A game that brings out your inner-child.
This is the latest title in the Command and Conquer series and has a lot to live up to after games such as Red Alert 2 were a resounding success. There are no ridiculous stories this time around, no time-travelling heroics or crazy blimp missions. Infact the Story Mode at times offers players the chance to play through missions that are every bit realistic and reflect modern day warfare perfectly.
The main focus of Generals are the three armies featured in the game, each with a distinctive look and feel. USA, China, and GLA (Global Liberation Army), which may as well be called "The Middle East". The United States has powerful and expensive units on board, including well-armed infantry and vehicles that can heal themselves. Their superior intelligence capabilities and flexible air force allow them to strike quickly anywhere on the map. China, on the other hand, excels at amassing hordes of cheap units and improving their capabilities with bonuses. They have computer hackers who can steal money or quickly subvert enemy buildings and units. Eventually, China can bring to bear monster tanks and fearsome napalm weaponry. The GLA is perhaps the most interesting side, partly for the inappropriate subject matter. There are elements of the GLA that clearly reflect recent events. You can use terrorists with car bombs and truck bombs, suicide bombers with explosives strapped to their chests, anthrax and biotoxin weaponary, units hiding out in tunnels and caves, and angry mobs of Arabs wielding AK-47s. These aren't the only reasons the GLA are so interesting though, their gameplay mechanics differ radically. They require a certain amount of stealth and patience and just a little more skill than the others to keep under control, but once mastered can turn out to be the most deadly army of all. Rather than employing expensive resource-gathering trucks (China) or helicopters (the U.S.), they have swarms of workers who double as construction units. All three sides are well balanced and well thought out, each having their own strengths and weaknesses. There are literally hundreds of ways to play this game with each army and this adds a huge lifespan to a somewhat unfulfilling Story Mode.
Each general has what's known as a branching tech tree and this holds many special bonuses and abilities that can be purchased as you gain experience through a battle. This adds a new element to the game and can really turn the tide of a battle if they're used effectively. For instance, you can use your points early to give your units experience and mount an early attack for vital areas of the map. Alternatively you can save your points and put them into a powerful airstrike ability later on, which can totally destroy anything on the map within a certain target range.
People who are familiar with Westwood's earlier real-time strategy games will probably understand the interface fairly well by now and will have no trouble creating an army for any occasion, however a few additions to the mix would have been welcomed this time around. There are still a lack of hotkeys, group selections and auto-formations that would have really made the game easier to control and a lot less frustrating. The AI doesn't really help you either, half the challenge will be micromanaging your units to do what you tell them to, it can be anything from stopping your men from walking through a large cloud of anthrax, to telling them to shoot when getting shot from behind. This is were practise really helps, as a lot of battles can be won by simply juggling the interface and micromanaging your units quicker than your opponent.
The sound in this game works well, the heroic soundtrack tends to build when in the heat of battle and can really create emotion, the sound-bytes can also add somewhat of a comedic element with quirky comments, catchphrases, and inventive war-cries. That's if you pay attention to the sound at all, this game can look beautiful on a top-end machine and can boast some pretty great visuals, however the average gamer will probably find themselves suffering from slowdown in a large battle due to the games demanding engine. The artwork for some of the units included in this game are pretty jaw-dropping, you really will appreciate the effort the game designers have gone to. The animations are sharp too, from the trees swaying gently in the breeze to the smoke effects emitting from the chimneys of your many power plants, even the way soldiers get shot looks great and all this adds up to some pretty nice eye-candy. The only downside is the lack of graphical tinkering you can take advantage of, lower-end computer users may find themselves tearing their hair out.
The Story Mode isn't the focus this time around and this isn't a bad thing either, they have really made the main focus of this game the Skirmish Mode. You can play against the computer, a networked game with friends, or even venture online and face some tough opponents. However, you may find yourself experiencing erratic problems if you do decide to network your computers together and play with friends unfortunately, for a game that is so focused on it's multiplayer aspect i was kind of hoping it would be a little more user-friendly. The biggest problems will probably come if you decide to play through a router and renders the "direct connect" feature pretty useless. If you do manage to get it working that is where the fun can really start, the highly addictive gameplay and your thirst for victory will have you playing for hours on end.
Make no mistake about it, this game does have it's flaws but it's clever design, great visuals and addictive play make it all worth while. There is something about this game that brings out your inner-child, controlling your own army of planes, blowing buildings up with nuclear weaponary, or just taking out tanks with your infantry units really is utterly fulfilling and very enjoyable. The amount of units, upgrades, abilities and tactical awareness this game has makes it one of the best real-time strategy games around and honours the Command and Conquer name.