It has been 9 years since Red Alert 2 was released by Developer Westwood Pacific, and 13 years since we first set foot in the alternate universe of the Soviet-Allies war. Since then, the series has gone on to produce multiple expansions and earn several awards. Now in 2009 and no longer being developed by Westwood, the Playstation 3 has been awarded with an 'Ultimate Edition' copy of the third instalment. With a behind the scenes look at the game, exclusive features and high definition graphics.

At first glance fans will instantly recognize the Soviet forces; Kirovs towering in the sky and Tesla Troopers. The predecessors to RA3 had a Soviet theme and this does not break the trend. The original Red Alert expanded on Command & Conquers unique storyline, merging real events and people with a big "What if?" that is what if Hitler never existed which allowed the Russian empire to rise to power? This parallel universe is the setting for the Red Alert series and creates an intriguing storyline which never lets up on the action and sets the benchmark for live-action cut scenes within video games.

Red Alert 2 extended the original storyline by including Tanya, Premier Alexander Romanov and of course, Yuri. The story was consistently praised for its bold efforts in creating an engaging new world which the player can't help but be consumed by. After each mission with either the Soviets or the Allied forces, the player always felt a sense of accomplishment as the opposing faction crumbled before your eyes.

With the introduction of Red Alert 3 fans of the series were expecting big things from the story and they weren't let down. The game picks up as the Soviet empire is facing defeat at the hands of the Allies. General Krukov (Andrew Divoff) and Colonel Cherdenko (Tim Curry) then use a time machine to travel back in time to eliminate Albert Einstein, thus preventing him creating any of the weapons used by the Allies against the Soviets in the previous games. Once they return to the present, it is apparent that they have changed history dramatically. Cherdenko is now premier and the Soviets are on the brink of victory in Europe. However, breaking the trend of the previous games, EA introduced a new faction. The Empire of the Rising Sun - Japan. Their leader Emperor Yoshiro (George Takei) believes that it is their destiny to conquer and rule the world.  The introduction of a new and dangerous attacker creates a three-way war which all three campaigns are based upon.

GAMEPLAY

The story throughout the campaigns work well, with each campaign (9 missions for each faction) requiring the player to defend their land whilst conquering their enemies in new territory. Each has their respective leaders, briefers and share of betrayals and twists in the plot which are unsurprising and cliche which just adds to the B grade movie feel of the whole series.

The gameplay of any RTS is pretty standard; take control of an army and lead them to victory, or in RA3's case, world domination. As with any game genre nowadays, the developers always try to spice things up by adding a unique revolutionary tool into their game - Red Alert 3 does not. It stays true to the formula created so many years ago and slightly expands on it by adding a tech tree, advanced navy warfare and co-commander.

The co-commander will be with you throughout your campaign journey and can be played by either the AI or another player. They will have their own base whilst sharing funds and you must work together (or independently) to wipe the map of all threat. The AI does a pretty decent job attacking and defending their base although they can get themselves into a bit of strife and never really do a whole lot of damage. You have a choice of four very simple commands such as 'move here' or 'attack this' which can help but it's usually better to just leave them be. However, if you play with another person online then the campaign becomes a lot more fun and easy. You can communicate via headsets or you can use the chat room which was included in firmware 2.7. Co-ordinating attacks against the enemy with a friend is great fun and if you're stuck on a certain mission you can always message your buddy and throw them an invite to jump right in and give you a hand, once you navigate the maze that is the PS3 invite system.

The Command Stick is the system used in the PS3 & X360 versions of RA3. Since EA decided to not give keyboard and mouse support, you have to use it and although it's not without its flaws it does work well.  R2 brings up the Command Stick which shows you a bunch of options - buildings, defence, vehicles, infantry and more. Selecting these options is easy and once you get used to it, becomes very quick.  It also has options to select units in types, although once you get used to using the X button you'll almost never use the extra selections.

The biggest difference between Red Alert 3 and its predecessors is the prevalence of navy warfare. Almost all structures can be built on the water, some tanks have the ability to remove their treads and move on the water, and maps are structured for large scale battles in the ocean. This creates an experience which no RTS has really tried before and I cannot heap enough praise on the developers for making this move as the navy battles are by far the standout for RA3, along with the co-op campaign.

As with vehicles and infantry, each faction has weak, strong and very powerful ships to choose from. Units are somewhat well balanced with each faction having their strengths and weaknesses. For example the allies have great air units but their navy isn't up to scratch with the other factions. The player has to use their faction's advantages and cancel out their disadvantages if they ever want to persevere through the campaign which can get quite hard towards the end. The most difficult gameplay element of RA3 is balancing your air attacks with your land attacks. If you make a huge army of Hammer Tanks and no air support a single helicopter could take out your entire army within a few seconds which can get irritating but certainly adds to the tactical side of RA3.

Tim Curry as Colonel Cherdeko and Gina Carano as Natasha

GRAPHICS

EA promised that they would get the best out of the PS3 they could with RA3. They didn't but they did come pretty close. Red Alert 3 is the first to have full 3D graphics as RA2 was regarded as 2.5D. The sharp graphics really capture the feel of the different locations which include New York, Moscow and the Pacific Ocean.

With the 'Ultimate Edition' EA utilized the disc space of blu-ray storage by giving the water effects a massive overhaul. The game does look fantastic on a full HD TV as the game renders to a maximum of 720p. Unit models are fantastic with the Hammer Tank and Mammoth Tank standing out from the crowd. Environments look clean with some very nice textures and the water really does look realistic in HD which is necessary for a game that is so heavy on naval warfare. After hearing that the X360 version had appalling slowdown during some missions and heavy battles it seems EA were out to redeem themselves with the PS3 version, with minimal slowdown during hours of gameplay. Only once or twice did I notice any kind of slowdown and that was during a huge explosion with many units on screen - I wish I could say the same for the screen tearing, which is still evident.

Production values of the live-action cut scenes are as good as ever, with details you'd need pointed out to you to notice, such as the statue sitting on Colonel Cherdenko's desk. For each factions cut scenes there is a cultural influence evident. Almost all Soviet scenes are filmed in Cherdenko's office, with red dominating the colours and a painting of Joseph Stalin behind the desk. The acting is horrendous which is expected in a Command & Conquer game even with the all-star cast. J.K. Simmons, George Takei, Jenny McCarthy, Tim Curry & Jonathan Pryce lead the way for the Hollywood cast for their respective factions and all the scenes really feel like a cheesy B grade movie. 

Naval Warfare

SOUND

The soundtrack to RA3 is fantastic, with the standout Hell March playing throughout Soviet missions and the menu music. The other faction's music is pretty standard, and the sound effects in game work very well. Whether it is the crunch of a drone as a Mammoth Tank runs it over or the sound of a Kirov being destroyed in the sky and brought down to earth, the sounds are excellent. The reactions of units when selected can get a little irritating though (Yuriko Omega in particular) but that is just a small blimp on a fantastic soundtrack.

OVERALL

Red Alert 3 doesn't try anything too new or utilize a lot of the revolutionary ideas created since RA2, and that is its biggest problem. The gameplay has no depth compared to recent RTS games such as Dawn of War 2, or even the original DoW. The rank system is back from RA2, but that doesn't have any customizable options. It would be nice to be able to upgrade your soldiers in one way or another whether individual or via buildings. The tech tree is definitely a good choice but still lacks options. EA certainly tried to stay true to the foundation the first 2 games set and that's not necessarily a bad idea - it's just outdated.

Red Alert 3 is a good RTS which pushes the boundaries of the original Red Alert, and nothing more. It has a fantastic storyline which is enthralling for the most part but the gameplay is lacking in parts. Depending on the difficulty the campaigns could take you from 8 hours to 20 hours and the skirmishes / online versus mode never gets old. Certainly the selling points are the fantastic co-op & multiplayer which shouldn't be missed and also the navy warfare which is neglected in RTS games.

Presentation / Story - 9.3/10

Graphics - 8.2/10

Audio - 8.5/10

Gameplay - 9/10

Overall - 8.6/10

Pros

• - Great 80s B-movie storyline
• - Fantastic co-op and multiplayer
• - Unique navy warfare
• - RTS fans will find a lot to love

Cons

• - Not enough depth in the gameplay
• - Some slowdown, screen tearing
• - No mouse & keyboard support
• - Just too similar to previous games

Reviewd By Simon