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Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3

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Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 cover (Windows version)
Developer(s)EA Los Angeles
Publisher(s)Electronic Arts
Composer(s)Frank Klepacki, James Hannigan, Timothy Michael Wynn[3]
SeriesCommand & Conquer (main)
Red Alert (sub-series)
EngineRNA
Platform(s)Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
ReleaseWindows:

Xbox 360:
PlayStation 3:

On Hold[2]
Genre(s)Real-time strategy
Mode(s)Single-player, Co-operative, multiplayer

Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 is an upcoming 2008 real-time strategy video game in the Command & Conquer series published by Electronic Arts, and the first game in the Red Alert sub-series since Yuri's Revenge, released in 2001. Announced on February 14, 2008, the game is currently under development by EA Los Angeles for Microsoft Windows-based PCs and Xbox 360. A PlayStation 3 version was announced, but EA stated that the production for this version had been "put on hold",[2] and now may not be released, due to difficulties with the system's architecture.[5]

The game takes place in a parallel universe in which World War II never happened and the Soviet Union rose instead as a threat in the 50s. A massive world war is ongoing among the Soviets, Allies and a new third faction known as the Empire of the Rising Sun, which is derived from Imperial Japan.[6]

Gameplay

Almost all structures can now be built offshore, out of reach of some enemy units.

Red Alert 3 features a fully co-operative campaign mode where the player can team up with another player, or one of several AI characters such as Major Giles, a stiff upper lip British commander, to complete the campaign. The game has been promised to retain both the style and action-oriented gameplay of the Red Alert series, and the fast-paced gameplay of the latest C&C titles.[6]

The first Red Alert revolved around an alternate World War II between the Allies (including Germany) and the Soviet Union, with some high-tech esoterica, such as GPS, weaponized tesla coils, force fields and limited time travel. Red Alert 2 featured a Soviet invasion of USA with tanks, conscripts, gargantuan airships and psychically dominated anti-ship giant squid; its expansion, Yuri's Revenge, escalated matters up to UFOs and communists on the Moon. Executive producer of Red Alert 3, Chris Corry, has confirmed[7] that the game will further differentiate the playable factions from each other and "[play] up the silliness in their faction design whenever possible". The Soviets and Allies have a mix of old and new units and technologies. New Soviet units include armoured attack bears, Tesla boats known as "Stingrays" that can also travel on land, making them a replacement for the Tesla Tank, anti-infantry spider-like tanks called "Sickles" that have the ability to jump over terrain elevations and an amphibious transport unit called the "Bullfrog" that evacuates its passengers using a large "man cannon". The Allies receive a new Tanya unit that is equipped with a "time belt", allowing her to transport herself to the past in order to regain health, and "Cryocopters", unarmed helicopters equipped with powerful freeze and shrink rays. The Empire of the Rising Sun has giant transforming mecha, ninjas, a psychic schoolgirl and submersible planes.

Secondary abilities are to be common to each and every unit in the game, although how each ability is employed may vary slightly between units; some may be toggled on and off, others may apply instantly and some may have a cooldown, requiring a period of time to pass before the ability can be activated again. [8]

Naval warfare is still present. Corry has stated many units are now amphibious, trading effectiveness for increased flexibility compared to ground-only units. In addition, the unit called MCV featured in almost every Command & Conquer RTS, is now able to move and deploy on water; this makes placing buildings on bodies of water (excluding barracks and war factories) possible[9] 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 will have significant bodies of water in them.

Full motion videos featuring real-life actors will be featured in the campaign mode. Filming has begun since the scheduled date of April 2008.

Synopsis

In the Red Alert games, it is asserted that Albert Einstein created a time machine and used it to travel back in time and remove Adolf Hitler from the space-time continuum, which prevented Nazi Germany from forming and averted World War II as we know it from taking place. In this timeline, Joseph Stalin is the main aggressor against Europe.

After the events of Red Alert 2 the leadership of the doomed Soviet Union devises a plan to travel back in time to 1927 with their own time machine and assassinate Einstein[10] in order to change history and restore the Soviet Union as a world power. However, during the mission, something goes horribly wrong. An alternate timeline is inadvertently created, erasing the events of the previous two games. Contrary to what the Soviets hoped, the Allies were not significantly weakened, still retaining their trademark Chronosphere and Prism (now called Spectrum) technology, with the added downside of the Soviets losing their nuclear arsenal as a result of Einstein's death. Worse still, a new technologically advanced superpower appears in the East, known as the Empire of the Rising Sun, bent on world domination. Thus, a three-way world war breaks out for total control of the globe.

