The first game I'm reviewing:
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 1
Developer: Westwood Studios
Publisher: Virgin Interactive
Release Date: 1996, declared freeware on August 31st 2008
Genre: Single player and Multiplayer Real Time Strategy
Windows 95/98
75MHz Pentium Processor (120 MHz recommended)
8 MB Ram (16MB recommended)
4x CD-ROM
1 MB video Card
3 out of 5
Red Alert is a real time strategy game meaning that the game is about building a base, managing resources and building troops with a scissors-paper-rock formula to win against the enemy. The game play is good for an RTS game. The controls might be a bit hard to get around, with the whole game based on using hotkeys for ordering units as there is no graphical interface for the unit orders. Also it seems that you can only create one unit at a time and must wait for the creation of the unit to finish before you can create another one. The missions in the campaign are not repetitive, ranging from establishing building bases to making do with what you get at the beginning of the mission.
Graphics:
4 out of 5
The graphics of the game are all good and neat compared to other RTS games. The developers of the game hired actors to film in their cutscenes (which all RTSs besides the Command & Conquer series don’t do) so the graphics for that are good though the resolution isn’t that good and make the cutscenes a little pixelated.
Sound:
5 out of 5
There is nothing much about the sound effects in the game except for that they are very good. One feature that I think is nice is the voices when you select menu option, for example when it says "battle control exterminated" when you abort a mission. The soundtrack is good (it has been voted the best video game soundtrack of 1996 by PC Gamer and Gameslice magazines).
4 out of 5
The single player skirmish mode with computers with various levels of difficulties or with other people over the internet extends the longevity of the game and it would probably take a medium to long time to get bored of the game. The game also comes with a map editor enabling you to make your own maps and single player mission, prolonging its gameplay.
Overall:
Fun gameplay that is sometimes disruppted by awkward game play mechanics.
A worthwhile look at if you’re a RTS enthusiast
5 Comments:
I presume all of these are relating to other DOS games eg.graphics
Red Alert One was not a DOS Game.
We actually have all three of the series at home (The third one was released about a month ago) and they are all great games. As for only being able to build one unit at a time, i don't know what you were doing wrong, but i could. Also, there actually is a visual interface for issuing orders, but most of them are done with the mouse. (In Red Alert 2, the orders bar was at the bottom, forgotten where it is in RA1, but it was used for things like point-to-point and attack moves).
But nice job, Fu, good review and nice choice of game. (Better than Cowderoy's anyway)
"Red Alert One was not a DOS Game."
Well you are right, but there is DOS version that came with the Windows 95 version.
Play AOEIII. If you want good graphics, gameplay, stategy, replaybility and everything else. By the way, allowing Philip Fu to post was a good idea Cowderoy has nothing interesting to say (well from my brief skim).
I found it funny how in Red Alert 3 David Hasselhoff becomes the President of America at the end of the game.
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