20 Best Classic PC Strategy Games

Table of Contents

• 20 Best Classic PC Strategy Games
• 19. Heroes of Might and Magic II
• 18. Master of Orion II
• 17. Shogun: Total War
• 16. Age of Empires II
• 15.The Settlers (1993)
• 14. Age of Empires III
• 13. Command & Conquer: Red Alert
• 12. Company of Heroes
• 11. Dungeon Keeper (1997)
• 10. The Settlers II
• 9. Black & White
• 8. Command & Conquer (1995)
• 7. Sid Meier's Civilization (1991)
• 6. Dune II
• 5. StarCraft II
• 4. StarCraft
• 3. UFO: Enemy Unknown
• 2. Heroes of Might and Magic III
• 1. Warcraft III

9. Black & White

The game was characterized by a very unique, almost mystical atmosphere.

Peter Molyneux's next game on our list is a work worthy of a true artist. In Black & White, this now legendary developer pushed the boundaries of what a strategy game could be.

The basic premise of such titles is to put the player in the position of a decision maker whose job is to manage his or her units and subordinates on a large or small scale. The genre includes productions that has us command small military units or economic units, as well as ones in which we control the fate of entire nations.

The work of Lionhead Studios went one step further and made us intp a god who fights for the souls of all the people who inhabit his world. Because our avatar did not have a physical manifestation in the game's universe, the gameplay model was also drastically changed. We couldn't just give orders by marking the subsequent units and clicking on the location to attack or discover. We had to influence the local population indirectly, through miracles that convinced more and more doubters to our cause.

More direct interference, however, was possible through our creature, a powerful being who developed and adapted to our actions during the course of the game. It was not an ordinary unit, however, distinguished only by its considerable size and strength. Each creature was controlled by a highly advanced artificial intelligence module, which surpassed anything found in gaming even today. Over the course of the game, we trained the creature to behave properly, like a dog – rewarding and punishing it.

GOD SIMULATOR

Black & White was not Peter Molyneux's first attempt at making a god game. In 1989, he and his studio created Populous, which pioneered playing god in video games. The series, though somewhat forgotten today, was a huge success in its time, which greatly strengthened Molyneux's position in the digital entertainment market. Innovations, interesting ideas and their unconventional implementation in several subsequent works of Bullfrog Productions have ensured the creator of Black & White a timeless reputation as a visionary, which enables him, with varying results, to pursue his ambitious plans to this day.

Black & White was a groundbreaking work, but also one of the last truly successful projects of Peter Molyneux. However, it remains a game so unique and unconventional that it is worth checking out despite the inexorable passage of time.