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C&C2 – Alarmstufe Rot
Year:	1996
Developer:	Westwood Studios
Publisher:	Virgin Interactive
Code name:	C&C0
Original title:	C&C: Red Alert
Abbreviation:	RA1
Executive Producer:	Brett W. Sperry
Composer:	Frank Klepacki
Rating PCG:	90% (12/1996)
Newest version:	1.08PE
Add-ons:	Gegenangriff, Vergeltungsschlag
Remaster:	Remastered Collection

Story:

1946 – the Second World War has just ended, as Einstein travels back into the past with his Chronosphere to prevent this war. He removes Adolf Hitler by handshake from the space-time structure before rising to power and creates a new parallel universe on this way: C&C. The success lasted not long in this timeline: Not the Nazis, but Stalin (Soviets) desires to conquer the world. Europe and America got together (Allies) to defend against the advance of the Soviet Union during the 1950s. Luck was on Allies side and fought the Soviets back; Stalin died in doing so.

Trivia:

• For the 13th anniversary of C&C the second title was released for free download: CD1 – CD2!
• On October 31, 1996 Westwood released this strategy bomb; one year after the successful title Command & Conquer. The overall production time lasted only nine months, according to Joe Bostic on 03/01/2013:

  Most bugs happen inadvertently and are not part of any deliberate process to create. Red Alert was derivative of C&C (written out of the same code base), but was created in record time (9 months from start to finish). Typical games took 18 months. The bugs that ended up in the final version are just bugs we either didn't know about or ran out of time to fix.

  It was originally designed as an expansion for TD only, he added on 08/31/2018:

  Red Alert was originally planned as just an expansion pack to Command & Conquer. We were free to came up with new crazy new ideas for units and added them in if they felt like fun. Pretty soon, there were so many new things added to the game that it was decided to package it as a new stand-alone game – Red Alert.

• Westwood established RA1 as a prequel of the C&C story arc and it is therefore the first title chronologically – followed by RA2 respectively TD and TS. EA on the other hand denies this and divides C&C strictly into three separate universes: Tiberium, Red Alert and Generals. So there are correspondingly neither references to possible connections in RA2 nor in TW or RA3.
• The game is the only one from the C&C saga having an editor included, which is also true for the remaster.
• It is furthermore the only C&C game with two mission discs: "Counterstrike" and "The Aftermath".
• For the first and last time a male EVA voice can be heard.
• Einstein's Chronosphere was set up at Trinty, New Mexico – where he also started his time travel.
• Tanya Adams was at the age of 20 to 25.
• During the Soviet campaign, in the video's background БРЭТ ЖОПА (BRET ZHOPA) can be read on several spines, which translates to BRET ASSHOLE. This insult targets Brett Sperry, of who he was hostile with someone from the post production, Joe Kucan explained via mail on 07/02/2020:

  As I recall, one of our post production guys was actively feuding with Brett Sperry during the production of Red Alert. And I almost remember him joking with me about how he would sneak in disruptive Russian phrases that he thought no one would ever notice. We never thought that Russia would be much of a market for our product, honestly. So, yeah - I think that the "Brett is an ass hole" book title was completely purposeful!

• The Battersea Power Station was the blueprint for the power plants. Station A corresponds to the normal power plant with two chimneys, while the later full expansion of station B corresponds to the advanced power plant having four chimneys.
• The 50th anniversary of the Second World War was the reason for the whole setting, according to Joe during an AMA on 07/26/2014:

  Red Alert came about because we were nearing the 50th anniversary of the start of World War II and Brett wanted to do a C&C: World War II. A lot of people didn't that that would be all that exciting and eventually it morphed into the pre-C&C World War II alternate history.

  And pointed out on 05/28/2013 a little bit more detailed:

  Red Alert was originally supposed to be C&C World War II to tie in with the 50th anniversary of the war or something like that. Nobody liked it, because it was boring in the sense that they were just normal tanks and infantry and so on. Funny how it snapped completely in the opposite direction and became the "fun unit" C&C and eventually the alternate past of the C&C universe.
  
  Oh and the name. We couldn't think of a name for the longest time. So many got proposed and shot down. A lot of us HATED Red Alert but Brett liked it. It eventually grew on us though.

