Command and Conquer series: Which are the good ones? Quick!

[Zhukov]

So Steam just informed me that the C&C games are on discount.

I haven't played one of those since... Christ, decades ago, like, pre-Starcraft. However, I find myself suddenly interested again, mostly because the picture on the discount announcement had an armoured Russian bear on it, which is kind of awesome.

So, some quick questions before I deploy my credit card:

1) Do the Steam versions work properly on a modern computer (Win 7)?
2) Which of the series are the best?
3) Which one has the armoured bears in it and can you play as the Russians?

Thank you!

 

[teqrevisited]

1) Yes, though some users have trouble starting C&C3 & Kane's Wrath there is a one minute fix achieved by tweaking a config file. My pc on Win7 64 has no issues but it might be different for non-physical editions.

2) Of the ones available on Steam I enjoyed all of them apart from the one that "doesn't exist". C&C 4 is like the Invisible War of the Tiberium timeline. It departed heavily from the experience of base building and resource gathering and instead went for a baseless, action-oriented style akin to Dawn of War 2. I wouldn't recommend this particular title but I'm not fond of that type of RTS so as always opinions are opinions.

3) Bears are in both Red Alert 3 and Red Alert 3:Uprising, both featuring the Soviets along with their bears as a playable faction and infantry unit. Beware that if you're looking for a multiplayer game that Uprising has no such mode. If you don't want that and only want Uprising for whatever reason, it's a standalone title and doesn't require Red Alert 3 to run.

Hope that helps.

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

I didn't care for red alert 3 as much, but red alert and red alert2 were my favorites. I had to go through hell to get red alert to play on windows 7 though, red alert 2 played fine.
I used original discs though so may be different from download.

 

[Zenn3k]

So Steam just informed me that the C&C games are on discount.

I haven't played one of those since... Christ, decades ago, like, pre-Starcraft. However, I find myself suddenly interested again, mostly because the picture on the discount announcement had an armoured Russian bear on it, which is kind of awesome.

So, some quick questions before I deploy my credit card:

1) Do the Steam versions work properly on a modern computer (Win 7)?
2) Which of the series are the best?
3) Which one has the armoured bears in it and can you play as the Russians?

Thank you!

Red Alert 1 and 2.

Those are the two best, hands down, no contest.

 

[EXos]

Tiberian Sun. Red Alert 1 & 2.

 

[Erttheking]

I checked with my friend who is a major fanboy for the series, and he says that the first three Tiberium Wars, and the first two Red Alerts are good. Also Kane's Wrath. Although be warned, he is a major fan of the series, and Tiberium Wars 4 and Red Alert 3 sends him into blood frenzies. He says that they're WAY too goofy, even Red Alert 3 which is an alternate timeline game. Although because you asked, Red Alert 3 is the one with the bears.

 

[Tuesday Night Fever]

The C&C series is what got me primarily interested in PC gaming (I had the port of C&C: Tiberian Dawn on the Nintendo 64 and loved it so much that I had to hunt down the other games). Since then, I've played every game and expansion pack in the series, including the incredibly short-lived online-only single-unit deathmatch game C&C: Sole Survivor (Humvee players ftw!).

In my personal opinion, the series died with C&C: Red Alert 2. C&C: Generals and its expansion Zero Hour were alright, but they're pretty much a separate RTS franchise just using the C&C name for sales.

Everything that's come out since Red Alert 2 and Generals has been mediocre at the very best of times, and complete garbage that serves as nothing but an insult to long-time fans at all other times.

So, as far as C&C games I'd recommend:

1. Tiberian Dawn
-Covert Ops (Expansion)
2. Red Alert
-Counterstrike (Expansion)
-Aftermath (Expansion)
3. Tiberian Sun
-Firestorm (Expansion)
4. Red Alert 2
-Yuri's Revenge (Expansion)
5. Generals
-Zero Hour (Expansion)

I would not recommend C&C: Renegade. It was a first-person shooter set during Tiberian Dawn. It really wasn't very good, although it did have fairly decent multiplayer. I doubt very many people, if any, are still playing it, though.

 

[LetalisK]

I'm partial to Red Alert 2, Generals + Zero Hour, Red Alert 1, and C&C3 Tiberium Wars. In that order.

Stay away from the Yuri's Revenge expansion for RA2 as well as RA3. They're just plain dumb and I thought RA3 was insulting with all its ridiculous pandering.

 

[IllumInaTIma]

My favorites are Red Alert 2:Yuri's Revenge and Generals:Zero Hour.
I think Russians have armored parachuting bears in Red Alert 3.

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

The C&C series is what got me primarily interested in PC gaming (I had the port of C&C: Tiberian Dawn on the Nintendo 64 and loved it so much that I had to hunt down the other games). Since then, I've played every game and expansion pack in the series, including the incredibly short-lived online-only single-unit deathmatch game C&C: Sole Survivor (Humvee players ftw!).

