Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2

aka: C&C:RA2, Command & Conquer: Alarmstufe Rot 2, Command & Conquer: Alerte Rouge 2
Moby ID: 2544
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Description official descriptions

Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 takes place approximately two decades since the first Red Alert and, unlike the original, has no relation at all to the Tiberium universe. It is a conventional real-time strategy game which, in terms of gameplay, still faithfully continues the Dune/Command & Conquer lineage.

Although the Western Allies have installed a lackey as the Premier of the Soviet Union, their spies and relevant contacts suddenly go silent with the appearance of a powerful Soviet psychic named Yuri, who turns out to be Premier Romanov's advisor. Soon afterwards, the Soviet Union launches an overwhelming invasion on North America and Europe on land, air, and sea. As is usual, the player joins the Allied or Soviet side in the singleplayer campaign (with 12 missions for each faction) as of that point in the storyline. Whereas the technology level in the original Red Alert had World War II and Cold War-era weapons mixed with a few technologies inspired by failed real-world experiments, the arsenals of both sides in Red Alert 2 predominantly include technologically advanced units and structures such as teleporting Chrono Legionnaires, chain-connecting Prism towers, cloning vats, weather control devices, etc. However, the storyline's tone is considerably more light-hearted than that in previous Command & Conquer games, and following in the footsteps of Tiberian Sun, more known actors were brought to act in the full-motion video cutscenes.

The game uses a modified and optimized engine from Tiberian Sun and expands the gameplay in multiple ways. Both factions are completely distinct both functionally and visually, civilian structures can be garrisoned by each faction's basic infantry unit for increased firepower and rate of fire, the Allied IFV is included as the first customizable unit in the series (which can change its weapon and function based on the carried infantry unit), and there are neutral "tech" structures which bring bonuses to the players who capture them (e.g. oil derricks bring a small but frequent flow of income, airports allow deployment of paratroopers...). Like in the original Red Alert, factions are split into countries (5 Allied countries, 4 Soviet ones) in skirmish and multiplayer, but instead of having hidden production bonuses, each country has a unique unit, structure or support power that the others do not have access to. Aside from the aforementioned main singleplayer campaign, there is a vast number of skirmish/multiplayer maps, short co-op campaigns, and the return of the World Domination Tour multiplayer mode (unavailable in LAN) which was adapted from the Firestorm expansion for Tiberian Sun.

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Credits (Windows version)

349 People (266 developers, 83 thanks) · View all

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 84% (based on 48 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.8 out of 5 (based on 121 ratings with 14 reviews)

If you liked Tiberian Sun, you'll probably like this...

The Good
The colors are bright and keep it from looking dull and boring.

The cinematics during the missions are a blast, with obvious over-the-top acting and vibrant colors. The single player missions are all fun and also help to introduce the player to the units and basic strategies needed to survive in the multi-player world. My favorite moment was using the chronosphere to move a group of prism and mirage tanks to the back of a base and obliterating it! Who could ask for more?

As for the multi-player, there are tons of ways to play besides the normal straight up fight. A favorite alternate way of mine is the unholy alliance, where you start with a soviet and allied MCV, allowing you to get both tech trees, and some interesting hybrid units as well...I'll let you discover what they are.

Doesn't have that annoying health bar problem.

The Bad
RA2 isn't without its flaws. There is no way to actually set a formation; you can tell a group to travel together, but they won't stay in any pattern. The pathfinding isn't always the best, and units don't always respond to being fired upon.

The multi-player "chat" is horrible, you can only see six lines at a time, and there is no squelch/mute button in sight. It was obviously put together in a couple of weeks, to make a deadline.

There is no map editor, only the return of the crappy random map maker from Tiberian Sun. What was westwood thinking?

Westwood once again patched a game to death. RA2 has turned into a cross between RA and TS. Most units are no long usable, and its not fast enough to justify only a few strategies.

Most modes of multiplayer aren't used.

May be overly cartoonish for some hardcore or picky people.

The Bottom Line
75% Tiberian Sun and 25% Red Alert. It's gotten slower with each new patch. The only reason it manages to pull out of TS depths is that it is somewhat faster, and the units are cooler.

Windows · by Dr. Elementary (273) · 2001

Crappy game, pretty fun - no one knows why.

The Good
the graphics are preatty good most of the time, tho sometimes they suck. great music. voic acting for the units rocks sometimes, suck oher times. a good example for it is the great lybian truck vs. most of the lame soviets (if they were sampled from even semi russian people...) another example is the Desolator, he sound kewl, like a Warcraft2 deathknight - but isn't he supposed to be Iraqi???

The Bad
stupid plot. boring campaign. a few superunits can crush a base in seconds. snow levels look like crap. stupid unuseful expansive sea units. stupid ai - your units ignore it when they are being fired upon, plot their own stupid courses and enter enemy fire zones. a few dogs can kill dozens of gis and they just ignore them. units ignore your orders sometimes for no appearent reason - only to get themselves killed.

The Bottom Line
For some unknowen reason this game is fun. maybe it's alien influence. play it, curse the stupid ai and continue to play.

Windows · by Oren Hadas (3) · 2001

An excellent fast-paced RTS, don't miss it!

