Games Like ICBM: Escalation

ICBM is a real-time strategy game of nuclear destruction. Research new technologies, build up your nuclear stockpile and use a combination of ships, planes and missiles to strike at the heart of your opponents’ cities while keeping your population safe from harm.

Why similar: Cold War 27% ★, RTS 21.7%, Destruction 13.1%, Military 12.6%, PvP 9.7%

Why You'll Like It: As the direct predecessor, it shares the same core focus on global nuclear strategy and real-time tactical warfare.

Inspired by the 1983 cult classic film, Wargames, DEFCON superbly evokes the tension, paranoia and suspicion of the Cold War era, playing on the fascinating aspects of psychological gameplay that occur during strategic nuclear warfare.

Why similar: Cold War 19% ★, Wargame 16.8%, RTS 14%, PvP 11.3%, Military 8.7%

Why You'll Like It: This is the definitive minimalist simulation of global nuclear annihilation and strategic deterrence.

Realistic, immersive, breathtaking. WARNO is the ultimate World War III battle simulator from the masters of strategy, Eugen Systems. A Cold War turns decisively hot as you command hundreds of units on a beautiful and brutal battlefield. Outsmart, outfight, and lead your forces to total victory.

Why similar: Wargame 24.1%, Cold War 20.8% ★, RTS 18%, Military 11.5%, War 8.1%

Why You'll Like It: A modern successor to the Wargame series that excels in high-fidelity, large-scale tactical combat.

The new reference in RTS at its best! The Wargame series returns to duty, larger, richer and more spectacular than ever before. In Wargame Red Dragon, you are engaged in a large-scale conflict where Western forces clash against the Communist bloc.

Why similar: RTS 27.6%, Wargame 20.1%, Cold War 18.3% ★, Military 13.3%, Strategy 8.2%

Why You'll Like It: The gold standard for Cold War-era tactical wargaming with a massive library of historically accurate units.

Nuclear war simulator is a detailed realistic simulation and visualization of large-scale nuclear conflicts with a focus on humanitarian consequences. It lets you design conflict scenarios and estimate the consequences using a population density map and realistic weapons effects.

Why similar: Wargame 32.1%, RTS 27.1%, Modern 16.2%, Military 13.6%, Management 7.1%

Why You'll Like It: It offers unparalleled realism in modeling the effects and logistics of a full-scale nuclear exchange.

Broken Arrow is a large-scale real-time modern warfare tactics game that combines the complexity of joint-forces wargaming with action-packed real-time tactics gameplay.

Why similar: Wargame 31.2%, RTS 22.2%, Modern 12.9%, War 9%, Strategy 6.9%

Why You'll Like It: Focuses on modern combined-arms warfare with deep customization and high tactical fidelity.

Regiments is a Real-Time Tactics game set in Germany 1989. The Cold War has gone hot, and the inferno is raging. Lead your Regiment through the fires of conflict and the fog of war. Break through the lines, call in artillery, maneuver, feign retreats, stage defenses, counter-attack. Do not relent.

Why similar: Wargame 25.5%, Cold War 24.9% ★, RTS 18.7%, War 8.6%, Military 8.1%

Why You'll Like It: An excellent Cold War-themed tactical RTS that emphasizes unit management and maneuver warfare.

Armored Brigade II revolutionizes real-time tactical warfare in 3D, focusing on the intense combined arms combat of the Cold War era, from 1965 to 1991. Boasting a meticulously researched database and huge real-world terrain maps, this game offers an unparalleled combat simulation experience.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 23.9%, Wargame 22.6%, RTS 19.6%, Cold War 15.4% ★, War 6.8%

Why You'll Like It: Provides a deeply realistic simulation of Cold War combat on massive, detailed maps.

Command: Modern Operations is the next generation in cross-domain modern wargaming. It enables you to simulate every military engagement from post World War II to the present day and beyond. The scale is primarily tactical/operational, although strategic scale operations are also possible.

Why similar: Wargame 27.3%, Military 21.1%, RTS 18.9%, Grand Strategy 11.8%, Modern 8.8%

Why You'll Like It: The most comprehensive simulation available for managing global military assets and modern weapon systems.

Carrier Command 2 is the real-time strategy game that puts you in command of a futuristic carrier capable of deploying a vast array of aircraft and amphibious units. Compete against AI or human players and hop into every single vehicle to take matters into your own hands!

Why similar: Grand Strategy 22.4%, Wargame 20%, RTS 18.2%, War 9.7%, PvP 8.8%

Why You'll Like It: Emphasizes strategic command, resource management, and long-range engagement in a maritime setting.