In my personal opinion, the series died with C&C: Red Alert 2. C&C: Generals and its expansion Zero Hour were alright, but they're pretty much a separate RTS franchise just using the C&C name for sales.

Everything that's come out since Red Alert 2 and Generals has been mediocre at the very best of times, and complete garbage that serves as nothing but an insult to long-time fans at all other times.

So, as far as C&C games I'd recommend:

1. Tiberian Dawn
-Covert Ops (Expansion)
2. Red Alert
-Counterstrike (Expansion)
-Aftermath (Expansion)
3. Tiberian Sun
-Firestorm (Expansion)
4. Red Alert 2
-Yuri's Revenge (Expansion)
5. Generals
-Zero Hour (Expansion)

I would not recommend C&C: Renegade. It was a first-person shooter set during Tiberian Dawn. It really wasn't very good, although it did have fairly decent multiplayer. I doubt very many people, if any, are still playing it, though.

I went through hell to get red alert to run on windows 7, but used original discs, so I didn't try to install counterstrike or aftermath. Is there an easier way to get them to install on windows 7 64bit? Is downloading different? If there is a better way to do this I would love to know. I had serious issues with the graphics when I tried.

I have been tempted to put together an old pc build just to play my old games without the hassle.

 

[Tuesday Night Fever]

I went through hell to get red alert to run on windows 7, but used original discs, so I didn't try to install counterstrike or aftermath. Is there an easier way to get them to install on windows 7 64bit? Is downloading different? If there is a better way to do this I would love to know. I had serious issues with the graphics when I tried.

I have been temped to put together an old pc build just to play my old games without the hassle.

Yeah, if you have the original discs, it's kind of a pain to get them to run properly on Windows 7. The last time I played Tiberian Dawn and Red Alert on my current PC I ended up having to hunt down fan patches to play them. Unfortunately I'm at work at the moment and unable to find those patches, but I'll see if I can find them when I get home.

Other than that, I've heard that the versions from the "First Decade" collection work on Windows 7... but I've never had any personal experience with that set since I already had everything in it. The collector's edition of C&C 3: Tiberian Wars also came with pre-patched discs for Tiberian Dawn that definitely do work on Windows 7.

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

I went through hell to get red alert to run on windows 7, but used original discs, so I didn't try to install counterstrike or aftermath. Is there an easier way to get them to install on windows 7 64bit? Is downloading different? If there is a better way to do this I would love to know. I had serious issues with the graphics when I tried.

I have been temped to put together an old pc build just to play my old games without the hassle.

Yeah, if you have the original discs, it's kind of a pain to get them to run properly on Windows 7. The last time I played Tiberian Dawn and Red Alert on my current PC I ended up having to hunt down fan patches to play them. Unfortunately I'm at work at the moment and unable to find those patches, but I'll see if I can find them when I get home.

Other than that, I've heard that the versions from the "First Decade" collection work on Windows 7... but I've never had any personal experience with that set since I already had everything in it. The collector's edition of C&C 3: Tiberian Wars also came with pre-patched discs for Tiberian Dawn that definitely do work on Windows 7.

Thank you!! I would love to be able to play them again without the pixels being screwed up everywhere. I tried a few things I found online, but they didn't solve the problem of the 16 bit graphics issue.

 

[nomotog_v1legacy]

Well red alert 2 is best, but they are so cheap now a days. Just get them all.

 

[generals3]

Here's my personal ranking: Tiberian sun > Red Alert 2 > Red Alert 1 > Tiberian Dawn > Generals > Tiberium Wars > Red Alert 3 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>...>>>> C&c 4 (basically: don't buy C&C4!)

I'd recommend buying them all but RA3 and C&C4 but if you can't/don't want to afford so many i'd say Tiberian Sun and Red Alert 2 at least.

 

[karma9308]

I couldn't find Red Alert 2 on steam, only Red Alert 3. Would people recommend that for a first C&C? It's $6 for what it's worth.

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

I couldn't find Red Alert 2 on steam, only Red Alert 3. Would people recommend that for a first C&C? It's $6 for what it's worth.

I personally thought red alert 3 was garbage and won't play it. Not sure if that helps. LOL

 

[generals3]

I couldn't find Red Alert 2 on steam, only Red Alert 3. Would people recommend that for a first C&C? It's $6 for what it's worth.

Personally I thought it was acceptable. I guess it's worth 6$ but don't expect too much out of it.

 

[Glongpre]

Red Alert. I still have the discs, and I believe they are free now?

 

[karma9308]

I couldn't find Red Alert 2 on steam, only Red Alert 3. Would people recommend that for a first C&C? It's $6 for what it's worth.

I personally thought red alert 3 was garbage and won't play it. Not sure if that helps. LOL

I couldn't find Red Alert 2 on steam, only Red Alert 3. Would people recommend that for a first C&C? It's $6 for what it's worth.

Personally I thought it was acceptable. I guess it's worth 6$ but don't expect too much out of it.

Thanks guys. I'll save the money for something else.