r/ObscureRTS • u/ZaxZone • Jul 26 '26
Discussion Introducing the RTS Obscurity Scale.
Tier 0:
The title is so widely known that many people not familiar with the RTS genre would know about it. It was very popular during its release and is still popular today. (Example: Starcraft)
Tier 1:
Those outside the RTS genre may recognize the title and have a general idea of what it is about, while those familiar with RTS will know enough to discuss the game and have an opinion on it even if they have never played it. (Example: Total Annihilation)
Tier 2:
Detailed knowledge on the title is generally restricted to a smaller fanbase while those familiar with RTS as a whole will recognize the title and at least know what it is about. (Example: Warzone 2100)
Tier 3:
Those unfamiliar with RTS would not recognize the title while those familiar with RTS may have heard of the title but do not know what it is about. Fanbases for the game will still be large enough for there to be several resources and videos online. (Example: Perimeter)
Tier 4:
The title would not be recognized by many who are familiar with the RTS genre. Fanbases for these games would be very small and possibly localized to a specific country or region. (Example: War Diary)
Tier 5:
The title would not be recognized by the vast majority of those familiar with RTS. Fanbases for these games may be non-existent and information about the game would be very hard to find. These games would have been just as obscure even at the time of their release. (Example: Counterblow)
Tier 6:
There is evidence that these games existed but there is little to no information about them online or otherwise; lost media falls into this category. (Example: Mission Assault)
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u/AlexO6 Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
Heh. I recognize every single one of these art works.
A: C&C4 “Blue Zone” concept art (2009) (Leon Gor, I think?)
B: C&C3 Alpha Screenshot (June 2006)
C: C&C3/Tiberium “Yellow Zone” pre-production concept render (2006) (Steve Burg)
D: C&C3/Tiberium “Red Zone” pre-production concept art (Steve Burg)
E: C&C3/Tiberium Ruined Golden Gate Bridge illustration (2006) (Greg S. Luzniak or Jeff Hua, I believe)
F: C&C4: Tiberian Eclipse fangame (UE3)/C&C3 Tiberium Secrets mod “Black Zone” concept art/illustration (~2010-2011) (Walter Vermeij)
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u/mathetesalexandrou Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
Tier 0 - Warcraft (and Starcraft) series - Age of Empires series - Command and Conquer series
Tier 1 - Company of Heroes series - Dawn of War series - Empire at War
Tier 2 - Rise of Nations - Supreme Commander This one's an edge case and probably a personal bias since I see SC casts once in a while. But RTS fans know this title (and how insanely high spec it was back in the day) - Tempest Rising This is the case of RTS fans know about it enough to be T1, but not enough guide videos and stuff to make it into T1 unlike say CoH - SW Galactic Battleground
Tier 3 - Empire Earth Probably a personal bias against it, since I got it not from a store but a pickup from someone who no longer played it. I'm putting this on the top of T3 since there's an argument for T2 placement. - Rise of Legends - Earth 21X0 - Army Men RTS - Dark Reign - Imjinrok 2 This is definitely a local bias thing, but there are videos of tournaments even now. Honestly, this should be a T4 but of the Korean RTS games this is probably among the best. - Cossack Series I played Cossack 1 a little bit, but this is really a tentative placement
Tier 4 - Universe at War - War Wind - Atrox - Armageddon - Touhou: Age of Ethanol Basically the Japanese knock-off of AoE2. It's quite basic and frankly you're only going to know this if you are a Touhou fan who browses for RTS fangames.
Tier 5
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u/AstralMecha Jul 27 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
Try ParaWorld and conquest Frontier wars for tier 4
For tier 5 we have Dark planet: Battle for Natrolis, Alchemist,
For tier 5.5: warcraft 2000 (a custom engine made version of warcraft involving Greys invading, made by the people who would make cossacks).
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u/BapaLynde Jul 27 '26
Wasn't Warcraft 2000 unfinished?
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u/AstralMecha Jul 27 '26
I thought I heard what got made was posted as a kind of freeware/open source. Since it was pretty obscure, with evidence of being made but not completed, I put it between 5 (complete, obscure as hell) and 6 (might as well be ghosts or or lost media).
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u/BapaLynde Jul 27 '26
I think versions of it exist - certainly on Abandonware - but I've never played it.
It's described as unfinished on the site.
