Ranking by genre

The best strategy games.

336 games compete in this selection. Sid Meier's Civilization IV tops it with 1,900 points: the ranking comes from player votes alone, and moves with every duel settled.

  1. 1 Sid Meier's Civilization IV 2005 · Strategy 1,900
  2. 2 StarCraft 1998 · Strategy 1,857
  3. 3 Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings 1999 · Strategy 1,848
  4. 4 Dungeon Keeper 1997 · Strategy 1,844
  5. 5 XCOM 2 2016 · Strategy 1,827
  6. 6 XCOM: Enemy Unknown 2012 · Strategy 1,821
  7. 7 Sid Meier's Civilization V 2010 · Strategy 1,820
  8. 8 Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia 1999 · Strategy 1,820
  9. 9 Frostpunk 2018 · Strategy 1,808
  10. 10 Crusader Kings III 2020 · Strategy 1,806
  11. 11 Europa Universalis IV 2013 · Strategy 1,804
  12. 12 Stellaris 2016 · Strategy 1,797
  13. 13 Homeworld 1999 · Strategy 1,792
  14. 14 Age of Mythology 2002 · Strategy 1,785
  15. 15 Company of Heroes 2006 · Strategy 1,785
  16. 16 StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty 2010 · Strategy 1,781
  17. 17 Into the Breach 2018 · Strategy 1,780
  18. 18 Age of Empires 1997 · Strategy 1,772
  19. 19 Rome: Total War 2004 · Strategy 1,767
  20. 20 Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos 2002 · Strategy 1,764
  21. 21 Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition 2019 · Strategy 1,763
  22. 22 Total War: Shogun 2 2011 · Strategy 1,760
  23. 23 Command & Conquer 1995 · Strategy 1,754
  24. 24 Theme Hospital 1997 · Strategy 1,745
  25. 25 StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void 2015 · Strategy 1,741
  26. 26 Fire Emblem: Three Houses 2019 · Strategy 1,740
  27. 27 Pikmin 2 2004 · Strategy 1,734
  28. 28 Age of Empires III 2005 · Strategy 1,720
  29. 29 Sid Meier's Civilization VI 2016 · Strategy 1,710
  30. 30 RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 2002 · Strategy 1,708
  31. 31 Plants vs. Zombies 2009 · Strategy 1,707
  32. 32 Pikmin 2001 · Strategy 1,701
  33. 33 Command & Conquer: Red Alert 1996 · Strategy 1,697
  34. 34 Pokémon Stadium 2 2000 · Strategy 1,693
  35. 35 StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm 2013 · Strategy 1,691
  36. 36 Fire Emblem Awakening 2012 · Strategy 1,680
  37. 37 Medieval II: Total War 2006 · Strategy 1,677
  38. 38 Commandos 2: Men of Courage 2001 · Strategy 1,664
  39. 39 Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 2000 · Strategy 1,662
  40. 40 Age of Empires II: HD Edition 2013 · Strategy 1,662
  41. 41 Worms Armageddon 1999 · Strategy 1,659
  42. 42 Heroes of Might and Magic V 2006 · Strategy 1,654
  43. 43 Fire Emblem 2003 · Strategy 1,651
  44. 44 Overcooked! 2 2018 · Strategy 1,650
  45. 45 Total Annihilation 1997 · Strategy 1,643
  46. 46 Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together 1995 · Strategy 1,634
  47. 47 Napoleon: Total War 2010 · Strategy 1,632
  48. 48 Among Us 2018 · Strategy 1,631
  49. 49 Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness 1995 · Strategy 1,626
  50. 50 Age of Empires IV 2021 · Strategy 1,623
  51. 51 X-COM: UFO Defense 1994 · Strategy 1,619
  52. 52 Game Dev Tycoon 2012 · Strategy 1,617
  53. 53 Warcraft: Orcs & Humans 1994 · Strategy 1,612
  54. 54 The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth 2004 · Strategy 1,610
  55. 55 Empire: Total War 2009 · Strategy 1,609
  56. 56 Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones 2004 · Strategy 1,604
  57. 57 Plague Inc. 2012 · Strategy 1,604
  58. 58 Valkyria Chronicles Remastered 2014 · Strategy 1,600
  59. 59 Worms W.M.D 2016 · Strategy 1,599
  60. 60 Hearts of Iron IV 2016 · Strategy 1,595
  61. 61 Bad North 2018 · Strategy 1,591
  62. 62 Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2004 · Strategy 1,590
  63. 63 Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty 1992 · Strategy 1,590
  64. 64 Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines 1998 · Strategy 1,589
  65. 65 Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle 2017 · Strategy 1,588
  66. 66 Sid Meier's Civilization II 1996 · Strategy 1,583
  67. 67 Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia 2017 · Strategy 1,582
  68. 68 Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright 2015 · Strategy 1,582
  69. 69 Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 2008 · Strategy 1,579
  70. 70 Worms World Party 2001 · Strategy 1,576
  71. 71 Empire Earth 2001 · Strategy 1,573
  72. 72 Banished 2014 · Strategy 1,571
  73. 73 Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest 2015 · Strategy 1,567
  74. 74 Sid Meier's Civilization: Beyond Earth 2014 · Strategy 1,567
  75. 75 Pikmin 4 2023 · Strategy 1,567
  76. 76 SimCity 3000 1999 · Strategy 1,565
  77. 77 Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon 2015 · Strategy 1,563
  78. 78 The Banner Saga 2 2016 · Strategy 1,560
  79. 79 Humankind 2021 · Strategy 1,558
  80. 80 Sid Meier's Civilization 1991 · Strategy 1,555
  81. 81 Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance 2005 · Strategy 1,554
  82. 82 Heroes of Might & Magic III: HD Edition 2015 · Strategy 1,553
  83. 83 Triangle Strategy 2022 · Strategy 1,552
  84. 84 Crusader Kings II 2012 · Strategy 1,550
  85. 85 Worms 2 1997 · Strategy 1,550
  86. 86 Company of Heroes 2 2013 · Strategy 1,548
  87. 87 911 Operator 2017 · Strategy 1,548
  88. 88 Heroes of Might and Magic IV 2002 · Strategy 1,547
  89. 89 Medieval: Total War 2002 · Strategy 1,544
  90. 90 Door Kickers 2014 · Strategy 1,544
  91. 91 Total War: Warhammer 2016 · Strategy 1,543
  92. 92 Fire Emblem Heroes 2017 · Strategy 1,542
  93. 93 Rise of Nations 2003 · Strategy 1,542
  94. 94 Tropico 6 2019 · Strategy 1,542
  95. 95 Clash of Clans 2012 · Strategy 1,541
  96. 96 The Banner Saga 3 2018 · Strategy 1,541
  97. 97 Dawn of Discovery 2009 · Strategy 1,540
  98. 98 Do Not Feed the Monkeys 2018 · Strategy 1,540
  99. 99 Zoo Tycoon 2 2004 · Strategy 1,539
  100. 100 Worms 1995 · Strategy 1,536

