Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 is a real-time scheme video game which was released for Microsoft Windows on October 25, 2000 [ 1 ] as the follow-up to Command & Conquer: Red Alert. Red Alert 2 picks up at the ending of the Allied campaign of the foremost game. Its expansion pack is Command & Conquer: Yuri’s Revenge, released a year late in 2001. Red Alert 2 was chiefly developed by Westwood Pacific in collaboration with Westwood Studios. [ 2 ] Command and Conquer: Red Alert 2 contains two playable factions, the Soviets and the Allies, which both previously appeared in Command & Conquer: Red Alert. The single player crusade is structured in an alternate-ending mode as opposed to a progressive story mode. Like its harbinger, Red Alert 2 features a large sum of full moon motion video cutscenes between missions and during gameplay, with an corps de ballet shed including Ray Wise, Udo Kier, Kari Wuhrer, and Barry Corbin.
Red Alert 2 was a commercial and critical success, receiving a rat of 86 % from GameRankings. [ 3 ] A sequel, Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3, was released in 2008 .
Contents
Gameplay
The independent aim of the game is to defeat foe commanders, played by AI or human opponents, by destroying their bases to the point of enemy capitulation. Players must besides work to defend their own bases to maintain their ability to collect money and produce units, both of which are necessity in achieving the independent objective. once all foe commanders have been defeated, a winner is declared. Every aspect of gameplay in the game is based on the solicitation of money. In the game, money can be collected by several means. The most park is using miner trucks to gather ore and/or gems and transport them to a refinery. A player can besides gain a last income by capturing vegetable oil derricks ( achromatic buildings that are stage in some maps ). There besides are two erstwhile sources of money for Allied and Soviet players, namely : collecting random crates which are deliver in the map and selling off buildings which are controlled by the player. Allied players have a third erstwhile generator of money, which involves using a spy to steal an opposing musician ‘s money. The money is spent on construct and rectify buildings and units. In both cases, players may start construction before having the full cost in one ‘s reserves, as construction plainly pauses if a player runs short of money. The versatile nations are members of either the soviet or the Allied factions, which are broadly based on the real life factions of the Cold War. One of the major praises of Red Alert 2 over the original Red Alert game was that playing as a specific country made a bigger deviation. While every country has the basic buildings and units, each nation has a particular singular whole, ability, or structure. It is besides the first C&C RTS not to include a “ mission choose ” screen anterior to levels that change the conditions of the future level .
Game remainder
Like former Command & Conquer games, the two factions in Red Alert 2 have singular armies with their own strengths and weaknesses. To achieve victory, a actor must play to their cabal ‘s strengths and exploit the other faction ‘s weaknesses. The factions follow the same tendency in the former championship. soviet vehicles tend to possess heavier firepower and/or being able to take more punishment compared to their Allied counterparts with examples such the Heavy Rhino Tank and its V3 Rocket Launchers. however, they are besides more expensive to build and at times move more slowly, allowing allied vehicles to out-maneuver and outnumber them. The basic soviet infantry, on the other bridge player, the Conscript, though much subscript to the Allied G.I., are fabulously cheap and far faster to train making it easy to mass grow. The soviet faction is besides superior in the early game and in domain wars because of their more herculean and advance tanks, while the Allied cabal is better in the former bet on with more advance units, such as those used in naval war. In especial, the Soviets are better for early bet on rushes, which are very coarse in on-line games. [ 4 ]
A humble Allied basis at the begin of a game. The actor is preparing to place a “ Pillbox ” defensive structure. In single-player manner, the musician can either compete in one of three campaigns or compete in skirmish modality where the struggle rules and settings can be customized. Red Alert 2 contains three campaigns. Boot Camp, Allied, and Soviet. Each campaign is distinct in its own room. Boot Camp is just a tutorial campaign consisting of two missions in which the player is introduced to the fundamentals of the crippled with the use of Allied forces. If played, Boot Camp leads into Allied Campaign chronologically. Allied and Soviet campaigns are the two main campaigns of the game, each consisting of twelve missions in which the player faces off against one or more computer-controlled opponents. In some missions, the objective is just to defeat all opposing forces in the area ; early missions have more specific objectives, such as appropriate or destroying a particular enemy structure or defending a particular structure of the player ‘s own from enemy attacks. While basically different in history and units, both Campaigns are structured similarly. Both begin with the player operating a circumscribed base or otherwise a fluid construction Unit to start from scribble plus a platoon of certain units, but in a few missions construction is not required. brush manner is basically the brawl multiplayer mode played against computer-controlled opponents. The player chooses a map against as many players the map supports. The player can besides change settings such as the act of starting units, the monetary levels at the begin, game speeds and the handiness of superweapons. There are no special objectives, barely eliminate all enemies units and structures .
