Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
Both sides of the reversible Red Alert 3 cover. The first featuring Soviet Commando Natasha and the other side featuring Allied Commando Tanya.
Developer(s)	EA Los Angeles
Publisher(s)	Electronic Arts
Composer(s)	Frank Klepacki James Hannigan Timothy Michael Wynn[1] Mikael Sandgren [2]
Series	Command & Conquer (main) Red Alert (sub-series)
Engine	RNA
Native resolution	720p[3]
Version	1.12 (July 15, 2009)
Platform(s)	Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Mac OS
Release date(s)	Windows: NA October 28, 2008[4][5] EU October 31, 2008[6][7] Xbox 360: NA November 11, 2008[4][8] EU November 14, 2008[6] PlayStation 3: NA March 23, 2009[9] EU March 27, 2009[3] Mac OS: NA March 2009[10]
Genre(s)	Real-time strategy
Mode(s)	Single-player, Co-operative, multiplayer
Rating(s)	BBFC: 12 ESRB: T PEGI: 16+
Media	DVD-DL, Blu-ray Disc, Steam
System requirements	Minimum: Windows XP SP2, AMD Athlon 3000+/Intel P4 2.2GHz or equivalent, 1GB of RAM, 6GB free on HD, nVidia GeForce 6 series/ATI X1800 or better, DX9c or 10 compatible sound. Recommended: Windows Vista SP1, AMD Athlon X2 (3500+)/Intel Core 2 Duo (2.6GHz) or equivalent, 2GB of RAM, 10GB free on HD, nVidia GeForce 6800 or better/ATI X1900 or better. An internet connection is required to activate for online gaming.
Input methods	Keyboard, Mouse, Gamepad

Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 is a 2008 real-time strategy video game developed by EA Los Angeles and published by Electronic Arts. Announced on February 14, 2008,^[11] it was released on October 28, 2008 in the United States for Microsoft Windows-based PCs and three days later in Europe. A version for the Xbox 360 console was released. However, the PlayStation 3 version was delayed due to difficulties with the system's architecture.^[9] On January 21 2009 EA officially announced Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 - Ultimate Edition^[12], the PS3 version which contains bonus material extra to that of the Xbox 360 and PC versions. The Ultimate Edition has been released on March 23, 2009. Also announced for a late March release is the Mac OS version, converted to that platform by TransGaming^[10]. The game forms a part of the Red Alert sub-series within the Command & Conquer series of games. In early January, EA Los Angeles announced a new addition to the game: Command & Conquer Red Alert 3: Uprising, a stand-alone single player expansion pack that was released for Windows in March 2009. It was offered via digital distribution.^[13]

The game is set in a parallel universe in which World War II never happened (in the original Red Alert, Albert Einstein travelled back in time and removed Hitler in the 1920s. After an Allied victory in Red Alert 2, the Soviet leaders travelled back in time and removed Albert Einstein in 1927, preventing the Allies from creating atomic weapons while the Soviet Union rose to power, battling the Allies in the 1950s. In this game, the Empire of the Rising Sun rises to power as a threat as well (an unintentional result of the Soviets time travelling). All three factions are playable, with the main gameplay involving constructing a base, gathering resources, and training armies composed of land, sea, and airborne units to defeat other players. Each faction has a fully co-operative campaign, playable with an Artificial Intelligence or with another human player online. These campaigns follow a storyline, with specific mission objectives and unit restrictions applied. Unrestricted skirmish play against the computer and multiplayer via LAN or online is also available.

The game received mostly positive reviews, with reviewers citing the co-operative and multiplayer components as strengths, along with the enhanced role of naval combat compared to other real-time strategy games. Commonly cited weaknesses included aspects such as unit pathfinding.

Contents 1 Gameplay 1.1 Design 2 Plot 2.1 Soviets 2.2 Allies 2.3 Empire 3 Cast 3.1 Soviet Union 3.2 Allied Nations 3.3 Empire of the Rising Sun 4 Development 4.1 Soundtrack 4.2 Public Beta Testing 5 Marketing 5.1 Premier Edition 5.2 Ultimate Edition 5.3 SecuROM 5.4 CD Key 6 Reception 7 References 8 External links

[edit] Gameplay

Red Alert 3 retains the core RTS mechanics of the Command & Conquer series. Warring factions harvest resources using vulnerable collectors and then use those resources to construct military bases and forces on-site. Structures form a shallow but wide tech tree with a variety of units and elusive superweapons. Weapon types are specialized to the point where a rifleman can withstand direct hits from an anti-tank cannon. Red Alert 3's major refinements are the addition of the Empire of the Rising Sun to the factions of the sub-series, similar to what Tiberium Wars did with the Scrin faction, a co-operative campaign, and expanded naval warfare.