Cast and Characters

Allied Nations

Main article: Allied characters of Command & Conquer
  • Field Marshal Robert Bingham, a British General with the Allied forces, played by Jonathan Pryce.[11]
  • President Howard T. Ackerman, President of the United States. He is an anti-communist believing them to stand against everything the Allies stand for. Played by J. K. Simmons.[11] According to the latter, Ackerman has "facets of George C. Scott in Dr. Strangelove"; a "little bit of Barry Goldwater" and "at least a tiny bit of Dubya creeping in there".
  • Special Agent Tanya, who appeared in Red Alert and Red Alert 2 is listed on the official "factions" page to return for this game. She has a new weapon called the "Chrono Belt" that teleports her five seconds into the past. This creates a great escape if things get too ugly. She will be portrayed by Jenny McCarthy.[12] Further details are unknown.[13]
  • Commander Warren Fuller, He is described as a man who survived because of his tenacity and determination. Portrayed by UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture.[11]
  • Commander Lisette Hanley, appears for brief moment in the casting trailer, portrayed by Autumn Reeser.[11]

Empire of the Rising Sun

Main article: Imperial characters of Command & Conquer
  • Emperor Yoshiro - Emperor of the Empire of the Rising Sun. In the casting trailer he is seen saying "You will bow before us or you will cease to exist." played by George Takei.[11]
  • Suki Toyama - Japanese officer who briefs and assists the player. Played by Kelly Hu.[11]
  • Crown Prince Tatsu - Mentioned in the official website's "Factions" page. Also seen in the new Empire of the Rising Sun trailer where he congratulates the Empire's Commander and assures him that they will annihilate the Soviet army in Moscow. Played by Ron Yuan.
  • Yuriko Omega - A Japanese Imperial Psionic Commando trained - or rather, psionically altered - at the Shiro Sanitarium, who appears as a schoolgirl no more than 18 years old. To be voiced by Lisa Tamashiro.

Soviet Union

Main article: Soviet characters of Command & Conquer
  • Premier Cherdenko, political leader of the Soviet Union who succeeded the Romanov legacy. The Premier, with the scientist and the soviet military general, returns in the past and shakes hands with Einstein making the Professor disappear from the timeline (echoing the scene where Einstein does the same with Hitler in the first game). To be portrayed by Tim Curry.[11]
  • Dr. Gregor Zelinsky, responsible for the time machine which they use in their mission to eliminate Einstein. He is constantly expressing worry and regret over the effects of the mission on the space-time continuum. Played by Peter Stormare.[11]
  • Dasha Fedorovich, also appears within the casting trailer, warning the commander of the attack by the Empire of the Rising Sun. Played by Ivana Miličević.[11]
  • General Nicolai Krukov, appears with the Soviet leader and the scientist in the casting trailer. General Krukov accompanies the Premier and Dr. Zelinsky when they return in the past to eliminate Einstein. Played by Andrew Divoff.[11]
  • Natasha Volkova. A folk legend and Commando, Volkova is a legendary sniper with a great reputation for marksmanship. According to the game, her talent was supposedly discovered at a young age, but questions exist as to her identity, personality, and abilities, with some suspecting that aspects of these may have been fabricated for the purposes of propaganda. Her precise role in the campaign has yet to be confirmed, but Volkova will appear in cut scenes and as a playable character. She will be portrayed by mixed martial arts fighter Gina Carano.[16][17]
  • Sergei, a military soldier officer/commando within the Soviet Army. Appears for a short time in the casting trailer being tortured by Tanya. Played by Stelio Savante
  • An unknown female Soviet officer with blonde hair. Briefly seen in the cast announcement trailer. Also appears on the Soviet Theme Pack for the Xbox 360. Played by Vanessa Branch

Development

File:Ra3.jpg
Naval warfare is greatly emphasised in Red Alert 3.

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.[18] 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".[19] Red Alert 3 was then officially announced by Electronic Arts on February 14, 2008.[6] On May 17 the first trailer was released.

