Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun

Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun continued the famous strategy series and moved the conflict between GDI and the Brotherhood of Nod into a near future devastated by a mysterious substance called tiberium, which had turned entire landscapes into a dangerous yet valuable resource. The game expanded the proven mechanics of resource gathering, base building and unit control with new elements such as a day-night cycle affecting visibility on the battlefield, aircraft units capable of rapid redeployment, and cyborgs and genetic mutants in Nod's ranks that gave the faction a darker and more menacing character. Both sides' campaigns were again tied together with live-action cutscenes that gave the story about the fight for tiberium a cinematic feel and were among the era's draws for the whole real-time strategy genre.

Technically, this was an ambitious step. The game ran on an upgraded engine that allowed more complex and varied terrain, more units on screen at once, and more elaborate visual effects for explosions and fires, which took a toll on performance on the era's Windows 9x machines and meant the game shipped with a number of technical problems that required follow-up patches. The atmosphere was rounded out by music from Frank Klepacki, the series' longtime composer, who combined electronic and rock elements into Command & Conquer's signature sound and created melodies players still remember today.

Despite its early shortcomings, Tiberian Sun became a beloved part of the series and expanded the story of the tiberium war with another, darker chapter, later extended by the Firestorm expansion. Today it is seen as a transitional game between the classic style of the first Command & Conquer and the more modern approach of later strategy titles, and for fans of late-1990s RTS games it remains a nostalgic experience remembered with respect for its scope, ambition and sci-fi atmosphere plagued by tiberium. The combination of a grim narrative and morally ambiguous factions gave the series themes that later entries built upon, and many players still consider this the title where Command & Conquer became a larger sci-fi saga with its own mythology.

Why play it: For fans of the Command & Conquer series who want to experience a darker continuation of the tiberium war, sitting between the classic first game and the more modern strategy titles that followed it.