The "single-player" campaign is now fully co-operative. Each mission is played alongside an ally. When played online, this is another human player. Offline it is one of several computer-controlled characters. Teams share income and generally start with the same forces. Computerized characters can be given extremely simple commands, such as an order to take a specific position or to strike a specific target. The campaign has nine missions for each side. Each side's plotlines are mutually exclusive, unlike Tiberium Wars and its preceding and following expansion packs, but like the rest of the Command & Conquer games.

Naval warfare is emphasized as another front. Executive producer Chris Corry has stated that many units are now amphibious, trading effectiveness for increased flexibility. Buildings and entire bases can be constructed on water, save for such things as ground unit production facilities,^[14] and players who "ignore the ocean [are] likely forfeiting a significant part of their potential economy to their opponents." Further stressing this is the fact that, despite some campaign maps being entirely land based, all multiplayer maps have significant bodies of water in them.

The use of naval units and various unit abilities also helped stop players from sticking to one unit and constructing large amounts of (or spamming) them early game.^{[citation needed]} This was a standard strategy for Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars/Kane's Wrath, where players would try to build more of one unit faster than their opponent.^{[citation needed]}

Manually controlled secondary abilities are common to each and every unit in the game. Their usage varies: some are toggled on or off, others are targeted, and still others are triggered the instant one presses the button. An Imperial construction vehicle is able to deploy at a specified location, a Soviet conscript can switch weapons at will, and an Allied artillery piece can engage its shields with a button press but with a cooldown period before they can be used again. All abilities are bound to the same key. The game also features experience points that are used to upgrade unit types and to buy "commander abilities," which call in air strikes, recon sweeps, magnetic satellite beams, etc. Commander abilities have no resource costs but do have significant cooldown periods.

Ore fields as resource sites have been removed. These originated in the first Red Alert as a functionally identical equivalent to tiberium, and what were ostensibly strip mines had ore growing out of the ground. Gameplay mechanics haven't changed a great deal since fields have been replaced with stationary ore mines. Strategic ore-refinery placement and covert refining are impacted to an extent.

[edit] Design

The first Red Alert revolved around a down-to-earth World War II between the Allies (including Germany) and the Soviet Union, with some high-tech esoterica, such as weaponized tesla coils linked to Tesla's abortive death rays, limited time travel linked to the rumored Philadelphia Experiment, and force fields. Red Alert 2 featured a Soviet invasion of North America with tanks, conscripts, gargantuan airships, and psychically dominated anti-ship giant squids; its expansion, Yuri's Revenge, escalated matters up to UFOs and communists on the Moon. Executive producer Chris Corry stated in a pre-release interview that Red Alert 3 will further differentiate the playable factions from each other and "[play] up the silliness in their faction design whenever possible."^[15]

The Soviets and Allies have a mix of old and new features. Soviet units lean towards ruthlessness and brute force: giant Kirov airships are retained and flak troopers are now penal troops, while attack dogs are an Allied unit that the Soviets have replaced with functionally identical armored attack bears. New units include heavy tanks known as "Hammer Tanks" that can tear weapons from the enemies they destroy with a magnetic beam, light anti-infantry walkers known as "Sickles" that can jump over terrain elevations, the amphibious "Stingray" attack boats with twin-mounted tesla coils, and amphibious AA "Bullfrog" transports that shoot their passengers out of a cannon. The Soviets have lost their nuclear technology due to the events of the backstory, but can leverage their simple tech, cheap units and "quick fix" structures like the Super Reactor and Crusher Crane, enabling them to easily overwhelm enemy bases.

