Build your base, make some units, upgrade those units, and take down your opponent’s base. That is largely the gist of an RTS game, and while each title will try their own spin on this, the core gameplay often remains the same. At least, that’s the opinion of Halo Wars, Age of Empires, and Age of Mythology developer Dave Pottinger.
“It hasn’t changed much,” Pottinger told VideoGamer when asked about the RTS formula. “You know, you’re still playing the same game we’re playing 20 years ago and looking at some of these new games—Stormgate and others like that—and they’re still really largely based on that formula. It works, it’s an old, golden set of rules, because they were good back then and they’re still good now, and it’s nice to see that stuff still works but at the same time I want to do something new, we want to do something new.”
The problem is, as Pottinger explains later in the interview, that innovation can scare off existing fans of a franchise. Strategy fans are loyal, but if the genre wants to survive, it might need to look beyond already-existing enthusiasts.