Real-Time Strategy/Wargame. From World War II through the Cold War and into the future, re-live or re-imagine the tensions and crises of our recent history! Guide your nation through the era of your choice in Campaigns, Scenarios, and Sandboxes, as you make every effort to become Supreme Ruler!

Why similar: Grand Strategy 23%, Wargame 18.2%, RTS 15.8%, Cold War 9.7% ★, Military 9.6%

Why You'll Like It: Combines complex grand strategy with real-time tactical control on a global scale.

Master grand tactical combat as a Cold War force commander in this data-rich simulation. Plan and issue orders in asynchronous WEGO turns, leveraging real-world maps and complex features like Electronic Warfare and Air Assaults to outthink your enemy.

Why similar: Wargame 44.5%, Cold War 36.1% ★, Strategy 10.1%, Top-Down 7.9%, Singleplayer 1.3%

Why You'll Like It: Delivers a gritty, realistic look at the tactical challenges of potential Cold War battles.

Wage war across entire solar systems with massive armies at your command. Annihilate enemy forces with world-shattering TITAN-class units, and demolish planets with massive super weapons!

Why similar: RTS 27.1%, Grand Strategy 21.6%, PvP 9.4%, War 9.4%, Destruction 7.4%

Why You'll Like It: Captures the global, high-stakes scale of ICBM through its massive planetary RTS mechanics.

FIRST STRIKE is a fast paced real time strategy game where you play one of the twelve biggest nuclear superpowers of the world – from known superpowers like the USA to an upstart hellraiser like North Korea – and try to be the last one remaining when the whole world blows to smithereens.

Why similar: Cold War 18.2% ★, Wargame 15.6%, RTS 14.5%, Destruction 8.6%, PvP 7.6%

Why You'll Like It: A fast-paced, stylized take on nuclear warfare that focuses on global strategic decision-making.

Victory is at your fingertips! Your ability to lead your nation is your supreme weapon, the strategy game Hearts of Iron IV lets you take command of any nation in World War II; the most engaging conflict in world history.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 40.2%, War 14.1%, Military 13.9%, RTS 12.7%, Strategy 9.2%

Why You'll Like It: Offers the deep grand strategic layer required to manage global conflicts and technological development.

Steel Division 2 is a historically-accurate WW2 real-time strategy game set on the Eastern Front. Features 1:1-scale turn-based army management and real-time tactical battles with thousands of men at your order.

Why similar: RTS 23.8%, Grand Strategy 19.8%, Wargame 17.6%, Military 12.3%, War 9.3%

Why You'll Like It: A highly detailed tactical wargame that rewards historical knowledge and careful unit positioning.

Take command of your hand-tailored fleet of space warships and use realistic radar, electronic warfare, advanced movement controls in 3D space, and precision targeting to outmaneuver and outwit your opponents in a simulation-heavy tactical space game like no other.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 30.8%, RTS 21.8%, Military 13.5%, War 12.1%, Multiplayer 8.1%

Why You'll Like It: Offers complex tactical combat and high-tech weapon systems in a modern, simulation-heavy environment.

Command distinct factions in a desperate struggle for power and resources in Tempest Rising - a classic RTS set on Earth after a nuclear war.

Why similar: RTS 59.5%, Strategy 13.1%, Wargame 6.1%, Multiplayer 5.2%, War 4.2%

Why You'll Like It: Delivers a classic RTS experience with a focus on modern warfare units and base development.

Touch the world with your fingertips! Your retro terminal awaits your command, for the balance of power, in this definitive Cold War strategy game. Here you belong; assert your leadership through turn based strategic tit-for-tat, on the brink of mutually assured destruction. Don't let it slip away!

Why similar: Cold War 27% ★, Grand Strategy 26.2%, Wargame 20.4%, Military 8.6%, War 5.8%

Why You'll Like It: A unique blend of Cold War political maneuvering and military strategy that mirrors the era's tension.

Act of Aggression – Reboot Edition brings the techno-thriller RTS game Act of Aggression to a higher level. The Reboot Edition offers a full gameplay overhaul in skirmish mode against the AI and in your multiplayer battles.

Why similar: RTS 50.2%, Military 16%, Strategy 11.8%, Multiplayer 9.9%, War 8.9%

Why You'll Like It: A modern-day RTS that emphasizes base building, resource gathering, and advanced unit technology.

