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Fun but hard

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 4
Date: September 23, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Command & conquer Red Alert is a game I usually play at my friends house. Its a pretty fun video game. If you like strategy games which makes you think you will love this game. Its really hard as well. You can choose your country and have an army. You start off with $10,000 and you buy things that will keep your base safe because the other country is trying to kill you and destroy your land. You must get lots of soliders and good buildings and planes and lots of other things in order to defeat them.

A Real-Time Strategy Classic: C&C Red Alert

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 4
Date: September 07, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This game is great for RTS players young and old. I never get tired of it, and the many expansions and maps you can play allow for thousands of unique games. The campaign is top rate, too!

The Best Red Alert Ever!!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 5
Date: May 23, 2004
Author: Amazon User

-This is the best version of Red Alert. The Expansion version of this one (Red Alert Counterstrike) is even better!! I have tried many other strategy game by this same company, but the original Red Alert and its expansion is by far the best!!

This Game rocks!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 2
Date: February 26, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This game was the first C&C game
I ever played. It rocks! I've
played other war games like Real War.
It was not long enough. It is only
good for the campeign mode. It
is a little too bloody for
little kids. But, otherwise it is
a great game. I recomend it!!!!!!!

Pretty Cool

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 2
Date: October 14, 2002
Author: Amazon User

This game has no strategy involved, its about who can make the most tanks, men, etc... I have won in 20 minutes by mass producing my tanks...

I saw this item featured

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: April 07, 2002
Author: Amazon User

...I have this game, it's a classic, and while I have played Starcraft, Warcraft I, Warcraft II, Red Alert 2, Tiberian Sun, the original Command & Conquer, Empire Earth, Age of Empires, Age of Empires II, all of these games' expansion packs, clones of these games, alterations of the genre like Myth I-III, Battlezone (but not Battlezone II, that wasn't as good as the original) I'd still have to say that I had the most fun playing this game of all of those other games. The focus now, sadly, seems to be on unit tactics. While fun, it never ever approached the level of fun or the need for nostalgia either(!) that was so well captured in this game.

The previous reviewer who said that today's RTS games are too slow was correct. Red Alert really was about fast-paced battles, and the computer AI was one of the best and perhaps the most fun to play. One on one skirmishes against the computer, if played correctly, could be over in 10 minutes. The speed of the battles and the huge armies that you could create were amazing. The huge armies were only so much fun back then because they were actually hard to get. Now they are so easy. You build base defense, wait for your queues to finish, assign teams to numbers 1-0, and then move in to destroy player x. I play Red Alert 2 on the fastest speed setting and even then, the games always last twice and even three times as long as old Red Alert games. The acting and the stories in the movies was even better. The allied side had more character to it, unlike the RA 2 allies, who seem as deep as a sheet of paper. I especially missed the soviet side, which had more sense of story to it and Nadia's "Thanks... I made it myself," line. It was also nice to be in an actual briefing room with your other commanders as it gave a sense of urgency and made you actually fear for your life at times, not knowing what was going to happen in the movies. In short, the movies had more story to them, they were longer, and the characters were so much more memorable and at times believable.

Superweapons were fun in the original RA, but now they seem corny in RA 2. As for unit tactics, you won't find them in this game but you'll find much more than that. You'll find battle tactics. Unit tactics, I think, were an effort to improve micromangement by making it more fun. And to some degree, it is, but it tires easily. That first big rush by the computer is something I miss a lot. The computer just keeps sending tank after tank after tank and you can never have good enough base defense. I also remember playing modem games allied with a friend of mine against the computer, and they were much more fun than any online games of Starcraft (which is separated into about 5 main categories: rush, normal game with limited resources, BGH with unlimited resources, role-playing game, and survive for x minutes while defending x structure) and much better than any game of C&C tiberian sun, red alert 2, etc.

Build queues, making individual units have special functions, and other things such as formation and unit behaviors are really quite crappy in comparison to the gameplay in this game. I still appreciate that stuff but I liked the urgency and fast-paced battles in this game.

I know it's not nostalgia either. The first RTS game I played was Warcraft II, and I played lots of modem games with that as well. I don't think a game developer has to do more than create a solid game for it to have an audience. The only other game I could place in this "holy category" would have to be half-life. Prior to buying half-life, I had played Quake, Quake II, Wolfenstein, Doom, Doom 2, Duke Nukem 3d, etc. These two games weren't the first, but they're definitely the most polished. If someone made a Red Alert with updated graphics, I'd buy it right away. That's probably the only thing that made me stop playing. Other games had better graphics...

An Instant Classic

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 1
Date: March 25, 2002
Author: Amazon User

This is one of the most remarkable games ever put out for the PC. I know people that wouldn't, under any circumstances, consider themselves a computer gamer, but have nevertheless played Red Alert. That's how fun it is. From the day it was released, it was obvious this was going to be one of the best real time strategy games of all time.

It is the pace of Red Alert that distinguishes it from some of the older classics, such as the original Command & Conquer and Dune II. After you've played this game, the other ones will seem to be going in slow motion. Multiplayer games in Red Alert are frequently over within 20 minutes, and the actual outcomes can be determined in skirmishes that last just seconds. What is probably most appealing about this is the fact that it's realistic- 20 minutes is about right for a real battle. Unlike the long slugging matches and wars of attrition you can get into in some other real-time strategy titles, you will never get into a deadlock in Red Alert.

