Supreme Commander (video game)
Encyclopedia
Supreme Commander is a real-time strategy
computer game designed by Chris Taylor
and developed by his company, Gas Powered Games
. The game is considered to be a spiritual successor to Taylor's 1997 game Total Annihilation
,, alongside the Spring remake. First announced in the August 2005 edition of PC Gamer
magazine, the game was released on February 16, 2007 in Europe
and February 20, 2007 in North America
. A standalone expansion, Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
, was released on November 6 of the same year. A sequel, Supreme Commander 2
, has also been released.
Supreme Commander is focused on using a giant bipedal mech called an Armored Command Unit (or ACU) to build a base, then upgrading units to reach higher technology tiers, and conquering opponents. The player can command one of three nations: the Aeon Illuminate, the Cybran Nation, or the United Earth Federation. Supreme Commander was highly anticipated in pre-release previews, and was well-received by critics, with a Metacritic
average of 86 out of 100.
across the galaxy and contain all the materials and blueprint
s necessary to create a 37th century army from a planet's native resources in hours. All standard units except Commanders and summoned Support Commanders (sACU) are self-sufficient robot
s.
All units and structures belong to one of four technology tiers, or "Tech" levels, each tier being stronger and/or more efficient than the previous. Certain lower-tier structures can be upgraded into higher ones without having to rebuild them. The first tier is available at the start of the game and consists of small, relatively weak units and structures. The second tier expands the player's abilities greatly, especially in terms of stationary weapons and shielding, and introduces upgraded versions of tier one units. The third tier level has very powerful assault units designed to overcome the fortifications of the most entrenched
player. The fourth tier is a limited range of "experimental" technology. These are usually massive units which take a lot of time and energy to produce, but provide a significant tactical advantage.
Supreme Commander features a varied skirmish AI. The typical Easy and Normal modes are present, but the Hard difficulty level has four possible variants. Horde AI will swarm the player with hordes of lower level units, Tech AI will upgrade its units as fast as possible and assault the player with advanced units, the Balanced AI attempts to find a balance between the two, and the Supreme AI decides which of the three hard strategies is best for the map.
The single player campaign consists of eighteen missions, six for each faction. The player is an inexperienced Commander who plays a key role in their faction's campaign to bring the "Infinite War" to an end. Despite the low number of campaign missions, each mission can potentially last hours. At the start of a mission, objectives are assigned for the player to complete. Once the player accomplishes them, the map is expanded, sometimes doubling or tripling in size, and new objectives are assigned. As the mission is commonly divided into three segments, the player will often have to overcome several enemy positions to achieve victory.
and nanotechnology
, only two types of resources are required to wage war: Energy
and Mass
. Energy is obtained by constructing power generators
on any solid surface, while Mass is obtained either by placing mass extractors on limited mass deposit spots or by building mass fabricators to convert energy into mass. Constructor units can gather mass by "reclaiming" it from organic
debris and mass from rocks and wrecked units. Each player has a certain amount of resource storage, which can be expanded by the construction of storage structures. This gives the player reserves in times of shortage or allows them to stockpile resources. If the resource generation exceeds the player's capacity, the material is wasted.
An adjacency system allows certain structures to benefit from being built directly adjacent to others. Energy-consuming structures will use less energy when built adjacent to power generators and power generators will produce more energy when built adjacent to power storage structures. The same applies to their mass-producing equivalents. Likewise, factories will consume less energy and mass when built adjacent to power generators and mass fabricators/extractors, respectively. However, by placing structures in close proximity, they become more vulnerable to collateral damage if an adjacent structure is destroyed.
Supreme Commander uses a "strategic zoom" system that allows the player to zoom out far enough to view the entire map on the screen, at which point it resembles the minimap, denoting individual units with icons. Players can also zoom in close enough that the larger units such as battleships fill most of the screen. This system allows Supreme Commander to have vast units and maps. Both units and maps use normal maps
in order to allow for a large amount of detail. Scale is important in Supreme Commander. A player can field up to a thousand units (which includes buildings) at a time, enabling massive battles with hundreds of units on the field at once.
Units in Supreme Commander are built to scale as they would be in the real world. For example, battleship
s dwarf submarine
s; an American Iowa class battleship
is almost five times as long as a German
type 212 submarine
, which is reflected in the game. Late into the game, the larger "experimental" units, such as the Cybran Monkeylord, an enormous spider-shaped assault unit, can actually crush other units.
Because of the wide range of planets colonized by humanity in the setting, the theatres of war
range from desert
to arctic
, and all battlespace
s are employed. Technologies emerging in modern warfare
are frequently employed in Supreme Commander. For example, stealth technology
and both tactical
and strategic
missile defense
systems can be used. An innovative feature is the ferry
system used by air transports. When a transport is set to ferry units to a specific destination, it creates a ferry point at its current location that the player can order any unit to trigger. The transport will then retrieve the unit, automatically shuttling them to the other end of the route. By setting a factory to move units to the ferry point, a player can produce units far behind the lines and have them automatically ferried to the front. By holding the shift key the player can view all of the issued orders, resembling a strategic map. Using this shift view, orders already issued can be moved around easily, which allows for a quick change of plans. Further, when a unit is ordered to attack a target, the player can issue an order to perform a coordinated attack to another unit. This order coordinates the arrival time of the units at the target automatically by adjusting the speed of the units involved.
where humanity is able to travel through the galaxy quickly using a quantum gateway
, which is a portal opened from the fabric of space leading to a designated location potentially light-years away. All of the colonies created by quantum-travelling humankind were governed by the Earth Empire, until the events that created the Cybran Nation and the Aeon Illuminate caused the empire to fall, and the Infinite War between these factions began.
