- A Decent ExpansionC&C 3: Kane's Wrath is an expansion for the excellent C&C 3: Tiberium Wars. Those that liked the core game will most likely enjoy this one, as will people that are fans of the series and have followed it from its inception. In general, Kane's Wrath is very standard expansion fare- nothing that will blow you away or change your mind about the game if you didn't like it before, but enough to satisfy anyone that did.
The expansion adds three major components to the game: a new Nod campaign, global conquest mode, and new sub-factions and units. The campaign is difficult in comparison to the original game, but not overly challenging if you're a C&C veteran. It's also not particularly long, but is well done with the traditional FMV cutscenes and cheesy acting. As you might have gathered from the title, Kane is back in all his insidious glory. Joining the cast are Natasha Henstridge and Carl Lumbly as Nod sub-commanders. You don't play as GDI or Scrin, but do get a chance to play all of the Nod sub-factions and also fight each of the other side's sub-factions. The plot is a bit of a departure from previous C&C outings. It is actually a back-story that spans from Tiberian Sun to the end of Tiberium Wars, and is obviously a lead-in toward some future game or expansion. We'll see which eventually, I'm sure...
The expansion adds two new sub-factions for each of the sides, and these behave somewhat similarly to the generals in C&C Generals: Zero Hour, or to the sub-factions in Emperor: Battle for Dune. Specifically, they grant you the ability to make unique units, some of which take the place of regular units. You may also get new powers and upgrades. Some sub-factions also lack the ability to purchase core units or upgrades, as a balancing factor. Additionally, GDI, Nod, and the Scrin each have a new 'epic' unit: the MARV, Redeemer, and Eradicator Hexapod, respectively. These units are similar to the Mammoth Mk 3 or Cyborg Commando in Tiberian Sun, in that only one can be on the field at the time. They both require a unique structure to build (which can also serve as a standard war factory) and cost a lot of money. However, they can single-handedly slaughter pretty much anything short of an entire army, and are simply cool to look at.
Global conquest mode is very similar to the War of the Ring mode in Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth 2 (with the expansion). You can build bases across a world map, upgrade them to make them tougher and able to produce better units, and build strike forces (essentially, armies) to attack other factions' bases. In strategic map mode, the game is turn-based, and you can either fight battles in real-time or auto-resolve them in a manner similar to the Total War series. Each side has different victory objectives, or can win simply by wiping out the others. For example, GDI can achieve victory by claiming a certain percentage of the map within the zone of control of its bases. This is a nice touch that adds replay value to the game. It's got a bit more depth to it than the usual skirmish, and- while not exactly groundbreaking in any way- is new for the C&C series.
I only have a few complaints with Kane's Wrath, first and foremost the fact that many of the sub-factions look really weak to me. This can and likely will be fixed in balance patches, however, so it's not a major concern. Secondly, I'd have liked at least some of the campaign to showcase the story of the GDI and Scrin sub-factions. It's kind of weird to just suddenly see all these new toys everyone is using, when we finished grinding through three large campaigns in the original game without hearing a peep of them. I can kind of understand why the expansion focuses solely on Nod, but it would have been nice to have a few unlockable extra GDI/Scrin levels.
The bottom line is that if you liked C&C 3 or any of its predecessors, you will likely enjoy this expansion. If you didn't, then you should probably give this one a pass. It doesn't do much to break the mold of the game, but this is likely by design. Personally, speaking as someone that's played C&C since the original on DOS (remember, back in the stone age when we thought that was so cool?) I still haven't tired of this time-tested RTS hallmark. So far, more of the same hasn't quite worn me out.
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