Command & Conquer to feature faster paced matches, may have starter packs

The free-to-play Command & Conquer will feature shorter matches than previous games in the series - though players will be able to expand them if they prefer the length of the older battles. Speaking to Polygon , Victory Games' Jon Caneghem said that "we've been noticing since the original Generals, the preferred play session has gone done from an hour plus to 30 to 45 minutes. So we've changed the pacing [of Command & Conquer] to deal with that". They're also considering introducing starter packs, which will give paying players something of a head-start in the game.

"We are toying around with starter packs," Caneghem explained. "Maybe selling them for $30 to $40 and including a half-dozen generals and some currency. That would be for players who don't want to start from scratch and don't want to be a totally free player." By "totally free" he means that everything in the game can be unlocked through play, though you will be able to sign up to a premium service to earn more credits, accrue experience faster and so on. You'll also be able to purchase generals, perks and the like via microtransactions.

This comes in the same Gamescom-flavoured week that the game's episodic, story-driven campaign mode was revealed. C&C will release next year, and you'll now be able to start and finish matches in your lunch break.

Tom Sykes

Tom loves exploring in games, whether it’s going the wrong way in a platformer or burgling an apartment in Deus Ex. His favourite game worlds—Stalker, Dark Souls, Thief—have an atmosphere you could wallop with a blackjack. He enjoys horror, adventure, puzzle games and RPGs, and played the Japanese version of Final Fantasy VIII with a translated script he printed off from the internet. Tom has been writing about free games for PC Gamer since 2012. If he were packing for a desert island, he’d take his giant Columbo boxset and a laptop stuffed with PuzzleScript games.

Latest in RTS
Immortal Pillars expansion for Age of Mythology: Retold
Age of Mythology Retold's new Chinese pantheon expansion takes a bold stance on updating an old game: Just make good new stuff
Earth vs Mars screenshot - Martian troopers vs Earth light tanks
Relic's new project is a 'smaller indie-style' game about a martian invasion of Earth
Age of Empires 3: Definitive Edition promo art
Age of Empires 3: Definitive Edition DLC promised last year is cancelled: 'We announced content before it had been built, and we now feel that announcement was premature'
Tempest Dynasty faction
The first multiplayer demo for my most anticipated RTS, Tempest Rising, is out now
Former Age of Empires developer says the RTS genre's stuck in a rut: 'you're still playing the same game'
Creeper World IXE
Creeper World IXE breaks the RTS mold and adds a dash of Noita's alchemy to the gooey war
Latest in News
Two brightly colored stormtroopers dressed like Run-DMC stand in front of PAX Australia's WELCOME HOME banner.
Tickets for PAX Australia 2025 are on sale now
An Enshrouded player in a recreation of Erebor from The Lord of the Rings
Kings under the Mountain! 33 Enshrouded players spent 10,000 hours to recreate this iconic location from The Lord of the Rings
A mech awakens.
Mecha Break developer is considering unlocking all mechs following open beta feedback
Lara Croft Unified Art
Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics lays off 17 employees 'to better align our current business needs and the studio's future success'
A long bendy arm stealing money from people in a subway car
'You're a very long arm. You steal things. It's a comedy game,' explains developer of comedy game where you steal things with a very long arm
The heroes are attacked by monsters
Pillars of Eternity is getting turn-based combat to mark its 10th anniversary, and that means PC Gamer editors will soon be arguing about combat mechanics again