Command & Conquer Renegade

"An explosive FPS that succeeds where most others fail."

Definitely, the idea of a first person shooter in the Command & Conquer universe sounds like a brilliant one and fortunately this game doesn`t disappoint, Renegade is pretty much everything a fan of C&C and first person shooters general can ask for.

Gameplay:
We are a badass commando from the first C&C and our task is very simple, we have to blow up NOD buildings and vehicles and acribilliate as many red soldiers as we can. The game doesn`t actually have a plot, I mean, it does have one, sort of, but in the end we just have to complete a ton of simple objectives hardly related to anything resembling a cohesive plot.

And this is one of the reasons why this game kicks so much ass, most of the time there are no silly introductions, we are always in the middle of the battlefield shooting myriads of enemies, driving vehicles, blowing up buildings, turrets, planes and a hearing occasional badass comments from our commando that actually sound funny, there is never a dull moment.

The stages are very varied also, a true bless considering the number one problem in most FPS nowadays is the alarming lack of variety. Here we have deserts, ice lands, underground bases, caves, abandoned villages, ships and more. We can drive a couple of vehicles too, not too many sadly and too bad we can`t use helicopters or planes, but torching enemies with a flame tank is still a lot of fun.

The enemy`s AI is pretty much non existent and most NOD soldiers and vehicles are stupid as hell, they are also slow and love to get stuck within walls and that kind of stuff, so they are extremely easy to kill, although some of the bosses are quite difficult to kill. Overall the game is definitely easier than the average FPS, but never like a walk through the park and much more enjoyable because you won`t be dying every two seconds as usual in many FPSs, at least for me one of the most annoying aspects of this type of games.

In terms of weapons we have an arsenal that would made Charlton Heston drool with excitement (except for the numerous chemical ones, I hope), and best part is that not only they are all very varied and interesting and fun to use, the most surprising aspect is that almost all of them are actually useful, so much in fact that you`ll find yourself kicking ass with the Tiberium Gun and the Flamethrower, I mean, I don`t know you but I can`t remember when was the last time a flamethrower was useful in a FPS. At least for me, Renegade features one of the best arsenal of weapons ever in the genre.

About the length, although this certainly isn`t the longest game ever I would say it is long enough, or at least you won`t beat it in five hours and that is quite an achievement nowadays considering the type of game we are dealing with.

The game`s online functions are great too. I have never been a fan of online gaming, but this game is a different story, it is easy to see it was designed with them in mind and the result is superb, quite different from your usual online melees.

Graphics:
Renegade deserves huge props for being one of the few (if not the only) FPS for the PC without pitch black locations, in fact, I would go so far as to say you won`t find a single dark corner in the whole game. This title uses a bright and colorful palette that, if unrealistic, looks highly appealing and recreates the Command & Conquer world nicely.

And of course there is no need to say seeing all the vehicles and characters from the original game is a pleasure for long time fans like me, as with games like StarCraft or WarCraft, all of them have a great distinctive look that make the visual aspect look better than it actually is because it is true that the environments are all very blocky and empty, they look like multiplayer arenas to me, most of them are huge open areas almost completely devoid of... anything visually appealing, all of which makes sense because as I said before Renegade screams ``multiplayer`` from start to finish.

Music:
The soundtrack is pretty cool but as expected with all the action you won`t have time to listen to anything. There are also a lot of typical sounds from the previous C&C like screams, EVA`s voice, etc. The voice acting is great by the way.

Overall:
As I said before and except for the length (which is still higher than usual anyway), this is one of the best FPS out there because it succeeds where most others fail. Renegade offers non-stop action, a ton of inept enemies to kill, no Hollywood-esque cinematics or pretentious and important-looking premises that doesn`t arrive anywhere, unrealistic but colorful and cool-looking graphics, dozens of (useful) weapons, different and superb multiplayer functions for those who like to play online and countless amounts of different landscapes to wreak havoc and blow up stuff, something you won't see very often on this oversaturated genre.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/28/06