Game details

Working title: Command & Conquer Generals

Developed by: Westwood Studios

Distributed by: EA Games

Genre: Real Time Strategy

Release date: 2/11/2003

1-8 players over network or internet connection

System requirements:

Windows XP/ME/2000/98
Intel 800 PIII or AMD Athlon
128 MB RAM
1.8 GB Hard disk space
32 MB Nvidia 2 or higher

Recommendations:

1.8 GHz P4 or higher
256 MB Ram
64 MB Nvidia 3 or higher
128K Cable modem or faster connection

Recent military aggressions around the globe have many nations worried. Between the United States, China, and the Global Liberation Army, tensions run high. Their leaders profess no interest in escalating the situation, but words ring hollow when satellite photos tell a different story. In a time of modern warfare, can you be a great Leader?

Overview

Command & Conquer is a series with a long history of excellent games. The first official C&C game was in 1995, and was titled Tiberian Dawn. This was one of the first big sellers in the RTS (Real Time Strategy) genre, and forever set the tone for games of its type. I can remember reviewers in magazines for several years after C&C was released muttering about all the “Command & Conquer clones. I guess it is true, excellence breeds imitation. Along with great gameplay, full motion video briefings, and a sci-fi storyline, it had a great multiplayer mode. Network strategy gaming became a nightly pastime for many, and Westwood Studios would only improve upon that with future games.

Four more C&C games would be released from the halls of Westwood, and each improved upon its predecessors in some way. From the WWII part deux theme of Red Alert, to the futuristic setting of Tiberian Sun, we saw the progression of the series. Online play, larger matches, more involved campaigns, better graphics, and a new first person action game (C&C Renegade).

Command & Conquer Generals is a big step forward for the series, with it’s revolutionary SAGE 3D graphics engine. Realtime lighting, fully 3D unit models, rolling hills, and realistic water and wave action are all new things for Command & Conquer. Picture Warcraft 3 graphics, but with a more polished and professional look. The lighting and damage effects are better as well.

Instead of the two sides present in previous C&C games, there are three separate factions in Generals. The Chinese, the United States, and the GLA (Global Liberation Army). Each faction has totally different units and structures, and switching factions will require adjustments in your playing style.

The developers created a game that connects very well with the world stage right now. China, the USA, and the Terrorists are facing off in a struggle for power. With new updates on the war against terror each day reported on TV news, you can now go beat on the terrorists yourself if you want to.

Gameplay and graphics

Here are the major changes to the C&C series:

The general system employs three levels of upgrades. One, three, and five star commendations are awarded after enough battle experience is gained. When beginning a match, you start with one skill point. This can be spent to purchase various special abilities from the generals menu such as mass repair, increase unit veterancy, new more powerful units, and many others. Extra skill points are awarded for certain events, and may be spent at the generals menu.

Planes may now engage each other in dogfights.

When a plane is shot down, the pilot may eject and parachute to safety.

Three levels of veteran status exist in Generals, and when a driver or pilot is
ejected, they carry that veteran status onto any unit they control.


The biggest difference in mission-based play is the new cut-scenes. They are no longer video, but actual game graphics. This helps keep you immersed in the game, and creates a “flow” from mission to mission. Voiceovers tell you your objective and what units you will be using.

The fully 3D graphics must be seen in action to appreciate them. I didn't see anything in the graphics that I could complain about, especially when super weapons start getting tossed around. The nuclear explosion from both the nuke strike and destruction of a nuclear missile silo are amazing! Half the fun of lobbing nukes at an opponent is just to watch the effect. While the men are very tiny compared to previous games, it helps the sense of scale seem more realistic. Even though Generals does take a leap towards actual units and conflicts, it is still a fun game at heart with some liberties taken in the realism department. I recommend you play the training mission first. It is designed to walk you through the new interface, units, and structures at a slow pace. With the new graphics and camera angle, even experienced C&C players will need a bit of time to learn.

As of this writing, I have not played any multiplayer battles yet. I completed the training missions, and have advanced to mission 5 of the United States campaign. Each mission has a unique flavor, with several of them taken from current and past events.

Mission #1 has you entering Bagdad to destroy a chemical weapon launch site. A good introduction to the game if you skipped the tutorial, this mission isn’t too difficult.

Mission #2 gives you the chance to alter history. 3 Comanche helicopters are sent to destroy an objective in the heart of a hostile city. In pursuit, they are shot down one at a time by RPG troopers and anti-air emplacements. You must enter the city and rescue the captured pilots. For me, this mission was very similar to the Somalia debacle and the subsequent Blackhawk Down movie.

Mission #3 is the introduction to the Comanche gunship. You must use your airpower to cover allied forces as they retreat through the mountains.

Mission #4 is the first large-scale battle. You are given control of the battle right in the middle of a full-scale beach assault. Battleships fire barrages overhead while landing craft disgorge infantry and armor. Watching this take place using in-game graphics is quite amazing. After the beach landing, you must clear out all anti-air sites to prepare for a large air strike.

The first big battle that you enter with at least 10 units on each side is amazing to see. Tank muzzles flash and recoil, trees snap and topple as armor drives over them, vehicles explode and flip into the air, gunners are flung from destroyed buggies, buildings topple and crash to the ground, debris remains on the battlefield, and flame and fire effects are excellent.