Soundtrack

Main article: Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 (soundtrack)

Composer Frank Klepacki is to return to score part of the game. When interviewed regarding the matter, Klepacki indicated a strong desire to do so, 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.[20][21]

Composers James Hannigan and Timothy Michael Wynn are also associated with much of the music of Red Alert 3.[3].

Public beta testing

The press release advises that PC users can become eligible for the multiplayer beta testing program by purchasing a copy of Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath or the Command & Conquer 3 Limited Collection, and registering a special code contained within these before September 15 2008. The beta testing sessions are already well underway and the testers may report any bugs present in the beta.[6][22]

On July 24, 2008, people who registered their beta key close to the release of Kane's Wrath received an e-mail stating that the participants would start receiving their Key and Client Download link throughout late-July and August.[23]

On August 22, 2008, FilePlanet announced that any of its members could sign up for one of a limited number of Red Alert 3 Beta keys on a first-come, first-served basis. Those keys were exhausted and registration closed approximately 24 hours later.[24]

Several patches have been released since the initial Beta. They contain bug fixes, balance changes, and other tweaks. The last patch released was version 1.06, released on September 17, 2008.

The Red Alert 3 Beta servers were scheduled to close on September 26, 2008.[25] The closing date was later extended to September 29, 2008. [26]

Marketing

File:Red Alert 3 - Premier Edition Cover.jpg
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3: Premier Edition cover

EA announced on August 20, 2008 that consumers can preorder Red Alert 3 with exclusive bonuses. They include the Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 game, exclusive multiplayer maps and a bonus DVD containing: "From Fighter to Assassin" - a featurette on Gina "Natasha" Carano, "Red Alert Retrospective" - a look back at Red Alert, Red Alert 2 and Red Alert 2: Yuri's Revenge, "Premier Edition Sneak Peek" - previews of "Raising of the Iron Curtain", "From Pens to Pixels" and "Command School", as well as exclusive Red Alert 3 desktop wallpapers.[27] This preorder offer is currently only available to the United States while other countries and territories are waiting for confirmation.

Additionally EA announced there would be a limited Premier Edition of the game which features a bonus DVD with over an hour of exclusive content including interviews with the talent and a behind the scenes look at the shooting of the game's cinematic sequences, exclusive multiplayer maps, strategy tips from the development team, the official game soundtrack and an exclusive beta key to a future Command & Conquer game all inside an exclusive tin case.[28]

EA have also announced on 31st August 2008 that they will distribute the original Command & Conquer: Red Alert game for free on the original game's 13th Aniversary.[29]

Taiwan will have an exclusive limited Premier Edition featuring an additional Dicota Red Alert 3 backpack.[30]

The Premier Edition that will be released in the UK, will be sold exclusively by GAME.[31]

On 18th September 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 "Kossar's Helm" as a limited time offer upon release. Customers who pre-order Red Alert 3 are guaranteed to receive the code.[32]

EA Singapore has announced that it would be launching a Singapore exclusive Red Alert 3 Commander's Pack in Singapore. It would be launched on the October 27, 2008 which is four days earlier than the American Release Date. This Commander's Pack includes C&C Red Alert 3 Premier Edition, C&C Red Alert 3 Dicota Notebook BacPac and a Microsoft Sidewinder X6 Gaming Keyboard with exclusive Garskin Red Alert 3 Decals. Exclusive Posters and Soviet T- Shirts will also be given to early birds at the game's launch. A smaller and cheaper edition of the Commander's Pack will also be released called the Officer's Pack. The Officer's Pack will only contain the C&C Red Alert 3 Premier Edition and C&C Red Alert 3 Dicota Notebook BacPac [33]

SecuROM controversy

Executive Producer Chris Corry has stated that Red Alert 3 will come bundled with the controversial[34][35][36] SecuROM software. The game will have to be activated the first time online, but can be installed and played on up to five computers [37]. After the fifth installation, 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 [38]. EA's rationale for the continued use of SecuROM in their products is "Digital Rights Management", yet the EA title to have featured the most severe SecuROM protection to date, the 2008 game Spore, was on September 13, 2008 announced to be the most pirated video game ever, with over half a million illegal downloads within the first week of its release.[39] 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 installation limit would be increased from 3 to 5 installations per machine. Many customers remained unsatisfied, stating that for all intents and purposes they will be "renting" the game from EA at full price.

References

  1. ^ a b Purchese, Rob (October 9, 2008). "EA cements Red Alert 3 dates". EuroGamer. Retrieved 2008-10-09.
  2. ^ a b "Confirmed: EA puts Red Alert 3 PS3 on hold". VideoGaming247. June 5, 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-09. Cite error: The named reference "PS3 on hold" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b "Interview with Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 Music Team". Music 4 Games. October 1, 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  4. ^ "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3". GAME. Retrieved 2008-09-21.
  5. ^ Yin-Poole, Wesley (July 28, 2008). "EA explains no PS3 Red Alert 3". VideoGamer. Retrieved 2008-10-09.
  6. ^ a b c d "EA rewrites history in Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3". Electronic Arts. 2008-02-14. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  7. ^ Fordham, A: "PC Powerplay #150", page 31. Next Publishing, 2008.
  8. ^ "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 Exclusive Hands-On - Empire of the Rising Sun". Gamespot. 2008-07-12. Retrieved 2008-07-16.
  9. ^ "Official EA 15 Minute Gameplay Video". Electronic Arts. 2008-07-18. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
  10. ^ "Command And Conquer: Red Alert 3 Preview". IGN. May 27, 2008.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Cast Announcement
  12. ^ "Meet Your Sexy New Red Alert 3 Cast". Kotaku. Retrieved 2008-08-20.
  13. ^ "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 - Factions". EA.com. 2008-08-20. Retrieved 2008-08-20.
  14. ^ "Gemma Atkinson to star in Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3". Electronic Arts. August 5, 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ^ Callaham, John (August 5, 2008). "UK actress the latest to join C&C: Red Alert 3 cast". BigDownload. Retrieved 2008-08-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 - Factions: Natasha". EA.com. Retrieved 2008-08-20.
  17. ^ "Gina Carano as Natasha in Red Alert 3". IGN. 2008-05-30. Retrieved 2008-08-20.
  18. ^ "The Next C&C Game: A Red Alert Title!". Planet CnC. 2004-12-06. Retrieved 2007-06-23.
  19. ^ HeXetic (2008-02-12). "Red Alert 3 Announced (again)". PlanetCNC. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  20. ^ "Electronic Arts announces Red Alert 3 composer". Retrieved 2008-06-22.
  21. ^ "Frank Klepachi - Exclusive Interview". Evo Gamer. 2008-02-15. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
  22. ^ "Red Alert 3 beta". Electronic Arts. 2008-02-14. Retrieved 2008-02-15.
  23. ^ "Red Alert 3 Public Beta Underway Soon". IGN. 2008-07-24. Retrieved 2008-07-24.
  24. ^ http://www.fileplanet.com/promotions/redalert3/
  25. ^ http://www.ea.com/redalert/beta.jsp
  26. ^ http://forums.ea.com/mboards/thread.jspa?threadID=440344&tstart=0
  27. ^ "Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 Pre-Order homepage". EA. Retrieved 2008-09-12.
  28. ^ "Red Alert 3 full live-action cast revealed!". EA. 2008-08-20. Retrieved 2008-09-12.
  29. ^ "COMMAND & CONQUER RED ALERT 3 : Download Red Alert for free!".
  30. ^ "美商藝電" (in Taiwanese). EA.com.tw. Retrieved 2008-09-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  31. ^ "game.co.uk". EA.com. Retrieved 2008-09-14.
  32. ^ "COMMAND & CONQUER RED ALERT 3". EA. 2008-09-18. Retrieved 2008-09-26.
  33. ^ Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 Singapore website
  34. ^ PC World (2008-09-12). "Casual Friday: Why Spore Won't Work". Retrieved 2008-09-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  35. ^ Daniel Teridman, CNet News (2008-05-08). "Report: Gamers angry at DRM system from EA". Retrieved 2008-09-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  36. ^ HeraldNet (2008-09-09). "Spore DRM: the evolution of a brewing controversy". Retrieved 2008-09-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  37. ^ "Official post by Chris Corry on the RA 3 DRM on the EA forums".
  38. ^ "Additional post by Chris Corry on the RA 3 DRM on the EA forums".
  39. ^ Andy Greenberg and Mary Jane Irwin, Forbes (2008-09-12). "Spore's Piracy Problem". Retrieved 2008-09-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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