The Allies come with a wide variety of gadgetry (mostly nonlethal), much of it as a comeback of Red Alert 2's advanced units. New units include Hydrofoils with weapon-scrambling rays, unarmed helicopters with freeze and shrink rays, and an amphibious destroyer with treads and magnetic armor that can draw enemy fire. Allied units have a variety of different accents and "good guy" overtones: their basic infantry unit is the Peacekeeper. Red Alert 2's advanced chrono-technology has been largely but not completely lost, so that the Chronosphere unit remains and the returning Tanya unit is now equipped with a "time belt" that allows her to wind her location and health back a few seconds. Allied advances are driven by the FutureTech corporation in Einstein's absence. Since the tech and base building takes some time the Allies are more patience-friendly.^[16]

The Empire of the Rising Sun has infantrymen in samurai armor with energy rifles and lightsaber katanas, giant transforming mecha, ninjas, a psionic schoolgirl, and submersible planes. Several of the Empire's key units can change forms to switch from land-to-air or sea-to-air, giving them much greater versatility than Allied or Soviet units. Conversely, some of their "core units" are weaker than their counterparts. Their forward bases are easy to build and fully functional bases don't take much power. Their buildings also have no proximity requirements, allowing the Empire to expand its bases much more quickly and efficiently—and by extension to nab ore mines faster.

The campaign mode maintains the theme of camp warfare played perfectly straight, with the occasional secret volcano lair, cyborg infiltrator, and more than one thing shooting lasers out of its eyes. It also uses Full motion videos featuring real-life actors. Filming started in April 2008.

[edit] Plot

The central premise of all three campaigns is the same, although each follows a different variation of the storyline. Facing defeat at the hands of the Allies (presumably after the end of Red Alert 2: Yuri's Revenge), Soviet General Nikolai Krukov and Colonel Anatoly Cherdenko use a time machine beneath the Kremlin to travel back to Brussels in the year 1927 at the International Physics Conference and eliminate Albert Einstein. This prevents him from creating the technology that allowed the Allies to defeat the Soviet Union in the previous games. Returning to the present, General Krukov discovers that Cherdenko is the Premier of the Soviet Union and that the Soviets are on the brink of conquering Europe. However, without Einstein's existence, the Empire of the Rising Sun has risen in Japan. They have also decided to declare war against the Allies and Soviet Union. Finding that the Soviets' nuclear weapons don't exist anymore without Einstein's existence, the Soviet Union is forced, along with the Allies, into a three-way war with the Empire.

[edit] Soviets

In the Soviet campaign, Cherdenko first sends the newly appointed Soviet commander to expel the Japanese forces from Soviet territory, subsequently invading Japan and killing Emperor Yoshiro before continuing the attack against the Allies in Geneva and Mykonos. Faking an attempt on his life as an excuse to remove his enemies, Cherdenko has the player kill General Krukov at the Von Eisling Airbase. Dr. Zelinsky, the scientist who created the time machine, informs the player that the events that occurred happened only because the Soviets tried to alter the past, and that Cherdenko was originally not the Soviet Premier. Cherdenko tries and fails to kill the player after this, feeling that the player knowing that information is too dangerous. Cherdenko is presumed dead after the player destroys his volcano-fortress. After dealing with Cherdenko, the player follows with an attack on New York in order to force the Allies to surrender. The war ends with the player becoming the next Premier of the Soviet Union, which encompasses the entire world as there is no one left to stop Soviet expansionism.

[edit] Allies

The Allied campaign sees Field Marshal Bingham first ordering the player to secure European Allied borders. After the Soviets are pushed out of Western Europe, the Allies and the Soviets both make the decision to ally against the Empire of the Rising Sun after being attacked by it while they were at their most vulnerable moments. The Japanese send in two of their floating fortresses into European waters which promptly begin to launch devastating bombing runs on civilian cities and proceed to sink and shoot down any plane or aircraft over the Atlantic Ocean. The Japanese declare their forts invulnerable and divinely protected. However, an Allied-Soviet joint strike force is able to disable one using its power core. With this alliance, the Allies and the Soviets manage to destroy naval blockades in the Mediterranean Sea and the Empire's Floating Fortress in the North Sea. At this time, American President Ackerman becomes angry at Marshall Bingham for his allying with the Soviets, instead of destroying them. He then takes the initiative to destroy Moscow with a laser superweapon controlled in Mount Rushmore. Bingham sends the player to disable the weapon and it's defenses, destroy the firebase and kill Ackerman. With the alliance secured, the Allies plan an attack on Tokyo in order to wipe out the entire Empire military leadership with one stroke. It is a critical battle because the Japanese High Command is about to order the destruction of several Western cities. Around this time, the Soviets led by General Krukov were supposed to bring the "entire might" of the Soviet navy to assist the Allied forces. After many delays, however, the Soviets noted that with their fleet so far away and with them experiencing "personal troubles," they decided not to participate and would leave the player alone to deal with the Empire's forces. After the battle, Dr. Zelinsky defects to the Allies, informing them of the Soviet Premier having traveled back in time to alter the present, the complications due to the use of the time machine, and warns them of a Soviet invasion force building up in Cuba, proving that Ackerman was right on his belief and that the Soviets have betrayed them. After destroying the invasion force in Cuba, the Allies launch Operation Chronostorm and teleport their forces to destroy Premier Cherdenko's fortress in Leningrad in order to stop Cherdenko from fleeing to outer space. In the end, Cherdenko and his General are placed in a Cryo-prison for life due to crimes against humanity. Meanwhile, Lt. Eva and Tanya both ask the Commander out to a date. The Vice President of the United States, played by David Hasselhoff, then accepts power as the new American President in a public speech.