Sound and music

Battle sounds are very good, with units reporting and yelling for backup or extraction. Armor has a distinctive firing sound, and sounds much better if you have the bass turned up. Choppers and jets have a distinctive sound, and the whoosh of a Raptor on an attack run is wonderful to hear. Music is decent, if not a bit generic. If fighting heats up to a full scale battle the music will increase in intensity. It’s a subtle change, but is a nice touch anyway. There is specific music for each faction, and while EA did stereotype each nation's musical style it works well in the game.

Cons
While I understand the need for security against downloading the game, I am very upset that Westwood only allows one player for each game purchased. All other C&C games allowed two players on a network using one cd in each computer. You could only play online with one CD however, which was fine with me. This new measure seems like pure profit hunting, and it's wrong to force me to buy two copies of the game to use in my own house.

Final Comments

=============== UPDATE 2/24/03 ===============

After playing all three factions extensively I have learned to appreciate the differences in them. I've finished both the US and GLA campaigns, and I'm almost done with China's. A fun addition to the series are the medals awarded for accomplishing certain events. Beating the campaigns, building 50 tanks in one game, beating the computer in less than 10 minutes, and other missions. This adds a goal to the AI battles.

USA: The US is powerful in the air, and as an intelligence superpower. They have seven different air units (counting special abilities) and can devastate an entire base in seconds if allowed to build a sizeable air force. The US has four ways to spy on the enemy’s position, and has reconnaissance drones that will hover undetected for long periods of time. This is one of my favorite combinations for the US: 3 Hummers loaded with rocket troops and rangers, and 5 crusader tanks. This will offer you hard hitting power and still gives you defense against air and infantry.

CHINA: Brute force is China’s best asset, whether it is land based or missile launched. The overlord tank is so large you can mount a structure on its turret, either a bunker, gatling gun, or a broadcasting tower. Chinese forces are further strengthened by the flamethrower tank and nuclear artillery. Both are very good at specific tasks. Compared to the US, China does not have any recon capabilities and is in the dark more often about enemy movement. However, once they do find you it's lights out.

GLA If you want to play a sneaky game, this is the faction you want. While relying on hit-and-run tactics for most of their strikes, you can slug it out head to head against opposing forces if you have about 30% more units. The best feature of the GLA is the “junk upgrade” ability. The marauder tank, flak truck, and technical can all be upgraded by the rubble left after an enemy unit is destroyed. This is a strong incentive to keep your units alive, as they become much more effective. Another general upgrade allows you to earn up to 30% of all destroyed units as a cash bonus. This brings in the money very fast, and can help pay for replacements after a battle. The scud launcher is quite powerful, and makes for a great base assault weapon.

AI: The computer doesn’t put up a stiff fight on normal difficulty, especially in skirmish mode. On hard it’s a much better opponent, bypassing your defenses quite often, and using combined arms tactics. If you have any experience with RTS games, I recommend jumping in at the hard level. Brutal setting is quite a jump, with a fast assault on your base very soon after starting the game. If I remember right, the computer gets more money per supply load than you do when set on brutal.

Online As of this point, the online play still needs some work. The server can kick you off randomly, or you just drop out of a game for no reason. I am playing with a cable modem, and the speed is pretty good as long as there are 4 players or less. As with most games, all players will go at the speed of the slowest connection. This can result in a sluggish game because of a player
connected at 56K.

Competition is great, with varying levels of opponents to play against. You can see each players win/loss record, favorite faction, and other stats. Buddy lists and quick matches are both available. As of patch version 1.2 EA has fixed some of the bugs with online play. A few more weeks and it should be much more stable.

This game is great to play on a LAN, with the varied strategies allowed by Generals. Airstrikes, dogfights, snipers, POW camps, nuclear missiles, SCUDS, B-52 airstrikes, and all of this in glorious 3D. I have only played with 2 humans so far, and hope to find more opponents soon.

=============== End of update ===============

I have been pleasantly surprised at the quality of this game, considering it’s a total overhaul of the series.
I can’t recommend this game to anyone with a slower system. This game is a major resource hog, and will devour as much processor speed and RAM as you can shovel at it. My two systems are:
AMD 900MHz, 384mb RAM, Nvidia GeForce 4 Ti
AMD 2.2GHz, 512mb RAM, Nvidia GeForce 4 MX

The game runs okay on the 900MHz, with some slowdown during large battles. This is on low detail 800x600. On the 2.2GHz it’s butter smooth with the same qraphics settings, but frames drop if you go to a higher resolution. If you want high detail and smooth graphics, prepare to do a little upgrading!

This series has always been about fun, and Generals keeps the tradition alive. Online matches will keep the replay value going long after the campaigns are finished. Online matchmaking is on Gamespy now, and though I will miss the old in-game interface I’m sure Gamespy will work just fine.

It's too bad that Westwood had to call it quits from the gaming industry, but at least they can look back with well deserved pride that they crafted a game like this as their parting shot to all their loyal fans. Great work Westwood!

If you have any questions on the game or notice something that I omitted in my review, feel free to comment.

Openroad

Recommended: Yes