Multiplayer
Red: playable Soviet nations Blue : playable Allied nationsRed : playable soviet nations Red Alert 2 includes two different multi-player modes. One, LAN allows the player to play aboard friends and others without the habit of an internet connection. The early, Online Play allows the player to play across the internet and against players from across the ball. LAN play allows for merely brush Mode that is available in single-player. Online play allows for tournaments, private games, populace games, ladder ranking games and besides contains a chew the fat system. In 2005, control of on-line play for Red Alert 2 and a number of older C&C games was passed over from EA to XWIS, a community-run server. Multiplayer is still active through CnCNet .
outline
Setting
Like previous Command & Conquer real-time strategy games, Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 contains two separate campaigns with discrete report lines, one for each playable cabal. Red Alert 2 is set in the lapp alternative history universe as Red Alert in which Adolf Hitler was removed from history. With Hitler gone, the Soviet Union led by Joseph Stalin attempted to conquer Europe but was defeated by the Allied nations and their military demolish. Fearing that a regimen change would cause mass unrest in the Soviet Union, the triumphant Allies installed Alexander Romanov, a distant proportional of Tsar Nicholas II, as the puppet Soviet Premier. Romanov acquiesces to the Allies ‘ demands at first, though he builds up the soviet military for “ defensive structure purposes ” – a cover for an mean invasion of the United States. The game ‘s story line starts off in 1972, with the United States Armed Forces caught wholly off guard by the sudden massive soviet invasion of the United States, with soviet aircraft, naval vessels, amphibious forces, and paratroopers coming in on both the East Coast and West Coast and with the majority of soviet ground forces coming in through Mexico, starting World War III. The U.S. attempts to retaliate with the use of nuclear missiles, but Yuri, leader of the Soviet Psychic Corps and Premier Romanov ‘s top adviser, uses his mind control to manipulate the personnel charged with launching the warheads and leaves them to explode in their silo. Within hours, the U.S. is overrun with soviet Army troop. The player either takes the function of an american Commander, tasked by General Ben Carville with defending the United States, or a soviet Commander leading the invasion for Premier Romanov .
Allied campaign
The Allied Commander is sent to New York City with a special forces team led by particular Agent Tanya Adams to repel a soviet invasion there and then to Colorado Springs to liberate the Air Force Academy and the publicize basis there. As they return victorious, they discover that a soviet thinker see device known as the Psychic Beacon has been deployed in Washington, D.C., forcing the president and General Carville to surrender. The Commander frees them from control and the government goes into exile in Canada. When the Soviets put another psychic device in Chicago, the Psychic Amplifier, which could control the solid area, the Allies free the city from their canadian base by destroying the Amplifier. The soviet foreman commander, General Vladimir, retaliates by detonating a nuclear missile in the city. Alarmed, the leaders of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom agree to help the U.S. if they disarm the soviet nuclear missile silo threatening them in Poland which the Commander and Tanya handle at the behest of the president of the united states. now bolstered by extra men and equipment, the U.S. military is able to launch an amphibious assault on Soviet-occupied Washington, D.C. and recapture the city. After defending Pearl Harbor from Soviet rape, the Allied forces free St. Louis and all of the Mississippi River south of the city from psychic control and thwart soviet attempts to replicate the Allied prism technology that creates massive energy beams to destroy units. After General Carville tasks the Commander to defend Albert Einstein ‘s lab which holds a prototype Chronosphere which can teleport troops anywhere in the earth, he is killed by a soviet suicide bomber. Einstein determines the best place to build the Chronosphere is on a bantam island in the Florida Keys, not far from soviet Cuba. The Allies use the Chronosphere ‘s teleportation capabilities to take an Allied strike team to Moscow where they successfully destroy the defenses around the Kremlin and teleport in a strike team led by Tanya that captures Premier Romanov, leading to the Soviets ‘ resignation .
