Strategy game

A strategy game is one where the outcome hinges largely on players' voluntary and often independent decision-making abilities. Nearly all such games demand thinking in the form of decision trees and typically require a high degree of situational awareness.

Wargame

While strategy games are often viewed as evolving from war games, that definition is incomplete; they are defined by their reliance on strategy itself, with complexity and large-scale actions—like unit placement in the Total War series—being central. Culturally, a strategy game belongs to a tradition rooted in war games, contains more strategic depth than the average video game, follows certain gameplay conventions, and is recognized by a specific community. War is a dominant theme, but not the only one.

History

History

Turn-based strategy games trace back to ancient civilizations in places like Rome, Greece, Egypt, the Levant, and India. Many were widely played in their regions, but only a few remain popular today. According to Thierry Depaulis, the oldest known strategy games are the Greek game polis (πόλις), mentioned in literature around 450 BCE, and the roughly contemporary Chinese game weiqi (Go), called yi (弈) in Confucius’s Analects, compiled between about 470/50 and 280 BCE.

The Royal Game of Ur, from around 2500 BCE and often called one of the oldest board games, likely had some strategic elements, though it is generally considered a luck-based race game. One of the earliest strategy games still played is mancala. Some artifacts from around 5000 BCE may be old mancala boards, leading to claims that mancala is the oldest known strategy game, but this is disputed.

Another enduring game is chess, believed to have originated in India around the sixth century CE. It spread westward through trade, gaining greater social status and permanence than many other games. Chess became a game of skill and tactics, often forcing players to think two or three moves ahead just to keep up.

Types

Abstract strategy

Abstract strategy In abstract strategy games, the game has little or no connection to a thematic concept. The rules serve the game’s internal logic rather than simulating reality.

A strict definition requires no random elements or hidden information, covering games like chess and Go. However, many games commonly called abstract strategy—such as backgammon, Octiles, Can't Stop, Sequence, and Mentalis—include chance. A smaller category of non-perfect abstract strategy games uses hidden information without random elements, like Stratego.

Team strategy

Team strategy Contract bridge is a highly focused team strategy game. It involves two teams of two players, with offensive and defensive skills shifting as the game progresses. Some argue that playing bridge builds skills and strategies useful in business and helps automate strategic awareness.

Eurogames Eurogames, or German-style board games, are a newer genre that sits between abstract strategy and simulation games. They typically have simple rules, short to medium play times, indirect player interaction, and abstract components. They emphasize strategy, downplay chance and conflict, favor economic over military themes, and usually keep all players in the game until the end.

Simulation Simulation games attempt to model the decisions and processes of a real-world situation. Most rules are chosen to reflect the real-world consequences of players’ actions. Abstract games and simulations are not fully separate; games exist on a continuum from nearly pure abstraction (like Abalone) to nearly pure simulation (like Diceball! or Strat-o-Matic Baseball).

Wargame Wargames simulate military battles, campaigns, or entire wars. Players consider situations similar to those faced by historical battle leaders. Wargames are heavy on simulation and, while all are strategy games, they can be “strategic” or “tactical” in the military sense.

Their creator, H. G. Wells, noted that “much better is this amiable miniature [war] than the real thing.” Traditionally, wargames are played with miniatures on detailed terrain or on a board using cardboard counters on a hex map. Popular miniature wargames include Warhammer 40,000 and Warhammer Fantasy. Popular strategic board wargames include Risk, Axis and Allies, Diplomacy, and Paths of Glory. Advanced Squad Leader is a successful tactical-scale wargame.

Comparing the Total War series to Civilization: moving troops to a specific tile in Civilization is a tactic because there are no short-range decisions. But in Empire: Total War (2009), every army encounter triggers a real-time battle where the same troop movement is treated as strategy. Throughout the game, army movement is at a macro scale.