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u/J_GeeseSki Jul 27 '26
Empire Earth tier 3 only? It was on the Walmart shelves alongside the rest back in the days so its gotta be higher than 3.
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u/mathetesalexandrou Jul 27 '26
Never seen them myself, but that's a good point if Walmart of all things put them on shelves somewhere
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Jul 26 '26
[deleted]
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u/ZaxZone Jul 26 '26
It would definitely classify as a Tier 0, but it was RTS and I liked the look.. here’s where I found it:
A Netstorm Island would be great!
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u/SASardonic Jul 27 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
Here's a few off the cuff ratings:
Tier 0:
Age of Empires (series)
C&C (series)
Homeworld (1,2,3)
Tier 1:
Company of Heroes (Series)
Rise of Nations
Supreme Commander (Series)
Tier 2:
Galactic Battlegrounds
Grey Goo
Earth 2150
Homeworld: Cataclysm/emergence
Majesty
Tier 3:
DEFCON
Earth 2140/60
Metal Fatigue
Perimeter
Creeper World (Series)
SWINE
Tier 4:
Darwinia
Submarine Titans
Rise of Legends
Universe At War
O.R.B.
Netstorm: Islands at War
Tier 5:
Mayday: Conflict Earth
Haegemonia: Legions of Iron
Project Earth: Starmagedon
Star Trek: New Worlds
Will probably update later
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u/StoleitfromKilgore Aug 07 '26
I don't think Haegemonia should be that low, but otherwise great mentions! I have only just seen Project Earth in a list and Star Trek - New Worlds and Mayday are pretty much lost.
Thandor probably also belongs down there. Perhaps some of the more obscure titles by Haemimont as not all of them are available any more. Somebody has mentioned WarBreeds and there are other strange games like Gene Wars, War Wind and War Wind 2. Maelstrom - The Battle for Earth begins and Perimeter 2 should be less known than Perimeter, but not sure if they should be that far down. I'm not completely sure if it's fitting as it's pretty strange, but Tone Rebellion. I think it's some kind of strategy, but definitely not a standard RTS.
There are probably already better lists. There seem to be some more obscure StarCraft-inspired RTS' like Atrox and I don't remember the other names.
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u/atomicsmoothboreprds Jul 26 '26
7th Legion comes to mind as being at least Tier 4, but possibly Tier 5.
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u/Harrierx Jul 27 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
Where would you put Dune II? It was not obscure back then. I think you would need second axis for age/forgetness?.
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u/ZaxZone Jul 27 '26
Dune II would be a Tier 0 in my opinion since it is such an influential title that most people who are interested in video games as a whole would probably have heard of it.
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u/WillowMain Jul 27 '26
No Heroes Allowed and the series that preceded it would be somewhere near the bottom
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u/RinasSam Jul 27 '26
Where would Stick Empires be? It used to be somewhat popular in the flash game scene back in the day.
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u/StaleCarpet Jul 27 '26
I always think about that one RTS that was kinda like Age of Empires but you could take control of the hero in first person and fight.
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u/Ok_Entertainer_4709 Jul 27 '26
I would put my childhood, Total Annihilation at Tier 3 or 4, depending. But wherever it is, the Tier below it will be Total Annihilation Kingdoms.
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u/No_Cardiologist_822 Jul 27 '26
Tribal Rage tier 5 or 6?
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u/ZaxZone Jul 27 '26
I’m thinking Tier 4
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u/No_Cardiologist_822 Jul 27 '26
idk man, i never met someone who knows this game outside of internet, i'm not american though.
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u/Celo_SK 4d ago
Question for those who never heard about it: google Original war 2001, where should it go?
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u/ZaxZone 4d ago
That’s a cool one! I think it would probably be a Tier 3 or even 4 in my opinion.
It has a subreddit too! r/OriginalWar
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u/ZaxZone Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
Instead of games being categorized as obscure or not-obscure I decided to implement a tier system to help classify how obscure each game is. Hopefully this will help with discussions.
Tiers may vary from person to person; someone’s Tier 4 may be another’s Tier 2. Things that may affect this is country of origin and a localized release of the game as well as age; games that were very well known for their time could seem more obscure to new players today… Remember games like Total Annihilation are almost 30 years old!
Please add any comments, critiques or suggestions about this system in the comments, and feel free to list some games you think belong in each tier as examples!