Command & Conquer

The Good
I love the Warcraft/Starcraft games. This game is different in so many ways that make this game strategically different and a lot of fun. It took me a while to figure this game out because I was stuck in a Warcraft mentality. I had to think different to win. Tiberium, the only resource in the game, is, ironically, poisonous to infantry who are not in APCs, which is interesting. Gameplay is terrific. The music is another home run by Westwood Studios, a studio that seems to care about sound as much as the game itself. "I'm a mechanical man." I laugh when I think about that.

I like the nod buggies and bikes. They're fast. Not to mention the flame tanks. Why do the bad guys have all the coolest toys?

It's satisfying to plunder an enemy base with a few engineers, then sweep the remaining forces with a herd of tanks and such. Oh, yeah!

The cutscenes were fun. Westwood has a propensity for cutscenes. They're kind of a fun little reward at the end of each level. And the little lo-res units are so cute! The infantry guys do push-ups when you aren't using them. Brilliant!

The Bad
The old Tan vs. Red. Everything is either tan or red. GDI is tan. NOD is red. This is a minor gripe, a nit to be picked. Besides, it's important to know who the bad guys are. And there are times when the game lagged or seemed super-hard, but that's probably operator error and not a game flaw.

The Bottom Line
If you have an older Windows 9x computer, it's worth playing. It worked on XP but without sound. You need sound.

The Good
What other strategy game is so Real, many games like Dune and Extreme Tactics are just plain Sci-Fi/ Strategy, even the so called "strategy" in Extreme Tactics is basically just bringing together a strong group and attacking (even a 6 year old could do it!), I have nothing against Extreme Tactics, in fact it's one of the best games I ever played, the graphics are quite good actually, at the beggining they look like any Real-time's graphics, then after playing the game many times, you'll notice the major improvements, the graphics are much more colourful and enhanced and they're just better.

The Bad
This game's only weak point is the sound (like in all strategy games), it's the usual beeps, and aaas.

The Bottom Line
Here's the bottom line: A good game that should be obtained by any action or strategy gamer. 4 and a quarter out of 5.

The Good
The gameplay is a refinement of Dune II : The Building of a Dynasty. You establish your base, build defences for it, and ensure you have a supply of income through the collection of tiberium.

C&C established the standard gameplay elements that all latter RTS were based on. The User Interface was well done with it being possible to create groupings of units that could be easily called and sent into battle.

Unlike WarCraft, C&C did not counter the two sides with duplicated units, but had GDI and Nod forces possess unique units that countered each other. Infantry could be effective in groups against tanks, yet were vulnerable to artillery. Artillery was in turn vulnerable to tanks. An intricate rock-paper-scissors balance was crafted.

Graphics were excellent and the carnage that ensued from the battles was a delight to behold. Infantry crawl on their stomachs to avoid being pulverized, tanks smoke when damaged, the bases are all well drawn and distinctive. Full Motion Video filmed top notch actors to help set the scenes of the game. Most of the missions had clear goals.

The music and sound is top-notch. The sound of the battles is loudest when your screen is centered on the action and is more muffled when you are away from the battles looking after your base or harvesters.

The Bad
The AI is weak, not mounting much of an assault, and is helped with some challenge base layouts. Basically, tackling a based requires a tactical hand, first of all disabling the defensive turrets, then throwing waves of armour at the enemy. It is not very skillful, but is a lot of fun. At times, units reacted poorly to being attacked and not responding with returning fire which was frustrating.

The Bottom Line
Set in a fictional future where two global forces (Global Defence Initiative & the Brotherhood of Nod) battle over an alien and powerful resource called Tiberium. Players must help guide their chosen faction through a series of missions by balancing micromanaging resource collection, base creation, and mortal combat all in real time!

Each successive mission introduces the player to new units and structures that they can build and employ. By creating a Tiberium Refinery, you create a Harvester that will intelligently collect resources, return to base, and refine these resources into credits that you then use to enhance your base and army. The interace is intuitive and incorporates mainstay features like grouping and map deployment.

Command & Conquer is the undisputed yardstick by which all following Real Time Strategy games were measured by. I give this game 29 out of 30.