Command &amp; Conquer: GeneralsCommand &amp; Conquer: Generals Command & Conquer: Generals Command & Conquer: Generals is a real-time strategy video game and the seventh installment in the "Command & Conquer" series. It was released for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS in 2003 and 2004. The Windows version of "Generals" was developed by EA Pacific and published by EA Games, the Mac OS X version was developed and published by Aspyr Media. The Mac OS X version was re-released by Aspyr for the Mac App Store on March 12, 2005. In the game, the player can choose from three different factions: the United States, China and the Global Liberation  Army (GLA). "Generals" utilizes SAGE (Strategy Action Game Engine), an extended version of the ""s 3D engine. An expansion pack, entitled "", was additionally released for PC in 2003, and for Mac OS in 2005. Both "Generals" and "Zero Hour" were met with highly positive reviews. A sequel, "Command & Conquer: Generals 2", was in development, until it was repurposed to a free-to-play game known as "Command & Conquer". The new game was part of the "Generals" franchise and was cancelled on October 29, 2013 by EA after negative feedback during the closed alpha test. Gameplay. "Command & Conquer Generals" operates in  a similar manner to that of other titles in the series - players construct bases and train units from these, acquiring resources on one of the game's maps to fund this, and then defeat their opponents by eliminating their bases and armies. Various units types are available for training, ranging from infantry to ground vehicles and aircraft, each focuses on specific roles (e.g. anti-vehicle), while base structures are divided between unit production, support facilities, and defensive counter-measures. Success in the game relies upon making the most out of mixing units, utilising their advantages while countering their disadvantages with  other units, in order to win against opponents - for example, rifle infantry are useful for countering anti-vehicle infantry, but need to rely on tanks to counter anti-infantry vehicles. Units that survive and manage to kill other units gain "veterancy" points, earning chevrons when they level up, effectively improve their abilities and making them more powerful; at the highest level, it also grants the ability to repair any damage when out of combat. Training can be queued at production structures and units sent to rally points designated by the player, with the ability to research upgrades to improve certain  units. In addition, players can also deploy superweapons which can decimate an opponent's forces, though must wait for a cooldown period to end before they can use it again. Factions in the game function similar in how they operate, but maintain differences in units and strategies: "Generals" functions differently to other titles in the series, in that base construction relies on dedicated builder units rather than a central construction building, but with the added ability of being able to construct buildings anywhere on the map. Resources are restricted to supply docks that have a limited amount for collection, with  each faction able to construct units or buildings that provide continual resources as long as they are not destroyed. In addition, players can also make use of "Generals Abilities" - a unique set of bonuses that can be purchased upon earning experience points during the game, which can confer additional abilities such as support powers (e.g. airstrikes), improvements to certain units, or access to additional units for construction. Single-player. In a single-player mode, players can tackle one of three campaigns, each dedicated to a faction and consisting of seven missions. While a training mission is provided to allow new  players to become accustomed to the game, players can freely choose which campaign to tackle and at what difficulty, with each mission becoming moderately more difficult and featuring different scenarios to tackle. Multiplayer. Games can be played both over the Internet or a local area network (LAN). It adopts a similar format to skirmish mode whereby the goal is to eliminate the other team. Games over the Internet can be completely random, in the form of a Quick Match. Players can also play in Custom Matches where the number of players, the map and rules are decided upon by the  host. The online feature originally worked via GameSpy servers. After the shutdown of GameSpy in 2014, these were no longer available. The macOS version of the game released for the Mac App Store does not support multiplayer. Apple discontinued Game Center for online play with the release of macOS Sierra. Soundtrack. "Generals" presents players with a separate musical score for each faction. The United States' theme music consists of grand, militaristic scores composed by Bill Brown and Mikael Sandgren. China's musical themes feature apocalyptic, orchestral scores combined with East Asian instrumentation. The GLA faction's theme soundtrack can be  described as a combination of Middle Eastern and few South Asian sounds coupled with heavy metal music. World Builder. "Generals" includes a map editor named "World Builder" for the PC edition only. The World Builder includes features such as: Plot. Setting. "Generals" takes place in the near future, the world's two superpowers - China and the United States as loose allies fight the Global Liberation Army (GLA), itself a terrorist organisation primarily based in the Middle East, North Africa as well as Central Asia. In chronological order, the campaign is played through the Chinese, GLA and then the United States  perspectives respectively. China A military parade in Beijing is attacked by GLA forces, culminating in the detonation of a stolen Chinese nuclear warhead and the beginning of the GLA's incursion inside China's borders. The Chinese mobilise to stall and contain the GLA, having to destroy the Three Gorges Dam as well as the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center in the process. Now on the offensive, the Chinese launch into GLA strongholds, arriving at the terror cell's main headquarters in Dushanbe. Utilising nuclear weapons, the Chinese put an end to the GLA's offensive. GLA Despite losses  to China, the GLA maintains its presence across Central Asia and the Middle East. In efforts to revive itself, the GLA raid UN convoys and incite riots in Astana. The United States enters the war, occupying GLA toxin depositories in the Aral Sea and a GLA renegade sides with the Chinese with the intention to destroy the GLA. The GLA retaliate by attacking the Baikonur Cosmodrome, and uses the platform to launch devastating toxin attacks at highly populated cities. USA The United States mobilises its forces to the Middle East, Hindu Kush and then Kazakhstan to finally put an end  to the GLA. Despite losses incurred from GLA Anthrax attacks and ambushes, the USA are able to push the GLA back to their final stronghold in Akmola Region. With Chinese support, the USA destroys the last GLA stronghold, ending the GLA's . Reception. After its release, "Generals" received mostly positive reviews. Based on 34 reviews, Metacritic gives it a score of 84/100, which includes a score of 9.3/10 from "IGN". "Generals" has received the E3 2002 Game Critics Awards Best Strategy Game award. "GameSpot" named "Generals" the best computer game of February 2003. In the United Kingdom, it sold over  100,000 units during the first half of 2003. This made it the United Kingdom's second-best-selling computer game for the period, or seventh across all platforms. At the time, Kristan Reed of GamesIndustry.biz wrote that its performance proved "you can still have big hits on PC". "Generals" received a "Silver" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), indicating sales of at least 100,000 copies in the United Kingdom. The game's "Deluxe" release received another "Silver" award from ELSPA. Ban in China. The "Generals" series is banned in mainland China. Throughout the Chinese campaign , the player is occasionally made to utilize heavy-handed tactics such as leveling the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre after it becomes a GLA base and destroying the Three Gorges Dam to release a flood on GLA forces. Chinese forces also liberally use nuclear weaponry in-game, albeit restricted to the lower tactical nuclear weapon yield range. Furthermore, in the introduction of the game, Tiananmen Square and much of Beijing is destroyed by a stolen nuclear warhead. Ban in Germany. Initially, the game was released in Germany under its international title "Command & Conquer: Generals". However, the Bundesprüfstelle für jugendgefährdende  Medien ("Federal Department for Media Harmful to Young People") placed the game onto the ""List of Media Harmful to Young People"" two months after the initial release, which, by law, forbids further public advertising and any sale for people under 18 years of age. The BPjM stated that the game would give underage people the ability to play the war in the game. Additionally, the player would be able to kill civilians. Based on these two points the BPjM put the game on the Index, because they believed it glorified war. Therefore, sale to minors and marketing the original version  of the game were prohibited throughout the Federal Republic of Germany. Due to the ban, EA released in the middle of 2003 a regular title-localized German version specifically for the German market called "Command & Conquer: Generäle", which did not incorporate real world factions or any relation to terrorism. For example, the "terrorist" bomber unit was transformed into a rolling bomb and all other infantry units were changed into "cyborgs" (e.g. Red Guard becomes Standard Cyborg) in order of appearance and unit responses similar to earlier releases of the "Command & Conquer" franchise. Sequel. In September 2003, an expansion pack called   was released, which continues the story of "Generals". In December 2011, a sequel, "Command & Conquer: Generals 2", was announced, due to be released in 2013. "Generals 2" was repurposed to a free-to-play game known as simply "Command & Conquer". The new game would have started with the "Generals" franchise and may have expanded to the rest of the franchise post-release. The game's project was cancelled on October 29, 2013. Later in November, EA said that the game will still be developed by a new game studio, but no further news emerged and the project appears to be  abandoned. Command & Conquer: Generals Command & Conquer: Generals is a real-time strategy video game and the seventh installment in the "Command & Conquer" series. It was released for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS in 2003 and 2004. The Windows version of "Generals" was developed by EA Pacific and published by EA Games, the Mac OS X version was developed and published by Aspyr Media. The Mac OS X version was re-released by Aspyr for the Mac App Store on March 12, 2005. In the game, the player can choose from three different factions: the United States, China and the Global