Ranking by genre

The best strategy games.

342 games compete in this selection. Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings tops it with 1,890 points: the ranking comes from player votes alone, and moves with every duel settled.

  1. 1 Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings 1999 · Strategy 1,890
  2. 2 Sid Meier's Civilization IV 2005 · Strategy 1,872
  3. 3 Crusader Kings III 2020 · Strategy 1,859
  4. 4 Fire Emblem Awakening 2012 · Strategy 1,853
  5. 5 Age of Mythology 2002 · Strategy 1,844
  6. 6 Company of Heroes 2006 · Strategy 1,837
  7. 7 Sid Meier's Civilization V 2010 · Strategy 1,834
  8. 8 StarCraft 1998 · Strategy 1,823
  9. 9 Total War: Shogun 2 2011 · Strategy 1,816
  10. 10 Age of Empires 1997 · Strategy 1,812
  11. 11 Pikmin 2 2004 · Strategy 1,800
  12. 12 XCOM 2 2016 · Strategy 1,797
  13. 13 Command & Conquer 1995 · Strategy 1,796
  14. 14 Into the Breach 2018 · Strategy 1,780
  15. 15 Worms Armageddon 1999 · Strategy 1,771
  16. 16 Fire Emblem: Three Houses 2019 · Strategy 1,770
  17. 17 Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia 1999 · Strategy 1,769
  18. 18 Dungeon Keeper 1997 · Strategy 1,764
  19. 19 Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos 2002 · Strategy 1,763
  20. 20 XCOM: Enemy Unknown 2012 · Strategy 1,754
  21. 21 Rome: Total War 2004 · Strategy 1,749
  22. 22 Europa Universalis IV 2013 · Strategy 1,742
  23. 23 Medieval II: Total War 2006 · Strategy 1,729
  24. 24 Frostpunk 2018 · Strategy 1,724
  25. 25 Sid Meier's Civilization VI 2016 · Strategy 1,722
  26. 26 StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty 2010 · Strategy 1,718
  27. 27 Commandos 2: Men of Courage 2001 · Strategy 1,718
  28. 28 Stellaris 2016 · Strategy 1,717
  29. 29 Homeworld 1999 · Strategy 1,717
  30. 30 Pikmin 2001 · Strategy 1,712
  31. 31 Age of Empires III 2005 · Strategy 1,696
  32. 32 Theme Hospital 1997 · Strategy 1,693
  33. 33 StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm 2013 · Strategy 1,690
  34. 34 X-COM: UFO Defense 1994 · Strategy 1,688
  35. 35 Command & Conquer: Red Alert 1996 · Strategy 1,682
  36. 36 Plants vs. Zombies 2009 · Strategy 1,681
  37. 37 Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest 2015 · Strategy 1,681
  38. 38 Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together 1995 · Strategy 1,674
  39. 39 Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 2000 · Strategy 1,672
  40. 40 StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void 2015 · Strategy 1,660
  41. 41 RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 2002 · Strategy 1,656
  42. 42 Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance 2005 · Strategy 1,656
  43. 43 Overcooked! 2 2018 · Strategy 1,653
  44. 44 Total Annihilation 1997 · Strategy 1,652
  45. 45 Among Us 2018 · Strategy 1,642
  46. 46 Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness 1995 · Strategy 1,642
  47. 47 Hearts of Iron IV 2016 · Strategy 1,636
  48. 48 Plague Inc. 2012 · Strategy 1,633
  49. 49 Bridge Constructor Portal 2017 · Strategy 1,632
  50. 50 Sid Meier's Civilization 1991 · Strategy 1,630
  51. 51 Marvel's Midnight Suns 2022 · Strategy 1,627
  52. 52 Total War: Warhammer 2016 · Strategy 1,626
  53. 53 Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive 2001 · Strategy 1,623
  54. 54 Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition 2019 · Strategy 1,616
  55. 55 Dota Underlords 2019 · Strategy 1,611
  56. 56 Empire Earth 2001 · Strategy 1,609
  57. 57 Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty 1992 · Strategy 1,609
  58. 58 Worms World Party 2001 · Strategy 1,607
  59. 59 Age of Empires II: HD Edition 2013 · Strategy 1,598
  60. 60 Pokémon Stadium 2 2000 · Strategy 1,597
  61. 61 Beholder 2016 · Strategy 1,597
  62. 62 Empire: Total War 2009 · Strategy 1,596
  63. 63 SimCity 3000 1999 · Strategy 1,595
  64. 64 Anno 1602: Creation of a New World 1998 · Strategy 1,594
  65. 65 Heroes of Might and Magic V 2006 · Strategy 1,593
  66. 66 Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2004 · Strategy 1,591
  67. 67 Town of Salem 2014 · Strategy 1,590
  68. 68 Sid Meier's Civilization II 1996 · Strategy 1,588
  69. 69 Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness 2007 · Strategy 1,588
  70. 70 The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II 2006 · Strategy 1,586
  71. 71 Dungeon Keeper 2 1999 · Strategy 1,585
  72. 72 Halo Wars 2009 · Strategy 1,582
  73. 73 Door Kickers 2014 · Strategy 1,580
  74. 74 Game Dev Tycoon 2012 · Strategy 1,578
  75. 75 Fire Emblem 2003 · Strategy 1,576
  76. 76 Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden 2018 · Strategy 1,575
  77. 77 Bloons TD 6 2018 · Strategy 1,572
  78. 78 Warcraft: Orcs & Humans 1994 · Strategy 1,571
  79. 79 Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising 2003 · Strategy 1,570
  80. 80 Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines 1998 · Strategy 1,563
  81. 81 Heroes of Might and Magic II: The Succession Wars 1996 · Strategy 1,563
  82. 82 Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle 2017 · Strategy 1,562
  83. 83 Valkyria Chronicles Remastered 2014 · Strategy 1,561
  84. 84 Total War: Warhammer III 2022 · Strategy 1,561
  85. 85 Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun 2016 · Strategy 1,559
  86. 86 Medieval: Total War 2002 · Strategy 1,558
  87. 87 Napoleon: Total War 2010 · Strategy 1,556
  88. 88 Theme Park 1994 · Strategy 1,555
  89. 89 Fire Emblem: Fuuin no Tsurugi 2002 · Strategy 1,554
  90. 90 Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones 2004 · Strategy 1,551
  91. 91 Triangle Strategy 2022 · Strategy 1,551
  92. 92 Reverse: 1999 2023 · Strategy 1,551
  93. 93 Anno 1800 2019 · Strategy 1,549
  94. 94 Pikmin 3 2013 · Strategy 1,547
  95. 95 Sid Meier's Civilization III 2001 · Strategy 1,544
  96. 96 Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 2008 · Strategy 1,544
  97. 97 Command & Conquer: Generals 2003 · Strategy 1,542
  98. 98 Heroes of Might and Magic IV 2002 · Strategy 1,541
  99. 99 The Settlers: Fourth Edition 2001 · Strategy 1,541
  100. 100 Commandos: Beyond the Call of Duty 1999 · Strategy 1,540

