Command and Conquer

Conquer The World With The Click Of A Mouse

A Review of Command and Conquer

by Trey Murff

Command and Conquer is a real time tactical level combat game with

strategic elements set in the near future. It supports individual as well as

multiplayer play. When playing against the computer, you are given the

choice of fighting for the GDI (good guys) or NOD (bad guys). With either

choice, you fight your way through 15 grueling scenarios. Personally, I



have completed all the GDI missions and I am currently on NOD mission

10. I won’t go into any further detail about the missions as not to spoil

some of the surprises. However, I will tell you that the NOD missions

appear to be more difficult than the GDI missions, so I recommend

beginning with the GDI.

On the box you will read that C&C comes with 2 CDs. After opening the

box you will find only 1 jewel case. Both CDs are in located in the jewel

case which is hinged to reveal the second CD. The install procedure is

simple enough and quite entertaining in its own right.

The game proceeds with an introduction patterned after channel hopping.

On some channels you see quaint video clips and on others you catch parts

of news casts. From the news clips you gather that there is a conflict going

on between GDI and NOD forces. After the introduction, you are given the

option of beginning the game on either the NOD or GDI side.

Game play will be very familiar to those who have played Dune II. A

mouse is required and the same point and click philosophy is used.

However, there is a larger variety of units than in Dune II. This includes

Minigunners, Grenadiers, Rocket Troops, Hum Vees, Rocket Bikes,

Tanks, Helicopters and Guard towers to name a few. In fact, if you play

your aces right, you may even get a nuclear weapon to use in the last

scenario for the NOD.

There are also keyboard commands for grouping units and giving orders.

However, these commands are not documented in the manual, so be sure

and read the readme file in the C&C directory for instructions on what keys

to use.

The 320×200 by 256 color graphics are beautiful, but it would have been

nice to have the option of playing in 640×480 mode. The maps can be quite

large and Westwood did a good job of including a number of different

terrain types. You will encounter cliffs, rivers, deserts, forest, towns and

fortified installations.

While fighting the enemy, you must also provide enough income to build

structures and units. This income comes from tiberium that is harvested and

converted to money. However, not all missions will require you to build



units. There is even one mission on the GDI side where all you have is a

commando and transport helicopter. If you get to this mission and are

having problems, drop me an email and I can give you some hints on how

to get through. Also, if you have completed all the NOD missions, drop me

an email since I may need some help on the later missions .

This is all well and fun but Westwood has done us one better than Dune II

by including a multiplayer mode. With one game (you recall that it comes

with 2 CDs), 2 players can compete over a modem, IPX network, or direct

serial connection. Then, if you have a friend who also purchased the game,

you will be able to play 4 players over an IPX network (of course you will

need to find 2 more friends with PCs).

But the fun doesn’t stop here! With a wonderful gaming tool, Kali, you can

play up to four player games across the Internet. Since you are probably reading this with a web browser, multiplayer C&C is within your

grasp. Check out my Kali article in the Multiplayer Mayhem section for



more information or visit http://www.axxis.com/kali . There is nothing like

playing C&C against a live opponent. In fact, I probably would be done

with the 30 missions if I didn’t keep taking time out to play against my

buddies.

To sum it up, Command and Conquer is one of the most exciting and

addicting games I have played. I have stayed up way too late on many

occasions unable to pull myself away. Although C&C has only 30 mission



you will find it well worth your money. A warning though, many of the

scenes depict graphic violence and are probably not appropriate for

younger kids. Go and conquer!

Gamer’s Zone Scorecard

Product:	Command and Conquer
Company:	Westwood Studios, Inc. 3540 W. Sahara #323 Las Vegas, NV 89102
Cost:	$54.00

System Requirements:

IBM PC 486 DX2-66, MS Compatible
Mouse, Sound Blaster Compatible Sound Card, 20 MB HD Space, Double
Speed CD-ROM, DOS 5.0 or higher, IPX/MODEM/NULL MODEM for
Head to Head Play

Breakdown:

Fun Factor 5
Interface 5
Replayability 3 (standalone) 5 (multiplayer)
Graphics 4
Sound 5

Overall Score: