EA, please reboot Renegade.
Electronic Arts have built up a little reputation as being IP whores, assimilating other developers and milking their properties until only their hollow dry crusts remain. But in recent times, there has been a noticeable push to create new franchises, rather than rely on a back catalogue of games quickly fading into irrelatively. I’ll argue that EA are still creating new franchises rather than new games; but they like money, and I can’t fault them for that. The truth is that EA have changed, and have gained a new dose of respect from the gaming community.
So Electronic Arts, you can see that I do appreciate your new business model – which makes it difficult to ask – can you please reboot Renegade?
Now, this isn’t one of the thousands (millions?) of online petitions or forum threads about how some fanboy wants their favourite game in HD. It’s true that I enjoyed Renegade, but this is not the reason for my humble request; the bottom line is the game is more relevant today than it was in 2002, and in our current gaming climate, could stand out and make a tidy sum.
Command & Conquer: Renegade is the First Person departure of the Command and Conquer series. The C&C series has spanned 13 years, and is an icon of the real time strategy genre. The years of lore and creative narrative have woven a solid universe, with coherent stories that span from the mid 1990’s to a half century in the future.
Renegade’s greatest asset was Command & Conquer mode, a unique multiplayer gametype which introduced RTS elements to create something out of the ordinary. Each team are allocated a base comprising of five buildings; each performing a major function. The goal, to destroy the enemy’s base, can be achieved in two ways – either raze each building, or place a super weapon beacon on the designated beacon pedestal (and protect it until it’s timer runs down). It’s a tactical game – team tactics are required to effectively infiltrate the enemy base and tactical decisions must be made in regard to what buildings to strike, or what character or vehicle the in game currency should be spent purchasing.
I mentioned the game is more relevant today than when it was initially released. It’s true, and a remake of the game could be released and would probably sell well on the C&C name alone – but with some legitimate changes and the correct mentality, a Renegade reboot really has the opportunity and take advantage of the current gaming landscape and mesh with proven and emerging gaming trends.
The following is part one of a proposal outlining how Renegade can be adapted to guarantee success.
