Command & Conquer: The First Decade Comments by Jim Rossignol

Harsh but fair.

Command & Conquer: Renegade... xD that game was truely dire.. Come to think of it, I've never been a huge fan of the C&C series with the possible exception of Tiberian sun, which IMO was the best by far.

No mention of the borked LAN multiplay. Good old EA.

Eurogamer in "Yet another 6/10" shocker!

The total value of this package cannot be argued though, at least not if you're a fan that never owned these games by yourself or even if you call yourself an RTS fan and have never experienced these games. But I agree with the score... there's simply not enough "new stuff" in this compilation. They could have at least upgraded the resolution options and multiplayer components.

That and the original installers are missing. They could have at least made a new installer program with cool features...

As for the negative comments on Renegade and Tiberian Sun... I vividly recall PC Gamer hyping these games up beyond all proportions. :)

Too expensive for what you get. Sure, I'd like a modern Pc compatible old C&C collection, but at this price... nope.

Why didn't they ever make a C&C III? Why, oh why did EA have to kill C&C? Never more will we see the Westwood Studios logo. Never more will we see Kane's charisma.
Gotta hate EA for perverting and killing a good franchise.

ha, 6/10 is really harsh... in fact, i'm even surprised you reviewing it. The note must be the interest of buying this compilation for someone who has the original cds.
C&C 1 and 2. RA 1 and 2... Four fantastic games
I remember Generals. the fact they changed the core gameplay with this bloody unit to build instead direct building. A direct copy from Warcraft. And this political propaganda, disgusting. But the community managed to make it a great game on multiplayed. And ironically, the terrorist were the most played camp, before they offered the best variety. I reckon a lot of players expressed a disgust for US policy at this time by using the terro. At the end, Generals is a very good RTS.
I'll certain buy this compilation and make my kids play it in 15y ^^

Do Jim and Kieron live together?

"As for the negative comments on Renegade [...] I vividly recall PC Gamer hyping these games up beyond all proportions. :)"

I'm not convinced that 47% counts as quite beyond *all* proportions. Nor the vividness of your recollection : )

Hahahah! No-way! So you think C&CRA deserves at least a 6/10?

Probably fair.

Command & Conquer - very pure, but playing it now, it's shocking at how we used to put up with such basic AI. Being able to build a wall down to an enemy base and blocking everything in? Mad, indeed. Played it again a year ago, and it's great for a nostalgia trip.

Red Alert - I always prefered the C&C universe over the RA universe, but Red Alert was, and still is, once heck of a good game. Like C&C though, played it last year, and definately showing it's age.

Tiberian Sun - Still my favourite of the bunch. Perhaps an example of over-development, but it still is a solid game with a solid update of the core mechanics. Nice ideas, some poorly implemented though, such as the destructable terrain.

Red Alert 2 - The EA mark was beginning to show by this point. It's still a wonderful game (as long as you forget all about Yuri's Cash-in, er, Revenge). The only problem I had with the game was the "up-balancing". Everything was powerful, and everything could turn the tide of a battle, so there was no reason to even try avoiding tank rush, except for asthetics. At least in Tib Sun, it sometimes felt like they had tried to take new strategies into consideration.

Generals and Renegade can bugger off. Never got more than a mission or two into each. They both smacked of tripe.

That's unfair on Renegade...I never played it because it got slated, but after buying The First Decade I gave it a shot...and its surprisingly good...

It has explosive setpieces, teamwork, vehicles that you can hop in and out of...it was WAY ahead of its time...the comparisons between this, Halo, FarCry etc. are unbelievable. The cut scenes are a little ham-fisted like, but its just fun!

See what happens when i dont post the usual "EG MUST BE FANBOYS!!" post!?

As in, get over the score people!!!! Read the words luke.. the words..

Eh, it's 6/10 for the total package, sold at a high price. Because one game's great, doesn't mean the whole thing is.

Great review, one of the most entertaining I've read for a while.

It's six out of ten becuase it's essentially existing material reboxed and you probably own half of it. Did you not read the last few lines?

please tell me this is coming out on Mac OSX. please please please please please.

Reviews funny, but as usual from NGJ mostly un-informative.

Great

So what does RTFM mean?

NGJ = teh sux!

This review doesn't have to really be that informative surely? If you don't know what C&C's all about, then you're probably on here looking for eurogaymen or somehting.

@Crube

Well I work in IT and we use it a lot when our "users" log silly help calls.

Basically i'll give you three of the words.

RTFM = Read, The, #######, Manual.

Put best Rolf Harris voice on, ahem: "Can you guess what it is yet?"

