Aliens: Dark Descent - real-time squad-based tactical action

[H. P. Lovecraft's Cat]

The hands off control scheme is the biggest reason i like this game tbh.

Its not for everyone but i have always wanted to larp as a liutenant gorman style dude giving commands from the safety of the apc whilst watching my hapless squad having to try and figure out my orders.
The only other game i’ve played that had sort of gameplay style was Deadnauts, otherwise it’s slim pickings.

It’s also one of the reasons why even though i said stealth is the most meta way to play, i went loud constantly and never avoided aliens because i liked to hear my marines gradually panic and lose their shit, leads to very tense escapes and the choice of ost couldnt be better:

It works because of the source material it's based on. The whole game feels inspired by the Scene from Aliens where the marines first encounter the xenomorphs. The game does a brilliant job of capturing the feel of that iconic scene. That's why the game works and I don't think you can apply this formula to just any rts. It works specifically because of the movie it's borrowing from.