The United Earth Federation (or UEF) is the faction representing the interests of a united, Earth-based government. The UEF developed from the ashes of the Earth Empire, and now seeks to reunite humanity and restore Earth's control over the galaxy. Their society and military tactics resemble modern society more than the Cybrans or Aeon do. Their acceptance of a variant of slavery and ideology of forced unity lends a darker side to the faction. UEF units are blueish and somewhat blocky in form. The three UEF experimental units are the Fatboy, a mobile factory/fire base, the Mavor, a long range artillery installation, and the Atlantis, a submersible aircraft carrier.
The Cybran Nation (originally called the Recyclers) is composed of Symbionts
, humans whose brains have been computerized and enhanced with implantable technology, the most important being the mutual AI
(in addition to various other augmentations). They fight for the liberation of their fellow Cybran from the oppressive United Earth Federation. The Cybran Nation is led by the brilliant-yet-eccentric Dr. Brackman, patriarch and chief designer of the Cybrans' cybernetic technology. Cybran units are red and tend to be angular and jagged. The three Cybran experimental units are the Monkeylord, a spider shaped assault unit, the Scathis, a mobile rapid fire artillery unit, and the Soul Ripper, a powerful gunship.
The Aeon Illuminate draw their roots from the Golden Age of expansion of the old Earth Empire. The descendants of the first humans to encounter alien intelligent life, a peaceful, yet highly advanced, society known as the Seraphim, who first introduced colonists to their philosophy, known as "The Way". Due to escalating paranoia and xenophobia
among the Old Earth Empire, conflict soon broke out, resulting in the Seraphim's apparent extinction. The colonists of the alien planet, claiming to be "disciples" of the Seraphim, soon founded a civilization supposedly based upon their teachings. In a twist of irony, the Aeon Illuminate soon began a zealous assault on the galaxy, intending to "purge" all those who did not share in their beliefs. Aeon units are green and rounded. The three Aeon experimental units are the Galactic Colossus, a humanoid assault unit, the Czar, an airborne aircraft carrier, and the Tempest, a submersible battleship that can construct other Aeon ships.
The campaign focuses on the UEF's weapon of last resort, a planet killer
named Black Sun. With it, they intend to destroy the homeworlds of the factions that oppose them. The Cybrans plan to use it to destroy the quantum gate network and free their enslaved brethren, while the Aeon seek to use it to broadcast a message of peace to all people. The player decides which faction to play as and what course it will take.
Victory in the UEF campaign results in Black Sun destroying the critical planets of both the Aeon and the Cybrans, leading the galaxy into a new era of human superiority and ending the war. In the Cybran campaign, QAI, an enormously intelligent and powerful AI, uses it to spread the quantum virus and free all the symbionts under the control of the UEF. This virus itself disables every quantum gate in the galaxy, stopping superluminal
travel for five years, thus allowing the Cybran Nation to flourish without being attacked by the others. Finally, the Aeon campaign sees the Princess Rhianne (leader of the Aeon) become part of the quantum gate network. This allows the Princess to speak into the mind of every human, and urge all three sides to lay down arms. All three factions make peace with each other after this message.
Upon finishing the game, each faction has a different teaser ending, hinting at a new enemy for the expansion
. The Cybran ending shows QAI calling in unidentified enemies, to Dr. Brackman's horror, saying "They are coming." The Aeon ending simply depicts Princess Rhianne opening her eyes in shock and saying "...no!" Finally, the UEF ending shows a large rift opening near Earth, and many unidentified radar signatures
appearing near the location of Black Sun on Earth. All three teasers are consistent with the arrival of the Seraphim
from the sequel. Entertainingly, upon completion of the Cybran campaign, you receive a message from Elite Commander Dostya, stating she stashed a bottle of fine vodka in the rear compartment of your ACU, a further reference to her Russian-esque heritage.
believed that most modern strategy games were actually real-time tactics
games, simply because they operated on too small a scale.
His stated intention with Supreme Commander was to create a game that was strategy-focused by virtue of scale. Chris Taylor has stated that customisability was one of his goals for Supreme Commander, and that the game would ship the development team's tools if possible. The latter goal was not achieved.
Supreme Commander makes extensive use of two technologies relatively unused in video games prior to its release, namely multi core processing and multi monitor displays. When detecting a multi-core processor, the game assigns a specific task, such as AI calculations, to each core, splitting the load between them. Supreme Commander is one of the first games to specifically support dual and quad core processors in the game.
Supreme Commander is heavily reliant on raw processing power from the CPU and is less dependent on rendering power from the graphics card. When using a high-end graphics card the CPU is likely to become the main bottleneck.
On February 6, 2007, a demo
for Supreme Commander was released. It includes a tutorial, a portion of the single-player campaign, and a two-player skirmish map called "Finn's Revenge" in which the player can fight against an easy, medium, or hard Cybran AI. Of the three factions, only the Cybran Nation is playable in the demo. On July 17, 2007, it was announced that Supreme Commander would be released on Steam. Taylor has hinted at a seventh generation console release in "the near future", calling the Xbox 360
"the platform of choice".
The game shipped with version 3189. The first update, or patch
, to Supreme Commander was version 3217. Released shortly after the game launch, this update included game tweaks and balances, and a number of small bug fixes
. Support for the Direct2Drive version of the game was introduced, as well as a minimalist version of the user interface
. Version 3220, released on March 5, 2007, notably removed the SecuROM
disk checking from the game. This enables the player to run the game without the game DVD in the DVD drive. Polish
, Russia
n, and Chinese
localizations
were excluded from this change. Version 3223 included bug fixes only. It has been called a 'specific purpose patch' by Gas Powered Games. Update 3251, was a highly anticipated update, mainly because of the plethora of changes relating to the balance between playable factions. A cartographic view of the map was also introduced. Hotfix 3254 solved a few issues discovered shortly after 3251 was released. It was introduced on June 7, 2007. Two weeks after that patch, version 3255 fixed a peer desynchronisation bug, one that could be used to deceive the rating system
(called an exploit
in gaming jargon). On July 30, 2007, patch 3260 was released. It included 3 new units, and some bug fixes and tweaks. On October 8, 2007, patch 3269 was released, including one new unit for each faction, and gameplay tweaks.
