Command & Conquer: Establishing the Genre's Blueprint
Command & Conquer didn't merely influence the RTS genre—it fundamentally defined it, setting the gold standard for strategy games upon its release in 1995. Westwood studios developed the first modern RTS in Dune 2 then with Command & Conquer proceeded to iterate on the genre with titles that masterfully combined intense base-building mechanics, resource management systems, and tactical combat in ways that were revolutionary for its time, establishing core gameplay loops that would be emulated for decades to come. Its campaign settings depicting the gripping narrative conflicts between the Global Defense Initiative (GDI) and the Brotherhood of Nod as well as the conflicts set in alternate nuclear holocaust reality (as in Red Alert) were marked by use of innovative full-motion video (FMV) cutscenes that brought previously unheard-of production value to video game storytelling. Command & Conquer's influence reverberated throughout the industry, directly influencing subsequent landmark titles including StarCraft and Age of Empires, and cementing its position as the blueprint for the modern RTS experience.