The last days of man are at hand.. Two years after the Infinite War the once great warring nations now lie in ruins, and humanity’s hope for a brighter future is nothing but a bitter memory. A new, seemingly unstoppable enemy, supported by the zealots of The Order, now seeks to eradicate mankind: UEF, Aeon Loyalist, and Cybran alike.

Why similar: RTS 45.5%, Grand Strategy 24.2%, Strategy 11.6%, Multiplayer 9.3%, Co-op 3.8%

Why You'll Like It: The benchmark for large-scale, tech-focused real-time strategy with massive unit counts.

A unique and deeply engaging political/military strategic simulation from the creator of Plague Inc. Balance competing civilian and military priorities and deal with a deadly insurgency in order to stabilise a war-torn country.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 30.6%, RTS 17.5%, Military 12.3%, War 11.7%, Management 7.9%

Why You'll Like It: Focuses on the strategic management of conflict, regional stability, and counter-insurgency.

2 SIDES, 12 NATIONS, 750 UNITS: THE STRATEGY GAME REFERENCE IS BACK! Richer, more beautiful and more accessible, Wargame AirLand Battle is the sequel to the explosive real-time strategy game Wargame European Escalation! 1985.

Why similar: RTS 25.4%, Cold War 25.1% ★, Wargame 17%, Military 14.3%, Strategy 8%

Why You'll Like It: A classic entry in the Wargame series focusing on the coordination of air and ground assets.

A sardonic take on nationalism and the Cold War though a minimalist and fast paced RTS. Scheme your way through a highly replayable campaign, or conduct some "diplomacy" on your "friends" in multiplayer.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 26.3%, Wargame 24%, RTS 19.8%, Cold War 19.7% ★, Military 3.9%

Why You'll Like It: A specialized wargame that mirrors the nuclear and strategic focus of the seed game.

Rise to power as any modern day country in a realistic military, political and economic simulation. Command your country's diplomacy, espionage, and resource management to strengthen your position. Use real-time tactical control of your military to fortify your place as the Supreme Ruler.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 22.7%, Wargame 19.9%, RTS 17%, War 9.7%, Military 9.5%

Why You'll Like It: Continues the tradition of complex, modern-day geopolitical simulation and military management.

Call to Arms offers an innovative mix of real-time strategy and 3rd, as well as 1st person controls. Set in the time of modern warfare, the game offers realistically modeled vehicles and heavy weaponry. Command your troops to victory or fight by yourself in the 3rd or 1st person action mode.

Why similar: RTS 29.6%, Military 20.5%, War 12.9%, Strategy 12.6%, Multiplayer 10.5%

Why You'll Like It: Blends traditional RTS base management with the ability to take direct tactical control of units.

Battle for galactic dominance in this real-time 4X strategy game with unrivaled scale! You’ll explore, expand, exploit, and exterminate through military force, diplomacy, trade, culture, influence, and other underhanded tactics.

Why similar: RTS 45.7%, PvP 15.7%, Multiplayer 13.4%, Strategy 13.2%, Co-op 8.7%

Why You'll Like It: Provides a massive, grand-scale RTS experience with deep tech trees and strategic depth.

Men of War: Assault Squad 2 expands the real-time tactics series with new skirmish missions, massive multiplayer battles, enhanced visuals, improved AI, and full Direct Control. Command five factions across 65 maps, 250 vehicles, and 200 soldiers in one of the most detailed WWII RTS experiences.

Why similar: RTS 31.8%, War 17.3%, Military 14.5%, Strategy 13.9%, Destruction 8.6%

Why You'll Like It: Offers granular control over individual units in intense, realistic tactical combat scenarios.

A new type of RTS with elements from 4X, Wargame, and Real-Time Tactics. Draw commands and execute a superior strategy to defeat your opponent, focusing on high-level decisions rather than constant micromanagement.

Why similar: RTS 19.3%, Grand Strategy 17.5%, Wargame 14.9%, Cold War 14.3% ★, PvP 9%

Graviteam Tactics: Mius-Front - tactical battalion level combat simulation. Action takes place in the summer of 1943 at Mius river and Saur-Mogila tumulus area of over 140 sq. km. Four large-scale operations for the Red Army and Wehrmacht.

Why similar: Wargame 41.9%, RTS 22.4%, Strategy 13.6%, Military 12.1%, War 8.8%

Why You'll Like It: A hardcore wargame for players who demand extreme realism and complex command structures.

3 Days War is a unique multiplayer strategy war game. Integrating the mechanics of RTS+4X, it allows dozens of players to engage in a three-day real-time strategy competitionon. Commanders, use your skills, strategies, games and even deception to become the ultimate winner!