The final update the Supreme Commander was released on January 13, 2008. Patch 3280 added amBX
support to the game.
, who also composed the score for the game's spiritual predecessor, Total Annihilation
. The soundtrack was released in early 2007 and is available as a DRM-free
digital album
from DirectSong. Shortly after the release of Forged Alliance
in November 2007, additional tracks from the expansion were added to the album and were made available free of charge to owners of the soundtrack's initial release.
Soule used synthesisers, instead of a traditional orchestra to produce the soundtrack. The score is featured in Supreme Commander as dynamic in-game music
, changing with on-screen events.
The soundtrack received positive reviews. SoundtrackNet's Brian McVickar gave the soundtrack 3.5 stars out of 5, commented that the score has "a healthy dose of action" and "an infectious energy and gusto". McVickar also noted that the synthesised instruments sound real. Oliver Ittensohn from GSoundtracks gave the soundtrack 4.5 stars out of 5, stating that "It’s a very fine score and a great achievement.". Soule’s "thematic, rich and action-packed" orchestral writing, as well as the impressive level of detail in the synthesised music was praised. Ittensohn also remarked that the score and power of its themes "manages to match the game’s massive scale". Charles Onyett from IGN
also commented that the score is "top notch, really driving home the notion of an epic conflict.".
wrote eighteen,
IGN
wrote eight,
and GameSpy
five. The Seton's Clutch map was frequently featured, as early as September 2005. This battle was between the UEF and the Cybran, showcasing a Monkeylord annihilating UEF tanks. At E3, it was revealed that the Aeon had a base to the southeast of this map, which was used to launch strategic nuclear missiles
on the UEF base.
Supreme Commander won several notable awards before it was released, all of them connected to E3, including the GameCritics Best Strategy Game Award and IGN's best upcoming PC game award. Other awards were received from GameSpy, GameSpot, Games Radar, Voodoo Extreme and 1UP
.
. He praised the versatility of the strategic zoom, and expressed his loathing of the next game that wouldn't feature it. The dual-screen mode was highly regarded, the mission design was praised, and the emotional presence of the story was also recognized. However, a few points were docked due to the general lack of diverse unit types, and the game's system requirements. It received a PC Gamer Editor's Choice Award with a score of 91%.
One of the earliest online reviews after the game's release was written by Alec Meer on Eurogamer
. Innovative new features such as the multi monitor support are praised in that review, and the scale element makes a positive impression. Meer remarked though, that Supreme Commander "feels like hard work", and that with the emphasis on epic scale, details are overlooked. Still, a rating of 9/10 was awarded.
IGN
rated Supreme Commander with the rating of 9/10, with reviewer Charles Onyett giving the game the Editor's choice award. Particularly the intuitive and helpful strategic zoom and base automation were praised, though the steep hardware requirements and naval pathfinding issues were found less appealing—while they would find their way to their designated target point, their routes were not always the most efficient. IGN UK
, however, was less positive, while still awarding a rating of 8.9/10. The issues addressed by its international counterpart were deemed more severe, and the reviewer was not impressed by the interface, finding the amount of control it gives over the game lacking.
Conversely, the review in the Australia
n version of GamePro
voiced a negative opinion on the game, giving Supreme Commander a rating of five out of ten. GamePro assessed Supreme Commander as an over-ambitious game, with performance (measured in frames per second
), even on high end systems, as a major negative point. The reviewers observed that the game gradually slowed down while playing, and that this process accelerated when using the 'shift' key view. This review was subject to controversy, resulting in two rating compiling websites, Metacritic
and Game Rankings
, removing it from their websites.
Overall, reviews of Supreme Commander were positive, with the game having a score of 86/100 on Metacritic
. In non-English language reviews the game was received positively as well. German reviewer Heiko Klinge gave Supreme Commander a score of
82 out of 100. Especially the size and scope of the game were appreciated, while the steep learning curve was a less positive point for the German reviewer. In France, Jeux PC (lit. "PC Games") gave Supreme Commander a score of 17 out of 20. Although they found SupCom was a good game overall, the poor performance on low-end systems was criticized. At the Dutch website Gamer.nl, the two reviewers awarded the game with a score of 8 out of 10. Almost every aspect of the game was well received. However, the steep learning curve and the large amount of effort required to play meant, according to the reviewers, that Supreme Commander is not a "game that everyone can play".
released a Supreme Commander standalone expansion, Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
. It contains many engine improvements that allow it to run faster as well as improve the graphics. In addition, a new faction (the Seraphim) is available. It was released as a standalone game.
This expansion pack was later mentioned in an interview by Chris Taylor on January 11, 2008. Chris Taylor noted that Gas Powered Games had been "talking" about a second expansion, and that this expansion would be called Supreme Commander: Experimentals. The project has since been abandoned.
and Square Enix
.
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
computer game designed by Chris Taylor
Chris Taylor (game designer)
Chris Taylor is a computer game designer and entrepreneur most famous for developing Total Annihilation and the Dungeon Siege series and for founding Gas Powered Games...
and developed by his company, Gas Powered Games
Gas Powered Games
Gas Powered Games is a video game developer located in Redmond, Washington. The development studio was started in May 1998 by Chris Taylor, creator of Total Annihilation, and several other ex-Cavedog Entertainment employees....
