Real-time strategy facts for kids

A military base in Warzone 2100, a fun real-time strategy game.

Real-time strategy (often called RTS) is a type of computer and video game. In these games, each player usually has an army to attack other players. You also get a military base and different people or vehicles. These are called your units.

Players also collect money or other resources. You use these to create new units or build new buildings. These buildings can help you do things like train more units or discover new technology. The main goal is to destroy the base and units of your opponent. If you do that, you win!

In real-time strategy games, everything happens right away. When you tell a unit to move, it moves instantly. There's no waiting around. This is different from turn-based strategy games, where players take turns to make their moves.

How You Control the Game

Most RTS games let you control everything from above. You're like a "god" overseeing your army and base. You tell your units where to go, what to build, and how to fight. You also plan your base and manage your resources. A great example of this is the game StarCraft.

Popular Real-Time Strategy Games

Here are some well-known real-time strategy games:

• Age of Empires series
• Command & Conquer series
• StarCraft
• Total Annihilation
• Warcraft
• Supremacy 1914

Images for kids

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  Screenshot from the game 0 A.D., showing typical RTS elements like resources (top left) and a map (bottom left).

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  The OpenHV project uses classic 8-bit pixelart graphics.

See also

In Spanish: Videojuego de estrategia en tiempo real para niños