Multiplayer Preview: Command & Conquer 4: Tiberium Twilight
So the swan song of the epic, genre defining and bestselling franchise is upon us. In just one short week gamers around the world will be sitting down to what is claimed to be the very last time you will have to worry about Tiberium, Kane, Nod or GDI…
Without boring everyone with a history lesson, let’s just say that the first multiplayer strategy game I every really played exhaustively was Red Alert (The first one) back in good old ’96. Since then I have played the rest of the series in addition to the other sci-fi RTS (Real Time Strategy) classics; StarCraft, Total Annihilation & Supreme Commander. So how does Command & Conquer 4: Tiberium Twilight stack up against these classics?
Well at this stage I can only talk about the multiplayer beta, and without the full retail release game it would be wrong of me to pass judgement on the whole experience, but what I can offer is some clarity to those of you who are wondering what the game’s multiplayer is like. Many have said it’s a “love it or hate it” title, and I can see why they might think that, but those who hate it are almost certainly missing the whole point of this game.
Always best to keep your spider bots connected, lest you loose one of them, the naughty little tykes!
This game, as a multiplayer experience, is all about gratification. Yes, somehow EA have managed to come up with a “strategy” game that has absolutely no “dull bits”!
Let me break it down for you, bullet point style:
- Long initial “base setup” phase? NO.
- Painful wait for resource accumulation? NO.
- Epic wait for units to cross the battlefield. NO.
- Getting blown away by players with better unit and tech tree knowledge? NO.
- Punishment for failure to be second perfect in build queue management? NO.
- Reward for intelligent solo play. YES.
- Benefit from intelligent team play. YES.
- Need to swiftly adapt to changing battlefield. YES.
- Multiple effective strategies for each “side” & “class”. YES.
- Variety and considerable difference in each “side” and “class”. YES.
Not only is the experience free of many of the banes of the RTS genre, it manages this whilst incorporating, amongst other things, a basic but flexible tech tree, simple but vital resource control and a large number of tactical options! It even includes a “class” based system designed to cater to the specific play style of any player. As if that wasn’t enough, it introduces persistent player levelling and unit unlocks to boot!
Nothing like a hail of rockets to keep you warm in winter. Thanks NOD!
As you can probably tell, I am a big fan of what EA have done with this latest, and I would say greatest, installment of the venerable “C&C” series.
In playing this beta I managed, for the very first time, to have more than a few “epic”, “tech tree” spanning, all action, nail biting, 2 team, 10 player games that flowed back and forth with almost breathtaking clarity and balance. Oh, and did I forget to mention they often lasted less than 25 minutes!! That’s right, a 10 player online RTS game that didn’t need 1/2 a day to complete a single scenario / map!
Anyway, I’m not here to gush about how great the game is! So let’s get down to some useful buying decision points as concerns the multiplayer aspects of the game.
You will LOVE this game’s multiplayer experience if you want to:
- Work as part of a team.
- Take part in intense strategic combat.
- Earn higher level units, through repeated online play.
- Make split second tactical decisions that have a big effect.
- Adapt, moment to moment, to different & changing opponent combinations and tactics.
You will HATE this game’s multiplayer experience if you want to;
- Base build only.
- Be amazing in your first few matches.
- Play a single map / game for hours on end.
- Focus on a small part of the bigger picture throughout.
- Be a lone wolf in a team scenario. (You could still play 1-on-1 however!)
AT-ATs are never out of place. They work in any and all franchises. Not just Star Wars. Fact.
Preview Round Up:
Graphics: 3.5/5 – Some might say a little dated, but I think it’s the perfect blend of nostalgia and shinyness.
Sound: 3.5/5 – Big units, big noises, I love it! Nothing wrong here, nothing new either. Well it is C&C after all!
Gameplay: 4.5/5 – Multiplayer fun in a condensed, balanced, exciting, pick-up-’n'-play format. Suitable for complete beginners and seasoned masters alike. Just don’t ask me how they managed to balance the game so effectively!
Longevity: 4/5 – In addition to the player “leveling” and unit “unlocks” (which must be progressed separately for each of the the two sides / factions) and the 3 classes (Support, Defense and Offense) the sheer number of tactical options, dependant on team mates, means you’ll never even have a chance to get bored!
Overall: 4/5 – A superb example of the type of game that is very likely to be the future of the large majority of RTS games.
[starreview tpl=16]
Welcome to The Newb Review Rax. And what a way to start – great article!
It’s a shame my pc and laptops aren’t high enough spec or I’d pick this up. I have fond memories of the C&C series, stretching way back to the very first game which was fantastic. If I can ever get 1 of them installed right we’ll have to play a few games on some of the older games that Westwood have releases for fee
Great first aticle though 
welcome to the team 
Why thank you kind peoples!
Judging from the poor reception elsewhere it seems that it’s single player might be letting the side down. Once I’ve played single player (on Friday night hopefully) I’ll do a full review ASAP. I’m a little worried that it’s quality may turn out to be “multiplayer only”, still, I guess I’ll find out tomorrow!
Game doesnt work after install. Launcher fails! Ea live tech support has no clue tried to claim it was Gcard driver even after I showed him the application event error.
Welcome to the team Rax. Great start. I loved the earlier C+C games and I still play Red Alert every now and then.
@f1dElEtE so….not happy then no?
Already playing the full game & I’m enjoying it – graphics are gorgeous too.