Filter, combine and travel back in time in the full ranking

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In detail

The best strategy games, what this ranking says

Sid Meier's Civilization IV leads this selection with 1,900 ELO points, ahead of StarCraft and Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings. The 336 games competing in it have played 30,765 duels.

This selection in figures
Games competing in this selection 336
Duels played by those games 30,765
Game in the lead Sid Meier's Civilization IV (2005)
Score of the leading game, in ELO points 1,900
Point gap between 1st and 10th 94
Best represented decade 2010s
Last reading September 18, 2026

The best strategy game of every decade

A selection is not read in one block: here is what leads each of its brackets.

The best strategy game of every decade
Decade Games competing In the lead ELO score Duels played
1980s 6 Populous 1,496 62
1990s 52 StarCraft 1,857 426
2000s 107 Sid Meier's Civilization IV 1,900 169
2010s 134 XCOM 2 1,827 223
2020s 36 Crusader Kings III 1,806 166

What moved this week

The ranking changes with every duel settled. Over the past seven days, the score of 97 games in this selection moved.

What moved this week
Game Points gained in 7 days ELO score
Dawn of Discovery +75 1,540
Warcraft: Orcs & Humans +55 1,612
Worms World Party +54 1,576

The most contested match-ups

These pairs of games have faced each other more than any others in this selection.

The most contested match-ups
Wins Against Duels played Win rate
Sid Meier's Civilization V StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty 7 57%
Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos Age of Empires 5 60%
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos 5 80%
Sid Meier's Civilization V Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos 4 75%
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty 4 100%

How this ranking is established

No jury, no press score, no sales figures: two games face off, players vote, and every vote updates an ELO score. This page is a view of the world ranking, never a standing kept apart.

Understand the method in detail →

FAQ

What players ask

What is the best strategy game?

According to community votes, the best strategy game is Sid Meier's Civilization IV, with 1,900 ELO points in the world ranking. It stands ahead of StarCraft and Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, and its place is replayed with every duel.

How many strategy games are ranked?

336 games of this selection take part in the duels, and they have played 30,765 of them so far. The full site catalogue is much wider: only games kept for their fame enter the running.

Which strategy game is climbing right now?

Dawn of Discovery is the strongest climb in this selection over the past seven days, with 75 ELO points gained. Over the same period, the score of 97 games in the selection moved.

Vote on a duel