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Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars

The Command & Conquer series needs no introduction. If you've somehow managed to miss the defining RTS game franchise, don't worry: there's no need to play the old games in the series to get up to speed. Even if you're not allergic to dated graphics, there's really nothing to gain from playing the classic C&C anyway. Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars gives you the same game with new, beautiful graphics and a good deal of tweaks and improvements.

Set 40 years in the future, the plot goes back to the Tiberium-infested roots of Command & Conquer. The C&C: Red Alert titles and C&C: Generals didn't feature this poisonous green mineral, but in Tiberium Wars has an abundance of it. In fact, 70% of the Earth's surface in 2047 is covered by green crystals, rendering much of it inhabitable and sparking civil unrest and war where the affliction has spread. C&C3 promises to unfold the grand story of how and why Tiberium appeared on Earth. The Global Defense Initiative or GDI is again faced with the elusive, insidious Brotherhood of Nod, whose leader Kane starts a new war by attacking GDI's space station Philadelphia. Kane's scheme has more in it than what meets the eye though and a new deadly enemy appears to threaten both GDI and Nod, and all of humanity with them. The player takes the role of a GDI or Nod commander, and controls a variety of units, builds bases and completes missions in typical real-time strategy style. Naturally, the outcome of the Third Tiberium War and the fate of humanity depends on you alone.

If it works...

In a pre-release interview, Mike Verdu, the Executive Producer of C&C3, called for better use of ground and cover in RTS games. This, along with reported new and more detailed unit controls, raised both hopes and concerns among fans that C&C3 was moving towards a more accurate tactical simulation. The game is also the first in the C&C series to feature directional damage modelling, which means that you can gain a real advantage by outflanking and attacking from the rear. Infantry units also take cover by going prone (but didn't we see this in the original C&C ten years ago?), and under fire they stay suppressed for a few moments before moving freely again. They never really get pinned, though - you can force them to move, and only lose a defensive bonus.

Careful planning and tactics

... or strength in numbers?

However, a few minutes into a fight, all these fancy tactical refinements are quickly forgotten. While features such as backwards movement are welcome additions when you're desperately trying to keep your last tank alive, I found myself using them very rarely during a normal game. The catch here is C&C3's traditional RTS design: you can produce most units in a matter of seconds. If you want to win the game, it's much more effective to spend your time "strategically" - gathering huge mobs of infantry and masses of tanks and charging forward with them, rather than tactically - micromanaging the precise movements of a single vehicles or infantry squads.

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