. The game is considered to be a spiritual successor to Taylor's 1997 game Total Annihilation
Total Annihilation
Total Annihilation is a real-time strategy video game created by Cavedog Entertainment, a sub-division of Humongous Entertainment, and released on September 30, 1997 by GT Interactive for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS. It was the first RTS game to feature 3D units and terrain...
,, alongside the Spring remake. First announced in the August 2005 edition of PC Gamer
PC Gamer
PC Gamer is a magazine founded in Britain in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future Publishing. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games magazines in their respective countries...
magazine, the game was released on February 16, 2007 in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and February 20, 2007 in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. A standalone expansion, Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance is a standalone real-time strategy computer game expansion to Supreme Commander, and was released in November 2007, developed by Gas Powered Games and published by THQ, and the second title in the franchise...
, was released on November 6 of the same year. A sequel, Supreme Commander 2
Supreme Commander 2
Supreme Commander 2 is a real-time strategy video game developed by Gas Powered Games and published by Square Enix. It is a sequel to Supreme Commander...
, has also been released.
Supreme Commander is focused on using a giant bipedal mech called an Armored Command Unit (or ACU) to build a base, then upgrading units to reach higher technology tiers, and conquering opponents. The player can command one of three nations: the Aeon Illuminate, the Cybran Nation, or the United Earth Federation. Supreme Commander was highly anticipated in pre-release previews, and was well-received by critics, with a Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
average of 86 out of 100.
Gameplay
Supreme Commander, like its spiritual predecessor, begins with the player solely possessing a single, irreplaceable construction unit called the "Armored Command Unit," or ACU, the titular Supreme Commander. Normally the loss of this unit results in the loss of the game (Skirmish missions can be set for a variety of victory conditions). These mech suits are designed to be transported through quantum gatewaysQuantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics, also known as quantum physics or quantum theory, is a branch of physics providing a mathematical description of much of the dual particle-like and wave-like behavior and interactions of energy and matter. It departs from classical mechanics primarily at the atomic and subatomic...
across the galaxy and contain all the materials and blueprint
Blueprint
A blueprint is a type of paper-based reproduction usually of a technical drawing, documenting an architecture or an engineering design. More generally, the term "blueprint" has come to be used to refer to any detailed plan....
s necessary to create a 37th century army from a planet's native resources in hours. All standard units except Commanders and summoned Support Commanders (sACU) are self-sufficient robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
s.
All units and structures belong to one of four technology tiers, or "Tech" levels, each tier being stronger and/or more efficient than the previous. Certain lower-tier structures can be upgraded into higher ones without having to rebuild them. The first tier is available at the start of the game and consists of small, relatively weak units and structures. The second tier expands the player's abilities greatly, especially in terms of stationary weapons and shielding, and introduces upgraded versions of tier one units. The third tier level has very powerful assault units designed to overcome the fortifications of the most entrenched
Trench warfare
Trench warfare is a form of occupied fighting lines, consisting largely of trenches, in which troops are largely immune to the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery...
player. The fourth tier is a limited range of "experimental" technology. These are usually massive units which take a lot of time and energy to produce, but provide a significant tactical advantage.
Supreme Commander features a varied skirmish AI. The typical Easy and Normal modes are present, but the Hard difficulty level has four possible variants. Horde AI will swarm the player with hordes of lower level units, Tech AI will upgrade its units as fast as possible and assault the player with advanced units, the Balanced AI attempts to find a balance between the two, and the Supreme AI decides which of the three hard strategies is best for the map.
The single player campaign consists of eighteen missions, six for each faction. The player is an inexperienced Commander who plays a key role in their faction's campaign to bring the "Infinite War" to an end. Despite the low number of campaign missions, each mission can potentially last hours. At the start of a mission, objectives are assigned for the player to complete. Once the player accomplishes them, the map is expanded, sometimes doubling or tripling in size, and new objectives are assigned. As the mission is commonly divided into three segments, the player will often have to overcome several enemy positions to achieve victory.
Resource management
Because humans have discovered replication technology, making advanced use of rapid prototypingRapid prototyping
Rapid prototyping is the automatic construction of physical objects using additive manufacturing technology. The first techniques for rapid prototyping became available in the late 1980s and were used to produce models and prototype parts. Today, they are used for a much wider range of applications...
and nanotechnology
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
, only two types of resources are required to wage war: Energy
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
and Mass
Mass
Mass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
. Energy is obtained by constructing power generators
Power station
A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
on any solid surface, while Mass is obtained either by placing mass extractors on limited mass deposit spots or by building mass fabricators to convert energy into mass. Constructor units can gather mass by "reclaiming" it from organic
Organism
In biology, an organism is any contiguous living system . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimuli, reproduction, growth and development, and maintenance of homoeostasis as a stable whole.An organism may either be unicellular or, as in the case of humans, comprise...
debris and mass from rocks and wrecked units. Each player has a certain amount of resource storage, which can be expanded by the construction of storage structures. This gives the player reserves in times of shortage or allows them to stockpile resources. If the resource generation exceeds the player's capacity, the material is wasted.
An adjacency system allows certain structures to benefit from being built directly adjacent to others. Energy-consuming structures will use less energy when built adjacent to power generators and power generators will produce more energy when built adjacent to power storage structures. The same applies to their mass-producing equivalents. Likewise, factories will consume less energy and mass when built adjacent to power generators and mass fabricators/extractors, respectively. However, by placing structures in close proximity, they become more vulnerable to collateral damage if an adjacent structure is destroyed.
Warfare
Normal mapping
In 3D computer graphics, normal mapping, or "Dot3 bump mapping", is a technique used for faking the lighting of bumps and dents. It is used to add details without using more polygons. A common use of this technique is to greatly enhance the appearance and details of a low polygon model by...
in order to allow for a large amount of detail. Scale is important in Supreme Commander. A player can field up to a thousand units (which includes buildings) at a time, enabling massive battles with hundreds of units on the field at once.