[edit] Empire

The Empire of the Rising Sun campaign begins with a full-scale invasion of the Soviet Union, just as the Soviets are pushing the Allies to the brink of defeat. The invasion starts with a disguised transport slipped into a coastal Soviet city of Vorkuta celebrating New Year. When the ruse is discovered, the city is ordered to be sacked. Emperor Yoshiro's tactics initially involve striking at symbolic targets such as important monuments to affect the will and morale of the Soviets - and later, the capturing of broadcasting stations in the United States for use in broadcasting propaganda against the Allies. On the other hand, the Emperor's less-traditional son, Crown Prince Tatsu, advocates the attacking of true military targets - though his father would typically overrule him and instead fight elsewhere. Crown Prince Tatsu is a robotic hedonist, and immerses himself in all things technological.

As the Empire of the Rising Sun surges into Allied and Soviet territory the Allies make a desperate pact and try to garner enough forces to counterattack. The Emperor believes he has crushed all hope of freedom for the Allies. The Empire's forces take over much of western Russia and brutally massacre anyone who resists. A Soviet General in the city of Odessa refuses to surrender, and as a result the city is destroyed by a three legged prototype robot named the Shogun Executioner. Landmarks such as a cathedral, an opera hall, and a hospital are targets for destruction. However, the Emperor's complacency soon forces the Empire onto the defensive against the forces of the Allies, who still had enough strength to mount full-scale attacks on Pearl Harbor at the Imperial islands of Hawaii and on one of the Empire's Floating Fortresses. Though both attacks are repelled, a joint Allied-Soviet task force successfully gains a foothold in Tokyo.

After witnessing the Soviet scientist Dr. Gregor Zelinsky contacting Field Marshall Bingham to inform the Allies about the Soviet time machine and Premier Cherdenko's changing of history via President Ackerman (who is now revealed to be an android operating as a spy for the Empire), Emperor Yoshiro realizes his mistakes and concludes that there can be no "Divine Destiny" if events can be manipulated via time-travel. He surrenders command of the Shogunate (the Empire's military leaders) to his son. Under Prince Tatsu's command, the Allied-Soviet invasion of Tokyo is repelled, and a full-scale attack on the Kremlin results in the deaths of Premier Cherdenko and General Krukov - despite a last minute attempt to airlift the time machine to safety after the Kremlin's destruction. This ends the battle against the Soviets with the Soviet Union (and their allies) surrendering to the Empire. The Empire's continued success allows Yoshiro to overcome his guilt and opens him to Tatsu's idea that the Empire can create its own destiny.

In the final mission, the player is ordered to launch an attack against the remaining Allied forces in Amsterdam as they make their last stand defending the Allied Headquarters as well as the FutureTech Headquarters - the company responsible for much of the Allies' technological advances. Fierce house to house fighting results in destroying all of the city and millions of deaths. Despite the Allies being outnumbered at least four hundred to one, most of the Japanese invasion force is annihilated. Despite Dr. Zelinsky's arrival with Soviet reinforcements and the deployment of a prototype FutureTech ultraweapon that annihilates everything in the city, the Empire succeeds in defeating the Allies and destroying FutureTech and what remains of the Soviets - leaving the Empire of the Rising Sun free to rule the world. At the ending scene though, the glimmer of a chronosphere is seen in the background suggesting that some of the surviving Allies have managed to activate it and possibly go back in time to affect the outcome of the war. The commander is given the title of "Supreme Shogun". The commander's briefer, Intelligence Officer Suki Toyama, invites the commander to a private spot on the north shore of Oahu for some time off, heavily implying that she has romantic feelings for him.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Soviet Union

