Best Real-Time Games on Steam
Steam currently has 588 Real-Time games available to download and play. Explore our list of the best picks ranked by Player Score. Our Player Score rankings are calculated directly from reviews left on the Steam store and will be updated in real-time as more players leave their feedback. Real-Time game rankings were last updated on 3/21/2026.
Looking for more? Explore other lists such as:
- Free real-time games on Steam
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- Best real-time Steam games for Mac OS
- Free Steam games
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1. Stronghold Crusader HD (2012)
The highly anticipated sequel to the best-selling Stronghold, Stronghold Crusader HD throws you into historic battles and castle sieges from the Crusades with fiendish AI opponents, new units, 4 historical campaigns and over 100 unique skirmish missions.
Stronghold Crusader HD (2012) holds the #1 spot for "best Real-Time game on Steam" with a Player Score of 95. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 20,721 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 20,213 positive reviews and 508 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $2.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Stronghold Crusader HD (2012) on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $2.99 |
| Release Date | 10/21/2013 |
| Franchise | Firefly Studios |
| Developer | FireFly Studios |
| Publisher | FireFly Studios |
| Steam App Id | 40970 |
2. Age of Empires II (Retired)
Age of Empires II has been re-imagined in high definition. With the release of Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, this product will not be updated further.
Age of Empires II (Retired) has achieved a Player Score of 94, placing it in the #2 spot for the best Real-Time games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 102,387 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 98,107 positive reviews and 4,280 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $19.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. Valve has also verified it as playable on the Steam Deck and will run well.
| Steam Price | $19.99 |
| Release Date | 4/9/2013 |
| Franchise | Age of Empires Franchise |
| Developers | |
| Publisher | Xbox Game Studios |
| Steam App Id | 221380 |
3. Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
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.
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance has achieved a Player Score of 94, placing it in the #3 spot for the best Real-Time games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 14,023 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 13,571 positive reviews and 452 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $2.59 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is not possible to play or run Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance on the Steam Deck.
| Steam Price | $2.59 |
| Release Date | 9/28/2011 |
| Developer | Gas Powered Games |
| Publisher | Square Enix |
| Steam App Id | 9420 |
4. Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
42 Civilizations, 229 Campaign Missions, Singleplayer, Co-Op, Multiplayer, In-Game Editor, Mods, Cross-play...It is good to be the king.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition has achieved a Player Score of 94, placing it in the #4 spot for the best Real-Time games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 175,396 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 166,519 positive reviews and 8,877 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $12.24 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $12.24 |
| Release Date | 11/14/2019 |
| Franchise | Age of Empires Franchise |
| Developers | |
| Publisher | Xbox Game Studios |
| Steam App Id | 813780 |
5. Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Dark Crusade
Deep under the central desert of Kronus, a vast honeycomb of skull-lined tunnels and funeral chambers house the awakening Necron menace. Eons ago, these were the boulevards and squares of a great necropolis built to house the bones of the races who had fallen to the Necrons, and ultimately were where the Necrons themselves retire to...
Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Dark Crusade has achieved a Player Score of 93, placing it in the #5 spot for the best Real-Time games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 9,357 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 9,014 positive reviews and 343 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $0.00 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Dark Crusade on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Release Date | 8/7/2007 |
| Developer | Relic Entertainment |
| Publisher | SEGA |
| Steam App Id | 4580 |
6. Rusted Warfare - RTS
{{An RTS inspired by the classics of the past!}} Making up for it's subpar retro graphics with fun gameplay and modern multi-threaded tech enabling huge battles to run smooth... Featuring singleplayer challenges, skirmish, sandbox, 10-player multiplayer & workshop modding.
Rusted Warfare - RTS has achieved a Player Score of 93, placing it in the #6 spot for the best Real-Time games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 7,051 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 6,793 positive reviews and 258 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $2.89 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Rusted Warfare - RTS on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $2.89 |
| Release Date | 7/14/2017 |
| Developer | Corroding Games |
| Publisher | Corroding Games |
| Steam App Id | 647960 |
7. Creeper World 3: Arc Eternal
Creeper World 3 is what happens when cellular automata takes over a strategy simulation. Instead of discrete units that attack your base, a fluid-like substance spreads over the terraformable terrain. Your base, your weapons, your strategy... you must adapt them all.