Units in Supreme Commander are built to scale as they would be in the real world. For example, battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
s dwarf submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s; an American Iowa class battleship
Iowa class battleship
The Iowa-class battleships were a class of fast battleships ordered by the United States Navy in 1939 and 1940 to escort the Fast Carrier Task Forces which would operate in the Pacific Theater of World War II. Six were ordered during the course of World War II, but only four were completed in...
is almost five times as long as a German
German Navy
The German Navy is the navy of Germany and is part of the unified Bundeswehr .The German Navy traces its roots back to the Imperial Fleet of the revolutionary era of 1848 – 52 and more directly to the Prussian Navy, which later evolved into the Northern German Federal Navy...
type 212 submarine
Type 212 submarine
The German Type 212 class, also Italian Todaro class, is a highly advanced design of non-nuclear submarine developed by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft AG and Fincantieri S.p.a. for the German and Italian Navy. It features diesel propulsion and an additional air-independent propulsion system using...
, which is reflected in the game. Late into the game, the larger "experimental" units, such as the Cybran Monkeylord, an enormous spider-shaped assault unit, can actually crush other units.
Because of the wide range of planets colonized by humanity in the setting, the theatres of war
Theater (warfare)
In warfare, a theater, is defined as an area or place within which important military events occur or are progressing. The entirety of the air, land, and sea area that is or that may potentially become involved in war operations....
range from desert
Desert warfare
Desert warfare is combat in deserts. In desert warfare the elements can sometimes be more dangerous than the actual enemy. The desert terrain is the second most inhospitable to troops following a cold environment...
to arctic
Arctic warfare
Arctic warfare or winter warfare is a term used to describe armed conflict that takes place in an exceptionally cold weather, usually in snowy and icy terrain, sometimes on ice-covered bodies of water...
, and all battlespace
Battlespace
Battlespace is a term used to signify a unified military strategy to integrate and combine armed forces for the military theatre of operations, including air, information, land, sea, and space to achieve military goals. It includes the environment, factors, and conditions that must be understood...
s are employed. Technologies emerging in modern warfare
Modern warfare
Modern warfare, although present in every historical period of military history, is generally used to refer to the concepts, methods and technologies that have come into use during and after the Second World War and the Korean War...
are frequently employed in Supreme Commander. For example, stealth technology
Stealth technology
Stealth technology also termed LO technology is a sub-discipline of military tactics and passive electronic countermeasures, which cover a range of techniques used with personnel, aircraft, ships, submarines, and missiles, to make them less visible to radar, infrared, sonar and other detection...
and both tactical
Tactical ballistic missile
A tactical ballistic missile is a ballistic missile designed for short-range battlefield use. Typically, range is less than . Tactical ballistic missiles are usually mobile to ensure survivability and quick deployment, as well as carrying a variety of warheads to target enemy facilities, assembly...
and strategic
Intercontinental ballistic missile
An intercontinental ballistic missile is a ballistic missile with a long range typically designed for nuclear weapons delivery...
missile defense
Missile defense
Missile defense is a system, weapon, or technology involved in the detection, tracking, interception and destruction of attacking missiles. Originally conceived as a defence against nuclear-armed Intercontinental ballistic missiles , its application has broadened to include shorter-ranged...
systems can be used. An innovative feature is the ferry
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
system used by air transports. When a transport is set to ferry units to a specific destination, it creates a ferry point at its current location that the player can order any unit to trigger. The transport will then retrieve the unit, automatically shuttling them to the other end of the route. By setting a factory to move units to the ferry point, a player can produce units far behind the lines and have them automatically ferried to the front. By holding the shift key the player can view all of the issued orders, resembling a strategic map. Using this shift view, orders already issued can be moved around easily, which allows for a quick change of plans. Further, when a unit is ordered to attack a target, the player can issue an order to perform a coordinated attack to another unit. This order coordinates the arrival time of the units at the target automatically by adjusting the speed of the units involved.
Setting
The setting of Supreme Commander is a futureFuture
The future is the indefinite time period after the present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the nature of the reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently exists and will exist is temporary and will come...
where humanity is able to travel through the galaxy quickly using a quantum gateway
Stargate
Stargate is a adventure military science fiction franchise, initially conceived by Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin. The first film in the franchise was simply titled Stargate. It was originally released on October 28, 1994, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Carolco, and became a hit, grossing nearly...
, which is a portal opened from the fabric of space leading to a designated location potentially light-years away. All of the colonies created by quantum-travelling humankind were governed by the Earth Empire, until the events that created the Cybran Nation and the Aeon Illuminate caused the empire to fall, and the Infinite War between these factions began.
Factions
The Supreme Commander universe features three fictional factions. Each is represented as possessing great zeal and differing ideas on the future of humanity as a whole.The United Earth Federation (or UEF) is the faction representing the interests of a united, Earth-based government. The UEF developed from the ashes of the Earth Empire, and now seeks to reunite humanity and restore Earth's control over the galaxy. Their society and military tactics resemble modern society more than the Cybrans or Aeon do. Their acceptance of a variant of slavery and ideology of forced unity lends a darker side to the faction. UEF units are blueish and somewhat blocky in form. The three UEF experimental units are the Fatboy, a mobile factory/fire base, the Mavor, a long range artillery installation, and the Atlantis, a submersible aircraft carrier.
The Cybran Nation (originally called the Recyclers) is composed of Symbionts
Symbiosis
Symbiosis is close and often long-term interaction between different biological species. In 1877 Bennett used the word symbiosis to describe the mutualistic relationship in lichens...
