Cтоит ли разрабатывать стратегии в реальном времени — Интервью с Кириллом Бубенко

Storyline / Premise (what the interview is “about”)

• The video is an interview about whether new RTS (real-time strategy) games are still worth developing commercially and creatively today.
• Kirill Bubenko argues RTS is not dead, but niche:
  • It has a loyal, smaller audience that keeps coming back.
  • The audience is driven mostly by nostalgia.
  • Players want campaigns, army-building, and tactical fights.

Gameplay Highlights & What Players Actually Want in RTS

RTS emotional payoff comes from:

• Building an army
• Tactical skirmishes/fights (including vs AI)
• Campaign/story missions and mission-driven pacing
• “Unit battles that feel meaningful,” not just one-hero control

Compared to MOBAs:

• MOBAs “casualized” RTS by reducing/removing core RTS elements:
  • Base building
  • Macro/economy management
  • Micro complexity
• As a result, many casual players find MOBAs easier to enter and more fun.

Key Strategies & Key Development/Marketing Tips Discussed

1) How to Succeed in the Current RTS Market (unit economics mindset)

• RTS rarely reaches mass numbers like shooters or MOBAs.
• A realistic success target for a new RTS is framed as:
  • ~1 million copies sold at release (order-of-magnitude target), not tens of millions.
• Success is described as being more achievable through:
  • Nostalgia + strong IP or recognizable vibe
  • A clearly identifiable audience
  • Lower budget / smaller team / fan-driven scope
  • Delivering what RTS players call “the RTS fantasy” (not a shallow clone)

2) Nostalgia as a Product Design Lever

Nostalgia-driven approaches mentioned include:

• Styling/theming like older RTS eras (e.g., 2000s style / “C&C-like” feel)
• “Old RTS campaign emotions” and the familiar army-building experience

A “fresh” hook can also replace pure nostalgia:

• A prominent new pitch, strong visuals, or an unusual concept.
• Example mentioned: “simulator” framing as a sales headline style.

3) Early Access / Roadmap to Reduce Backlash

For Kirill’s cited project (and his marketing logic):

• Early Access was used to avoid release-time backlash by:
  • Shipping a mechanics-complete “tech demo” feeling first
  • Gathering feedback
  • Communicating a roadmap so players know campaign/story content is coming
• Core idea:
  • Players may buy to support the developer and then wait for the campaign—but they need reassurance it will arrive.

4) Player Retention: Single-Player Majority, Not Just Multiplayer

Key claim:

• A large majority of RTS players prefer single-player/campaign.
• Multiplayer is often less attractive because it is:
  • Harder to enter
  • More competitive (higher barrier)

Therefore:

• Keeping single-player engaging matters:
  • Campaign variety
  • Skirmish variety
  • Mod support

5) Modding Tools as a Retention/Engagement Engine

RTS development can be extended more easily/cheaply if you provide:

• Mod editor / workshop support
• Scripting (Lua)
• Easy creation of maps/content

Benefit:

• The community becomes a long-term content generator (custom AIs, custom modes, survival scenarios, etc.).

RTS Development Pitfalls (the “Top Issues” Discussed)

1) Readability / Unit Countability (major design challenge)

RTS units must remain readable when:

• There are hundreds of units
• Units are spread across multiple fronts
• Visual conditions get complex (e.g., day/night, lighting changes, dense scenes)

Solutions discussed:

• Visual tier/HP bar readability
• Internal highlighting/glow/visual treatment so players can instantly understand:
  • Who is theirs
  • Who is enemy
  • Where danger is

2) Training / Onboarding (players skip it)

Even streamers may leave quickly if:

• They can’t select units or learn basic controls
• They don’t understand the game loop

Important note:

• Good training is expensive and tedious, and many devs underestimate it.

3) Balance (especially with asymmetrical factions)

Symmetrical vs asymmetrical balance:

• Symmetrical: units have the same combat stats/game roles, different visuals.
• Asymmetrical: factions have different mechanics/abilities, which is harder to balance.

Balance goals must ensure:

• Comparable outcomes at similar “army value” moments
• Variety doesn’t collapse into one optimal unit (example failure case cited: “everyone builds jeeps”)

4) Multiplayer Infrastructure / Network Code

• Dedicated servers help but are costly and time-consuming.
• Networking issues (ping routing, regional server paths) can cause lag and affect regions like China.

5) Lore / Narrative Delivery (and community expectation)

• RTS lore requires ongoing communication and strong writing.
• Players expect “Warcraft/StarCraft-like” story texture via:
  • In-game dialogue/briefings
  • Regular lore updates (e.g., in Discord)
• Difficulty:
  • Matching the impact/quality without “legendary writer” teams (Chris Metzen mentioned as an iconic figure).

Promotion Strategy (how to market RTS today)

Kirill’s main claim:

• Promoting a high-quality RTS is easier than many think because RTS players are concentrated in:
  • YouTube
  • Twitch
  • Discord
  • thematic communities

For marketing to work:

• RTS must meet expectations (visuals, mechanics, “not a clone”)
• A Steam page alone won’t sell a weak product:
  • RTS audiences quickly benchmark against known titles

Tactics mentioned:

• Provide keys to RTS creators/streamers
• Invest in partner streams and content in the RTS blog ecosystem
• Use community-driven feedback loops (Discord, patches, adding naval units, etc.)

Mentioned / Featured Gamers, Creators, and Sources (as named in the subtitles)

People

• Sasha Semyonov (host/interviewer)
• Kirill Bubenko (Orgoup / Workoup)
• Pavel Zagrebelny (“Pasha” — programmer/game designer; Sprintes, MudRunner; SnowRunner; engine/rendering credits listed)
• Konstantin (mentioned as the person Kirill spoke with; associated with a bundle/release)
• Chris Metzen (named as a key lore narrative figure for StarCraft)
• Chris Metzen’s son (joke/aside)
• “BRM” (gamer/streamer mentioned; struggled with training)
• Tsengrabi (mentioned)
• Grabir (mentioned)

Games / franchises used as references

• Dota 2, League of Legends
• Warcraft III, Warcraft II, World of Warcraft (indirect via Warcraft references)
• StarCraft / StarCraft II / Wings of Liberty
• Age of Empires 2 / 4 / V
• Stormgate
• Broken Arrow
• Tempest Rising
• Command & Conquer Remastered Collection
• Red Alert (including remaster discussion)
• DaFrost / “Dafro” (referenced project)
• Lords / “King simulator” (as an analogy)
• Game of Thrones RTS (discussed without a specific title)
• Warhammer / Warhammer-like references
• World of Ships
• Atomic Heart
• Extract
• Smut
• “Three-of-name” C&C-like examples (portfolio references)

Metrics / sites mentioned

• SteamDB, Steam
• Homaly(tics) / Homalytics (revenue tracking site)

Markdown Output