6 Best Cold War Strategy Games

Key Takeaways

• DEFCON
  – inspired by the movie Wargames – simulates nuclear war with simple yet deep gameplay.
• World In Conflict
  offers a visually impressive real-time simulation of Cold War conflict.
• Command: Modern Operations
  is a complex military simulator covering Cold War scenarios.

Many strategy games that aim to be somewhat realistic will choose periods of history that are remembered for global conflicts, such as World War 1 and 2. However, what these earlier settings lack is something that hangs like Damocles’ sword over humanity in modern times; nuclear weapons. The Cold War covers a period of time between 1947 to 1991. During this time, various nations, most notably the USA and Soviet Union were manufacturing and stockpiling large amounts of nuclear weapons.

However, towards the end of the Cold War, these stockpiles had been reduced somewhat, due to certain political agreements. The question remains, though, what would have happened had even a minor nuclear conflict taken place during the Cold War? This is something that a number of excellent strategy games have attempted to demonstrate. Some of these aim to realistically simulate a Cold War conflict; others simply use the political backdrop of the time for the setting for some fun gameplay.

6 DEFCON

Let The Nukes Fly

In its day, DEFCON was something of a cult game with a huge following. Simple in design and execution, but with surprising depth, the game revolves around, well, nuking enemy countries whilst trying not to let them nuke your own. There can be no doubt that DEFCON takes inspiration from the classic movie, Wargames.

The player takes control of one of the superpowers and must decide how best to defend against a nuclear attack, whilst maximizing the damage their own nuclear weapons inflict on enemies. Post-strike, the player must find a strategy for dealing with the aftermath of the nuclear exchange as well.

5 World In Conflict

Deal With A Soviet Invasion Of The USA

Set in the latter part of the Cold War, World In Conflict is a real-time simulation game that combines frantic combat with an excellent campaign. Visually, the game is impressive, and the narrative is compelling and realistic, driving the campaign forward at a hectic pace at times.

The player controls a full range of realistic military units and needs to employ real-world-style battlefield tactics to have the best chance of success. At times, the game feels like an interactive movie, as the conflict escalates and the impending conflict becomes a real and present danger.

4 Command: Modern Operations

Incredibly Detailed And Complex

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows
• Released: November 14, 2019
• Developer: Warfare Sims, Command Development Team
• Genre: Simulation Video Game, Strategy Video Game

Although Command: Modern Operations is, at heart, a real-time strategy game, it is far more than that. As RTS games go, it is one of the most complex of all. The game aims to realistically simulate military conflicts, including scenarios that take place during the Cold War.

The player commands ground, air, and naval units to achieve their strategic goals. Realistic military intelligence is received, and the player must first understand what it means, and then use this intelligence to make tactical decisions. The game can simulate Cold War confrontations very accurately. Command: Modern Operations might not be for everybody. It has a very steep learning curve. Yet it remains one of the most comprehensive military simulators that covers the Cold War.

3 Power & Revolution 2021 Edition

Focuses On Geopolitical Gameplay

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Mac operating systems
• Released: August 4, 2021
• Developer: Eversim
• Genre: Geo-Political Simulator

Power & Revolution is a different kind of strategy game. Where most strategy games focus on conflict and combat, Power & Revolution is a little more unique. At its heart, it is a global political simulator. The game includes a number of scenarios, including many that cover certain events during the Cold War.

Players wield political tools, as well as espionage and trade to meet challenges. In most cases, military action is a last resort, although some scenarios do call for major military action. Overall, this is a slower-paced, but still deep and engaging strategy game that covers the Cold War period, and also includes many other scenarios.

2 Nuclear War Simulator

Simulating Cold War Nuclear Brinkmanship

• Platforms: PC
• Released: February, 2023
• Developer: Bot Mirror
• Genre: Strategy, Simulation

Nuclear War Simulator is a game that covers not only the Cold War but also more modern nuclear conflict scenarios. However, even the scenarios set after the Cold War refer back to the geopolitical situation of the time.

The game is simple to play but hard to master. The player is free to play out a simulated nuclear war in real time. They must plan how best to attack their enemies and also manage the effects of soaking up a retaliatory strike. Overall, the game does an amazing job of demonstrating how catastrophic even the most limited nuclear exchange would be.

1 Command & Conquer: Red Alert

Classic RTS Gameplay

No list of games set in the Cold War era would be complete without the classic real-time strategy game, Command & Conquer: Red Alert. The game sets the Soviet Union squarely against the Allied Forces, in a single-player campaign that is both shocking and somehow funny at the same time.

There is nothing very complicated about Command & Conquer: Red Alert. It harks back to a time when strategy games were simpler, and RTS developers were yet to begin incorporating gameplay features from other genres. However, the game takes the top place on this list for a specific reason; it is just so much fun to play. For a while, the game was unavailable, but it was reintroduced for sale some years back. There is also an open-source project, OpenRA, that has recreated the gameplay of the original release completely.