In RTS/FPS hybrid games, players can empty clips at close range and call the shots from the high heavens at the same time.
Top 3 RTS FPS hybrid games to play in 2023
- Call to Arms – Gates of Hell: Ostfront
- Natural Selection 2
- Executive Assault 2
Some studies show playing FPS games can boost perceptual processing while others suggest playing strategy games can boost cognitive flexibility. That means playing RTS/FPS hybrids will surely set you on the path to superhuman intelligence, right?
Read on below for info on the three titles highlighted above, plus a couple more RTS/FPS games and three additional games that are not really RTS/FPS hybrids but might scratch the same itch.
List of the best RTS FPS hybrid games
Call to Arms – Gates of Hell: Ostfront
Forget about APM, Gates of Hell: Ostfront is all bout LPM. Yes, that’s right – laughs per minute.
Ostfront is a DLC for Call to Arms – Gates of Hell. Players can switch instantly between first-person, third-person, or top-down control of a single unit, as well as the classic RTS top-down view.
The RTS elements feel quite slow in the single-player mode. PvP is where the real fun is to be had: PhlyDaily’s video sums up the experience pretty well:
The maps have fantastic realism and impressive detail while somewhat clunky unit animations give the game fantastic charm. There’s plenty of micromanagement, but it’s nowhere near as sweaty as Natural Selection 2 (see below).
Natural Selection 2
Natural Selection 2 is a humans vs aliens team-based shooter with a twist – one player on each team plays as commander, has a classic RTS top-down view of the battlefield, and can place structures, spend resources, and plenty more.
Made by Unknown Worlds (of Subnautica fame), Natural Selection 2 won a slew of awards back in the day and is still worth playing today.
Plenty of people are still playing this in the community servers, though, and Steam Charts show there are several hundred active players at peak times.
I do feel compelled to mention that SuperKittyTreats on Reddit has the following to say about the Natural Selection 2 community (it made me laugh at least):
That’s not been my experience but I guess your mileage may vary!
Executive Assault 2
Indie developer Hesketh Studios has produced one of the most well-received RTS/FPS hybrids of recent years in Executive Assault 2.
It features real-time strategy on a galactic scale plus frenzied close-quarters combat when players make the switch to control a single unit.
There’s a multiplayer mode that allows co-op players to split these roles, too (i.e., one acts as the muscle in FPS mode while the other acts as the brains in RTS mode).
Rob (the developer) is continuously updating the game, fixing bugs, and adding new features.
There’s plenty of support for players used to more of a casual RTS experience: The game’s official Discord channel has almost 2,000 members (so it’s also the place to go to find multiplayer matchups).
Executive Assault 2 definitely has a long future.
Battlezone Combat Commander
Battlezone Combat Commander is a 2018 remaster of Battlezone II – a game that was well ahead of its time.
Set in an alternative history timeline in roughly the 1990s, players take control of the ‘ISDF’, a US-Soviet alliance formed out of necessity in order to combat an alien invasion.
The RTS and FPS elements are seamlessly integrated, with the mechanics in the Campaign and Strategy modes for allowing for time to build your base and organize resource collection before battle.
The learning curve can be a tiny bit steep for total newcomers, but apply the principles for improving at any RTS game and you’ll be up to speed in no time.
The space tanks are an absolute blast to pilot and the game is utterly engrossing, especially when things really heat up.
The original Battlezone also got a remaster called Battlezone 98 Redux – it’s worth checking out, too.
Disintegration
Disintegration is a near-future dystopian mashup with a story that focuses on a plucky group fighting to resist the total wipeout of the human race at the hands of a nasty, robot-loving enemy.
Rather than flipping between RTS and FPS modes’ or playing one role or the other like in many hybrids, in Disintegration, the player zips around in a hoverbike-type vehicle from which they can both shoot enemies and command allies.
It’s a cool concept, but the Disintegration experience is hampered by poor AI that sort of ruins the immersion. However, I think it’s still worth a try if you can pick it up for cheap.
RTS/FPS hybrid games you should avoid
Research shows RTS and FPS are two of the most addictive game genres, so it’s hard to resist picking up every single RTS/FPS hybrid you find.
However, thhere are a few RTS/FPS hybrid games that I’ve seen mentioned in other articles, on forums, and in YouTube videos that are simply not worth your time or money because the PvP modes are dead or the dev teams no longer work on or support it:
Savage Resurrection, Eximius: Seize the Frontline, Nuclear Dawn, and WARSHIFT all fall into this category.
Sort of (but not really) RTS/FPS hybrid games
Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord
Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord is an RPG with real-time strategy elements thrown in here and there.
Your role is to raid your way around the medieval world and, basically, try to control, own, or extort as much of it as possible.
The strategy elements center on your ability to give your troops orders in real-time, though their lack of battle IQ means they are more like comedic cannon fodder than cold-blooded killers.
The graphics are decent, the gameplay is a good laugh overall, and the fact that more than 16,000 reviewers on Steam have clocked over 1000 hours of gameplay each speaks for itself.
Command & Conquer Renegade X
For me, Command & Conquer will always be the first thing I think of when the letters ‘R’, ‘T’, and ‘S’ are spoken in that order, and I am still patiently waiting for Red Alert 2 Remastered to be announced.
I clearly remember throwing a tantrum when I realized the specs of our family PC did not meet the minimum requirements for Command & Conquer Renegade back in 2002. A dark day.
Renegade is a first-person shooter set in the C&C universe. It’s a spin-off of the legendary RTS series rather than a game that seeks to mash the two genres together.
The freeware/community remake, Command & Conquer Renegade X is the best way to play it these days.
RTS/FPS hybrid games on Steam
The following RTS/FPS hybrid games mentioned above are available on Steam:
- Call to Arms – Gates of Hell: Ostfront
- Natural Selection 2
- Executive Assault 2
- Battlezone Combat Commander
- Disintegration
- Eximius: Seize the Frontline
- Nuclear Dawn
- WARSHIFT
Why do most RTS/FPS hybrids fail?
There aren’t that many RTS/FPS hybrids that are worth playing in 2023.
One reason for this is that genre-hybrids often end up delivering sub-par experiences in each respective part of the game, rather than fusing a great shooter with the best RTS possible.
It’s also hard, if not near impossible, to deliver the classic FPS experience of being able to blast your way through entire enemy armies with relative ease without this inherently making the real-time strategy element sort of redundant.
Video games cost a lot of money and take a lot of time to make, so it is often not worth a studio taking a risk on a genre that they aren’t at all sure will be a commercial success.
Regular RTS games aren’t exactly cash cows for studios – RTS hybrids are even more niche and even less likely to justify the investment.
RTS/FPS hybrid games – conclusion
Call to Arms – Gates of Hell: Ostfront, Natural Selection 2, and Executive Assault 2 are the RTS/FPS hybrid games most worth trying today.
Plenty of other RTS/FPS hybrids are abandonware at this point, and it doesn’t really make sense for most studios to pump time and money into this type of game given how difficult it is to execute.