For those of you who were appalled by the AI in old Command & Conquer (more like, the lack thereof), the Red Alert AI is much improved. You won't see an enemy army camped peacefully in the middle of your base anymore, and they can actually fight in multiplay. The single player missions are challenging, and have a great plot. You definitely get a feel for both sides and what they are fighting for, and the acting- though at times somewhat painful- was a good backdrop for the action.

Balance between the Soviet and Allied sides is well done. In general, the Allies move faster and have superior naval power (the Aftermath add-on balances the navies somewhat). The Soviets have stronger but slower units, and better air power. What distinguishes Red Alert (and its sequel, as well) is the fact that the units are really different. They aren't just clones of the other side with different graphics, and many have very specialized uses. There are innumerable tactical plans you can choose, each using different units, maneuvers, and strategies.

One thing that will not work- and this is a good thing- is playing totally defensive. Unlike some other RTS games (Tiberian Sun, Starcraft, or Total Annihilation) sitting in your base and trying to hold off your opponents is a sure way to lose. This is good because Red Alert matches are therefore more than a bunch of rushes and resource wars, but tend to be climactic battles that usually involve large numbers of tanks and perhaps air and sea support. Now, I realize some people enjoy spending hours whittling down their enemies and being whittled in return, and if you're one of those people then this game isn't for you. For all the rest of us, it's a joy to play.

Red Rules!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: January 04, 2002
Author: Amazon User

If you are looking for an awesome strategy games with lots of action, Red Alert is the way to go. It has over 30 different levels of intense bunker-bustin', enemy whoopin', tank-shockin' action! This is a must own for all military and strategy gamers alike!

Still the best of its genre?

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: December 10, 2001
Author: Amazon User

If you don't play games on the internet, this review is pretty much useless, but if you do, please read on, since I have some (maybe you didn't know before) inside scoop on Red Alert with the great expansion back Aftermath.

Ok, you may ask yourself what I am thinking for writing the headline. But ask yourself this. What combat strategy games do we have today?
Yes, StarCraft is a great game, and surpasses this game in the mere fact that you have more options there. But, then again, the Westwood Tournament System is a delight, and free of charge. I have never really gotten Blizzards tournament system to work, and have found it complicated to get to grips with.

The follow up to Red Alert (2) is of course a lot better graphic-wise. The music in my opinion, is actually a step backwards since I think much of the music in that game is pretty annoying in the long-run.

BUT, that is just me mumbling about the cons, and odds of each of the games. WHAT MAKES RED ALERT SO MUCH BETTER? Well for starters, it is so well balanced. The Soviets have their might and power, while the Allies have their speed and agility. Have you tried this game on the internet? What a treat it is! If you haven't experienced it, you should. It really wakes a new adrenaline hormone inside the body, you know.. I've played the game on the internet for about two years, and never really gotten bored with it. Using the Q button to control tanks while shooting is a real must-learn if you want to get good at it, since using the X button really doesn't help much since all the tanks do is scatter instead of shoot. I am mentioning this, because they removed the fun Q button option in the second game, something I think is a bummer. Because then it's really just about building the biggest army, and attacking. Nothing about skill in the mouse control department: No dodging shots, like in the original beautiful Red Alert.

Oh, before I let you off, there is one more thing you SHOULD know. Aftermath is the expansion pack to Red Alert, and if you want to try it out on the internet, you really shouldn't be without it. It adds some nice new music to Red Alert, some great new units, and some more tweaking of the weapons and armour, balancing out the two sides even more!
THE ALLIES
* Gets a great Chrono Tank which can blow out any building within three to four shots.
* The field Mechanic repairs units!! So you don't have to drive your units to the repair bay each time. He also can take a few hits, but protect him just in case.
* Probably most importantly, the allied guns now do double the damage of what they did before.

THE SOVIETS
* Gets a Tesla Tank. These are really the teslas you are used to, but a little less powerful version on wheels. Pretty neat.
* Tesla Troopers, has an even smaller version of the same tech. Have many of these, and start a grill party.
* The Missile Sub is probably the most talked about addition since it makes the Soviets more capable on waters. Some say it ruins the balance of the game somewhat. I don't think so, but its up to you to decide for yourself on that subject.
* And last but not least the M.A.D tank. This one carries a shock wave dispenser which when activated does 1/3 damage to everything around it (on-screen.) This means, that if you have three of them, and activate them all at once. Whoops.. 100% (3/3) devastation man!

Plus, there are tons of new maps to use on the internet here too.

That was about it I had to say about Red Alert (with Aftermath.) I really can't recommend it enough. It truly is an amazing game! I play on the Westwood Tournament System as "Xanitra" so if you see me on the ladder, why not play me:) If you say you bought the game because you did read my review of the game here on amazon.com, I might just go easy on you, or even let you win:D hehehehe.. Well, why is Red Alert so much better internet-wise than all the other new ones I've played? The answer probably is; they don't make em like they used to I guess..Well, good luck with your choice in games.
Have fun

The Funest Stratedgy Game Ever!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: November 28, 2001
Author: Amazon User

If you like stradegy games...GET IT!!!

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