Command & Conquer is a real-time strategy series of computer games released by the game developer Westwood Studios (1985 – 2003), which was purchased by Electronic Arts in 1998. In 2003, EA closed Westwood and absorbed it into EA Los Angeles, where Command & Conquer titles are currently being made. Command & Conquer games were originally all in one series, however, EA has expanded the Command & Conquer franchise into three series. These series of games are officially the best selling real time strategy games, selling in excess of 35 million units.

List of Command & Conquer games and series

Tiberian Series

Main article: Command & Conquer: Tiberian Series

• Tiberian Dawn
  • Covert Operations (expansion pack)
• Sole Survivor
• Tiberian Sun
  • Firestorm (expansion pack)
• Renegade

Red Alert Series

Main article: Command & Conquer: Red Alert

• Red Alert
  • Counterstrike (expansion pack)
  • Aftermath (expansion pack)
• Red Alert 2
  • Yuri's Revenge (expansion pack)

Generals Series

Main article: Command & Conquer: Generals

• Generals
  • Zero Hour (expansion pack)

Tiberian Series

Main Article: Command & Conquer: Tiberian Series

The original Command & Conquer series features two warring factions called the United Nations Global Defense Initiative (GDI) and the quasi-state terrorist group, the Brotherhood of Nod.

The conflict centres over control of a new resource called Tiberium, an exotic stubstance that extracts minerals from the land it sits upon and deposits them in above-ground crystals that are simple to process into useful materials. However, Tiberium is also extremely toxic and mutagenic. Almost certainly extraterrestrial in origin, it is thought to have come to Earth in a meteor impact. There is speculation that it may be an alien terraforming agent.

While the GDI focuses on research on making Tiberium into useful materials and mitigating the damage to Earth's people and ecosystem, Nod's position is to embrace Tiberium as the herald of a new age. Nod has done heavy research into Tiberium-based weaponry, and its leader, Kane, has designs to convert the entire planet to a Tiberium-based ecosystem. GDI was created by status quo nations to counter Kane's plans for a new world order. The Brotherhood of Nod excels at manipulating the media to turn world opinion against the GDI.

Red Alert Series

Main article: Command & Conquer: Red Alert

The Red Alert series is set in an alternate timeline, created when Albert Einstein travels back in time and assassinates Adolf Hitler, in an attempt to prevent World War II. This backfires and results in an unchecked Soviet invasion of Europe by Joseph Stalin. The games typically follow the release of a game in the Tiberian timeline; however EA is currently working on a new Red Alert game instead of the anticipated Tiberian Twilight.

The Red Alert series was originally an exploration of the alternate history leading to the Tiberian Series, even Kane made some apperances. With the release of Red Alert 2, the connection became somewhat unclear, with fans of the series split as to whether or not the time travel excursions of the series were forming a separate continuity or just another side adventure on the way to the Tiberian era.

Red Alert 2 is the sequel to Red Alert and has an expansion pack, Yuri's Revenge. In Red Alert 2, the Soviet Union invades the United States, using mind control technology to capture US forces and deactivate America's nuclear arsenal. In Yuri's Revenge, Soviet Premier Romanov's advisor Yuri attempts to overtake the world using his psychic dominator technology. A last second attempt to divert Yuri's plans sends the player back in the midst of the conflict occurring in Red Alert 2, but instead of fighting the Soviets/Allies, the player fights against Yuri. As mentioned above, the Red Alert 2 games do not make any explicit references to the Tiberian series, leading some to believe the Red Alert series is taking a different direction.

In December 2004, EA confirmed that work has begun on a third Game in the Red Alert series, however no screenshots or further information was revealed at this time. Source A handful of people have speculated that the this game may involve technology pilfered by the Soviet Union while it occupied Area 51, however that has not been confirmed. Other speculations are that the upcoming Red Alert title will officially reconnect the Red Alert and Tiberian series.

Westwood also released a music disc with the music from the Red Alert series. This disc was bundled with some later versions of the game.

Generals Series

Main article: Command & Conquer: Generals

Command & Conquer: Generals is the most recent game bearing the Command & Conquer brand, though its plotline is completely unrelated to the other games of the series. Also unlike previous C&C games, Generals and the Zero Hour expansion were developed by EA Los Angeles, where the remaining members of Westwood Studios were transferred to when EA shuttered Westwood's Las Vegas studios.

It uses a new engine called the "Sage" engine and is the first fully three-dimensional Command & Conquer game. Fans of the C&C universe were quick to note that this was the first C&C game ever that did not include cut scenes to tell the story.

In Generals, there are three different factions, which maintain a balance of power: the USA which adopts emergent technologies and support units; China, which swamps defences, and the Global Liberation Army, a terrorist network which uses low-tech ingenuity and guerrilla tactics. The GLA is an organization that is trying to "free" the world, somewhat akin to the Brotherhood of Nod. The Chinese and the USA are the targets of the GLA. It is considered by some that this game takes place in an alternate timeline where Hitler wasn't erased by Albert Einstein and Tiberium never came to Earth, but where Kane, nonetheless, existed.

This story is followed by the game's expansion pack: Command & Conquer: Generals: Zero Hour. In addition, there are some mods and total conversions for this game:

• Blitzkrieg II: The Finest Hour: TC about the Second World War, with the Allies, the Soviets and the Axis.

• Call to Arms: Project about a conflict between the United Arabian Nations (modelled on a united form of the Arab League), the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.

• Vietnam Reborn: remembrance from the days of the Vietnam War.

• An Act of War: TC about a conflict betwen USA, Iraq and North Korea.

Other info

Other games made by Westwood Studios:

• The Dune series
• Earth and Beyond
• Blade Runner
• NoX

There is also an open source project (not affiliated with Westwood) called FreeCNC that aims to clone the gameplay and allow users to play on non-Win32 operating systems, and that uses the original game graphic files.

External links

• Official Homepage
• Non-official Online Community center for the CnC Series
• Non-official homepage with information of the CnC series.
• Planet Command & Conquer
• Tiberian Twilight and Renegade 2 concept art.