• Premier Anatoly Cherdenko (Played by Tim Curry)

• General Nikolai Krukov (Played by Andrew Divoff)

• Dr. Gregor Zelinsky (Played by Peter Stormare)

• Dasha Fedorovich (Played by Ivana Miličević) _[UR]

• Sniper Natasha Volkova (Played by Gina Carano)

• Sergei (Played by Stelio Savante)

• Commander Oleg Vodnik (Played by Dimitri Diatchenko) _[UR]

• Commander Nikolai Moskvin (Played by Gene Farber) _[UR]

• Commander Zhana Agonskaya (Played by Vanessa Branch)

[edit] Allied Nations

• President Howard T. Ackerman (Played by J. K. Simmons)

• Field Marshall Robert Bingham (Played by Jonathan Pryce)

• Special Agent Tanya (Played by Jenny McCarthy)

• Lieutenant Eva McKenna (Played by Gemma Atkinson) _[UR]

• Commander Warren Fuller (Played by Randy Couture)

• Commander Giles Price (Played by Greg Ellis) _[UR]

• Commander Lissette Hanley (Played by Autumn Reeser)

[edit] Empire of the Rising Sun

• Emperor Yoshiro (Played by George Takei)

• Crown Prince Tatsu (Played by Ron Yuan) _[UR]

• Intelligence Officer Suki Toyama (Played by Kelly Hu)

• Commander Shinzo Nagama (Played by Bruce Asato Locke) _[UR]

• Commander Kenji Tenzai (Played by Jack J. Yang) _[UR]

• Commander Naomi Shirada (Played by Lydia Look)

• Yuriko Omega (Voiced by Lisa Tamashiro) _[UR]

※ [UR] means this character also appears in Red Alert 3: Uprising.

[edit] Development

A third Red Alert game was unofficially announced by Electronic Arts' then executive producer and C&C lead Mark Skaggs in December 2004, shortly after the release of Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle Earth.^[17] However, Mark Skaggs left Electronic Arts for reasons unspecified shortly thereafter, and there was no mention of a "Red Alert 3" until February 12, 2008, when the US PC Gamer's April issue cover was published on the Internet featuring the cover story "Red Alert 3".^[18] Red Alert 3 was then officially announced by Electronic Arts on February 14, 2008.^[11] On May 17 the first trailer was released.

[edit] Soundtrack

Composer Frank Klepacki returned to write three tracks for the game. When interviewed regarding the matter, Klepacki indicated a strong desire to contribute more, but admitted that due to the fact that he is no longer being employed by Electronic Arts and currently works for Petroglyph Games, this may be contractually impossible. At the RA3 Community Summit in June 2008, Klepacki showed a video to the entire C&C community in which he stated that he had been hired to work on Red Alert 3, and that he was composing Hell March 3, the most recent update of Red Alert's iconic theme.^[19][20]

In November 2008, Crispy Gamer^[21] reported that James Hannigan and Timothy Michael Wynn wrote the bulk of the game's remaining 114 minutes of music, with Hannigan composing the 'Soviet March' menu theme along with music for the Empire of the Rising Sun Faction, and Wynn the music of the Allies and the remaining Soviet tracks. Music4Games has also covered the game's music score.^[1]

The band From First to Last composed several remix versions of Hell March and Hell March 2, also featured on the Red Alert 3 soundtrack shipped with the Red Alert 3 Premier Edition.^[22]

There was also an Easter Egg song in the PS3 edition named "All Your Base Are Belong To Us." A Reference to Zero Wing and it's All your Base craze.

[edit] Public Beta Testing

A public beta test was announced on February 2008, stating that PC users who registered a code contained in Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath or Command & Conquer 3 Limited Collection by September 15, 2008 could participate in a multiplayer beta test.^[11][23] From July 24, 2008, people who registered their beta key started to receive an e-mail stating that the participants would start receiving their Key and Client Download link throughout late-July and August.^[24] FilePlanet members were also able to participate in the beta, with keys available on a first-come, first-served basis from August 22, 2008.^[25] The Red Alert 3 Beta servers were closed on September 29, 2008.

[edit] Marketing

Red Alert 3 could be preordered from August 20, 2008 and contained bonuses including the Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 game, an exclusive multiplayer map, a bonus DVD containing various films, and Red Alert 3 desktop wallpapers.^[26]

[edit] Premier Edition

The Red Alert 3 Premier Edition features a soundtrack CD (including remixes of Hell March 1 and 2), and a bonus DVD containing making-of documentaries, footage from the developers, scenes from the shooting of the game's cinematics, and strategy tips. The game also includes a code for the download of exclusive multiplayer maps and a key for a beta of a future Command and Conquer game. It comes in a Soviet-themed tin case with a poster of the women in Red Alert 3. In the UK, the Premier Edition is exclusive to the high street retailer GAME.^[27]

In Taiwan an exclusive limited Premier Edition was released, featuring an additional item, the Dicota Red Alert 3 backpack.^[28]

On September 18, 2008, EA announced that copies of Red Alert 3 would include a code to unlock an exclusive item in Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning known as the "Kossar's Helm" for a limited time.^[29]

EA Singapore as well as 'Gamers.com.my' had also announced that they would be launching an exclusive Red Alert 3 Commander's Pack in Singapore and Malaysia. It was launched on October 27, 2008 for Singapore and October 28, 2008 for Malaysia. This Commander's Pack includes the C&C Red Alert 3 Premier Edition, C&C Red Alert 3 Dicota Notebook BacPac, and a Microsoft Sidewinder X6 Gaming Keyboard with Garskin Red Alert 3 decals. Exclusive posters and Soviet T-Shirts were given to those who arrived earliest at the game's launch. A smaller and cheaper edition of the Commander's Pack called the Officer's Pack was also released. The Officer's Pack contained the C&C Red Alert 3 Premier Edition and C&C Red Alert 3 Dicota Notebook BacPac.^[30][31]

[edit] Ultimate Edition

On January 21 2009 EA announced that Red Alert 3: Ultimate Edition will be releasing on PlayStation 3 in March.^[32]. According to senior development director David Seeholzer:

"The most noticeable difference you'll see in the Ultimate Edition on PS3 is an increase the visual quality of the game so that it truly stands up to HD Blu-ray definition. A perfect example of this is what you will see in the game's water. One of the huge new features you'll see in Red Alert 3 is an increase in naval warfare and amphibious units. Most strategy games in the past have never paid much attention to navy but we're bringing it to the center. As such, we paid close attention to detail with it and ensured that we maximized its visual aspects, without penalizing game performance even under the most intense of battles."

As well as the game, the Ultimate Edition will contain new multiplayer maps, behind the scenes videos, Command & Conquer TV programming, profiles on the Red Alert 3 Units and the Red Alert 3 soundtrack.

According to EA, Red Alert 3 will have better graphics and performance on PlayStation 3 than the Xbox 360, thanks to the complex renderer from the PC version.^[33]

However the request of many potential customers to take advantage of the PlayStation's capability of using a Mouse and a Keyboard for gaming purposes, even with threats of not buying the product^[34], does not seem to be fulfilled. Seeholzer rather refers to the "step forward" made in developing the control interface for console, than giving a clear answer to the question in an interview with IGN^[35].

IGN:

Console RTS fans have had issues with controls that aren't mouse and keyboard, arguing that it's less responsive. Will the Ultimate Edition include support for mouse and keyboard for the PS3, or has the CommandStick evolved to a point that it's comparable?

David Seeholzer:

The team at EALA has been committed to furthering the evolution of RTS control on the console and we feel that with Red Alert 3, this interface has taken another strong step forward. A console controller certainly does present different mechanics than a mouse/keyboard combination, but this also gives us the opportunity to create a game that can be played on console the way people play on the couch, on the floor, or even on a beanbag chair. To me, this seems very reminiscent of the same debate that raged years ago regarding first-person shooters on the console. I don't think FPS would be such a vibrant and successful genre on console had game makers tried to work around the primary control mechanism rather than embracing it."

[edit] SecuROM

Executive Producer Chris Corry has stated that Red Alert 3 will come bundled with the controversial^[36][37][38] SecuROM software. The game will have to be activated the first time online, but can be activated and installed only five times per serial.^[39] Note that an activation is system targeted, so users can reinstall as often as they want on one computer but activate only on five different computers. After the fifth activation, consumers will be required to contact EA Customer Service for every additional activation. He has also stated that uninstalling the game will not return the used installation back to the user.^[40] However, after several patches released by EA, in the released game, uninstalls do return the installation back to the user.^[41]

In the aftermath of Spore's SecuROM controversy, there was an outcry amongst some circles of customers who began threatening to boycott Red Alert 3 if this game was bundled with such digital rights management mechanisms as well. In response, EA announced that in Red Alert 3 the activation limit would be increased from 3 to 5 activations per machine. Many customers remained unsatisfied, stating that for all intents and purposes they will be "renting" the game from EA at full price.^[42][43] The 1.05 patch provided users the ability to de-authorize the game in the game settings menu.