, humans whose brains have been computerized and enhanced with implantable technology, the most important being the mutual AI
Strong AI
Strong AI is artificial intelligence that matches or exceeds human intelligence — the intelligence of a machine that can successfully perform any intellectual task that a human being can. It is a primary goal of artificial intelligence research and an important topic for science fiction writers and...
(in addition to various other augmentations). They fight for the liberation of their fellow Cybran from the oppressive United Earth Federation. The Cybran Nation is led by the brilliant-yet-eccentric Dr. Brackman, patriarch and chief designer of the Cybrans' cybernetic technology. Cybran units are red and tend to be angular and jagged. The three Cybran experimental units are the Monkeylord, a spider shaped assault unit, the Scathis, a mobile rapid fire artillery unit, and the Soul Ripper, a powerful gunship.
The Aeon Illuminate draw their roots from the Golden Age of expansion of the old Earth Empire. The descendants of the first humans to encounter alien intelligent life, a peaceful, yet highly advanced, society known as the Seraphim, who first introduced colonists to their philosophy, known as "The Way". Due to escalating paranoia and xenophobia
Xenophobia
Xenophobia is defined as "an unreasonable fear of foreigners or strangers or of that which is foreign or strange". It comes from the Greek words ξένος , meaning "stranger," "foreigner" and φόβος , meaning "fear."...
among the Old Earth Empire, conflict soon broke out, resulting in the Seraphim's apparent extinction. The colonists of the alien planet, claiming to be "disciples" of the Seraphim, soon founded a civilization supposedly based upon their teachings. In a twist of irony, the Aeon Illuminate soon began a zealous assault on the galaxy, intending to "purge" all those who did not share in their beliefs. Aeon units are green and rounded. The three Aeon experimental units are the Galactic Colossus, a humanoid assault unit, the Czar, an airborne aircraft carrier, and the Tempest, a submersible battleship that can construct other Aeon ships.
Plot
At the start of the single player campaign, the Infinite War between the three factions has raged for over a millennium. Every faction has its own problems; the UEF is stretched far too thin, the Cybrans are hopelessly outnumbered and outgunned, and the Aeon Commander in Chief (called the Avatar of War) is stirring unrest amongst the Illuminate.The campaign focuses on the UEF's weapon of last resort, a planet killer
Planet killer
In science fiction, a planet killer, planet buster, or similar variations on that meaning, is a fictional object or device capable of either destroying an entire planet or otherwise rendering it uninhabitable - a variety of a doomsday device....
named Black Sun. With it, they intend to destroy the homeworlds of the factions that oppose them. The Cybrans plan to use it to destroy the quantum gate network and free their enslaved brethren, while the Aeon seek to use it to broadcast a message of peace to all people. The player decides which faction to play as and what course it will take.
Victory in the UEF campaign results in Black Sun destroying the critical planets of both the Aeon and the Cybrans, leading the galaxy into a new era of human superiority and ending the war. In the Cybran campaign, QAI, an enormously intelligent and powerful AI, uses it to spread the quantum virus and free all the symbionts under the control of the UEF. This virus itself disables every quantum gate in the galaxy, stopping superluminal
Faster-than-light
Faster-than-light communications and travel refer to the propagation of information or matter faster than the speed of light....
travel for five years, thus allowing the Cybran Nation to flourish without being attacked by the others. Finally, the Aeon campaign sees the Princess Rhianne (leader of the Aeon) become part of the quantum gate network. This allows the Princess to speak into the mind of every human, and urge all three sides to lay down arms. All three factions make peace with each other after this message.
Upon finishing the game, each faction has a different teaser ending, hinting at a new enemy for the expansion
Expansion pack
An expansion pack, expansion set, or supplement is an addition to an existing role-playing game, tabletop game or video game. These add-ons usually add new game areas, weapons, objects, and/or an extended storyline to a complete and already released game...
. The Cybran ending shows QAI calling in unidentified enemies, to Dr. Brackman's horror, saying "They are coming." The Aeon ending simply depicts Princess Rhianne opening her eyes in shock and saying "...no!" Finally, the UEF ending shows a large rift opening near Earth, and many unidentified radar signatures
Radar cross section
Radar cross section is a measure of how detectable an object is with a radar. A larger RCS indicates that an object is more easily detected.An object reflects a limited amount of radar energy...
appearing near the location of Black Sun on Earth. All three teasers are consistent with the arrival of the Seraphim
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance is a standalone real-time strategy computer game expansion to Supreme Commander, and was released in November 2007, developed by Gas Powered Games and published by THQ, and the second title in the franchise...
from the sequel. Entertainingly, upon completion of the Cybran campaign, you receive a message from Elite Commander Dostya, stating she stashed a bottle of fine vodka in the rear compartment of your ACU, a further reference to her Russian-esque heritage.
Development
Chris TaylorChris Taylor (game designer)
Chris Taylor is a computer game designer and entrepreneur most famous for developing Total Annihilation and the Dungeon Siege series and for founding Gas Powered Games...
believed that most modern strategy games were actually real-time tactics
Real-time tactics
Real-time tactics or RTT is a subgenre of tactical wargames played in real-time simulating the considerations and circumstances of operational warfare and military tactics...
games, simply because they operated on too small a scale.
His stated intention with Supreme Commander was to create a game that was strategy-focused by virtue of scale. Chris Taylor has stated that customisability was one of his goals for Supreme Commander, and that the game would ship the development team's tools if possible. The latter goal was not achieved.
Supreme Commander makes extensive use of two technologies relatively unused in video games prior to its release, namely multi core processing and multi monitor displays. When detecting a multi-core processor, the game assigns a specific task, such as AI calculations, to each core, splitting the load between them. Supreme Commander is one of the first games to specifically support dual and quad core processors in the game.
Supreme Commander is heavily reliant on raw processing power from the CPU and is less dependent on rendering power from the graphics card. When using a high-end graphics card the CPU is likely to become the main bottleneck.
