Rusted Warfare - RTS in IOS

A real-time base building RTS

Walkthrough, Guilds, Tips on this special game

Our Site Score

88/100

Rusted Warfare is a breath of fresh air for fans of 'Total Annihilation' or 'Command & Conquer.' In a world where mobile RTS games are often riddled with timers and pay-to-win mechanics, Rusted Warfare is a pure, old-school strategy experience. It prioritizes gameplay over graphics, using a simple pixel-art style to allow for hundreds of units to be on screen at once without a hint of lag.

The scale is what makes it special. You can zoom out from a single scout to a continent-spanning battlefield with nukes flying, navies clashing, and experimental mechs leading the charge. The UI is surprisingly functional for touchscreens, and the cross-platform multiplayer works flawlessly. It is, without a doubt, the most complete and honest RTS experience available on the App Store.

Reviewed on: Thu Feb 26 2026
Dinsun Avatar

Dinsun Review

This is what mobile gaming should be. No gems, no energy bars, just strategy. Rusted Warfare looks like a game from 1998, but it plays better than almost any modern mobile RTS. The unit variety is staggering, and the scale of the battles is something you usually only see on PC. It’s hard, the UI takes some getting used to on a small screen, and the developer hasn't updated it in a while, but it remains a masterpiece of the genre. If you have even a passing interest in RTS, you must own this.

Overall Stats

Pros & Cons

  • Zero microtransactions
  • Incredible unit variety and scale
  • Deep strategic complexity
  • Aesthetic might be too 'retro' for some
  • Infrequent developer updates
  • UI is cramped on smaller phones

Technical Report

Performance: Highly optimized; can handle hundreds of units on screen with minimal frame drops.

Accessibility:

    Audience Fit

    Buy if: You are a fan of classic PC RTS games like Command & Conquer.

    Skip if: You cannot tolerate pixel art or complex control schemes on mobile.

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    Reviewer Context

    • Reviewer: Dinsun, 40-year-old conservative gamer
    • Hardware: iPhone 15 Pro
    • Playtime: 12 hours
    • Status: Finished Campaign

    The Game

    Available on: iPhone, iPad, iPod

    Version 1.15Sat Nov 12 2022

    Rusted Warfare Update 1.15

    -New unit - Heavy AA Ship (by uber)

    -New unit - Spy Drone - Can not attack/Can see further through fog/Decent health and speed/Self repair. Built in the T2 air factory.

    -Game history shown with graphs on post game win/lose screen and Stats/leaderboard button in replays

    -Shader effects (enable in settings) - Right now adds displacement/shockwave effects such as teleport, water ripples, nuke shockwaves.

    -Overrides for each players in multiplayer and advanced skirmish

    ---AI difficulty can now be set differently for each AI player

    ---Starting units can be different for each player, useful for faction selection in mods.

    ---Unit color can be overridden for each player

    -Added new speed and blink modules to Modular Spider

    -Nautilus: Launch scout bot ability and anti-nuke added

    -Lots of other new features and fixes.


    Rusted Warfare is a fully featured multiplayer RTS inspired by classic real-time strategy games with fun gameplay and modern multi-threaded tech.

    • A pure RTS with no microtransactions

    • Online and offline multiplayer over wifi and mobile networks

    • Campaign, skirmish, survival, and challenge missions, with full AI

    • Over 50+ unique land, air, and sea units for dynamic gameplay

    • Experimental units and nuclear missiles for the big endgame battles

    • Fast interface: Issue commands through the minimap, multi-touch support, unit groups, rally points

    • Strategic zoom: Zoom out to view and issue commands across the whole battlefield

    • Save and load games including multiplayer games for that quick lunch time battle