Prior to the game's release, Corry noted the longevity of other Command & Conquer titles and acknowledged that it was unlikely that authentication servers would remain online in years to come, which would prevent future users from authenticating. Corry stated that "once the game has lived its natural life and the risk for piracy has died down, we... [will] decide to decommission the authentication servers [and] we will first make a patch available that will disable copy protection from the game."^[44]

On January 8, 2009, the game became available via the Steam platform^[45] with SecuROM. However on February 19, 2009 a patch was released removing SecuROM from the game^[46], it remains protected by the Steam DRM.

[edit] CD Key

There has also been a stated issue with a "limited" number of copies of the game shipping with the last digit of the CD Key missing from the manual.^[47] EA's initial response was to "Guess" the last digit as a workaround,^[48][49][50] but this was revised shortly after this was made public, to:

If you are trying to install Command and Conquer Red Alert 3 and the code is only 19 characters long, then it is missing the last letter or number. This was due to a misprint on a small number of manuals and we apologize for any inconvenience this has caused. In order to get a replacement code, please click the "Contact Us" link on the left side of the page to send an e-mail to our team. If you would like you can also contact us by phone using the number found on page 28 of your manual.^[47]

Later EA opened a Page where the missing digit can be obtained without need to contact the support, but a free account on the EA site is required.^[51]

[edit] Reception

Please help improve this article by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page. (March 2009)

Reception
Aggregate scores Aggregator Score GameRankings PC: 81% (40 reviews)[54] Metacritic PC: 81% (38 reviews)[52] X360: 77% (15 reviews)[53]
Review scores Publication Score 1UP.com PC: A-[55] Game Informer 8.75/10 GamePro PC:[56] GameSpot PC: 8/10[57] GameSpy PC: [58] IGN PC: 8.2/10[59] Official Xbox Magazine 9.0/10 PC Gamer UK 88%[60] PC Gamer US 92%[61]

Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 has received generally positive reviews, citing a strong cooperative and multiplayer component. It has been praised for seamlessly integrating naval warfare into gameplay, generally a neglected feature in real time strategy games, though alternately excessive focus on this aspect has been criticized as well. Also the game has been praised for its less serious story and brighter, more colorful environments than those found in Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars. The decision by developers to use Ore 'Strip Mines' instead of the traditional ore field has been met with a mixed response.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 official website
• Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 at the Internet Movie Database
• Command & Conquer Database

v • d • e Command & Conquer Video games Main universe: Command & Conquer (The Covert Operations) · Red Alert (Counterstrike & Aftermath) · Tiberian Sun (Firestorm) · Renegade · Tiberium Wars (Kane's Wrath) · Command & Conquer 4 Spin-offs: Sole Survivor · Red Alert 2 (Yuri's Revenge) · Generals (Zero Hour) · Red Alert 3 (Uprising) Playable factions Tiberian series: Brotherhood of Nod · Global Defense Initiative · Scrin Red Alert series: Allied Nations · Soviet Union · Empire of the Rising Sun Generals series: United States of America · People's Republic of China · Global Liberation Army Characters Tiberian series: Nod characters · GDI characters · Kane Red Alert series: Allied characters · Imperial characters · Soviet characters · Yuri · Yuriko Omega Miscellaneous   Tiberium · The First Decade · Tiberium Wars (novel) · A Path Beyond · Cancelled games · Discography · List of media · Factions · Misc factions Companies Developers Westwood Studios (1992–2002) · EA Pacific (2002–2003) · EA Los Angeles (2003—) Publishers Virgin Interactive (1992–1998) · EA Games (1998–2005) · Electronic Arts (2005—)

v • d • e W3D / SAGE / RNA engine games W3D engine Emperor: Battle for Dune · Earth & Beyond · Command & Conquer: Renegade SAGE engine Command & Conquer: Generals (Zero Hour) · The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth · The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II (The Rise of the Witch-king) · Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (Kane's Wrath) RNA engine Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3