On February 6, 2007, a demo
Game demo
A game demo is a freely distributed demonstration or preview of an upcoming or recently released video game. Demos are typically released by the game's publisher to help consumers get a feel of the game before deciding whether to buy the full version....
for Supreme Commander was released. It includes a tutorial, a portion of the single-player campaign, and a two-player skirmish map called "Finn's Revenge" in which the player can fight against an easy, medium, or hard Cybran AI. Of the three factions, only the Cybran Nation is playable in the demo. On July 17, 2007, it was announced that Supreme Commander would be released on Steam. Taylor has hinted at a seventh generation console release in "the near future", calling the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
"the platform of choice".
The game shipped with version 3189. The first update, or patch
Patch (computing)
A patch is a piece of software designed to fix problems with, or update a computer program or its supporting data. This includes fixing security vulnerabilities and other bugs, and improving the usability or performance...
, to Supreme Commander was version 3217. Released shortly after the game launch, this update included game tweaks and balances, and a number of small bug fixes
Software bug
A software bug is the common term used to describe an error, flaw, mistake, failure, or fault in a computer program or system that produces an incorrect or unexpected result, or causes it to behave in unintended ways. Most bugs arise from mistakes and errors made by people in either a program's...
. Support for the Direct2Drive version of the game was introduced, as well as a minimalist version of the user interface
User interface
The user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
. Version 3220, released on March 5, 2007, notably removed the SecuROM
SecuROM
SecuROM is a CD/DVD copy protection and digital rights management product developed by Sony DADC. SecuROM aims to resist home media duplication devices, professional duplicators, and attempts at reverse engineering software. It is most often used for commercial computer games running under the...
disk checking from the game. This enables the player to run the game without the game DVD in the DVD drive. Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n, and Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
localizations
Internationalization and localization
In computing, internationalization and localization are means of adapting computer software to different languages, regional differences and technical requirements of a target market...
were excluded from this change. Version 3223 included bug fixes only. It has been called a 'specific purpose patch' by Gas Powered Games. Update 3251, was a highly anticipated update, mainly because of the plethora of changes relating to the balance between playable factions. A cartographic view of the map was also introduced. Hotfix 3254 solved a few issues discovered shortly after 3251 was released. It was introduced on June 7, 2007. Two weeks after that patch, version 3255 fixed a peer desynchronisation bug, one that could be used to deceive the rating system
Elo rating system
The Elo rating system is a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in two-player games such as chess. It is named after its creator Arpad Elo, a Hungarian-born American physics professor....
(called an exploit
Exploit (online gaming)
An exploit, in video games, is the use of a bug or design flaw by a player to their advantage in a manner not intended by the game's designers. It is often colloquially abbreviated sploit. Exploits have been classified as a form of cheating; however, the precise determination of what is or is not...
in gaming jargon). On July 30, 2007, patch 3260 was released. It included 3 new units, and some bug fixes and tweaks. On October 8, 2007, patch 3269 was released, including one new unit for each faction, and gameplay tweaks.
The final update the Supreme Commander was released on January 13, 2008. Patch 3280 added amBX
AmBX
AmBX is an internationally patent protected technology for controlling incandescent and white/coloured LED lighting and other enabled devices...
support to the game.
Audio
The Supreme Commander Official Soundtrack is the musical score to Supreme Commander. It was composed by Jeremy SouleJeremy Soule
Jeremy Soule is an American composer of soundtracks for film, television and video games. He has won multiple awards and has been described as the "John Williams of video game music" and "a model of success" for Western composers. He has composed soundtracks for over 60 games and over a dozen...
, who also composed the score for the game's spiritual predecessor, Total Annihilation
Total Annihilation
Total Annihilation is a real-time strategy video game created by Cavedog Entertainment, a sub-division of Humongous Entertainment, and released on September 30, 1997 by GT Interactive for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS. It was the first RTS game to feature 3D units and terrain...
. The soundtrack was released in early 2007 and is available as a DRM-free
Digital rights management
Digital rights management is a class of access control technologies that are used by hardware manufacturers, publishers, copyright holders and individuals with the intent to limit the use of digital content and devices after sale. DRM is any technology that inhibits uses of digital content that...
digital album
Online music store
An online music store is an online business which sells audio files, usually music, on a per-song and/or subscription basis. It may be differentiated from music streaming services in that the music store offers the actual music file, while streaming services offer partial or full listening without...
from DirectSong. Shortly after the release of Forged Alliance
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance is a standalone real-time strategy computer game expansion to Supreme Commander, and was released in November 2007, developed by Gas Powered Games and published by THQ, and the second title in the franchise...
in November 2007, additional tracks from the expansion were added to the album and were made available free of charge to owners of the soundtrack's initial release.
Soule used synthesisers, instead of a traditional orchestra to produce the soundtrack. The score is featured in Supreme Commander as dynamic in-game music
Dynamic music
Dynamic music is a concept used in many video games, whereby specific events cause the background music to change. Its first uses in major video games were Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge and Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss. It has since been used in such games as Mushroom Men and Guitar Hero...
, changing with on-screen events.
The soundtrack received positive reviews. SoundtrackNet's Brian McVickar gave the soundtrack 3.5 stars out of 5, commented that the score has "a healthy dose of action" and "an infectious energy and gusto". McVickar also noted that the synthesised instruments sound real. Oliver Ittensohn from GSoundtracks gave the soundtrack 4.5 stars out of 5, stating that "It’s a very fine score and a great achievement.". Soule’s "thematic, rich and action-packed" orchestral writing, as well as the impressive level of detail in the synthesised music was praised. Ittensohn also remarked that the score and power of its themes "manages to match the game’s massive scale". Charles Onyett from IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
also commented that the score is "top notch, really driving home the notion of an epic conflict.".
