in June, but I believe it will have Ubi's crap DRM.

 

[ZzZGuy]

Just don't whore artillery as the support class unless it's REALLY needed. I've called in artillery on teammates who are sticking with artillery when we are getting murdered by air.

The key is to be flexable and work to fit a niche in your team. Talk to people, see what support they need. If you are getting eaten alive, stay near a teammate who is countering what is killing you or adjust tactics, maybe even class.

Oh, and if you station infantry in a building and tell them to hold fire, they are VERY hard to spot by the enemy, allowing for ambushes.

-edit- Oh, and ALWAYS keep moving your units unless trying to take a control point. Off screen strikes (artillery, cluster bombs, napalm, A-10, fighter jets, B-52 carpet bombing, nukes) can easily wipe out your units, but they take time to arrive so you are mostly safe if you keep moving. Though nothing will save you if someone decides to skip a nuke and lay down three rows of B-52 carpet bombing.

 

[Maximilian]

Company of heros is awesome, always tons of people online and its flexible in that it can be played at a slower pace dependant on the map selected. Bridge maps like the schdelt, vire river valley and lyon are very popular and theyre the slower paced bridge ones. Games can be over in 5 minutes or they can take 2 hours plus, after which the map usually resembles the moon, great fun!

 

[WhipperSnapper]

I think I'm more interested in a sci-fi or Warcraft type of RTS and not a WW2 type. Is Supreme Commander 2 a clickfest?

 

[VashHT]

I think I'm more interested in a sci-fi or Warcraft type of RTS and not a WW2 type. Is Supreme Commander 2 a clickfest?

What about Dawn of War 2? It can be a pretty unforgiving game but they did away with base building completely in it, so it's all about holding points. You still get to build squads of guys, but they all come from the same building.

 

[frozentundra123456]

I would give another vote to Company of Heroes. You can team up in a game and play against computer opponents (of whatever level you wish) until you get the hang of it, then play against other human players.

I havent tried Supreme Commander 2, but will probably buy it when the price comes down. Dawn of War 2 sounds good, but I havent tried it, and some of the DOW games I played were really difficult.

 

[TidusZ]

I think I'm more interested in a sci-fi or Warcraft type of RTS and not a WW2 type. Is Supreme Commander 2 a clickfest?

Supcom1 and 2 are less micro (less clickfest) than wc3/starcraft. Supcom 1 is better but 2 probably has more people. I didnt buy it so I cant really say how active the online community is though. Supcom2 is a good bet for a casual rts, whereas supcom1 was an amazingly good hardcore rts.

 

[Elcs]

What about Dawn of War 2? It can be a pretty unforgiving game but they did away with base building completely in it, so it's all about holding points. You still get to build squads of guys, but they all come from the same building.

Second vote for Dawn of War 2 (Chaos Rising would allow you to play as Chaos in the normal multiplayer modes and Chaos + Tyranids in The Last Stand, which is a repetitive survival mode, very fun).

Although I have only played 1-2 games of DoW2 online I can safely say that these were relatively fun. My last competitive MP (LAN) experience in RTSes was Red Alert 1 and I picked up the play quite quickly.

I'd recommend a skirmish or two with a couple of races before going into the whole game scenario... read tooltips, get a feel for weapons, concepts (directional armour, cover, melee combat, hard/soft counters) and just have fun.

 

[Dorkenstein]

This is discouraging to hear. I never really got to play Sins online, now it looks like that ship has sailed.

In any case, I am thinking we should get pickup games of Company of Heroes going regularly.

 

[heat901]

The problem with sins online MP is that games are easily into the 4+ hour range when COH...the longest game I ever played was like 2 hours and then I just called it quits because it wasnt going anywhere. Most games in COH are 45 mins probably hour tops that is if the teams are evenly matched.

 

[Pia]

I have played a few SP missions of WiC but didn't like it. Due to the reviews I was expecting something verging on sim, but it's not realistic, it still has plenty of clicking, and I don't think the controls are good.

SupCom: FA seems like the best bet for Whippersnapper, IMO.

 

[WhipperSnapper]

The problem with sins online MP is that games are easily into the 4+ hour range when COH...the longest game I ever played was like 2 hours and then I just called it quits because it wasnt going anywhere. Most games in COH are 45 mins probably hour tops that is if the teams are evenly matched.

