Feels like RTS games have not fully exploited the potential of multi-monitor setup. Was the AI ahead of the game? Although eyes can only focus on so much (screens would distract, I guess). Bigger monitors also would suffer from peripheral vision effect.

Some RTS games allow for zooming out but many intentionally limit the view as a standard part of the game. Would be interesting to see how much being able to see a huge amount of the map at once would change certain games.

From what I've seen with Zero-K (a Total Annihilation descendant) on Twitch, strong players play most of the time zoomed-out to see the whole map at once; some just disable the minimap entirely.

IANAPGM, but one can observe that TA and SC are indeed different RTS games in the sense that TA has a territory control focus (so perhaps a bit more strategic), while SC relies more on the micro/macro focus (workers, some skillshot abilities - which incidentally led to the birth of the MOBA genre).

> "Feels like RTS games have not fully exploited the potential of multi-monitor setup."

Depending on how that's implemented, I could see that rapidly becoming de facto "pay to win".

I played starcraft at a semi-pro level and can say that this: due to the speed at which things happen and through the way it is possible to use certain hotkeys (control groups, base cycling, fkeys) this wouldn't matter at all on a high level.

Supreme Commander allowed you a minimal view on your alternative monitor. It was neat but I felt it wasn’t particularly awesome or anything.

Supreme Commander also allowed continuous zoom because the maps were generally much larger than Starcraft.

I HATED the fact that Starcraft II wouldn't let me do this when it first came out.

I loved Starcraft I, but the emphasis on twitchy play meant that I simply couldn't be bothered to finish Starcraft II.

:) You should have tried to scroll!

I know several of the later games, and even the first games (as far as I remember) allowed two fully independent screens with the UI buttons only appearing on the first one - I used the heck out of it.