Real-time strategy games, most enthusiasts of the genre simpy know them as RTS games. Brett “Command & Conquer” Sperry, founder of Westwood Studio’s is credited with coining the term to market with DUNE II, published in 1992 by Virgin Interactive. The good old days of 3.5″ floppy disk’s, DOS and sadly the remaining months, weeks, days of the simply awesome Commodore Amiga’s reign!

“Cough, cough, Amiga 600!” An Amiga without the bulky A520 TV modulator sticking out it’s rear like a dodgy spare part. I bought one, don’t as me why? Because I simply don’t know. Was this the very early stages of what could be now described as my former PC upgrading mentality, because there was nothing wrong with my 500 model, and… I won’t even begin to talk about the CD32 bought through the catalogue my mother use to run, it cost me a bloody fortune! God knows what the APR was back then?

Back on topic, after a brief crazy tangent. RTS games have a long and successful history on the PC, but the roots of RTS gaming dates back to 1980 with a game called Cytron Masters, developed by Danielle Bunten Berry and his company Ozark Softscape. It was published by Strategic Simulations, Inc (SSI) who are credited with such games as, Panzer General, Allied General and Pacific General.

SSI was acquired by Mindscape in 1994, spent time as part of Mattel, and finally became part of Ubisoft in 2001, Ubisoft has since retired the brand name. It’s Ubisoft that are about to try and redefine RTS gaming. For all their controversy “Permanent internet connection is required to play the game.” and dumbing down of the Tom Clancy franchise’s Ubisoft and Eugen Systems are readying themselves for the release of R.U.S.E. a game that looks very, very impressive and very, very big.

Set amongst the darkest days of the second world war, R.U.S.E is powered by IRISZOOM Engine which can display maps a hundred times larger than in traditional RTS games, which raises strategy to an unprecedented scale and gives deception a lot more depth. With the zoom, you are able to both command your units as a chief-in-command and manage your troops at a tactical level as a ground officer, for example by deploying a fake offensive on your opponent’s HQ while carefully hiding your infantry in villages to ambush the surrounding tanks.