Reception
Pre-release
Supreme Commander was highly anticipated. Large gaming websites wrote many previews: GameSpotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
wrote eighteen,
IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
wrote eight,
and GameSpy
GameSpy
GameSpy Industries, Inc., known simply as GameSpy, is a division of IGN Entertainment, which operates a network of game websites and provides online video game-related services and software. GameSpy dates back to the 1996 release of an internet Quake server search program named QSpy. The current...
five. The Seton's Clutch map was frequently featured, as early as September 2005. This battle was between the UEF and the Cybran, showcasing a Monkeylord annihilating UEF tanks. At E3, it was revealed that the Aeon had a base to the southeast of this map, which was used to launch strategic nuclear missiles
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
on the UEF base.
Supreme Commander won several notable awards before it was released, all of them connected to E3, including the GameCritics Best Strategy Game Award and IGN's best upcoming PC game award. Other awards were received from GameSpy, GameSpot, Games Radar, Voodoo Extreme and 1UP
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
.
Post-release
The first review of Supreme Commander was written by Dan Stapleton of PC GamerPC Gamer
PC Gamer is a magazine founded in Britain in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future Publishing. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games magazines in their respective countries...
. He praised the versatility of the strategic zoom, and expressed his loathing of the next game that wouldn't feature it. The dual-screen mode was highly regarded, the mission design was praised, and the emotional presence of the story was also recognized. However, a few points were docked due to the general lack of diverse unit types, and the game's system requirements. It received a PC Gamer Editor's Choice Award with a score of 91%.
One of the earliest online reviews after the game's release was written by Alec Meer on Eurogamer
Eurogamer
Eurogamer is a Brighton-based website focused on video games news, reviews, previews and interviews. It is operated by Eurogamer Network Ltd., which was formed in 1999 by brothers Rupert and Nick Loman. Eurogamer has grown to become one of the most important European-based websites focused on...
. Innovative new features such as the multi monitor support are praised in that review, and the scale element makes a positive impression. Meer remarked though, that Supreme Commander "feels like hard work", and that with the emphasis on epic scale, details are overlooked. Still, a rating of 9/10 was awarded.
IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
rated Supreme Commander with the rating of 9/10, with reviewer Charles Onyett giving the game the Editor's choice award. Particularly the intuitive and helpful strategic zoom and base automation were praised, though the steep hardware requirements and naval pathfinding issues were found less appealing—while they would find their way to their designated target point, their routes were not always the most efficient. IGN UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, however, was less positive, while still awarding a rating of 8.9/10. The issues addressed by its international counterpart were deemed more severe, and the reviewer was not impressed by the interface, finding the amount of control it gives over the game lacking.
Conversely, the review in the Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n version of GamePro
GamePro
GamePro Media was a United States gaming media company publishing online and print content on the video game industry, video game hardware, and video game software developed for a video game console , a computer, and/or a mobile device . GamePro Media properties include GamePro magazine and...
voiced a negative opinion on the game, giving Supreme Commander a rating of five out of ten. GamePro assessed Supreme Commander as an over-ambitious game, with performance (measured in frames per second
Frame rate
Frame rate is the frequency at which an imaging device produces unique consecutive images called frames. The term applies equally well to computer graphics, video cameras, film cameras, and motion capture systems...
), even on high end systems, as a major negative point. The reviewers observed that the game gradually slowed down while playing, and that this process accelerated when using the 'shift' key view. This review was subject to controversy, resulting in two rating compiling websites, Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
and Game Rankings
Game Rankings
GameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
, removing it from their websites.
Overall, reviews of Supreme Commander were positive, with the game having a score of 86/100 on Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. In non-English language reviews the game was received positively as well. German reviewer Heiko Klinge gave Supreme Commander a score of
82 out of 100. Especially the size and scope of the game were appreciated, while the steep learning curve was a less positive point for the German reviewer. In France, Jeux PC (lit. "PC Games") gave Supreme Commander a score of 17 out of 20. Although they found SupCom was a good game overall, the poor performance on low-end systems was criticized. At the Dutch website Gamer.nl, the two reviewers awarded the game with a score of 8 out of 10. Almost every aspect of the game was well received. However, the steep learning curve and the large amount of effort required to play meant, according to the reviewers, that Supreme Commander is not a "game that everyone can play".
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
On November 6, 2007, THQTHQ
THQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
released a Supreme Commander standalone expansion, Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance is a standalone real-time strategy computer game expansion to Supreme Commander, and was released in November 2007, developed by Gas Powered Games and published by THQ, and the second title in the franchise...
. It contains many engine improvements that allow it to run faster as well as improve the graphics. In addition, a new faction (the Seraphim) is available. It was released as a standalone game.
Supreme Commander: Experimentals
The possibility of a second expansion pack was expressed on November 20, 2007 in a Gas Powered Games official newsletter. Chris Taylor "hinted" at a second expansion for Supreme Commander.This expansion pack was later mentioned in an interview by Chris Taylor on January 11, 2008. Chris Taylor noted that Gas Powered Games had been "talking" about a second expansion, and that this expansion would be called Supreme Commander: Experimentals. The project has since been abandoned.
Supreme Commander 2
Supreme Commander 2 is the title of the sequel announced in November 2008 and released in March 2010. It was developed in a partnership between Gas Powered GamesGas Powered Games
Gas Powered Games is a video game developer located in Redmond, Washington. The development studio was started in May 1998 by Chris Taylor, creator of Total Annihilation, and several other ex-Cavedog Entertainment employees....
and Square Enix
Square Enix
is a Japanese video game and publishing company best known for its console role-playing game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy series, the Dragon Quest series, and the action-RPG Kingdom Hearts series...
.