The Good
Let us start by the most important aspect: gameplay. This is an extremely fast-paced, almost frenetic, RTS - particularly if you go for multiplayer. It follows the classical C&C approach to the genre, sporting a wide variety and types of units: from mind-controlled squids to zeppelin bombers.

The setting and aesthetical style is fantastic, together with a very decent plot which is complemented by great FMV cut-scenes. From the hi-tech retro look of the Allies to the Industrial-Eastern feeling of the Soviets, the graphical team did a great job with this game.

Finally, Frank Klepacki brings another of its masterpieces with the game's soundtrack. Techno-urban pieces which fit perfectly the game's frenzy. The voicework is also remarkable.

The Bad
Albeit pretty, great-looking and detailed, the graphics are far from 2000 standards. As other reviews mention it, Starcraft is an older game with arguably better graphics.

Besides, the game engine proves to be rather clumsy at times. Even modern computers will have some minor problems running the game at higher resolutions.

The Bottom Line
If you are a RTS fan, do not miss this classic. Even more if you enjoy alternate history themes, and would like to see if the USSR decided to invade the USA - everything told with some humour thrown in.

All in all, and in spite of some of its flaws, it can keep up as one of the greatest RTS ever made - the best in the C&C series, in my own opinion.

Windows · by KaiserChicken (11) · 2007

[ View all 14 player reviews ]

Trivia

Best Buy release

When first released, Best Buy had a special offer: the Command and Conquer Soundtrack Collection (soundtrack from ALL C&C games) on CD for the first 100 buyers of RA2 in every store.

Cover

To avoid sensitivity issues after the real-world terrorist attacks on the WTC, EA offered distributors and retailers new boxes in October 2001 which removed the "The Invasion Has Begun" motto and the pictures depicting NY under attack (basically removing the box's flap and background in the front), as well as changing the eyepiece reflection from the American flag to a nuclear detonation.

Editor

FinalAlert was released alongside the patch 1.005, and it allows creating both multiplayer (skirmish, LAN, on-line) and solo (campaign) missions. It was created by a fan, Matthias "Matze" Wagner, instead of Westwood Pacific themselves, but was distributed through Westwood's official FTP server.

German version

This is the first Command & Conquer title not to be censored in Germany.

Installation

Instead of the regular installation like InstallShield or DemoShield, the custom installer of the game explains the events between first Red Alert and this game, which are otherwise barely referenced in the campaign.

Online servers

The game's online servers were migrated from the official Westwood Online infrastructure to the community-run XWIS (XCC WOL IRC Server), under approval and sponsorship from EA's German office on 6 October 2005. The Westwood Online domains have acted as a redirect to XWIS services since then, requiring no additional steps from the user to access the servers short of registering an account.

The World Domination Tour mode's code was not preserved, however.

Sales

In 2000, Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 won the Gold-Award from the German VUD (Verband der Unterhaltungssoftware Deutschland - Entertainment Software Association Germany) for selling more then 100,000 (but less then 200,000) units in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Soundtrack

The in-game track list is below.

  1. Grinder (02:27)
  2. Power (03:56)
  3. Fortification (04:02)
  4. In Deep (03:24)
  5. Tension (04:05)
  6. Eagle Hunter (04:16)
  7. Industrofunk (03:12)
  8. 200 Meters (04:12)
  9. Blow It Up (03:11)
  10. Destroy (04:38)
  11. Burn (04:38)
  12. Motorized (04:02)
  13. Hell March 2 (03:44)

Installer track: In Deep (03:24)
Main menu track: Grinder (02:27)
Loading screen track: Jank (03:46)
Post-game track: Militant Force 2 (01:09)
Credits track: Optical (02:55)

Three tracks were left unused:

  • C&C In The House (04:25)
  • Probing (04:19)
  • Ready The Army (04:57)

The game also had a limited soundtrack release physically and which was included in the Collector's Edition, then as of 2005 digitally on Apple iTunes, followed by other streaming services as they arrived. Note that the list is reordered and the Tension track was cut out, while unused tracks took its place:

  1. Hell March 2 (03:46)
  2. Industrofunk (03:14)
  3. Ready the Army (04:59)
  4. Grinder (02:29)
  5. In Deep (03:26)
  6. Motorized (04:04)
  7. Power (03:58)
  8. 200 Meters (04:14)
  9. Destroy (04:40)
  10. Burn (04:39)
  11. Probing (04:21)
  12. Blow It Up (03:13)
  13. Eagle Hunter (04:18)
  14. Fortification (04:04)
  15. Jank (03:48)
  16. C&C in the House (04:06)

Awards

  • PC Player (Germany)
    • Issue 01/2001 - Best Strategy Game in 2000
  • Verband der Unterhaltungssoftware Deutschland
    • 2000 - Gold Award (more details in the "Sales" section)

Information also contributed by MAT, Kasey Chang, paul cairey, Xoleras and Zovni

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Kartanym.

Additional contributors: MAT, Rebound Boy, Erwin Bergervoet, Corn Popper, paul cairey, Patrick Bregger, Plok, TaxOwlbear.

Game added October 25, 2000. Last modified March 21, 2024.