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The sandpaper that makes C&C smooth

I come from a time (watch out, grandpa is talking about the war again) when (strategy) games still had addons. An addon? Something like new content, only sold separately as an expansion? Content that was completely on the DVD and didn't have to be unlocked after installation and could even run on its own in some cases? Crazy shit. Oh yes, what were those times, back in the pre-Games-as-a-Service era. But you have to move with the times. Back then, my expectations of a strategy game expansion were, on the one hand, new content, i.e. new campaigns, units, buildings and maybe even one or two new factions. On the other hand, of course, technical improvements, e.g. in game mechanics and graphics, but also in balancing.

The first and only addon to Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars, Kane's Wrath, ticks all these boxes. EA released the expansion in 2008, one year after the main game. Enough time for a lot of new content to somehow continue the sometimes confusing story of the predecessor. Kane's Wrath does just that, but acts more as a kind of stopgap. We experience the events that lead to the destruction of the Philadelphia space station or the betrayal of a member of the Nod Brotherhood. The last of the 3 acts takes place after the end of Tiberium Wars and is actually intended to serve as a cliffhanger to the 4th part. But since EA really messed up Command & Conquer 4: Tiberian Twilight , we're not talking about the sequel. We never talk about this installment. Never. Knowing this makes the end of the campaign of the third game all the more unsatisfying, as we don't get a real conclusion to the story.

Apart from the story,what's new?

Graphically, hardly anything has changed: the Tiberium continues to glow atmospherically in green and blue, and the shadows of the clouds still creep across the battlefields. Technically, the addon remains at the same level as the main game. So what new features are there? On the one hand, small things, such as the fact that engineers can no longer take over buildings immediately, but now need two to three seconds to do so. Upgrades for power plants are now possible after the communication center has been built and when a commando unit has blown up a building, it crawls across the ground for a few seconds. Sacre bleu, and you paid 30€ for that back then? Not at all my French friend! Because, of course, I saved the biggest change for last.

Kane's Wrath Kane's Revenge takes its factions from GDI, Nod and Scrin and gallantly gives each of them two sub-factions, which effectively triples the number of factions. Each of these sub-factions differs greatly from the main faction and has its own units, abilities and strategies. For example, the heavy hitters of the Steel Talons from the GDI are mainly on the move in tanks and lead the Titan mechs familiar from the predecessor Tiberian Sun onto the battlefield. In return, they do without infantry troops such as snipers or sonic armor. The Black Hand of Nod, on the other hand, specializes in the use of flamethrowers, but cannot cloak their units. And the mobile Travel-59 of the Scrin are given units with mind control, but do not have strong tanks. So there's a lot to discover and try out until you find your preferred playstyle.

That all sounds like major changes. But while we're on the subject of size: Kane's Wrath also introduces super units - huge and costly behemoths that can almost single-handedly wipe out entire armies. There are three of them, one for each faction. Like them, the units also differ, e.g. in their firing mode and special abilities. For example, the GDI's MARV tank can drive over Tiberium fields to collect the crystals directly for a lower yield. The Scrin hexapod generates income by killing enemies. And the Redeemer of Nod? It can incite enemy units against each other with its wrath generator.

The super units also have infantry slots. If the slot is assigned, the colossus receives the ability of the respective unit, e.g. heals itself if we send in an engineer, or can fire missiles against air targets if we install a missile squad. Once integrated, however, we can no longer remove them - so we need to plan wisely. Even if these units seem overpowering at first, they can be taken apart quite easily with the right strategy - size isn't everything after all. But you shouldn't let them level up! A super unit at level 3 can really decide a game on its own.

Super units - super game?

So much for the new features. What can I say, Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath still convinces me today. It has everything I want from an addon: new content, a new campaign and more variety. Anyone who has played Kane's Wrath and then picks up Tiberium Wars again will definitely miss something - be it the small or the big new features. Speaking of 'digging out': Command & Conquer 3 is still a 'real' C&C. Sure, the stereotypical story with the good GDI, the scheming Brotherhood and the story about bald baddy Kane may not be for everyone. But for those who liked the predecessors, there is no way around Tiberium Wars , and the addon is a must-buy. Everyone else: Why have you even read this far?