You better have a stretegic mind if you want to beat these games. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’ll be looking at the most difficult strategy simulators ever made.
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00:00 [SFX]
00:03 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we'll be looking at the most difficult strategy simulators
00:07 ever made.
00:08 [SFX]
00:13 Number 10 - Starcraft 2 Wings of Liberty
00:16 No one said inciting an intergalactic revolution would be easy, and Starcraft 2 commits to
00:20 that idea and then some.
00:22 The game's non-linear story structure allows you to choose which missions to pursue, which
00:26 units to unlock, and which upgrades to prioritize.
00:29 But all that player freedom is a necessary evil to balance out some downright nail-biting
00:33 stretches on the battlefield.
00:35 The intense real-time combat means that no matter how much you buff your squad, you're
00:39 never getting a victory scream without some serious casualties.
00:42 But the brilliance of Starcraft 2 is that there's always an optimal way through - you
00:46 just have to find it first.
00:47 [SFX]
00:48 Number 9 - Company of Heroes
00:53 Instead of employing dragons, aliens, or wizards, Company of Heroes takes place in the throngs
01:02 of World War II.
01:04 And like any real battlefield, once the action starts, it never lets up.
01:07 Whether you're in the trenches or storming a stronghold, these lengthy battles will push
01:11 the limits of even the most well-thought-out strategies.
01:14 The game's satisfying focus on positioning keeps you re-evaluating and adjusting up until
01:18 the final unit falls.
01:20 Especially once tanks and other heavy artillery join the fray.
01:24 Trust us, you're going to have to make use of each and every ability if you want to deal
01:27 with the enemy reinforcements.
01:28 And they always have reinforcements.
01:29 [SFX]
01:30 Number 8 - Frozen Synapse
01:46 This isn't your average turn-based game.
01:48 While you do get to meticulously rearrange your troops each round, the catch is that
01:52 your enemy moves at the exact same time.
01:54 You'll never know whether you're running into the opposing team until it's already too late.
01:58 From there, each unit's base stats and positioning determine the fight's outcome.
02:02 The mechanic is unique, it's easy to understand, and most notably, it's not for the faint of
02:06 heart.
02:07 The shared turn order adds an inherent tension to even the tiniest movement on the battlefield.
02:11 Throw in a near-random map generator and Frozen Synapse will have you questioning everything
02:15 in the best way possible.
02:19 [SFX]
02:21 Number 7 - Civilization VI
02:29 The best kind of strategy games force you to think several turns ahead.
02:32 But this one takes it a step further by making you think several battles ahead, too.
02:37 The core of Civilization VI relies on how you structure your society.
02:40 But every advancement in one area means a concession in another.
02:44 As a result, it's not uncommon to enter a fight and find that you're simply outclassed
02:47 based on your choices you made hours prior.
02:49 That's not to say tactics on the battlefield don't matter, though.
02:52 On the contrary, Civilization VI's gameplay is as solid and challenging as ever.
02:57 But it's that high difficulty curve that makes becoming a world power oh so sweet.
03:03 [SFX]
03:08 Number 6 - Age of Empires II - The Age of Kings
03:17 In this game, there's 13 playable civilizations and 5 separate story modes, each with their
03:21 own unique objectives and units.
03:23 But despite that, there's one thing they all have in common - the hair-pulling out
03:26 of this world difficulty.
03:27 The gameplay isn't unfair by any means, there's just a lot of it.
03:31 There's resource management, infrastructure, development, unit recruitment, and the game
03:35 expects you to keep track of it all.
03:37 With that much on your mind, surviving a single fight can be a grueling affair.
03:41 Let alone actually advancing through the various ages, it's hard enough to finish even one
03:45 campaign.
03:46 Trying to complete every single route is basically a fool's errand.
03:54 Number 5 - Crusader Kings II - The Age of Kings
04:02 Instead of straight conquering, the main objective of this strategy simulator is to garner enough
04:06 prestige to outrank other famous dynasties.
04:09 Naturally, that means buffing up your own by any means necessary.
04:12 Sometimes by forging unlikely alliances, sometimes choosing a political marriage with good in-game
04:17 traits, and sometimes by pillaging the nearest civilization for all their worth.
04:21 Whichever one you choose, Crusader Kings II forces you to constantly think about the war
04:25 and not just the battle.
04:27 While the actual skirmishes are nothing to shrug off, the real issue is finessing your
04:31 way to the top without becoming public enemy number one.
04:34 And that's much easier said than done.
04:41 Number 4 - XCOM 2 - The Only Way To Beat These Alien Overlords
04:49 Is To Kill Them Before They Kill You If you end your turn with even one of them
04:53 still alive, they're bound to take some of your troops down with them.
04:55 In a game as ruthless as XCOM 2, losing even one asset can send you through a long, agonizing
05:01 spiral of defeat.
05:02 As if that's not bad enough, most campaign missions add extra requirements or strict
05:06 turn limits too.
05:07 XCOM 2 does have four different difficulty settings, but with a combat system like this,
05:12 they can only do so much.
05:13 Let's just say that you'll be reloading saves even on the easiest mode.
05:22 Number 3 - Frostpunk In a world subjected to a never-ending winter,
05:30 fear and discontent are as big an enemy as opposing factions.
05:33 If Frostpunk is any indication, they're also much harder to quell.
05:36 There are no right answers to the game's deep political questions, and no matter which
05:40 you choose, you're bound to make someone angry.
05:42 Since viable workers are few and far in between, that kind of outrage can spell the end of
05:46 an entire run.
05:47 That's without even mentioning the random blizzards.
05:50 All in all, Frostpunk can be described as a delicate balancing act of hope and practicality.
05:55 Unless you master its many intricate systems, a cold, hard death is more of a matter of
05:59 when and not if.
06:06 Number 2 - Europa Universalis IV
06:08 There's a thousand ways to go about winning here, and a thousand more to lose it all.
06:18 To propel your nation to the top, you have to balance war, technology, religion, politics,
06:23 and beyond.
06:24 Everything from the efficacy of your army to the morale of your people rely on how well
06:28 you can shift between conquest and diplomacy.
06:31 Even then, one bad move is all it takes for your nation to crumble.
06:34 If you need even more tactical gameplay, developers Paradox Entertainment poured everything they
06:39 learned here into Hearts of Iron IV.
06:41 As its name implies, you'll really need a steel will to make it through those battles
06:45 alive.
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07:07 Number 1 - Stellaris
07:16 In Stellaris, you don't just have a nation to run.
07:18 You have a whole corner of the galaxy, and that's just a start.
07:22 As you explore and take over neighboring planets, the weight of developing part of the cosmos
07:26 becomes a Herculean task.
07:28 Not just because of the frequent space battles or pulse-pounding trades (although those aren't
07:33 a breeze either).
07:34 No, Stellaris is a handful simply because there's a borderline egregious amount of
07:38 factors to consider with any single choice.
07:41 This is a whole universe, after all.
07:42 It can take hours to fully grasp the basic gameplay loop, and even then, Stellaris doesn't
07:47 get any easier.
07:48 You just start to understand why you lost.
07:55 Which strategy game have you sunk the most hours into?
07:58 Let us know in the comments below!
08:11 [Music]