Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (Xbox 360)

.../> From the off set Command and Conquer 3 is clearly a tribute to the games that went before it, from the opening missions voice over of "welcome back commander" to the inclusion of old style commando missions, this game felt like walking down a freshly painted memory lane. Anyone who loved the original game will adore this one, simple.

Some of the key strengths with Command and Conquer 3 are actually down to the budget ...
...usual run of the mill Command and Conquer sounds
Special award for using the woman with the sexy voice to say 'Welcome Back commander' 10/10 I missed her, gamespy took her, now she is back :D

Overall I would give this game a solid 9/10  ... more

There is an old adage that has proven true for many years now, it goes something like "You cant have a bloody strategy game on a frickin console! No mouse, no fun".
EA games (the evil empire of the gaming world to many out there) has sought to change this perception recently. The launch of Battle For Middle Earth 2 on the Xbox 360 was the closest thing we console gamers have had at a decently ported PC game in a long while.
Though importantly it wasnt quite there, modes had been cut out (no war of the ring or create a hero) despite being more then twice as powerful as the average top end PC the Xbox still suffered slow down and the controls, while a very decent effort, still got a tad bit confusing.

This said, the game was still considered a success and EA decided to follow it up with a franchise that has not featured on consoles since the PS1 had Red Alert Retaliation.

From the off set Command and Conquer 3 is clearly a tribute to the games that went before it, from the opening missions voice over of "welcome back commander" to the inclusion of old style commando missions, this game felt like walking down a freshly painted memory lane. Anyone who loved the original game will adore this one, simple.

Some of the key strengths with Command and Conquer 3 are actually down to the budget the EA has at its disposal, lets face it, which geek wouldnt love the idea of the original Kane, Michael 'come on you ladies you wanna live forever' Ironside, Billy Dee 'Im a real actor not just Lando Calrisian' Williams and half the cast of battlestar galactica and lost, all starring in the same game together in live action segments.
The graphics too have benefited from EA's experience and money, while by no means being life changing they are still fairly amazing for an RTS game.

Now, to the actual XBOX version.
The controls are the first thing everyone will be talking about, I wont lie, when I first took the controller in my hand I felt my mouse getting ready to jump me with a knife and to be fair, the controls felt weird. However by the end of the boot camp and the first mission they were second nature to me and are suprisingly comfortable and unlike Battle for Middle earth, the controls actually make sense.
Thats not to say if you have been playing the PC version you wont be cursing the clumsy control pad, it helps if you have a big break from the PC version while your familiarising yourself with the console.

The missions themselves are presented and played out exactly the same as the PC version, only difference seems to be absolutely no LAG. Now for those with dual core high end machines this wont be a problem either, but for mid carders if you want to play C and C on best graphics without slow down, the console version could very well be for you.
Later on in some of the harder missions it might seem that the controls are hindering you slightly, I personally found it a challenge and so much more rewarding when you win the mission! The rewarding feeling is maintained by not only giving medals and ribbons depending on objectives completed and difficulty setting, but with the Xbox's achievement system as well. The game is definatly replayable just to achieve the top awards.

As well as the standard GDI/NOD campaigns, EA also included a 5 mission Scrin mini campaign, the Scrin are the original masters of tiberium and while I havent played these missions yet it looks alot of fun.

Outside the missions you have the bog standard Skirmish mode with some pretty fun maps for up to four players, I think I had a second or two slow down during one of the huge battles involving all four armies, compared to the battle for middle earth 2 (and lets face it most PCs) this was nothing however.

The cherry for console users though is the online features. Xbox Live is without a doubt the most succesfull online community. Its bigger then the Wii's or either incarnation of Sony's online community. With this in mind EA seem to have spoilt us over our PC comrades. Not only can you have four player versus (versus is the only skirmish mode available to the PC) you also get Capture the Flag, King of the Hill, Capture and hold and an interesting Game called Siege.
All of these are pretty self explanatory other then siege, a game where players start with inpenatrable walls around their camp, a time limit is then set (max of 15 mins) and you have that long to build your base and army up ready for one almighty battle at the end, at the end of the 15 mins the walls come down and the players rush out...I died very quickly trying out this mode but it was stupidly fun!
As well as the game modes EA has also built in the slightly gimmicky, but lots of fun, Vision Camera support. You can now watch your opponents horrified face as he realises his army is now encircled by mammoth tanks.
At the end of the match you get the winners circle, a kind of podium where you get to be an arse to your vanquished foes for a few seconds.

I love this game, the controls suit me, the acting is so bad it had to be done on purpose and is a direct link to the old games, graphically there isnt a RTS to touch it, it plays smooth and has a host of extra goodies on the Xbox.
If you already own this on the PC and it works perfectly I dont reccomend shelling out an extra 40 quid for this version. If you dont already own it or think it might not run perfectly on your PC then I highly reccomend this game for you!

Graphics 8.5/10 Great for an RTS
Gameplay 9/10 This game is coolness in a box, lots of replay value as well with awards and achievement points
Presentation 10/10 I dont know what they could have done to make the overall feel any better.
Sound 8/10 The usual run of the mill Command and Conquer sounds
Special award for using the woman with the sexy voice to say 'Welcome Back commander' 10/10 I missed her, gamespy took her, now she is back :D

Overall I would give this game a solid 9/10 

...less