Playing the game

The best way to learn how to play this game is by watching other players' recorded games.

Winning tips

• Read the comprehensive New Player's Guide To OpenRA.
• Learn the Controls and shortcuts.
• Build at least two Ore Refineries at the start of the game. (To ensure a strong economy.)
• To effectively attack early in the game, use long-distance weapons. Make sure you can back up those weapons with anti-air or anti-tank units, and...
• Do not waste units. Example: do not attack with one Medium Tank against the enemy. Such an attack will result in both lost production time and money. This will also alert the enemy to build defenses which could be difficult to overcome later in game.
• Always make sure the Harvesters (Ore Trucks) go to the closest Ore Refineries, and that they are as close to the ore as possible.
• Sell unused Ore Refineries.
• Use arrow keys for moving the screen and disable scrolling when touching the edges with mouse. This increases control over the screen and player units. (It is recommended to use middle-mouse to pan. This is fast and accurate.)
• Play on a large screen, at the highest native display resolution, to see more of the map at once.
• Constantly search for crates, which provide randomized rewards of bonus units, credits, unit or global repair and more.
• Always have a defensive building ready to be deployed. This provides some time to fortify the base when attacked by the enemy. For example: Pillbox/Flame Tower early in the game and Tesla Coil/Turret later in game.)