• Joseph Kucan confirmed during an AMA on 07/31/2014 the connection between Red Alert and the Tiberian titles being one massive universe, which also explaines the formation of the GDI and Kane's existence:

  The character of Kane and his relationship to Shephard was pretty clear, but when Red Alert came along it seemed like a good opportunity to bind the two storylines together and create one massive universe. The first Red Alert was really meant to be a quick money-maker, capitalizing on the relative ease of swapping some art and maps. The story was added to make Germany (our second biggest market at the time) the good guys and to explain the rise of GDI and the eternal permanence of Kane.

• On 11/08/2011 emerged the Script for interactive video game -- COMMAND & CONQUER, RED ALERT. dated 2001. This screenplay for the Soviet party was authored by John Scott Lewinski and uploaded as PDF within the scope of his portfolio inside the busines network Elance.
• Megan was originally to be included as an additional commando unit besides Tanya. Inventor Adam Isgreen told on 12/06/2006 to it:

  Some history: When I created Tanya, originally there was going to be a duo of female commandos on the Allied side, Tanya and Megan. Megan was the ex-IRA demolitionist and stealth unit, and Tanya was the in-your-face American gunslinger. We opted for only one as the game developed, but there's some C&C trivia you can impress your friends with.
  
  I wanted a female version of the C&C commando, but with a different spin on combat. I was very much influenced by John Woo's HK films at the time, hence the dual pistol action that Tanya sports. I think her personality and combat style vs. Havoc from C&C nicely sums up the nature of RA vs. the C&C line of games -- RA is fast and furious, C&C more paced and calculating.
  
  Kari's portrayal of Tanya was just... great. Man, could she gyrate. (watch some of the bonus material from RA2 collector's ed. to see what I mean)

• Kane was already quite active here and got in on the operational headquarters. After the Soviet's defeat, Kane went into hiding for several years to prepare his Brotherhood of Nod for being in public (see C&C1).
• During the most popular C&C track of all times "Hell March" is "Reform line, quick march" being shouted. Frank Klepacki himself had no idea of the meaning and drew on the popular theory having a German yelling, e.g. on 09/12/2009:

  I knew right away that I wanted a military voice sample to put in as well, as if he were commanding the troops while marching. After going through some sound effect libraries, I found a sample that also had a similar rhythm to the song that stood out to me. I couldn't quite figure out what he said but it didn't matter. It fit! I always thought he said “We Want War, Wake Up,” but it turned out it’s actually the German phrase "Die Waffen Legt An!" for “Ready Weapons!”

• A much discussed question is where Einstein ends after his travel back from time. He is returning to the year 1946 of our time, i.e. the unchanged universe still having the Second World War took place. The Einstein from the C&C universe had never been time travelling (there was never a second World War – not yet) and invented the Chronosphere for teleportation instead.
  Adam Isgreen about that on 04/19/2007:

  Ah, you're assuming Einstein returned to the RA timeline. He didn't. He returned to his timeline, in which WWII had already happened.

  And in more detail on 04/20/2007:

  Our thoughts were always that Einstein was gambling. He didn't know what would happen, despite his theories. No one had ever time traveled, so there was no reference. Would time error-check itself at some point and erase WWII from happening in his time line? Would nothing change for them, but there would be a new time-line that didn't suffer the same fate? Would nothing happen at all, because it's the "past"?
  
  His time will tell line is partially because he doesn't even know what to expect. "Time" -- whatever that entity may be -- will answer the question.

• By using the Chronosphere a chrono vortex could appear in rare cases. This time bending whirlpool destroys everything coming into its path:
  
  In TT such a vortex should have Yuri transported back in time, resulting in RA2 as a new timeline on this way.
• What Albert Einstein means to the Allies, means Nikola Tesla to the Soviets. The real Tesla of our age claimed to have contact with aliens. This applies also to him in the C&C universe and he would have been responsible for calling the Scrin's attention to Earth.
  Adam Isgreen elaborated on 12/21/2006 furthermore:

  RA was the start of the universe. Einstein removing Hitler is what shifted the "real" universe to the C&C one. In the original, original drafts of the RA story, Tesla and Einstein were the dueling scientists behind each side's new tech. Although the tesla tech stayed for the Soviets, Tesla didn't.
  
  However, if you read about Tesla (the real tesla), you'll find that he claimed to have contacted aliens through his tech... hmm... now what if he really DID contact aliens... what aliens did he contact? What did the aliens do in response?
  
  ...are you starting to see where this is leading?

  Now seriously: How awesomely derived is that? INGENIOUS, WESTWOOD!