10 Best RTS Games on Xbox Game Pass (December 2025)

Looking for the best real-time strategy games on Game Pass in 2025? If so, you’re in the right place! We’re counting down from 10 to 1, covering the best RTS games on Xbox Game Pass available right now.

What Defines the Best RTS Games on Game Pass?

It usually comes down to how fun and smart the game is when you’re in control. The best RTS games let you plan, build, and lead in ways that keep every match exciting. Some push you into massive battles, while others focus on careful moves with just a few units. In addition, a good RTS gives you freedom to shape your strategy and rewards smart decisions. What matters most is how each mission tests your thinking and keeps you improving.

List of 10 Best RTS Games on Xbox Game Pass in 2025

These are the best strategy games you can enjoy with Xbox Game Pass.

10. Minecraft Legends

Minecraft Legends shifts focus from building blocks to leading armies across wide open lands. You move as a hero on horseback, rally units like golems to follow your commands. Instead of crafting tools, the core is guiding groups into fights against piglin forces that spread corruption across the world. Bases rise under your command, walls go up, and defenses hold waves of enemies while your allies push forward. In this game, battle is about choosing which unit marches where, when to charge, and how to protect villages before they fall. Resource gathering is part of the loop, but the highlight lies in large clashes where numbers, timing, and smart planning decide victory. For fans searching the best RTS games on Xbox Game Pass, this one stands apart by turning Minecraft’s creative play into a strategy-driven war.

9. Against the Storm

Against the Storm invites you into a world of endless rain, where you guide settlements through harsh conditions. You build houses, craft workshops, and manage food while also keeping villagers happy. Each group has its own needs, so balancing resources becomes the main challenge. Unlike traditional RTS titles where combat takes the lead, survival and city management drive the action here. You start a settlement, grow it, then eventually abandon it as storms worsen and move on to build again. Every run connects to a greater campaign where progress carries over. Against the Storm deserves its place among the best real-time strategy games on Xbox Game Pass because it adds roguelike design to classic settlement management.

8. Crusader Kings III

Crusader Kings III gives you control over a medieval dynasty, with power shaped by both politics and family. You guide rulers across generations, decide marriages, form alliances, and wage wars to expand influence across kingdoms. Each character has traits that affect how people respond, so loyalty or betrayal depends on personality as much as strength. The game is not about one ruler but about the survival of the bloodline, as every heir continues the legacy you build. Warfare is present, but the heart of the game lies in securing influence through deals and careful plans. Crusader Kings III is easily one of the best Xbox Game Pass RTS games, since long-term vision holds the same weight as immediate action.

7. Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition

Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition lets you guide entire civilizations across history, where food, wood, gold, and stone shape everything you build. Villagers gather these resources while you expand towns into strong bases. Building towns is only one side, as wars erupt often and require a good balance of economy and military power. Every choice carries weight, since resources spent on soldiers might weaken city growth, while too much focus on the economy may leave your town open to raids. Each civilization also has unique traits, so Mongols play differently from the English or Chinese. Age of Empires IV remains one of the best RTS games on Xbox Game Pass for its scale and depth in real-time strategy.

6. Frostpunk

World in Frostpunk is frozen solid, and survival depends on the city you manage around a giant generator. You control workers, set laws, and direct how resources like coal, food, and wood are used. Every action shapes life inside the settlement, as people rely on heat and order to survive. Choices determine whether families stay hopeful or fall into despair, since every law carries a cost. No battlefields or armies exist here; instead, the fight is against nature itself. So, strategy lies in balancing survival needs with the will of the population.

5. Anno 1800

Anno 1800 moves you into the industrial age, with the main goal to build cities, run industries, and manage trade across islands. You begin with a small settlement and gradually grow it into a thriving port filled with farms, factories, and bustling markets. Citizens demand goods, so you must set up supply chains that link raw materials to finished products. Ships sail between regions with resources, while diplomacy determines how rivals treat your expanding empire. Expansion means claiming new islands rich in resources and supplying your main hub through trade routes.

4. Halo Wars: Definitive Edition

Following up on our list of best RTS games on Xbox Game Pass, Halo Wars: Definitive Edition delivers large-scale real-time battles set in the Halo universe. You command squads of Spartans, vehicles, and aircraft while building bases to produce units and gather resources. Combat flows as units follow orders in real time, so you decide when to push forward or hold ground. It is streamlined compared to heavier strategy titles, yet still deep enough to test your planning.

3. Aliens: Dark Descent

Alien series is famous for fear and tension, and Aliens: Dark Descent brings that into real-time strategy in a unique way. You command a squad of marines moving through dark facilities and colonies while xenomorphs stalk every path. Every order matters, as you direct soldiers to advance, secure positions, or retreat when danger rises. Maps are large and filled with threats, so planning routes and deciding when to engage or avoid fights is at the heart of play. Stress builds on your squad, and if fear overwhelms them, mistakes follow quickly.

2. Commandos: Origins

Commandos: Origins leans more toward careful stealth than open conflict. It focuses on a small squad of specialists moving through World War II environments. Maps feature enemy patrols, guarded zones, and obstacles that must be outsmarted through timing and positioning. Every commando carries a unique ability, which allows missions to unfold in varied ways. To move forward, you need to observe routines, wait for the right moment, and coordinate actions without alerting the opposition. Commandos: Origins delivers a slower tactical experience that highlights stealth and planning in real-time strategy.

1. Age of Mythology: Retold

The final game on our best Game Pass RTS games list is from the same creators who gave us Age of Empires, yet it steps into myth and legend instead of pure history. Age of Mythology: Retold lets you guide civilizations like Greeks, Norse, Atlanteans, and Egyptians by gathering resources, building towns, and commanding soldiers. What separates it from standard strategy is the power of gods. At points during play, you call upon divine powers such as lightning storms or summon myth units to fight alongside your armies. It’s a legendary take on real-time strategy.