This is the gaming equivalent of those nutty scientists messing about with human DNA. What they've done is take the DNA of a real-time strategy game and inject it into a first-person shooter. The result? That depends on how big a fan you were of the C&C games on PC – and on how much you'll overlook the mistakes that come close to turning an interesting concept into a very middle-of-the-road shooter.
Remedial Renegade Up till now C&C meant commanding a massive army from rival factions GDI and NOD. You were the organ grinder and needed a strong strategic mind. In Renegade you're a single commando called Havoc, a humble GDI monkey dancing to someone else's tune on the battlefield, who doesn't have to think past whatever's in the sights of his gun.
Die-hard C&C heads will enjoy the novelty of running around a world they know so well in first-person, encountering units that you've previously only seen as tiny, impersonal pixels. And everyone will be pleased with the game's construction as it ensures you rarely get lost and there's always a solid action sequence just round the corner.
Apart from slogging it on foot, you get to ride in vehicles like the classic C&C Mammoth tanks. Plus there are sub-missions to complete, semi-hidden areas to uncover and enough skirmishes going on in the background to give a passable feeling of a war going on around you. But the levels are linear, and you feel the game is holding your hand all the way. The AI is sometimes amazingly dumb, and the review code was worryingly buggy too.
But Renegade's biggest problem is that it's been so long in development – shooters have moved on now. The likes of Halo and MOH: Allied Assault have upped the ante, leaving Renegade looking and feeling weak in comparison. Its core gameplay just doesn't do anything new, and even its more impressive moments, such as the multiplay mode, have been done better elsewhere.
Multiplayer is a redeeming feature. Team-based, you play NOD or GDI, aiming to blow up the opposing base. You need different classes of troops to achieve this, buying them with the money you earn by killing and blowing up buildings. This is where the tactics come in as you can use this cash to buy weapons, different characters, vehicles and the nuclear air-strike. But be warned, if you don't have a lot of players it's nowhere near as much fun.
Earn money by shooting people
Then buy beefier characters, guns and vehicles
Use these to inflict damage on the enemy base
Then call in a nuke or an ion strike for serious damage
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