• April 25, 2007    Home > Game Reviews > Verdict

    Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars

    EA's epic sci-fi strategy title is awesome
    Version
     PC, Xbox 360    		Developer
    EA Los Angeles    		Publisher
    EA    		Genre
    RTS

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    Page 2

    Tank rushes will still win everything. A group of Mammoth Tanks will take on the world. Nod units seem shockingly weak when compared to GDI counterparts (though very strong when used intelligently). Bases are still too vulnerable to air attacks. Super weapons are still too powerful. The computer still cheats its massive arse off. The list goes on.

    But you know what? I don't care. At all. This game is a massive guilty pleasure. It's a Hollywood blockbuster of a game - lacking in any real substance, but making up for it with pure satisfaction. Supreme Commander may be the ultimate in RTSesseess, in my opinion at least, but C&C3 has more than a place on my hard drive for a long time to come. It's simply a joy to play.

    The game never really descends into what one could call 'hard', even on the difficulty levels that purport to be exactly that. The computer constantly throws everything it has at you, and you survive long enough to build up a counter force and smush their faces off.

    "It's a Hollywood blockbuster of a game - lacking in any real substance, but making up for it with pure satisfaction."

    The formula holds steady throughout. Frustration can and will set in at points in the game, especially when facing off against the Scrin and their insanely fast build times, and a loss never really feels like you were truly beaten - not against the computer, that is. Nevertheless, patience and some cheap tactics will see players through even the hardest of the not-that-hard sections of the game. Again, this may come across as a fairly large negative, but the game is such a massive pile of candy-filled loveliness it's hard to stay mad with it.

    Online is somewhere that the game really comes into it's own though, with pitched battles sending heart rates flying and keyboards smashing. Playing against a human, shockingly enough, is a far more rewarding experience than playing against a massive cheating AI git, and EA's online service for C&C3 is utterly fantastic, even going so far as to include a sports channel-style element, where players can watch battles between other players and even commentate on them. It's a nice idea, and whilst only something of a small distraction it is certainly a welcome one. I still can't win ever, mind.

    Graphically things are pretty damn sweet, with some wonderfully atmospheric lighting effects and nicely designed units. The scale of battles can be a sight to behold and the frame rate (capped at 30fps, I believe) holds very steady even in the most intense battles. That is on my rig, at least. Fortunately, the game scales back very nicely for users with less monstrous PCs and the frame rate cap helps make sure that those without mega core 9000 uber machines made of gold and happy thoughts will be able to enjoy blowing people up with nuclear weapons. Which is nice.

    Sound is everything that would be expected - a half epic, half rooooock! Soundtrack keeps the background free of silence, weapons sound meaty enough and the acknowledgements from each unit are just as memorable as any other of the C&C series - the Mammoth Tank assembled line being a personal favourite, if only because it conjures up thoughts of immediate and brutal victory. Which is, again, nice.

    All in all, Command and Conquer 3 is a very good game. It isn't here to change the world or make people think very much. It's a guilty pleasure of the good kind and one that should be enjoyed by anyone with a hankering for destruction. And a PC. The cutscenes are a wonderful nod and wink to the audience, showing that EA do know the fans they're making the game for, and the game itself is a joy. Frustrating, cheating, annoying, shallow and dumb. But an absolute joy.

    Graphics Sound Gameplay Depth Presentation OVERALL
    8.0 7.0 8.0 6.0 9.0 8.0


    THE VERDICT:     So it's certainly been worth the wait. No one really expected C&C3 to change the way we play games, and it hasn't. Nor will it. What it has done, though, is show the world that games can be made for the people who want them, and they can be made right if enough heart and thought is applied to them. This is a game that any self-respecting PC owner should pick up, ready to enjoy some mindless, pointless fun. Anyway, I'm off to make things go boom again.

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