Command & Conquer: Red Alert
Template:Infobox Command & Conquer (series) Key points
- It is highly recommended to install the latest 3.03p-Iran patch as it reestablishes LAN functionality, replaces officially-supported XWIS servers with more populated CnCNet online service, adds high resolutions, Counterstrike and Aftermath missions, and offers better Windows and Wine compatibility besides fixing a great lot of bugs.
- For those who have expansions and want to go through them thoroughly, The Lost Files is recommended as it adds videos from PS1 Retaliation release.
- France and England are still debuffed in multiplayer; England has thinner instead of thicker armor and France has a slower instead of faster rate of fire.
General information
- Multiplayer guides
- CNCNZ subforum
- CnC-Comm subforum (+Maps)
- Another map archive
- Official EA subforum
Availability
Windows
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- Game is also bundled with other games in the franchise on Command & Conquer: The First Decade or newer The Ultimate Collection.
Improvements
Patches
3.03p-Iran
- This patch contains:
- Latest official 3.03 patch and 3.03p-Iran[1] patch along with other community fixes
- CnCNet online service and LAN up to 8 players
- High-resolution graphics
- Missions from Counterstrike and Aftermath expansions
- Support for newer Windows systems and Mac/Linux through emulation
- You can find the list of full changes here.
- Compatibility mode, 256 colors and 640x480 should be turned OFF in the compatibility tab.
- It is not recommended to install CnCNet alone as most players use 3.03 version and the patch installs CnCNet anyway.
- You need to have .Net Framework installed for RedAlertConfig to work.
The Lost Files
- Adds movies from PS1 Retaliation release to the expansions.
Expansions and Retaliation music
- Adds Counterstrike, Aftermath and Retaliation music as well as previously unreleased songs.
Save game location
Save game cloud syncing
Template:Save Game Cloud Syncing
Video settings
- These are video and input settings in the fanmade patch.
Input Settings
Network Settings
In order to play the game online with CnCNet, you can choose two main options: peer-to-Peer or tunneled mode. Generally, peer-to-peer is faster, but may need some network configuration. There are 2 options of doing this:
- Automatic setup by CnCNet tester with UPnP.
- Manual setup (instructions here)
Issues Fixed
- If you have an issue, be sure to check the "readme" first or this thread.
General fix
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Issues Unresolved
Mac/Linux Emulation
- This game usually performs well in Wine[2].
- This is emulation for the fan-made packs, not for the ISOs or CDs.
- This is a guide to emulation using PlayonLinux/PlayonMac and can be also set on Wine with same configuration.
- You need to have Mono installed for RedAlertConfig to work.
- Download PlayonMac or PlayonLinux and install it.
- Open, click "Install" and then "Install a non-listed program" at the bottom.
- Choose "Install a program in a new virtual drive" and then check "Configure Wine" (Name of the virtual drive doesn't matter)
- Now you should see a dialog with a wine class, take note of the path where drive_c is located; select "Emulate a virtual desktop" and configure the virtual desktop of your resolution or smaller for better performance.
- In the libraries tab, add ddraw.dll and wsock32.dll to override list, write them in the drop-down and click Add (one at a time).
- After you configure Wine and it asks for the setup executable, press cancel. Unzip the file.
- Add shortcuts for RedAlertLauncher.exe (and RedAlertConfig.exe if you want).
- Run RedAlertConfig and set Max FPS to 200, stretch to custom resolution and make it use OpenGL.
- Run RedAlertLauncher.exe under Mono. If it doesn't work run under Wine ra95.exe directly or cncnet.exe for online play.
General Information
Open-source implementation
OpenRA is an implementation that is multiplatform. It has a completely reimagined interface, supports high resolutions and is most supported. However,it only has multiplayer and music has to be put separately into its Aplication Data folder.
Multiple languages
C&C patch also supports multiple languages. They can be found here under language packs section. You only need these if you applied the patch above. Currently available languages are (besides English) German, French, Spanish and Russian.
Total conversions
There are some total conversions of the game that are quite neat. There's a Red Alert 3 conversion called The Red Alert.
Maps
Red Alert has support for external maps, both multiplayer and singleplayer. Links for them is at the beginning of this article. There's even a map creator you can find here.