Before the days of owning my 360 I played many RTS games on PC from command and conquer to Star Wars galactic battlegrounds. When I recieved my new laptop I new instantly which game I wanted because no one does an RTS like command and conquer.
I went into command and conquer 3 expecting a standard RTS you click on buildings to make dudes then move dudes to attack other dudes. However, I was taken aback when I first started playing, the first thing to strike me was how developed the story is. You get introduced into the game by some full motion video and the acting is pretty good you have lando from star wars that lovely lady doctor from house and a host of others. The game starts you with a tutorial and a bit of background information about how the world has been plagued by tiberium which seems to be poisonous yet also money and weapons and works as your resources throughout the game.
I started by playing the GDI campaign who are your classic good guys and the campaign begins with you fighting the NOD (bad guys) each level slowly introduces new units and tactics, along with more complex missions. Its a great way of getting you into the game however its when all these things are in play that the game and story really ramps up. Its not a game where you need a standard mix of different units to overthrow the enemy instead I found you need to look at the enemies strength and really build your army around them otherwise you wont stand a chance because the AI is one of the smartest I have encountered.
The campaign takes you all around the world and allows you to take some tactical decisions for example there was a bit where I could choose to take out a NOD airbase which would then allow me to have my own air units in future missions or go for a NOD vehicle factory giving me access to new units. This really gives you the feel that its all in your hands and everything you do will have an effect.
The units are all very interesting and are very well balanced I have played as all 3 races (o yeh theres a third race called the scrin who are aliens SPOILERS) however, the one critisism I have with the game is that the GDI and NOD units feel very similar. While looking completely different and under new names they are essentially the same units.
The Scrin are truly unique and stand out from the other two factions but without a tutorial you need to play a few skirmishes with them to figure out what all the units do. Skirmishes are what you expect although you can choose how balanced your opponents so you can have them as stealthy or big base builders essentially but its not quite that simple which can be a bit confusing. Multiplayer again more of what you expect and the frame rate stands up perfectly and I have experienced very little lag.
Overall I am pleased with command and conquer 3 it is a game that has really got me back into PC gaming because I have never thought you can play RTS on a console. The only thing is it seems like in the past 5 years not a lot has changed AI has improved as well as graphics but it doesnt seem like there has been any major leaps forward in this type of gameplay. That doesn't stop me from recommending this game as it is still one of the best RTS games I have ever played and the great story and brilliant visual design make CNC3 a must buy for RTS fans.
Gameplay: 8 out of 10
Graphics: 7 out of 10
Sound: 8 out of 10
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