Not really. Most online Sins games don't last for more than 1.5-2 hours. Why is that? Because in a 2v2, 3v3, 4v4, or 5v5 you only need to wipe out one single opponent and not the 9 you would play against in a single player free-for-all; you have teammates to kill the others. Also, most players can see the writing on the wall and will call it gg once the outcome of the game has been clearly determined rather than go through the motions. (Most people would prefer to get a new game started rather than waste time.)

Dork, if you want to try Sins online, now is a great time to do it because many of the pros are gone and the ration of new players to pros is much higher than it was before. There are games to be had if you are patient and willing to play 1v1's, 2v2's, and 3v3's. For now, gone are the days when you would see two or three 4v4's and 5v5's available at the same time.

 

[datalink7]

Men of War is an awesome multiplayer game that is decently populated.

 

[BlueAcolyte]

Both SupCom: FA (The expansion) and SupCom 2 have a decent amount of people online. They're both pretty good games, but you could say the original is more "hardcore." The sequel is more accessible and immediate. Personally I enjoy both, and the balance is very good between factions either way.

The original has more modding support right now if that floats your boat.

 

[Genx87]

I have wanted to try WiC but i hear the online community is full of assholes that are not a fan of noobs playing with them. Because of this I held out. Its something I have heard over and over though, that at this point its not even worth getting WiC because of their community.

I suggest not playing with the sound on. Because there are a bunch of assholes who yell at you. Dont play arty either because they dont seem to understand what the red circle means and then yell at you when they run their massed infantry into your arty barrage.

 

[Zenoth]

I bought DoW II and I play it often enough in multi-player, mostly in The Last Stand (arena survival type of game mode with waves of enemies to survive against), and even though the game is fun once it starts I must mention that the actual match-making system, or lack thereof, is abysmal at best.

As long as The Last Stand is concerned when you "host" a game all you see on-screen are options to change the wargear of your selected hero and a "Start Searching" button that will make an automated search of "available" players who happen to be on-line also waiting in their hosted lobby doing the same thing as you do. That way you have absolutely NO idea of the ping of the players who get pushed in your lobby to play with you, and once two slots are filled (The Last Stand is played with two other players only, and always, unless someone quits during the match itself) a 30-seconds counter starts before the match launches by itself.

And THEN, once the countdown is over you finally go to another "loading" screen on which you get to SEE the ping of the two other players you'll play with... BUT... it's too late at that point, you WILL play with them, so better pray that their pings are good, or else you'll get stuck playing in a laggy game because you can endure it, or you will HAVE to quit the game and start the process all over again until by pure luck you happen to get two players with decent pings which is when you'll finally be able to play a play-able match.

Oh... and, DoW II uses Games for Windows Live, you MUST be connected to it to play on-line, yes EVEN on the Steam version.

 

[Dorkenstein]

I bought World in Conflict during the steam holiday sales, sounds like it will be SP only for me. I don't catch on quick and the community sounds negative.

 

[arkcom]

You could try BattleForge. I think you would probably consider it a clickfest, but it's free.

 

[Fox5]

Company of Heroes, Dawn of War 2, and the Supreme Commander series are not click fests, but they're all intense anyway.
COH requires your attention to be spread out over the entire map constantly. (my fav rts though)
DOW2 is an ADD fest, it's not a clickfest, but timing is so critical you can barely even blink. Still, you don't have to go crazy with micro, just timely with your orders.
Supreme Commander is difficult to play, but isn't really a click fest and has a lot of macro type options to make even less clicking required.
Sup Com 2 is severely dumbed down from sup com. It retains some of the feel, while being much more accessible. My least favorite of all these, but probably the most relaxing to play.

 

[clamum]

Men of War is an awesome multiplayer game that is decently populated.

I'm reading the Gamespot review of it and it looks like it gets pretty dang good scores. It appears it can be tough to get into with a steep learning curve, but it sounds like it brings some new things to the table and is pretty historically accurate. I might have to check this out at some point.

 

[Chapbass]

If you're looking for a slower game...while not a TRUE RTS in the sense of starcraft and the like....how about Hearts of Iron? I love sitting down over the course of a few weeks and playing a solid game of HOI. tons of fun.