Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3

[Hammer]

There have been some rumors going round on the gaming sites today - concerning an imminent C&C related announcement.

Anyone care to speculate as to what it'll be?

We've already had the C&C3 expansion and the FPS announcement, so I reckon it might be either a GDI themed C&C3 expansion or (god help us) Red Alert 3.

[Addy]

I'd LOVE to see the GDI equivalent to Kane's Wrath. Even though Kane's Wrath will obviously own it in all kinds of ways because Kane is just awesome, but I'm interested in seeing the story from their perspective as well. Could give interesting insights into the reclassification of the planet into "zones" and GDI effectively formally taking over the "civilised" world.

[Addy]

http://www.commandandconquer.com/int...d=105#NewsMain (note: the video wasn't working when I posted this)

Yep, C&C's slapstick cousin is back, and if you're hoping, like I was, that the designers would have had a change of heart and finally decided to take it seriously...then you're going to hate this game, which is already looking like a strong candidate for worst C&C game ever (do I really need to say "except Sole Survivor and Renegade"?).

From the press release (feel free to start cringing at any time)

Originally Posted by RA 3 Press Release

In Red Alert 3, the desperate leadership of a doomed Soviet Union travels back in time to change history and restore the glory of Mother Russia. The time travel mission goes awry, creating an alternate timeline where technology has followed an entirely different evolution, a new superpower has been thrust on to the world stage, and World War III is raging. The Empire of the Rising Sun has risen in the East, making World War III a three-way struggle between the Soviets, the Allies, and the Empire with armies fielding wacky and wonderful weapons and technologies like Tesla coils, heavily armed War Blimps, teleportation, armored bears, intelligent dolphins, floating island fortresses, and transforming tanks.

Red Alert 3 asks the question "What If?" What if every bizarre research project and technology experiment for the last 70 years had actually borne fruit? What if the Philadelphia Experiment, time travel theory, teleportation, invisibility, Tesla technology, and a hundred other intriguing research projects had all paid off and gone mainstream? What if the Soviet Union survived and thrived; what would it look like 10 years in the future? What if the Japanese Empire had never fallen and instead became the ultimate high-tech military superpower? The end result is an imaginative and playful vision of an alternate future filled with possibility.

And no Frank Klepachi means no Hell March 3, which the fans are already rioting about on the board (if Wee Dave is wondering, the first track on my mix tape was the theme to RA, the original Hell March ).

Screenshots:



RIP Command and Conquer. We enjoyed you while it lasted

[PapaZeb]

Electronic Arts makes another lackluster sequel to a franchise they own. Where's that goddamned rolly-eyes smiley when you need him?

[Hammer]

I want to stab EA. In the face.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=182420

Screenshot looks shite.

[Addy]

The word "wacky" is used far too often in the press release for my liking

I was really hoping they would make it serious, I think there's potential to do that, I mean retcon the whole of RA2 and it could be done. But no, they've decided to pander to the lowest common denominator. PC Gamer has an article on this next issue, might check it out.

Also, could the thread title be changed, since its no longer a rumour?

[Hammer]

Some more screenshots. These show off the new aquatic bases, which include ocean based power stations, construction yards and what looks like a war factory. Also worthy of note are the amphibious tank boats being used by the Allies, the Tesla boats and the similarity in both unit design and building design to RS2.











Click the images for larger versions.

[Killah_Villa]

Looks like a generals expansion pack.

[Addy]

PC Zone has a hell of a lot of new information, and makes it sound like it could be rather good actually.

For example, every unit now has a secondary ability. Soviet Conscripts now have Molatov Cocktails which can burn through Allied Peacekeeper Riot Shields and such like, the shields themselves protecting them against the longer range Conscript guns in order to allow them to use their short range shotguns. Dogs now have a backpack giving them an amplified bark which stuns infantry, enabling them to get close for their trademark bite. In other words, no more sneaky Commando runs, they're gone forever as without back up the dogs won't be killed before they get to you.

Mirage tanks don't appear to have weapons anymore (pity, they were insanely powerful), acting more like Starcraft Arbiters - they can disguise as any unit (like a vehicular spy) and also cloak a mass of friendly units - column of tanks coming towards you? Pretend to be one, join the end of the queue, then annihilate the whole lot just before they get to your base.

Units are now air, land, naval or amphibious. The amphibious units are obviously more flexible, but trade firepower for that. This worked quite well with the Soviet Submarines, and also Squids/Dolphins in previous RA's where you had to make that choice - now that choice is a fundamental part of gameplay. Do you want power, or flexibility? Naval bases increase the importance of this choice, with strategic resources and immunity from land only units being available. Of course, you lose the ability to make powerful land only units yourself, so if you're at sea and your foe on land the fights could be interesting. Air units, of course, can attack everything at full power, and air combat is going to be a much bigger part of this game.

Basically, you're now forced to use land and navy even if your focus is on one or the other - if you stick to land only, your opponent can get lots of resources from the sea and wipe you out. I like this.

There's also less specialised units generally, so that single unit rushes are hopefully at an end. I mean, even Apocolypse tanks are (presumably) not amphibious, so Mammoth Rushes are truly gone forever with this game.

I'm actually looking forward to this a lot now, and will be trying the beta when Kane's Wrath comes out next Friday.

[Hammer]

You know, one of the reasons I like C&C, RA and to a degree TibSun so much was they had nice simple gameplay.

[Addy]

Originally Posted by Hammer

You know, one of the reasons I like C&C, RA and to a degree TibSun so much was they had nice simple gameplay.

Yeah, I can see there is the danger of overcomplicating it (especially if all the secondary abilities require fiddling about to activate, that could be a pain if you're got a dozen unit types in the same enemy base) although if they do it well it could be fantastic.

I very much like the idea of the public beta, even though at the moment saying something positive about this game on message boards is considered blasphemy towards Westwood. That could allow a lot of the things which just don't work to be sorted before the release.

I don't think much of the PC Zone info has hit other sources though. I recommend you check it out, there's an extensive 6 page feature on the game, featuring a play through of a cut down 2nd last Allied mission - in which Mirage tanks were used exactly as I described, to destroy a Soviet tank column (only it was a trap, and the Allies were themselves wiped out seconds later)

[Hammer]

And we have a trailer:

GameTrailers

I really, really wanted it to be absolutly amazing looking so I could get really psyched about it, but it's just a bit naff. Best thing in it is the water effects

[GreatKingRat]

It reminds me of Micro Machines.

[Hammer]

A load of new screenshots have been released. I can't find them on the press site we normally use so you'll just have to put up with them being on CVG for now: http://www.computerandvideogames.com...89667&skip=yes

Highlights include some pretty cool concept art, unit and building renders for all three sides and some gameplay screenshots.

[Danger]

Makes me want to install RA2 again.