@Stickman: So why not just have a score for the review? Could have talked about whats changed, whats new, whats in the package, given a little summary of each game(It has been 10 years since C&C, perhaps you have an eidetic memory, I dont).

Instead we get the usual NGJ stuff, and at the end a score that doesnt really have too much to do with the review.

RTFM = Read The F*cking Manual

but a rain of handgranades alone should get this game a 10/10 ;)

I'm not sure you need a photographic memory to remember what C&C is like do you? Maybe you do, maybe its just me, either way, I found the review well written. It came across as a gamer reliving a little nostalgia, which is precicely what you'd be doing if you bought this set.

@erp

this is coming out on Mac OSX

there, you're easily pleased...

I ordered this off play.com over a month ago and it still hasn't arrived... :-(

It's the first EA game I bought in donkey's years, let alone pre-ordered, but that can be excused cause the majority of the content is pre-EA Westwood.

Still, I'd rather like to play this now, damnit!

So Stickman, why bother with anything but the review score?

It's a game REVIEW, not "Memoirs of an old C&C player"

Nice review, was fun to read.

Don't know why some people here are unhappy, they C&C Fanboys or something....

ave, as far as I'm concerned botherer (for I believe 'tis he?) has reviewed the game to a level that lets me get a feel for it. I'm not really sure what else you want from a review to be honest.

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/commandconquerthefirstde
cade/review.html

Read this fairly average review, contemplate the difference.

ahem, what review? ^

Copy and paste first line, copy and paste second line.
Lazy bugger

ahhh good old westwood...before ea tarnished.

No mention of the lack of multiplayer and hideous bugs? Thats why i havent bought it yet

/waits for EA to patch the collection into something worthwhile.

i've got the original box set....i wont be buying this one.

Stickman: Botherer is Walker. Rossignol is (er) you know, I don't think he posts in the comments thread.

KG

The score seems spot on to me. Red Alert used to be a 9/10 but the goalposts moved long, long ago. Maybe it's just because I'm older and crave a bit more depth in my RTS games these days but it's hard to revisit C&C without wishing I was playing Total War or even Total Annhiliation instead.

I pity the foo' who has to type in 10 seperate serial numbers just to install the thing. Well done EA!

C&C and RA are pretty much good for retro-ish playthroughs only, and for the (at the time) awesome videos.

Some more of my thoughts about the Decade Collection

There's also some nasty bugs in the game, where without a bit of messing around and installing third-party patches, you can't play the first two games online, and the Soviet videos in RA don't play.

Also, for a game that installs -everything- to the HDD, it sporadically demands the DVD in the drive. Seems random though, most of the time the games run fine right off the HDD, movies and all.

lamadude: Considering the original and RA aren't even -listed- on this site, let alone reviewed, that's a pretty stupid comment.

how can you give this a 6? it's well worth the money...

/dnrtfa

[edit] ok read some of it, then saw he was trying to say generals is shit. i'd like to point said "reviewer" in the direction of generals' gameranking of 85%

Blimey, seems harsh to me. Granted I haven't read the review but I'd say it's pretty superb value for money considering most companies rehash 6 Megadrive games and sell for £20.

Ah, cheers KG. Then I shall christen Mr Rossignol 'Nostrils' due to his, frankly terrifying, mugshot in PC Gamer this month.

ave - that is indeed a different review to this one. I found it dull, and a bit like a Year 9 book report.

Forty quid? Amazon has it for 25!

And those who pre-ordered at Amazon got it for £17.99 thanks to a pricing cock-up. For that price, it's a bargain.

It'll not be a cock-up. On play, the earlier you order it, the cheaper it is. For example, I have STALKER (not that it'll ever come out), Company of Heroes and Neverwinter Nights 2 all coming to me for £18! Hooray for knowing which games you want!

botherer:
I'm not convinced that 47% counts as quite beyond *all* proportions. Nor the vividness of your recollection : )

42%, actually, at least according to GameRankings. But that wasn't really my point, anyway.

Isn't the £40 thing a bit harsh, what with Amazon doing it for £24.99?

Linky

I'm confused, I got the introduction to the world of C&C, but I missed the review to C&C First Decade.

Almost impossible to rate a compilation of games, as you'll never please the majority. Those that have never played any before, will have realised what they missed out on. Those that have the "must-haves" and wouldn't mind the others all in one go, probably won't get much. Fair, probably close to a 7 for me, but difficult to do much else, if they don't appear to have added anything.

EA's cheap-0-money making machine at its worst. 0_o

"No, of course we will let westwood make the high quality of fun gameplay and not turn it into a sequel factory" & "We joined EA because they have the same high set of standards and innovationas we have" (interviews)