Creeper World 3: Arc Eternal has achieved a Player Score of 93, placing it in the #7 spot for the best Real-Time games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 4,758 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 4,588 positive reviews and 170 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $4.94 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Creeper World 3: Arc Eternal on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $4.94 |
| Release Date | 3/27/2014 |
| Developer | Knuckle Cracker |
| Publisher | Knuckle Cracker |
| Steam App Id | 280220 |
8. Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Soulstorm
The third and final expansion to the genre-defining and critically-acclaimed RTS, Dawn of War. In Soulstorm, two new armies are introduced – Sisters of Battle and Dark Eldar - raising the total number of playable armies to nine.
Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Soulstorm has achieved a Player Score of 93, placing it in the #8 spot for the best Real-Time games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 18,292 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 17,385 positive reviews and 907 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $0.00 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Soulstorm on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Release Date | 3/5/2008 |
| Developer | Relic Entertainment |
| Publisher | SEGA |
| Steam App Id | 9450 |
9. Airships: Conquer the Skies
Construct mighty steampunk airships and fly them into battle, waging war and conquering the skies!
Airships: Conquer the Skies has achieved a Player Score of 93, placing it in the #9 spot for the best Real-Time games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 6,385 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 6,124 positive reviews and 261 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $12.49 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Airships: Conquer the Skies on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $12.49 |
| Release Date | 8/16/2018 |
| Franchise | David Stark |
| Developer | David Stark |
| Publisher | David Stark |
| Steam App Id | 342560 |
10. Rise of Nations: Extended Edition
Rise of Nations is back! Play the updated classic with full Steamworks integration and enhanced features!
Rise of Nations: Extended Edition has achieved a Player Score of 92, placing it in the #10 spot for the best Real-Time games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 15,479 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 14,654 positive reviews and 825 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $19.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is not possible to play or run Rise of Nations: Extended Edition on the Steam Deck.
| Steam Price | $19.99 |
| Release Date | 6/12/2014 |
| Developers | |
| Publisher | Xbox Game Studios |
| Steam App Id | 287450 |
More Real-Time Games
Explore even more rankings for the 100 best Real-Time games available on Steam.
| Image | Name | Actions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 771 | 10/21/2013 | 95 | $2.99 | Steam Charts | |
| 2,889 | 4/9/2013 | 94 | $19.99 | Steam Charts | |
| 757 | 9/28/2011 | 94 | $2.59 | Steam Charts | |
| 18,743 | 11/14/2019 | 94 | $12.24 | Steam Charts | |
| 165 | 8/7/2007 | 93 | ??? | Steam Charts | |
| 185 | 7/14/2017 | 93 | $2.89 | Steam Charts | |
| 160 | 3/27/2014 | 93 | $4.94 | Steam Charts | |
| 289 | 3/5/2008 | 93 | ??? | Steam Charts | |
| 152 | 8/16/2018 | 93 | $12.49 | Steam Charts | |
| 720 | 6/12/2014 | 92 | $19.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 121 | 2/8/2026 | 92 | $11.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 49 | 8/7/2007 | 92 | $14.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 719 | 5/8/2014 | 91 | $29.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 11 | 11/11/2015 | 91 | $2.49 | Steam Charts | |
 | 236 | 6/12/2012 | 91 | $4.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 17 | 4/11/2012 | 91 | $14.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 14 | 1/27/2014 | 90 | $1.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 57 | 4/27/2018 | 90 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 91 | 8/19/2015 | 89 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 162 | 4/24/2018 | 89 | $12.05 | Steam Charts |
Soures & References
Steambase has best-in-class data powered directly by Steam, our data partners, and in-house experts. Reviews and rankings are enriched, analyzed, and updated in real-time to ensure we surface the most up-to-date insights. Learn more about the Steambase approach to data collection and our review methodology.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, March 21). Steam Store. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, March 21). Stronghold Crusader HD (2012) on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, March 10). Age of Empires II (Retired) on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, March 12). Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, March 24). Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, February 19). Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Dark Crusade on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, March 22). Rusted Warfare - RTS on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, March 22). Creeper World 3: Arc Eternal on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, February 19). Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Soulstorm on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, March 24). Airships: Conquer the Skies on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2026, March 2). Rise of Nations: Extended Edition on Steam. Steam Store.