OpenRA

OpenRA is a free and open-source real-time strategy engine that rebuilds and modernizes several of the classic Westwood RTS games that defined the genre in the 1990s. Rather than being a single remake, OpenRA provides a common engine for multiple games, currently including Command & Conquer: Tiberian Dawn, Command & Conquer: Red Alert, and Dune 2000.

The appeal is immediately recognizable if you've ever played classic Command & Conquer. You harvest resources, construct a base, build an army, research your available technology, and attempt to flatten the opposing side. But OpenRA deliberately modernizes the formula rather than trying to reproduce every limitation of the original engines.

Modern controls, attack-move, stances, production queues, fog of war, unit veterancy, capturable structures, replays, observer tools, and improved multiplayer infrastructure all make the games considerably more comfortable to play today.

That creates an interesting balance between preservation and reinterpretation. Red Alert still looks and feels like Red Alert, but a veteran player will notice that the underlying game has evolved. Tiberian Dawn gets similar treatment, while the Dune 2000 mod currently places more emphasis on faithfully reproducing its original gameplay.

The multiplayer side is particularly strong. OpenRA has an active online community, support for custom maps and mods, dedicated servers, replays, spectators, and competitive play. The project's community also regularly runs tournaments and streams.

Then there is the modding ecosystem. OpenRA isn't limited to rebuilding Westwood's games. Its engine was deliberately designed as a general-purpose RTS platform, with an SDK that lets creators build entirely new games and total conversions. Community projects can introduce new factions, units, mechanics, maps, campaigns, and rulesets.

The project is still actively developed. The February 2026 playtest introduced new random map generators for Red Alert, Tiberian Dawn, and Dune 2000, alongside balance changes, new missions, map-editor improvements, and other updates.

OpenRA is also genuinely free and open source. The engine itself is GPLv3 software, with the original game assets handled separately under the relevant licensing arrangements.

For us, that's what makes OpenRA more interesting than simply recommending the original games. It's a living version of classic RTS design. You get the personality and mechanical foundation of games that helped define PC strategy, but with an active community still experimenting with what those games can become.