soviet campaign
Premier Alexander Romanov briefs the commander about the approaching soviet invasion of the United States. The Commander leads an invasion into Washington, D.C. and destroys the Pentagon. Another soviet invasion is launched into Florida to destroy a U.S. fleet which was threatening the soviet invasion of the East Coast. Despite this, the soviet head commanding officer, General Vladimir, is credited with the success of those campaigns. While Vladimir is back in Moscow, Romanov ‘s peak adviser, Yuri, recommends the Commander could prove his worth by taking control of New York City using a psychic Beacon. When allied forces from South Korea launch an amphibious attack on Vladivostok, the Commander successfully repels the Allies, leading Germany and France to send troops to the German-Polish molding to defend from soviet aggression. The Commander takes advantage of this by conquering Paris, using the Eiffel Tower as a massive Tesla coil to destroy the city. With this, the european Allies are forced to withdraw their documentation for the United States.
In the interim, Yuri has been using his psychic abilities to control Romanov, who gives him operate of the military, much to the disgust of General Vladimir. Yuri dismisses Vladimir and tasks the Commander with establishing a base on the hawaiian Islands. When the Allies try to use their Chronosphere to attack a soviet inquiry adeptness in the Ural Mountains, the Commander successfully defends the facility. shortly afterwards, Yuri tells the Commander that Vladimir killed Romanov. Declaring Vladimir a double-crosser and a “ nonperson ”, Yuri orders the Commander to capture Vladimir in the White House. After Vladimir ‘s capture and execution, the Commander successfully captures the U.S. president of the united states and destroys the Allied superweapon : the weather control device ; able of creating brawny thunderstorms that destroy heavily armored structures. Impressed by the Commander ‘s victories, Yuri invites them back to Moscow to thank them but their adjutant, Lt. Zofia, reveals that Romanov recorded a message before his death in which he reveals that Yuri was controlling him and orders them to bring Yuri to justice. The commander attacks Moscow with the bulk of the soviet army and destroys the Kremlin, apparently killing Yuri. They then use information from Yuri ‘s files to destroy the Allied last-ditch attempt to assault the Soviet Union using another Chronosphere, effectively becoming the ruler of the world. In the final examination cutscene, it is revealed that Yuri has survived, his brain float in a glass jar filled with water and telepathically communicates to the commander, saying : “ It would have been beneficial to see inside your mind, General. I still may get the probability … ”, setting the stage for Command & Conquer: Yuri’s Revenge .
cast
Allied Nations
Soviet Union
- Nicholas Worth as Premier Alexander Romanov
- Udo Kier as Yuri
- Adam Gregor as Gen. Vladimir
- Aleksandra Kaniak as Lt. Zofia
Development
Unlike previous entries in the franchise, Red Alert 2 was developed by Westwood Pacific. [ 2 ] [ 5 ] Westwood Studios, the original developers of the Command & Conquer franchise were involved in a collaborative function due to early commitments at the time. [ 2 ] Despite its specify interest, lone Westwood Studios ‘ name appeared on the packaging for the bet on .
soundtrack
The Red Alert 2 soundtrack was composed by long-time Command & Conquer collaborator Frank Klepacki .
