I’m slightly undercut by the title here on what the game is. Yes, when I reviewed F1 2019, Watch_Dogs 2, or Rebel Galaxy Outlaw, those that had played one game in their respective franchise knew what they were going to get. However, Rusted Warfare is the type of title you would find somewhere in the latter half of the 90s alongside Commandos, Dungeon Keeper, or Dune. The title gives a rough idea of what it could be, but all together is tied into its genre with the en dash and “RTS” tacked on.

I was never one for Real Time Strategy games as a kid, they were always a little hard for my stupid brain. I’d always try to gain a large enough force to trounce over everyone else with ease, a tactic previously called, “The Spanish Armada,” “Oh god the British are coming,” and now, “America!” The problem with that was my own indecisiveness when placing defense and manufacturing. I didn’t want my units to have issues when going to kill the enemy, that’s a job for the therapists to deal with once we’d won or inevitably lost. The key in a real-time strategy is to have a strategy, or one more powerful than sucking your thumb.

So with that, I’ve been returning to the genre with some new vigor and some fluff around my chin. As the general of the battalion, commanding them into their never-ending parade of death while all I do is slurp cups of coffee and command another batch of tank commandos to their death. Why? So I can send in the big battle mechs, nuclear drones, or several modded in units from franchises such as Warhammer or Star Trek. You could restrict all the units to tank and boat warfare and turn it into World War 2, or you could turn inwards, mine resources like you are the kingdom of the mole people and nuke everyone do dust hours later.

Understandably, I do the latter by holding my central command point, slowly creeping out with an ever-larger series of military hardware that would make George Bush (pick one) happy, and then bomb the reds (or other colors). That is until I have several enemies on every side, each taking turns to put their wet finger in my ear. Though once again, this turtle-themed methodology works providing you don’t mind making several cups of coffee and starting the second 100-year war.

Though aside from tertiary tales of wars won and won again, what is Rusted Warfare – RTS? That’s where my tales fall at the final hurdle. For you see, Rusted Warfare is just that, an RTS about warfare in a slightly futuristic though rustic war. There’s no story getting in the way with miles and miles of lore to tell you why your actions are bad, see Spec Ops: The Line for that. It is, “You see them over there? Yeah, kill them.”

It is simple, it is classic, and is ridiculous fun. With an almost endless supply of content for single-player, you could have almost as much fun as those that know what’s on the internet. I’ve never touched the multiplayer, though I assume it would be a never-ending game of nuclear standoffs at the 12th hour. Though, if you want to know what it is like to play online you could just play the endless survival mode. A mode specifically to send an endless horde at you like you’re working at the sewage treatment plant.

With custom maps, mountains of mods, and several standard single-player game modes, there is more than enough for any RTS fan. For $4.99, there’s plenty for fans of the genre; and at the price point and my established lack of experience of the genre, I’d highly recommend it to anyone. So what’s the catch?

Well, it is not huge, but It is large enough for a few hours of gleefully bishing and bashing the enemy until you get the spider mech, nukes, and other parts from a long-form game. The resource is one solitary thing mined at specific points, though can be produced with the fabricator. Then finally, the AI can often get stuck on itself for a second, running into builds, others tanks, and anything with a detection wall around it stopping them. With the obligatory comments of the graphics not being the shiny and polished anus of a horse as it poos. I’m looking at you Red Dead 2.

So, why do I love it so? Well, it is a little under polished, it has that indie sheen, and for all the Command and Conquer methodology to send these units into death, there is a charm to it. I won’t take that it isn’t shiny and graphically intensive as an excuse as we’ve spent the last several years munching on the 16-bit era of games like chew toys. When consoles were doing that 16-bit thing, this is what PCs were doing and its’ simplicity is lost.

In conclusion, Rusted Warfare – RTS is the perfect starter or refresher course for anyone looking to get into an RTS series. It isn’t as tightly designed and poured over by hundreds or tens of developers for half a decade. Rusted Warfare is fun, simple, and tense. A nice bite-sized starter meal before the main course that is Sins of a Solar Empire, Company of Heroes, or Total War. Did I mention the Spider mech or the nukes?

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Rusted Warfare - RTS

$4.99 USD

8.5

Score

8.5/10

Pros

• Nuclear drones.
• Fun gameplay.
• Almost endless singleplayer content.

Cons

• AI can sometimes get stuck