PCGame

Best Real-Time with Pause games on PC

Games play out continuously in real time but let players pause the action to issue commands, adjust plans, or manage systems before continuing.

  • Continuous action between pauses
  • Commands issued while paused
  • Tactical or management decisions

Related: Strategy, Simulation, Grand Strategy, RPG

152 games on PC, with requirements, reviews and prices.

Divinity: Dragon Commander
Fantasy strategy game mixing political choices, army battles, and dragon combat
74% positive 2,548 reviews
Another Brick in The Mall
Top-down mall management sim built around shops, staff, and profit
83% positive 2,456 reviews
Uplink
Hacking strategy game about contract jobs and covering your tracks
91% positive 2,440 reviews
Airborne Kingdom
City builder about balancing a flying town while exploring
87% positive 2,403 reviews
Judgment: Apocalypse Survival Simulation
Colony survival sim with tactical battles against invading demons
81% positive 2,266 reviews
Of Orcs And Men
Third-person action RPG about an orc and goblin hunting an emperor
74% positive 2,206 reviews
Original War
Sci-fi real-time strategy with scarce soldiers who persist across missions
95% positive 2,174 reviews
Darkest Hour: A Hearts of Iron Game
Historical grand strategy spanning World War I to the Cold War
90% positive 2,103 reviews
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville
Zombie survival strategy sim about reclaiming a ruined city
86% positive 2,050 reviews
Europa Universalis III Complete
Historical grand strategy spanning centuries of trade, diplomacy, and war
83% positive 2,003 reviews
Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
Isometric fantasy RPG with open-world quests and competing magic and technology
89% positive 1,995 reviews
Deadly Days
Strategy roguelite about scavenging zombie cities with unpredictable gear
86% positive 1,915 reviews
Distant Worlds: Universe
Pausable real-time space strategy with sprawling galaxies and automated commerce
75% positive 1,856 reviews
From Glory To Goo
Sci-fi base-building RTS about defending a colony from alien Goo
96% positive 1,833 reviews
Jagged Alliance - Back in Action
Isometric tactical strategy with pausable combat and mercenary squads
73% positive 1,772 reviews
Bounty Train
Train management strategy with frontier trading and armed ambushes
70% positive 1,738 reviews
Industries of Titan
Industrial city builder on Titan with factories and corporate rivals
62% positive 1,618 reviews
AI War: Fleet Command
Real-time space strategy where aggression alerts a stronger AI
82% positive 1,611 reviews
Railroad Corporation
Historical railroad management sim about building routes and balancing profits
74% positive 1,499 reviews
Laysara: Summit Kingdom
Mountain city builder with avalanche defenses and intertown trade
82% positive 1,488 reviews
Trigon: Space Story
Top-down space roguelike with tactical ship battles and permanent death
68% positive 1,423 reviews
S.W.I.N.E. HD Remaster
Real-time tank battles between rabbits and pigs, without base building
91% positive 1,295 reviews
Particle Fleet: Emergence
Real-time space strategy with custom fleets and physics-driven enemies
92% positive 1,284 reviews
Railroad Tycoon 3
Railroad management strategy with historical scenarios and a changing economy
77% positive 1,265 reviews