We get questions like this a lot, and mastering a strategy game is definitely something we considered while designing and developing Citadelum. Precisely, the key in developing a strategy game is not giving a clear pattern on solving the different problems you will find while playing, may it be enemy attacks, resources, or even the wrath of the gods if you are playing Citadelum. But at the same time, there is a clear objective and players get to know the basic decisions.
Think of Chess, maybe the world’s most popular strategy game. What would you say is the key for always winning? If you have played chess, you know the basic strategy is thinking ahead. Once you move a piece on the board, you try to guess what your adversary is going to do, and then what would you do to provoke his mistake. But even though this way of playing chess is known to most players, there are so many combinations and random elements that it is difficult to guarantee the same results with the same moves.
Mastering strategy video games.
If we are talking about the best strategy video games, we will find almost the same results. You can master a strategy game by finding the perfect balance between your expansion and resource gathering. Between the economic and the military sides of the game. And ultimately learn how fast the game is asking you to play (as some of them will punish the player if he stays in a situation for some time). But in the end, there are random elements that will affect the outcome of your actions.
So the perfect answer to this question, How do you master a strategy game, should be. First, keep working towards your main objective, don’t get distracted by making the most beautiful city or trying to replicate a historic formation which could be less effective. Be focused on the game, and learn the most effective ways to reach certain goals.
The second key for dominating a strategy game is, again, try to find the balance in which you can make your civilization, your army or your settlement grow, but at the same time, you don’t have problems with supplies. This is not easy, but after playing for a couple of hours, something in your mind changes, and you are able to read the evolution of the game. Of course, keep in mind, as we did we Citadelum, there is a learning curve and a difficult curve, and both are changing each new stage.
The key is adaptability.
Finally, and this may be the most important. Learn to adapt depending on the circumstances. The people in your settlement can rebel, or get ill, and that can change your whole plan. If you stick to your initial strategy, it will probably end in failure. But if you are able to adapt through your game, you will be successful.
Strategy video games include some random element (enemy attacks, fires or even a furious god) that add variety and fun, and at the same time, make the game more demanding, as you will never be sure if certain tips will work every time.
