Command & Conquer is getting remastered with the help of original developers

Following news in October that Command & Conquer remasters could be coming to PC, EA has revealed more information on its plans to revive the classic real time strategy (RTS) games, including the exciting announcement that it is working with members of the original Command & Conquer development team.

The announcement came from EA producer Jim Vessella on Reddit, where he confirmed that EA is partnering with Petroglyph Games to develop the Command & Conquer remastered games. According to Vessella, “Petroglyph Games includes many of the original developers from Westwood Studios, and some of the most influential members of the original Command & Conquer development team from 1995.”

That team includes Joe Bostic, who’s credited as the co-creator of Command & Conquer, and was lead programmer on Tiberian Dawn and Red Alert, the two games that EA has announced will be remastered.

Steve Tall, Ted Morris and Mike Legg are all Command & Conquer veterans who will also be working on the remasters. This is encouraging news, as it means the remastered games will be as true to the spirit of the originals as possible, while updating the titles with new 4K graphics.

EA, which acquired the Command & Conquer license from original developer Westwood Studios, has been accused in the past of missing the point (and magic) with its recent Command & Conquer games.

As Vessella explains, “I was able to brainstorm 'C&C feel' with Joe, reminisce about the jukebox with Mike, and gab with Steve about whether we should fix the Tib Dawn Harvester AI. Getting to chat C&C with the original developers has been one of the highlights of my gamer journey.”

Included games

Vessella’s post on Reddit confirms that Command & Conquer: Tiberian Dawn, the original Command & Conquer game, and its sequel Command & Conquer: Red Alert will be the two classic games getting the remastered treatment.

It’s also confirmed that the classic expansion packs for the games (Covert Ops, Counterstrike, and Aftermath) will also be included at no extra cost, with Vessella uttering the magic words “without microtransactions”.

This has all made us even more excited to see these genre-defining games remastered, and as you can see from the video below, the team are just as excited about returning to Command & Conquer as we are.

Matt Hanson
Managing Editor, Core Tech

Matt is TechRadar's Managing Editor for Core Tech, looking after computing and mobile technology. Having written for a number of publications such as PC Plus, PC Format, T3 and Linux Format, there's no aspect of technology that Matt isn't passionate about, especially computing and PC gaming. Ever since he got an Amiga A500+ for Christmas in 1991, he's loved using (and playing on) computers, and will talk endlessly about how The Secret of Monkey Island is the best game ever made.