![]() ![]() “I discovered C&C when I was 12 years old, back in 1995,” Vassella recalls. ![]() Vassella’s work on C&C ’s remake comes from a place of genuine enthusiasm, a trait that makes it easy for him to find common ground with his fellow fans. Above all, he has a fan’s view of the seminal RTS series, having spent two-thirds of his life engrossed in the clockwork world of conflict Westwood Studios engineered a quarter-century ago with the series’ debut title. While this kind of grand talk is to be expected from someone intimately involved with a game project, it doesn’t take long to realize that Vassella doesn’t approach C&C from a cynical, corporate perspective. “The original game defined the core mechanics and structure that inspired a generation of RTS games.” “We see Command & Conquer as the game that put the real-time strategy genre on the map,” he says. One to be avoided, particularly by those who have fond memories of the franchise as a whole.As producer of the upcoming Command & Conquer Remastered Collection, Jim Vessella would be the first to admit he probably doesn’t hold the most objective perspective on the game or its legacy. Although Command & Conquer: Rivals is still some ways off the horror show that was Dungeon Keeper Mobile, by virtue of having a game that actually functions, it is still a major let-down. Recently, loot boxes in mobile games were named as a potential reason for the rapid rise in child gambling problems, and including such a heavy emphasis on microtransactions leaves a sour taste in the mouth.Īll that remains is to see just where this lies in comparison to other poor uses of old properties in mobile gaming. It's an extremely poor use of a beloved gaming franchise, and EA should have taken more care given Command & Conquer's mismanagement over the years.įor players into mobile strategy games such as Clash Royale it may be an easier pill to swallow, but Command & Conquer: Rivals is a terrible example of bad business practices in an industry that sorely needs an overhaul. Long-term fans of the franchise will likely reject it for the heavy changes it has made to the formula, with all eyes now on whether those Command & Conquer remasters will deliver the RTS style that fans enjoy. Some of the prices for these packs are also exorbitant, in line with wait-time machines like The Simpsons: Tapped Out.Ĭommand & Conquer: Rivals is therefore very hard to recommend. The title's storefront is always a press away, with 'deals' seemingly constantly available to give players a boost. As such, after a few games - which are always quick to pass - it could be very tempting to just spend some money to make progress.Ĭommand & Conquer: Rivals is always happy to remind you of ways to spend cash on the game. These currencies come in the form of credits, which are used for training units and acquiring cards directly, and diamonds, which are for the game's loot box crates. However, given the issues that the game has with microtransactions - with regular pop-ups in between games and suggested purchases even appearing as a greeting for players as they boot up the game - it's hard to see Command & Conquer: Rivals earning a loyal following.Īs always with free-to-play games, it is possible to progress through simply playing Command & Conquer: Rivals. However, there are limitations here that push players towards making payments, such as wait times to receive crates, higher quality crates coming at a premium, and a daily limit of ten games played with a 'Daily XP Bonus' which makes any experience gains beyond that point negligible - a subtler mechanic to push people towards paying than a direct one such as a match cap, but still one that strongarms players away from enjoying the game at their pace.īecause of this, it is obviously easier to upgrade through paying real-world money for in-game currency. This could result in a solid community and the groundwork for a solid competitive scene. To truly compete, particularly at the higher levels, players need to level up, and here's where the predatory element really comes into play. Although the game includes a matchmaking aide called 'Fairplay' to help curb some of the inherent problems with this system, it would be preferable to not use this model in the first place.Ĭommand & Conquer: Rivals puts a lot of emphasis on tiering, with players segmented into different leagues based on their level. After all, it's a framework that many microtransaction-based games with a multiplayer focus fall into. It's a story that those who are familiar with the free-to-play category of mobile gaming will know all too well. ![]()
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