I remember playing the C&C Generals when I was younger, and looking back I realized how blatant the stereotypes of Chinese and Arabs are in that game. Seriously, I think a quarter of my view of the Middle East back then came from that game, and this is the game where giving workers shoes was an in-game upgrade, suicide bombers and toxin weapons make up a bulk of the game's units, base buildings ALWAYS look like mosques and Middle Eastern buildings regardless of the actual battlefield, and GLA units quip wacky quotes ("AK-47s for everyone!" was my favorite)
I'm Chinese myself, and in the China campaign level I had to blow up my city's own convention center because it's being occupied by terrorists; which makes as much sense as blowing up a bank because there's a robbery going on inside. And if the game's got it right, the fucking Red Guard is still a thing in the year 2020.
I still enjoy how over-the-top the game is, but unlike C&C Red Alert, where every faction and character had exaggerations turned up to 11 and the game is aware of its own nature, this game adds a level of seriousness that gives the personalities of each faction more legitimacy. Parts of the game are lifted right out of the ongoing War on Terror (including the first USA campaign mission involving the American invasion of Baghdad), which adds to the realistic feel of the game. Like I said, a part of my perception of the Middle East as a kid came from this game, and the war in Afghanistan and Iraq that was happening at the exact same time didn't help matters.
But the thing is, I don't think the changes they'll bring to 'diversify' the new C&C would be significant, because for all we know the new generals are going to be from Russia or North Korea; the typical media punching bags. It's not going to eliminate the fact that there are extremist groups in the Middle East, but it's just going to show that not ALL of them are in the Middle East. And while I do think the Middle East is used too commonly as the home of antagonists in video games, the GLA is an organization that came from the Middle East, and changing that fact is merely replacing it with a group from another non-Western country.
I think a better route is the humanize the GLA faction by showing a clear (if twisted) reasoning behind their actions, and also emphasize the fact that the leaders aren't two-dimensional characters. Give the generals clear backstories and make them somewhat sympathetic. I'd say that the units should also be given more humanity as well, but it's C&C: when your infantry gets run over by a train or incinerated by napalm, all you do is shrug and build another.
