1989 was an interesting year, the end of an era so to speak. Madonna was topping the charts, The Beach boys had their one thousand-and-forty-seventh revival with Kokomo, Press Gang started (come on, who doesn't remember Press Gang) and of course the first episode of Baywatch was screened in the US. Ok, let's face it. Excluding the angst between Lynda and Spike (Press Gang reference for the kids) and the fall of the Berlin Wall, 1989 was fairly average. What if the Berlin Wall never fell and the tensions between NATO and Russia escalated instead? What would happen to Western Europe and the rest of the world? That is exactly the scenario creating the alternate universe of World In Conflict.

Russia, on the brink of collapse, blackmails the United Nations for help with its failing economy - otherwise face a Red army invasion of Western Europe. The United Nations ignores the request for economic support, and then Western Europe's NATO forces find themselves in the middle of a Russian onslaught. Facing the threat of a large American power, reinforcing the NATO services in the region, Russia starts a second front and attacks America on their doorstep in Seattle - which at the time had been considered a safe area. Hiding in container ships from the now diminished American Navy, the Russians sneak deep into the port of Seattle, with a monumental force attacking the US troops from ground, sea and air.

World In Conflict starts during the Russian invasion of Seattle. You, Lieutenant Parker, are on vacation in your hometown Seattle when the Russians attack. The war has been going on for quite some time in Europe before this, however a major invasion force has not appeared on American soil to date. The incompetent, arrogant and fearful Captain Bannon is in charge, but his main focus toward saving his own skin has resulted in him distancing himself from the battle, leaving both civilians and military in the firing line of the Russian forces. Luckily, you are there to clean up what he has left behind. Under the constant reminder from Bannon that you are just a green West Point graduate, you take and hold positions, letting the civilians in the area escape and slowing the advancing Russian forces. Later, Bannon's leadership is replaced by Colonel Sawyer, a retired battle-scarred Army Colonel who has been pulled back into the forces to take advantage of his special abilities as a tactician. Against all your best efforts, the massive Russian force pushes you back inland and towards Fort Teller, the base of the "Star Wars" Project. You have orders to do anything in your power to prevent the Russians forces reaching the base, and this is what you set out to do.

Although the main storyline of World In Conflict is set on the west coast of the United States, you are expected to complete missions from both the west and east coast of the country, as well as West Europe and Russia itself. Magnus "Soundboy" Jansen, the lead game designer, and Carl Lundgren, the lead level designer, and their crew brought a whole new level of creativity to map design in the Real Time Strategy genre. Ranging from ocean port and seaside maps, to mountain terrain, snowfields, downtown and even island hopping maps, the maps are created to take advantage of and obstruct the units you are given to complete each mission. Many games in the RTS genre include terrain specifically designed to make each map more complex to navigate around, however World In Conflict not only has excellent map designers and awesome graphics, but it also has the advantage of using real places which gives the maps a level of realism the I haven't seen in the genre. Nothing quite compares to using attack choppers to take out enemy units camped out on Liberty, Ellis or Governor's Island in New York harbour, or fighting your way around the Space Needle in Seattle. I couldn't help but call in extra artillery to blow up the buildings I had actually been in while visiting those cities. The terrain in World in conflict is completely destructible, whether it is simply cratering the ground or levelling a whole city (sorry, Seattle). The maps change before your very eyes as you call in artillery strikes or napalm a forest to burn it down. At the end of each round, the maps look more like a demolition or a military weapon-testing site then a city- or countryside.

In the game's 12+ levels, you are generally given a limited variety of units to use at your discretion, ranging from primarily Infantry (where you are able to call in some transport vehicles, but your main fighting force is Infantry and snipers), to Heavy Vehicle (consisting of tanks, artillery and APCs), to Airborne Units, which include heavy and light helicopters as well as scout planes. Each of these units has its pros and cons. Infantry is very good at hiding in forests and taking out vehicles and helicopters, but are very vulnerable out in the open. Tanks are strong and powerful, but they are very slow when going down narrow streets and are susceptible to an onslaught of Infantry hiding in buildings. Choppers also do some damage, but if there are any anti-aircraft vehicles or infantry around it won't take long for them to be destroyed.

In most RTS games there is a tendency just to use the biggest and most expensive vehicle that you can buy. In World in Conflict, however, I was amazed to find that on many of the maps it was actually better not to use the biggest and most expensive weapons - without using the lesser weaker units I would have had no chance in actually completing the maps. Those little Infantry guys can really pack a punch if used correctly. Unlike most other RTS titles there is no resource gathering in World In Conflict, instead you are given a limited number of resource points. These points are used to call in reinforcements, however you do not get the points back until the units you called in previously have been destroyed. Of course, like all good games there are exceptions to this rule - some scenarios see you unable to call in reinforcements, and you must rely on your repair vehicles to fix what you already have.

Second to your normal reinforcements, there are also Tactical Aids. Tactical Aids are a group of high-powered reinforcements you can call in to help your mission. Ranging from artillery and anti-aircraft strikes, to tank busters, napalm and daisy cutter strikes, these aids can help you shift the balance of the battle. Unfortunately you are unable to use them all of the time and at times you are unable to use them at all. However, when you can, make sure you use them effectively as they all have a recharge time and require you to have enough Tactical Aid points which are obtained by holding positions and destroying enemy units.