Why similar: Grand Strategy 20.7%, Cold War 19.2% ★, Wargame 17.2%, RTS 16%, PvP 8.5%

Embark on a military strategy 4X RTS game, in a world where your battle tactics and your massive army are the keys to victory. Instant War delivers an amazing battlefield experience in a realistic military game. As a commander, you develop your military base and lead your army to victory!

Why similar: Grand Strategy 26.9%, Wargame 22.3%, Military 9%, Modern 7.9%, War 6.7%

A massively multiplayer real-time strategy game pitting hundreds of players against one another. Over one million nuke each other every month.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 19.9%, Wargame 19.8%, RTS 16.2%, War 9.3%, PvP 9%

In this Grand Strategy game, you take control of the Solar System's Great Powers in 2092 and weather the storm of change as you navigate the uncertain waters of the future. Control the greatest military forces in the world and wage wars on an epic scale: outer space is yours to conquer!

Why similar: Grand Strategy 30.5%, Wargame 20.5%, Military 11.1%, War 8%, PvP 7%

In this real-time grand strategy game, command armies, build cities, and manage a dynamic economy. Establish automated supply routes within your territory to streamline production. Fortify your defenses and brace for intense battles. Can you lead your empire to dominance?

Why similar: Wargame 32.7%, Grand Strategy 31.1%, RTS 24%, Strategy 5%, Multiplayer 3.4%

This Long Term Strategy Game lets you take control of the armed forces of your nation. Become responsible for its military expansion, technological research and economic development. Form alliances and wage total war for global dominance on the battlefields of World War 3.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 34.4%, Wargame 32.2%, RTS 18.2%, Strategy 8.6%, Online Co-Op 3.3%

Command the sky in a tense real-time strategy simulation where you manage a nation's air defenses. Analyze radar contacts, scramble interceptor jets, and make split-second decisions to protect your airspace from hostile threats.

Why similar: Cold War 37.3% ★, Wargame 30.4%, RTS 19.7%, Strategy 6.4%, Top-Down 5%

Use the radio to give commands to the soldiers on the battlefield. Keep track of the situation based on their voice reports only. Lead US platoons to clash with Vietcong in a realistic, innovative approach to the RTS genre. Make hard choices in a narrative driven experience, and face the outcome.

Why similar: Wargame 23%, Cold War 22.9% ★, RTS 17.3%, Military 10.6%, War 9.1%

Command modern military armies by zooming out and issuing orders to large formations, or zooming in to issue orders to individual squads and vehicles. Waronoi is the real-time strategy war game.

Why similar: Wargame 27.8%, RTS 25.2%, Military 12%, Strategy 9.2%, War 7.9%

Fly near-future aircraft with immersive physics across dynamic battlefields, facing land, air, and sea threats. Wage war against AI or rival pilots using an array of advanced weaponry, including tactical and strategic nuclear weapons capable of annihilating anything in your path.

Why similar: Wargame 40.7%, Military 21%, PvP 18.6%, War 18.4%, Action 1.3%

Total Conflict: Resistance is a unique symbiosis of global strategy, tactics and first-person action. Realistic mass battles, many types of armored vehicles, weapons, uniforms, unique mechanics, immersive free gameplay. Lead any state and bring it to greatness!

Why similar: Grand Strategy 25.5%, Wargame 23.1%, RTS 20.3%, Military 11.3%, War 11.1%

Enter the war-torn world of Veá, where sci-fi and fantasy collide in Liquidation, an immersive RTS. Lead your armies and harness powerful abilities in a high-stakes battle for Quenrium, the mysterious substance that holds Veá’s fate.

Why similar: Wargame 25.9%, RTS 25.8%, Military 12.8%, War 12.3%, PvP 11.4%

Cold War turns hot in 1953: massive hex strategy with nukes, supply, and sabotage.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 25.6%, Wargame 25.2%, Cold War 22% ★, Military 9.6%, War 7%

As the leader of a nation, dispatch and control your team of characters all around the world to destabilize your enemies and establish your supremacy. All methods are fair game: hacking, sabotage, political interference, military strikes, corruption, treachery, assassinations, data theft…

Why similar: Grand Strategy 26.1%, Wargame 24.6%, RTS 21.6%, Multiplayer 6.6%, PvP 6%

Terminator: Dark Fate – Defiance is not just a game; it's an adrenaline-fueled journey where your strategic prowess decides the fate of mankind against the machines. After the machines took over, the greatest threats may not come from the machines but rather from other human survivors.