reception
Sales
In the United States, Red Alert 2 debuted at # 1 on personal computer Data ‘s computer game sales chart for the October 22–28 period. [ 6 ] Holding the position in its irregular week, [ 7 ] the title became October ‘s ninth-biggest calculator game seller, according to PC Data. [ 8 ] It proceeded to maintain an unbroken streak in the firm ‘s hebdomadally top 10 through the goal of 2000, [ 8 ] [ 9 ] [ 10 ] [ 11 ] [ 12 ] [ 13 ] [ 14 ] [ 15 ] [ 16 ] and to claim # 1 and # 7 for the overall months of November and December, respectively. [ 11 ] [ 16 ] Red Alert 2 ‘s domestic sales totaled 334,400 units by year ‘s end, which drew revenues of $ 13.2 million. personal computer Data ultimately named it the United States ‘ 13th-best-selling calculator title of 2000. [ 17 ] It took 14th for 2001, [ 18 ] with sales of 388,893 units and revenues of $ 15 million. [ 19 ] In the United States, the game sold 810,000 copies and earned $ 26.9 million by August 2006, after its spill in October 2000. It was the state ‘s 11th best-selling computer game between January 2000 and August 2006. Combined sales of all Command & Conquer strategy games released between January 2000 and August 2006, including Red Alert 2, had reached 4.3 million units in the United States by the latter date. [ 20 ] Red Alert 2 received a “ platinum ” sales prize from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association ( ELSPA ), [ 21 ] indicating sales of at least 300,000 copies in the United Kingdom. [ 22 ] In the german market, Red Alert 2 was expected to be a commercial success. PC Player ‘s Martin Schnelle predicted that it could be the best-selling game of the 2000 vacation season. [ 23 ] It debuted at # 1 on Media Control [ de ] ‘s computer game sales rankings for October 2000, and held this descry the following month. [ 24 ] [ 25 ] The Verband five hundred Unterhaltungssoftware Deutschland [ de ] ( VUD ) presented Red Alert 2 with a “ Gold ” award at the end of November, [ 26 ] indicating sales of at least 100,000 units across Germany, Austria and Switzerland. [ 27 ] After taking fourth position in December, the game remained in Media Control ‘s top 10 through February 2001, [ 24 ] and in the lead 14 through March. [ 28 ] Red Alert 2 had sold roughly 180,000 units in the german region by May, a digit with which Electronic Arts was “ very please ”, according to Udo Hoffman of PC Player. [ 24 ] While Red Alert 2 ‘s sales in the german market were hard, the bet on was less successful than its predecessor Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun. [ 24 ] Discussing the performance of Red Alert 2 and its contemporary hits, Herman Achilles of the VUD described a “ detectable drop in sales, particularly among mega sellers ”, which he attributed to growing piracy rates. [ 26 ] Tom Meier of the german retailer personal computer Fun believed the game ‘s lower demand was caused by players ‘ “ widespread disappointment ” with Tiberian Sun. Hoffman wrote that Meier “ had to open his shop half an hour earlier to cope with the crowd ” for Tiberian Sun, while Red Alert 2 “ was equitable a sale among many ”. [ 24 ]
critical reviews
Gary Whitta reviewed the personal computer adaptation of the game for Next Generation, rat it four stars out of five, and stated that “ much better than Tiberian Sun, Red Alert 2 proves that Westwood can still cut it when it comes to realtime scheme – just do n’t expect a whole modern ball bet on ”. [ 33 ] Red Alert 2 received by and large positive reviews, with Flickroomcalling it outstanding and GamePro ‘s Editor’s Choice. [ citation needed ] One reviewer on GamePro noted that “ it ‘s not the most advanced game, but with its hearty gameplay and alternate Cold War storyline, Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 is the best 2D real-time strategy game since StarCraft “. [ citation needed ] After the September 11 attacks, the game ‘s cover art was redesigned to remove the depicting of a plane heading toward the World Trade Center and to swap the american iris on the front blanket with a mushroom cloud. EA offered retailers an opportunity to exchange their copies with a version that bore the revised top art. [ 34 ] Despite the repackaging, the World Trade Center continued to be present in the game ‘s crusade, with the Soviet campaign giving the players the option to occupy and tied destroy the buildings. [ citation needed ] PC Gamer US named Red Alert 2 the best real-time scheme game and the best multiplayer game of 2000. [ 35 ]
