# OpenRA

26 Hacker News commenters recommended OpenRA and 4 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 4 of 13 months. It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** Free open-source engine recreating Red Alert 2 with multiplayer; people say it plays better than the original. Common caveats: slow loading, recent bugs and online toxicity.

## Why people recommend it

- Fun to play with friends and family (2 comments): "Just perfect for a quick free RTS game with a friend." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48698033)) "I love OpenRA! Play it every weekend with my dad." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48702722))
- Free, with donations instead of charges (2 comments): "OpenMW and OpenRA don't charge players for access/extra context, they only accept donations." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47830831)) "smooth free online implementation of red alert 2 with multiplayer" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48672566))
- Better and faster than the original (3 comments): "OpenRA is great, it feels like a better version of Red Alert 2." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48699492)) "engine is 10x faster and pathfinding mostly works properly" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47906436)) "it was considerably better that the 1995 release" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48698737))
- Well balanced and thought through (2 comments): "Incredibly well-balanced and thought through." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48698168)) "how well OpenRA is balanced" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48697961))

## What people warn about

- Unfinished Tiberian Sun and RA2 support (2 comments): "Instead of working on finishing it though they just add more tedious features to RA1" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45995095)) "Would be nice if they finished Tiberian Sun/Red Alert 2 support." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48701905))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Beyond All Reason](https://hackerapproved.com/p/beyond-all-reason.md): 76 recommend
- [Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness](https://hackerapproved.com/p/warcraft-ii-tides-of-darkness.md): 51 recommend
- [Total Annihilation](https://hackerapproved.com/p/total-annihilation.md): 48 recommend
- [StarCraft](https://hackerapproved.com/p/starcraft.md): 36 recommend
- [StarCraft II](https://hackerapproved.com/p/starcraft-ii.md): 32 recommend

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "OpenRA", https://hackerapproved.com/p/openra/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).