Why similar: Wargame 29.8%, RTS 26%, Destruction 14.9%, Military 12.2%, Management 7.6%

Countryballs at War is a grand strategy wargame that combines turn-based empire building with real-time battles. Lead any countryball nation, expand your territory through conquest or diplomacy, and rise as the ultimate superpower.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 38.7%, Wargame 27.8%, Strategy 10.2%, Military 9.9%, War 8.2%

Battlefield Commander WWII is a real-time tactical game where you lead the soldiers and vehicles that battled across the globe during this time in history. Play hundreds of unique units across multiple game modes.

Why similar: Wargame 25.1%, RTS 22.6%, Destruction 11.3%, Military 9.8%, War 7.3%

The New Fatal Error DLC includes a new 5-mission Operation and touch-screen controls.

Why similar: RTS 24.7%, Cold War 23.5% ★, Wargame 19.9%, Military 12.4%, Strategy 8.6%

CM Cold War is set in the tipping-point years of a conflict that gripped the world for 45 years. Between 1979-1982, both the NATO and Soviet Warsaw Pact militaries began the shift away from industrialized warfare of the early 20th century and towards the modern digital battlefield of today.

Why similar: Wargame 34.4%, Military 14%, Modern 11.7%, War 10%, Cold War 9.5% ★

International waterways become theaters of war when the world's most formidable maritime powers exchange their fatal blows. With entire fleets at your command, you must strategically deploy vessels from every class - frigate to aircraft to nuclear submarine - to maintain the precarious balance of naval power and gain position for the...

Why similar: Wargame 46.2%, RTS 31.8%, Military 9.8%, War 6.6%, Strategy 5.5%

Easy to learn, hard to master. A simple & free RTS game.

Why similar: Wargame 26.1%, RTS 25.2%, Military 10.1%, Strategy 10%, Multiplayer 8.3%

Geopolitical management game with real-time shifting borders and a streamlined gameplay, designed to minimize all burdensome chores while allowing an absolute strategic control, from military recruitment and deployment, to diplomatic and economic management.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 33.5%, RTS 19.6%, Military 14%, War 9.7%, PvP 7.8%

The latest expansion of the ultra-realistic world simulator, where you play as the head of state or the opposition! New Features: tourism simulator, party strategies with regime censures, personal wealth management, a European army, AI and robotics.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 27.9%, Wargame 22.2%, RTS 19.1%, Strategy 7%, War 5.2%

Command your nation's armies, economy, and diplomacy in this WWII Grand Strategy Wargame. Easy to start, hard to master and a full match fits in one session. Play singleplayer and multiplayer, or create, play and share your own custom scenarios with the built-in Scenario Editor.

Why similar: Grand Strategy 25.6%, Wargame 23.1%, RTS 16.8%, War 8.3%, Military 8.1%

A massive-scale real-time strategy game where you command entire armies on a dynamic battlefield. Conquer multiple worlds across several single-player campaigns; or play with your friends in multiplayer combat.

Why similar: RTS 31.9%, PvP 16.4%, Military 13.9%, War 8.7%, Online Co-Op 6.7%

Call to Arms - Gates of Hell is a realistic RTS/ RTT game that offers endless replay value. Command all types of troops in historical singleplayer, dynamic campaign, PvP and PvE battles. Are you ready for some serious immersion in World War 2?

Why similar: RTS 30.4%, Military 15.4%, War 15%, PvP 13.3%, Multiplayer 9.4%

Take command in Europe's greatest 18th-century war. Equip & customize regiments, manage supplies, and engage in brutal real-time battles across procedural campaigns. Resources and replacements are scarce, and keeping your best men alive may matter more than any single victory.

Why similar: RTS 26.9%, Wargame 26.1%, Military 16.2%, War 15%, Strategy 7.1%

Crisis in the Kremlin is a global real-time political strategy about the Socialist world in its final decade. Shape the fate of the world as you manage economy, foreign relations, and domestic policy. Engage with countries across the globe, using diplomacy or even proxy wars to expand your reach.

Why similar: Cold War 42.2% ★, Grand Strategy 41.5%, Strategy 8.5%, Management 6.1%, Singleplayer 1.7%

War Selection is a compelling RTS game featuring base building, resource extraction and warfare. Evolve from a stone age tribe to a distinct industrial nation with unique game mechanics and battle for supremacy with dozens of players on a unique procedurally generated map.

Why similar: RTS 33%, Military 13.1%, Multiplayer 11.5%, War 10.6%, Strategy 10.3%