Command and Conquer: Red Alert 2
By: Westwood
My ratings:
Graphics-8.25
Sound-9.0
Fun Factor-9.75
Lasting Appeal-9.0
Overall (weighted average)-9.0
Ok, let's just say Red Alert was one of the most fun real-time strategy of all time, improving on the original Command and Conquer in many areas, and with more normal units and a cooler setting. With tons of buildings, units, a cool storyline, and timeless gameplay, it was and is a classic. Now, several years later, Westwood comes out with a sequel. After the somewhat dissappointing Tiberian Sun, Westwood strikes again with an extremely addictive, and VERY fun 2-D RTS. With 3-D RTSs quite common now a-days, you may be wondering why Red Alert 2 is 2-D again. Well, so many of the 3-D RTS games could not come through with an easy, effective interface, and they didn't have the timeless gameplay that the 2-D games did. So, Westwood came out with another 2-D game, and I'm glad. While it'd be awesome in 3-D, I can't imagine how they could manage to get the control as easy and beginner-friendly as Red Alert. So, in the end, Red Alert 2 is quite possibly the most fun RTS I can think of right now...right up there with Age of Empires 2 (both 2-D games, by the way). With that said, here's the review:
Graphics: MUCH better than Tiberian Sun. Much more 3-D looking vehicles, and better looking men, RA2 is much improved over TS. However, the animations could be smoother, and the men could still look a little less jagged. Still, RA2 has awesome explosions (with parts shown flying up and bouncing on the ground), much better looking tanks (that actually tip and recoil after explosions go off near them), and cooler landscapes.
Sound: Cool soundtrack, and good voice acting make this get a high rating. Some songs are a bit repeditive, but there are tons to choose from.
Fun Factor: Every bit as good as the original, and then some! With the same user-friendly interface and a ton of different units to command, this game is FUN! Multiplayer of lan and internet is cool too, as is the skirmish mode. Missions are great too, with lots of 'em and fairly tough objectives.
Lasting appeal: You'll be playing the skirmish mode on this game for years to come, even when it gets outdated, just like you probably did with Red Alert the original. Missions are pretty tough, and multiplayer is awesome. And just imagine the expansion pack(s) that'll inevitably come out!
Red Alert 2 is an awesome game. Go out and buy it. Ok, with that said, let me say why. First, the teams are much more evenly balanced than in the original. In the original, the Soviets were undoubtedly the best team just because they had the tesla coil. The allied were stuck with puny pill boxes and turrets, while the soviets were blowing them away with their bolts of electric shock. Now, the Soviet teslas remain, but the Allies now have prism towers. Towers that can share energy with others to burn right through tanks and of course, men. By themselves, they are less powerful than the teslas, but combined, they can take out a tank with one shot. Also, what was with the old nukes? All they were good for was taking out men and maybe a couple power plants! Now, the Soviets have a big nuke that can take out just about any man in sight, most tanks, and seriously damage some buildings. The Allies have a storm generator that causes a lightning storm to go over the enemies and strike everything in sight! That's just the beginning of the awesome stuff, as well as examples of how much better this game is at balancing the sides. Also, each country (either Allied or Soviet) has a special unit. For example, the Russians have a tesla tank, whereas other Soviets have something else (desolators, terrorists, etc.). The Allies work the same. USA has a ton of paratroopers that can trop, when others have a sniper, or a chrono trooper. Another cool addition is the ore miners. The Allied one has no gun, but can warp back to the ore factory when in danger, or when full of ore (saving a trip back, and lots of time). The Soviet miner is tougher than the Allied one, and has a gun on top that is good at picking off men, but it doesn't warp. Also, the cut scenes are acted out with good actors (for a game anyway), and also have cool CG scenes with explosions and stuff. These are just a few of the many awesome additions made to this game from the original, making it probably the most fun RTS I've ever played (right up there with Age of Empires 2, which is also an awesome RTS).
With awesome landscapes, the same old awesome skirmish, sweet units, the ability to fight in the USA at familiar places, and the improved balance between the Allies and Soviets are just a few of the features that make this better than the original and Tiberian Sun, and in my opinion make it worth your money (especially when it goes down to $30 or something). If you are a huge fan of the C&C series, this should be a no-brainer. However, if you want the best RTS for your buck, it probaby comes down to this and Age of Empires 2 (AOE2 is a realistic medieval RTS that is awesome), depending on what kind of an RTS you want. Check it out. It's way better than Tiberian Sun, and has enough additions to make it worthy of your collection even if you already have the original Red Alert.
Pros:
Improved graphics over previous Westwood RTSs.
Very fun, addictive gameplay
Two CDs
Awesome units and buildings
Good sound
Cool cut-scenes
You get to fight in the USA
Cons:
Graphics, while much better than Tiberian Sun, are still
a bit behind the times.
No level editor!
Objectionable Content:
Lots of killing and fighting
When people die, they scream, fall over, and later disappear
The Soviets have some characters that can mind-control people.
Tanya wears a fairly small tank-top (not a big deal, but could be
for some)
Compare:
ignpc-9.3
©2000 NPC Gamers