Video summary

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

Main summary

Key takeaways

Gaming

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

Original video