American Dogs vs. the Reds? With lasers and mind control? why didn't I find this game sooner.
Sounds like the cold war might've met an almost cartoony James-Bond villain fate, and to say this isn't far from the truth. However, it's almost like penut butter and chocolate. From it's almost overdone cutscenes to it's sometimes wierd methods of getting missions done, it has a unique charm that will definitely appeal to more fast-paced RTS players.
Gameplay is simple CnC fare. You build buildings. Those buildings can supply you with power, income, infantry or armor units, or a number of different things. Each has either the technological finesse of the Allies, or the Industrial Mass-Production flavor of the Soviets. The units -- even the basic infantry -- on each side are unique, yet balanced in some way through the rest of the game. For example, Allied GI's can deploy sandbags to increase their HP and rate of fire, but two Soviet Conscripts can be built for the price of one GI. The allies can build some significant air units early and easily, but the soviets can build more potent air defenses. Every unit has a flavor to it, from the Retro Tech of Tesla Coils bug-zapping would-be intruders to the spoofed voice of Sean Connery on allied Spies, things are wacky and interesting.
That doesn't mean a person can't strategize, though. One particular mission starts you off with three units to capture the president, whom is surrounded by any number of Navy seals (think "instant infantry death") and laser defenses. The trick is, those three units are mind control units, and can be used to take control of a single opposing unit as long as that mind-controller is in range. This mission complements another US Allied mission (which chronologically occurs later), where you must save the president from the White House and stave off the periodic assaults of mind-controlled, zombie-like citizens until he's safe. The first allied mission has you using one of the games hero units, Tanya, to plant c4 beneath Soviet Navy ships to stop them from destroying the Statue of liberty. This compliments the Soviet mission of bombing the Pentagon into nothingness.
Graphics are decent enough, but this IS a game made from how long ago? It's what could easily be called 2 and 1/2 D, as it doesn't appear to be a full 3d game but has many 3d-ish effects. Explosions, craters, bouncing tires from exploded vehicles (occassionally within invaded US cities) are all here, and some of them are even funny. Nuclear fallout makes infantry units turn into a green goo and melt away. Some 'supervehicles' have miniature mushroom clouds for their weapon reports. Even your little mouse pointer changes when doing things like a nuclear strike, from a pointer to a little rotating nuke symbol. "Fission Mailed."
Sound is something that is sincerely in strong standing here. Most every unit has their own speech patterns, from the russian accented Conscripts (For the union!) to the Texan General Carver for the allies. Even the engineer, a staple of the CnC line, has seperate voice patterns for the exact same unit though they are on different sides. Music is a little upbeat and 'bouncy' for a wargame, though a few interesting chunks find their way in here and there. When something explodes at random (hey, get away from my base defenses moron!) or a fight starts, it's easy to find out where. A couple units use the same voice overs, but this isn't a big deal as their function is pretty similar only in different form (say an engineering vehicle as opposed to an engineer.)
Multiplayer can be vicious, if one can get it to work. Things have been cobbled together by online communities, but since this game is pretty old, don't expect to find too much going on. There is plenty enough for a quick game here and there, and skirmish mode certainly adds a few minutes of interest; each side in MP games has a unique unit they can build, from anti-infantry Snipers for the British Allies to fallout-inducing Desolators on the soviet side.
The wierdest, love it or hate it piece of this game has got to be it's personality. It uses FMV, so there are no real in-game cutscenes; instead, you'll have a widescreen movie play for a mission briefing in which the characters refer to you-- the player -- directly as a commander. During missions you might get the occasional FMV playing above your sidebar, leaving you to watch things unfolding on screen while someone (friendly or enemy) chats you up or taunts you. It's got a very wierd and over the top ideas, like units that erase other units from time and move instantly via bending time and space (don't think those units are overpowered-- it takes some time (heh) to actually erase a person or building from history, and can be easily taken out if handled properly.
All in all, the sheer oddities of the game may be enough to warrent a play-through, since those oddities clearly define each side of the conflict. Digital nationalism at it's finest; Allies vs. Soviets, the 'Good War' against those commie sons of... Pick a side, and start blowing stuff up. It's just that simple.