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

Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings leads this selection with 1,890 ELO points, ahead of Sid Meier's Civilization IV and Crusader Kings III. The 342 games competing in it have played 38,829 duels.

This selection in figures
Games competing in this selection 342
Duels played by those games 38,829
Game in the lead Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings (1999)
Score of the leading game, in ELO points 1,890
Point gap between 1st and 10th 78
Best represented decade 2010s
Last reading November 3, 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 Archon 1,446 75
1990s 52 Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings 1,890 397
2000s 108 Sid Meier's Civilization IV 1,872 204
2010s 134 Fire Emblem Awakening 1,853 266
2020s 41 Crusader Kings III 1,859 185

What moved this week

The ranking changes with every duel settled. Over the past seven days, the score of 98 games in this selection moved.

What moved this week
Game Points gained in 7 days ELO score
Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun +73 1,559
SimCity 3000 +46 1,595
Marvel's Midnight Suns +41 1,627

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 Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, with 1,890 ELO points in the world ranking. It stands ahead of Sid Meier's Civilization IV and Crusader Kings III, and its place is replayed with every duel.

How many strategy games are ranked?

342 games of this selection take part in the duels, and they have played 38,829 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?

Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun is the strongest climb in this selection over the past seven days, with 73 ELO points gained. Over the same period, the score of 98 games in the selection moved.

Vote on a duel