Command & Conquer 4: Tiberium Twilight

End of a Saga

EA has seemingly taken one of the most enduring strategy games ever and adjusted it in all the wrong ways, keeping outdated hangovers from previous games as fan-service and innovating all the good stuff in the wrong direction. The developers are fixing what wasn’t broken, in an excuse to pack in yet another C&C game.

It’s not surprising then that the game lacks polish when you turn your head away from the major design decisions and look at the basics; mission design, friendly unit behaviour and the RPG system that’s been crudely bolted on.

The missions especially are a bit of a sore point. The actual objectives rotate through the same old mix of assault, survival and escort missions, but it’s all rendered moot by the fact that you have a mobile base and an endless supply of tanks or planes. Brute force tactics become the dish of the day and units are so disposable and quick to manufacture that it takes genuine effort to play in any other way.

Enemy base getting you down? Send your 15 biggest tanks to get the job done. Then, if that doesn’t work then send another 15. Over and over. It won’t take them long to get there – you can park your base right next door, remember?


The AI doesn’t exactly help things either. There are a bunch of different behaviour types which you can assign to existing units, though the only ones that get used are Guard, Aggressive and Default, the latter of which is applied to all new units and is also totally useless. We’ve seen tanks do nothing but watch as enemies saunter up to the base and start taking pot-shots when under the influence of that.

EA’s DRM system/co-op integration is a more pressing issue though and for many players will be more than enough reason to dismiss C&C 4 out of hand. Put simply, the problem is that you always need to be online if you want to play the game. You need to log in with an account before you can get as far as the main menu and if you lose connection mid-match then you lose your progress, even in singleplayer.

The supposed upside of this always-online system is that EA has put a few basic community features into the game, such as a friends list and invite system. There’s a chat lobby at the main menu too, though in all the time we spent with the game we only saw it get used once…to spread garbled profanity. That'll be that new 'innovative new social aspect'. Then again, we spent most of our time wading through stupidly designed menus that don’t even offer you an option to Load at the game over screen.


The way that these features are forced on to players does make sense when you bear in mind the way that the game has been streamlined and cut down though. Look back at the way the series has changed over the years and it becomes obvious that EA isn’t exactly trying to pitch C&C 4 to the same people who play Men of War. Everything from the way that the class system funnels gamers into neatly defined roles to the way that counters are highlighted within the UI screams that this is a game for new recruits rather than veterans.

It’s pretty ironic then that EA’s concessions to the casual strategy crowd should be so completely realised with C&C4. Not only is this the least accessible C&C game ever in terms of the amount of backstory, but it also has a plot which is going to appeal most to those who’ve invested time in the series and who are desperate to see it payoff.

Still, there’s no doubt that C&C 4 has done well at pitching itself to that crowd. If all you’re after is a game where you get to spew out big, deadly machines faster than Megatron’s slutty sister and if you’ve got a stable internet connection and a few likeminded friends then C&C 4 will keep you happy for a little while. If you’re after something that involves proper battle strategies and build orders though then Tiberium Twilight’s insistence on a brute force approach is going to leave you wanting.

Either way though, we don’t think that C&C 4 has either the depth or charisma to keep fans interested for long. It’s also a bit depressing that the Command & Conquer franchise, which once set the tone for the genre, is now so far from its roots that the only thing it has in common with the previous games is Joe Kucan’s admittedly awesome beard.

Score Guide