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Command & Conquer (franchise)
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Command & Conquer (franchise)
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==Common gameplay elements== The ''Command & Conquer'' games belong to the [[real-time strategy]] genre, with the exception of the [[First-person shooter video games|first-person shooter]] ''[[Command & Conquer: Renegade]]''. A staple of the series is the parallel campaigns of various different factions to one central storyline. Games in the series also offered [[multi-player]] game options, via [[LAN]] and [[modem]] connection. All games in the series have also offered online play, sometimes via the now-deprecated ''[[Westwood Online]]'' software application. All ''Command & Conquer'' real-time strategy games except ''Command & Conquer: Generals'' and its expansion ''Zero Hour'' have featured the "sidebar" for navigation and control as opposed to many other similar games where the control bar is located on the bottom of the screen. ''Command & Conquer'' gameplay typically requires the player to construct a base and acquire resources, in order to fund the ongoing production of various types of forces with which to assault and conquer the opponent's base. All available structures of the faction chosen by the player are constructed on-site at a so-called "construction yard" - which typically begin as large-sized vehicles (usually known as MCVs, or "mobile construction vehicles") capable of deploying themselves as construction yards. When a construction yard has finished building a new structure, the player can select a spot near a pre-existing structure in order to place it, where the prefabricated building will then rapidly unfold in a distinctive manner. In all games in the series except ''Command & Conquer: Generals'' and its expansion ''Zero Hour'', funds are acquired by specialized "harvester" units which bring their cargo ([[Tiberium]] for the ''Tiberian'' series of games or [[Ore]] or the more valuable [[gems]] for the ''Red Alert'' series) to a "refinery" structure. This, in turn, will convert the raw material into usable resources, expressed as credits. The raw materials themselves require storage space in the form of refineries and, in the case of excess, "storage silo" structures. All factions have structures and units with similar functions at their disposal. However, they are adjusted to fit each faction's theme and have somewhat varying properties. Units can be classified into infantry, vehicles, and aircraft, each with their own subdivisions (note: in the ''Red Alert'' series there are also naval craft available). Unit effectiveness against the opponent follows the [[rock-paper-scissors]] principle found in most [[real-time strategy]] games. Virtually every type of structure in the series acts as a [[tech tree]] node, and additional units, structures and faction-specific abilities will become available as new structures are built and placed. Access to advanced units and abilities may be temporarily blocked if the required structures are destroyed or if they are not being provided with adequate power by the supporting "power plant" structures. ===Multi-player=== Each ''Command & Conquer'' game has included the ability to play multiplayer games against other humans. Each box of ''Command & Conquer'' contains two CD copies of the game, immediately making [[multi-player video games|multiplayer gaming]] possible with a single purchase of the game. Westwood Studios advertised this on the packaging with the slogan "A second copy, so you and your friend can destroy each other." This resulted in ''Command & Conquer'' becoming the first RTS game title to feature competitive online play,<ref name="C&CRTSInfluence">{{Cite web |url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=49038 |title=Games that changed the world: Command & Conquer |author=Paul Mallinson |accessdate=2006-12-22 |publisher=CVG magazine |date=2002-05-31}}</ref>< and this is considered the most pertinent outside factor in the success of ''Command & Conquer''.<ref name="ccorigins">{{Cite web |url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=183584&skip=yes |title=Command & Conquer - Origins |accessdate=2008-05-29 |publisher=Computerandvideogames staff |author=Will Porter}}</ref> All games in the series up to ''Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2'' also featured two CDs that could be used for this reason. However, later games did not. ''Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3'' was noted for being the first RTS game to enable the campaigns to be played co-operatively online; others had only supported single-player campaigns. However, it was only possible to connect to other computers through EA's servers and not via a [[LAN]]. While video games produced by Westwood use the proprietary Westwood Online system to facilitate multi-player games over the internet, ''Command & Conquer: Renegade'' also supported [[GameSpy]]. Games under EA's development continued to use GameSpy but dropped support for Westwood Online in favour of using EA's own servers.
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