red alert interview

A Commando screams a throaty, "I’ve got a present for ya!" Seconds later, your metallic construction yard is engulfed in scintillating flames; troops must quickly re-group to try to infiltrate enemy forces before it becomes too late. These minute pixel troops are loaded into APCs, transport choppers, and some even may try to conquer the enemy by foot across the terrain. Sure, you could be watching an epic war movie through this glorified description of war, or you could be actually part of the war, all developing in real time over your scrawny little 15 inch PC computer screen. This portrayal is what Westwood Studios’ Command and Conquer was, and what Red Alert will soon be.

Westwood Studios has long been known as a hidden gem in the interactive industry, with products such as Dune, Lands of Lore, and the Kyrandia series under their belts. But perhaps their most successful product to date has been Command and Conquer, the quintessential mix between war and strategy, plus action and adventure. Ask anyone who has ever played a multiplayer game: There’s nothing like the pure tension of fighting your friend or foe across the modem lines in Command and Conquer. Now, that tension is about to be re-elasticized when the universe of Command and Conquer takes a step back in time, but there’s no Delorian in sight.

The Iron Curtain rises this fall on Command and Conquer: Red Alert, which drops five off the decade count from its sister-product C&C. You’re pitted against European forces and enemies near the time of World War II, and the action promises to be even more intense than before. Featuring many new units and incredible enhancements to the C&C engine such as SVGA graphics in Windows 95, Red Alert is perhaps the most eagerly awaited holiday release. Despite being deep into the development of Red Alert, project producer Ed del Castillo had "a present for us": He took some time away from his Flamethrowers and Tesla Coils to sit down with GameSlice to discuss the impending release of Command and Conquer: Red Alert.

GSW: Red Alert is a prequel rather than a sequel to Command and Conquer,
dating back to the World War II era. Why did you decide to take a step
back in time with Red Alert?

Ed: In our world, WWII never happened. Through a sequence of events
which will be revealed in RA, Hitler is removed from the time stream
before he can rise to power. The result is a very prosperous European
economy and the rise of Stalin some time later who decides that it is
his manifest destiny to unite all of Eurasia under one flag, the Soviet
flag.

As to why, well we thought this would be a great time to give our
audience some background on how GDI and the Brotherhood of Nod came
to be. We've done an immense amount of backstory on how this time
stream works and we wanted to share that with the C&C player, while
giving them a kick-ass combat game with interesting.

GSW: In a nutshell, what do you think is the biggest improvement Red Alert
has over Command and Conquer?

Ed: High-res. Without a doubt. When C&C came out, we only took 2 slams
from our competitors. Low-res and no map editor. Now we have both.
What can I tell ya -- You ask, we give!

GSW: From what we understand, Red Alert really adds a new dimension to
gameplay with spies, three different types of minerals and other new
features. It sounds as if you've added another layer to the onion with
the prequel. Are you concerned that the game might get too complicated?

Ed: We do definitely have a wider range of units and a wider range of how
they can be used, but I don't think it will be more complicated for
the player. The game as it exists, is very easy to learn, play, and
get into. This is a continuation of our design philosophies from C&C.
The player will be able to play and win without having to be a RA
scholar. However, as he/she become more familiar with the game, using
the more "advanced" units will allow him/her to get the edge on the
opponent. What the new units really do is two-fold. First they give
the new player a complete realtime combat game. Second, they give the
C&C player a whole different set of units to figure out how to use.
Fundamentally, it will create a new environment with new variables for
the C&C to create all new strategies and tactics, and that is the core
of the fun.

GSW: Westwood is widely regarded as a strong company in the adventure,
strategy and RPG categories. What's the one genre where you think you are
really unmatched by the competition?

Ed: No such thing. There's still all sorts of crazy money being thrown
around this industry. As long as that's the case, there are no
barriers to entry. With no barriers to entry, anyone with a good idea
and computer could be shipping a game a year from now. I think it
would be way too arrogant for us to think that we are "unmatched" at
anything. It tends to be the hallmark of doom. We do 3 things right:
1. We try real hard to do things that no one has done before, in
genres we like.
2. We remember our audience by trying to build games that work on a
wide range of PC's.
3. We try to remember that the purpose of your computer is to make
things easier for you. This includes games. If you have to expend
too much effort to learn or play a game, that's not fun, its work.
Most people prefer the fun.
It's really simple stuff, but it's easy to forget if you get caught up
in the development process.

GSW: I guess the next technological expansion for the game engine would be
to allow users to actually change perspectives - i.e. click on the spy
and actually run him through the environment in first-person to the enemy base.
Is this planned for any future games such as Tiberian Sun?

Ed: We have toyed with this idea; a kind of cross genre product. It's one
of the many ideas we have for Tiberian Sun. We'll just have to wait
and see.

Left to Right: David Patter, Adam Isgreen, Damon Redmond, Paul Bastardo, Paul Wesberry, Ron Smith	Left to Right: Brian White, Felix Kupis, Mike Lightner, Paul Mudra, Steve Tall, Phil Gorrow
Left to Right: Ed del Castillo, Barry Green, Joe Bostic, Maria del Mar McCready Legg, Joseph Hewitt IV, Frank Klepacki.	Left to Right: Matthew Hansel, Brett W. Sperry, Bill Randolph, Dwight Okahara, Chris Demers.