    • Reconnect disconnected multiplayer games and avoid any disappointment

    • Fully scales from phones to large screen tablets


    Requires iOS 10.0 or later. Compatible with iPhoneĀ 5S, iPhoneĀ 6, iPhoneĀ 6Ā Plus, iPhoneĀ 6S, iPhoneĀ 6SĀ Plus, iPhoneĀ SE (1stĀ generation), iPhoneĀ 7, iPhoneĀ 7Ā Plus, iPhoneĀ 8, iPhoneĀ 8 Plus, iPhoneĀ X, iPhoneĀ XS, iPhoneĀ XSĀ Max, iPhoneĀ XR, iPhoneĀ 11, iPhoneĀ 11Ā Pro, iPhoneĀ 11Ā ProĀ Max, iPhoneĀ SE (2ndĀ generation), iPhoneĀ 12Ā mini, iPhoneĀ 12, iPhoneĀ 12Ā Pro, iPhoneĀ 12Ā ProĀ Max, iPhoneĀ 13Ā Pro, iPhoneĀ 13Ā ProĀ Max, iPhoneĀ 13Ā mini, iPhoneĀ 13, iPhoneĀ SE (3rdĀ generation), iPhoneĀ 14, iPhoneĀ 14Ā Plus, iPhoneĀ 14Ā Pro, iPhoneĀ 14Ā ProĀ Max, iPhoneĀ 15, iPhoneĀ 15Ā Plus, iPhoneĀ 15Ā Pro, iPhoneĀ 15Ā ProĀ Max, iPhoneĀ 16, iPhoneĀ 16Ā Plus, iPhoneĀ 16Ā Pro, iPhoneĀ 16Ā ProĀ Max, iPhone 16e, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone 17, iPhone Air, iPadĀ Air, iPadĀ Air Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ miniĀ 2, iPadĀ miniĀ 2 Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ AirĀ 2, iPadĀ AirĀ 2 Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ miniĀ 3, iPadĀ miniĀ 3 Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ miniĀ 4, iPadĀ miniĀ 4 Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch), iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch) Wi-FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (9.7‑inch), iPadĀ Pro (9.7‑inch) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ (5thĀ generation), iPadĀ (5thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch) (2ndĀ generation), iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch) (2ndĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (10.5‑inch), iPadĀ Pro (10.5‑inch) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ (6thĀ generation), iPadĀ (6thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (11‑inch), iPadĀ Pro (11‑inch) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch) (3rdĀ generation), iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch) (3rdĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ mini (5thĀ generation), iPadĀ mini (5thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Air (3rdĀ generation), iPadĀ Air (3rdĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ (7thĀ generation), iPadĀ (7thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (11‑inch) (2ndĀ generation), iPadĀ Pro (11‑inch) (2ndĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch) (4thĀ generation), iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch) (4thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Air (4thĀ generation), iPadĀ Air (4thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ (8thĀ generation), iPadĀ (8thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ ProĀ (11-inch) (3rdĀ generation), iPadĀ ProĀ (11-inch) (3rdĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ ProĀ (12.9-inch) (5thĀ generation), iPadĀ ProĀ (12.9-inch) (5thĀ generation) Wi-FiĀ +Ā Cellular, iPadĀ mini (6thĀ generation), iPadĀ mini (6thĀ generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad (9thĀ generation), iPad (9thĀ generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPadĀ Air (5thĀ generation), iPadĀ Air (5thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPad (10thĀ generation), iPad (10thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (11‑inch) (4thĀ generation), iPadĀ Pro (11‑inch) (4thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch) (6thĀ generation), iPadĀ Pro (12.9‑inch) (6thĀ generation) Wi‑FiĀ + Cellular, iPadĀ Air 11-inch (M2), iPadĀ Air 11-inch (M2) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPadĀ Air 13-inch (M2), iPadĀ Air 13-inch (M2) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro 11-inch (M4), iPad Pro 11-inch (M4) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPadĀ Pro 13-inch (M4), iPadĀ Pro 13-inch (M4) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPadĀ miniĀ (A17Ā Pro), iPadĀ miniĀ (A17Ā Pro) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad (A16), iPad (A16) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air 11-inch (M3), iPad Air 11-inch (M3) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air 13-inch (M3), iPad Air 13-inch (M3) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 11-inch (M5), iPad Pro 11-inch (M5) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 13-inch (M5), iPad Pro 13-inch (M5) Wi-Fi + Cellular, and iPodĀ touch.

    Rusted Warfare is a fully featured multiplayer RTS inspired by classic real-time strategy games with fun gameplay and modern multi-threaded tech.

    • A pure RTS with no microtransactions

    • Online and offline multiplayer over wifi and mobile networks

    • Campaign, skirmish, survival, and challenge missions, with full AI

    • Over 50+ unique land, air, and sea units for dynamic gameplay

    • Experimental units and nuclear missiles for the big endgame battles

    • Fast interface: Issue commands through the minimap, multi-touch support, unit groups, rally points

    • Strategic zoom: Zoom out to view and issue commands across the whole battlefield

    • Save and load games including multiplayer games for that quick lunch time battle

    • Reconnect disconnected multiplayer games and avoid any disappointment

    • Fully scales from phones to large screen tablets


    Ratings & Reviews

    4.7 out of 5 with 568 Counts
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    Age Rating 9+

    Screenshots

    Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 1Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 2Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 3Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 4Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 5Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 6Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 7Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 8Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 9Rusted Warfare - RTS screenshot 10

    Rusted Warfare is an inspired RTS that brings the deep strategy of 90s PC classics to mobile. Featuring a high-performance engine, it supports massive battles with up to 1000 units simultaneously. Build your base, manage resources, and deploy everything from basic infantry to giant experimental mechs. With no in-game microtransactions, a robust single-player campaign, and cross-platform multiplayer, it is the definitive strategy experience for purists.

    Features

    1

    No Microtransactions or Ads

    2

    Full Cross-Platform Multiplayer

    3

    Large-Scale 1000+ Unit Battles

    4

    Integrated Map Editor

    Tips

    Promotion Videos

    Rusted Warfare Review - YouTube

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    Gameplays

    Q&A

    Yes, it includes a full campaign, survival modes, and skirmishes against highly capable AI.

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