Command & Conquer: Red Alert

Command & Conquer: Red Alert from 1996 is an alternate-history spin-off from Westwood Studios that, instead of the Tiberium War, tells the story of a great conflict between the Allies and the Soviet Union in a far more dangerous twentieth century. According to the opening story, Albert Einstein decided to erase Hitler from history by traveling back in time, but in doing so unintentionally allowed the Soviet Union to grow into an enormous military superpower — and the player thus finds themselves in the middle of a war where Tesla towers, heavy tanks, and battleships fire at each other instead of the ordinary weapons of the Second World War.

Gameplay-wise it builds on the first Command & Conquer but adds a range of new units and structures — from spies and trained dogs that reveal enemy cloaking to submarines and battleships in naval missions — and, in many respects, a more balanced and faster pace of play, which earned it a reputation as one of the best multiplayer RTS titles of its time. The Allied and Soviet campaigns again combine classic missions with live-action FMV cutscenes, this time even more self-aware and full of exaggeration — the game is conscious of its own absurdity and plays with it, whether it's generals in uniform or dramatic speeches from Soviet commanders. The music was again composed by Frank Klepacki, whose track Hell March became one of the most iconic melodies in the history of strategy games and still appears at game-music concerts today.

Red Alert was received very warmly and in many respects surpassed its predecessor in popularity, especially thanks to its balanced and addictive multiplayer over network and modem. It founded its own long-running sub-series, kept alive for many years after release through expansion packs and sequels, and is still remembered today as one of the most entertaining strategy games of the nineties — a game that managed to be both tense and funny at once without losing its edge in combat balance.

Why play it: For lovers of balanced, addictive multiplayer and a strategy game that manages to be tense and funny at the same time — one of the most entertaining RTS titles of the nineties.