He continues: “Upon returning to the present, they find that the planet’s nuclear arsenals have vanished and a new superpower has inadvertently spawned on the world’s stage: the technology cult of the Empire of the Rising Sun. The Soviet Union may be intact once again, but a deadly new foe now threatens both the Allies and the Soviets.” (To learn more about the Red Alert storyline, see “Red Alert’s Alternate Realities.”)

Play Your Part

Take command of all three factions — the Allies, the Soviets, and the Empire of the Rising Sun — in a trio of campaigns that cover nearly 30 missions. Each features cinematics starring many well-known actors, including: J.K. Simmons, Jenny McCarthy, and Jonathan Pryce as members of the Allied forces; Tim Curry, Peter Stormare, and Andrew Divoff as Soviet characters; and George Takei, Ron Yuan, and Kelly Hu in Imperial roles.

A Shocking Development. Soviet tanks fire their Tesla weapons.

“The Red Alert games are all about wacky alternate realities and time travel gone wrong, so the storytelling possibilities are really limitless.”

- Matt Ott, associate producer

“Live-action cinematics and an all-star cast are so integral to our game that we have a dedicated cinematics team that produces, directs, shoots, and edits our full-motion videos,” Ott says. “When these actors show up on our set, they’re always amazed that this is for a game. Jenny McCarthy told us: ‘This is absolutely an interactive movie.’ And while we have certain ideas and scripts prepared, the actors always put their own spin on the characters.”

A New World Order. Emperor Yoshiro greets Premier Cherdenko and General Krukov.

Of course, there’s also a role for you in Red Alert 3: a new commander who helps the Allies, Soviets, and Imperials achieve victory in their campaigns. Each faction features a supporting cast whose members help you complete your objectives. In fact, Ott notes, “every campaign mission was designed from the group up with the assumption that you will always have an ally at your side. These missions employ a whole range of mechanics that require you to coordinate your activities with a co-commander’s army.”

He adds: “That’s Red Alert 3’s biggest innovation: the co-op campaign, the inspiration for which came from cooperative shooter games. For the first time, you can go online and experience all the missions cooperatively in real-time with a friend. Offline, you can enlist the aid of an AI general: each faction has three generals with very unique personalities. They won’t be afraid to share their opinions with you, and their support may come begrudgingly if they think you’re making a mistake.”

Home Base Under Attack. A faction defends its production facilities.

“Live-action cinematics and an all-star cast are so integral to our game that Jenny McCarthy told us: ‘This is absolutely an interactive movie.”

- Matt Ott, associate producer

King of the Sea

The game’s other big innovation is its use of the ocean as a tactical resource. “In most real-time strategy games,” Ott explains, “naval gameplay is tacked on as an afterthought; from a gameplay perspective, it feels like blue painted ground. We set out to blur the shorelines and make controlling the seas an integral part of Red Alert 3.”

He points out that many of the game’s units are amphibious, with different roles to play when on land or in the sea. “We were careful to make this added layer of depth feel very integrated and simple to use, so switching between a unit’s land or sea forms happens automatically,” Ott says. “Every mission in the campaign, along with every multiplayer map, has some amount of water, so players can focus on land, sea, air, or a combination of the three.”

By Land, Sea, or Air. A furious battle rages off the coast.

All About the Mind Games

You’ll find all three in Red Alert 3’s 28 multiplayer maps, which feature a variety of situations, from urban areas to inhospitable terrain to vast expanses of water. Up to six opponents can join the fray, with the option to include computer-controlled players. You can even broadcast matches for others to watch, with the ability for you or someone else to provide play-by-play commentary, complete with a telestrator box where you can highlight players’ moves and tactics.

Those broadcasts, known as Battlecasts, are saved as replays that include your telestrator marks. Within the game, the replay theater lets you view your favorite matches, and you can visit CommandandConquer.com to watch Battlecasts uploaded by other players.

The most exciting moments in any Battlecast occur when players deploy top-secret protocols and superweapons, such as the Allies’ Proton Collider and the Empire’s Psionic Decimator, both of which destroy everything in their path, or the Soviets’ magnetic satellite, which pulls vehicles into space. They swiftly change the tide of battle and intimidate your foes, making great opportunities for telestrator commentary, as Ott elaborates:

Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto. Well, no, not really.

“When I get dealt Empire of the Rising Sun, I start by rushing some basic infantry at the enemy to catch him off-guard and make him think he needs a large ground force. But back at my base, I’m secretly teching up my naval yard to build the Shogun Battleship, a powerful base killer that can bombard land from a long range. By the time his tanks rollup to my land base, I’ve already packed it up and taken it out to sea.

“I’m all about the mind games.”

If you liked this game, check out:

• Age of Empires III
• Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties
• Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs
• Civilization IV: Warlords
• Command & Conquer Generals
• Command & Conquer Generals: Zero Hour
• Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars
• Star Wars: Empire at War