It’s time for Command and Conquer to come back, and when I say Command and Conquer, I mean the absolute classics like Red Alert and Tiberian Dawn – as much as I might bemoan sequels, cash-ins, and the relentless march of IP, if a new C&C in the ‘90s style was announced today, I’d be jumping. That dream aside, the likes of Tempest Rising and Industrial Annihilation are keeping the genre alive, but there’s one throwback RTS I’ve been watching for a while now, a game that’s been incredibly quiet for over 12 months, but is suddenly, thankfully back with a big gameplay update. If you miss Tanya, the GDI, Kane, and the Ion Cannon, I bring you the extremely gorgeous DORF.
Created by the suitably named DORFteam, if you were browsing images of old school Command and Conquer and someone slipped in a couple of DORF screenshots, you almost certainly wouldn’t notice. Taking control of one of three factions, like any good RTS game, the goal here is to build a base, train an army, capture land, harvest resources, and gradually expand bigger and bigger until your enemies are mere dust.
As well as the beautiful, isometric artwork and pseudo 3D sprites (I’m reminded of the citizens of the original Tropico) DORF boasts a steampunk aesthetic by way of Mad Max. Taking place in a bizarro version of the future, your units include thrown-together mechs, coal-powered airships, and gloriously oversized, jury-rigged tanks.
The last time we got a sizable look at new DORF gameplay was all the way back in June 2023. But now the strategy game is back from the dead – DORFteam shares a look at the revised and revamped lighting system, as well as some gorgeous texture work. You can take a look below:
“It’s been quite a while,” the studio says, “mostly due to having to throw out basically the entirety of the game’s graphics and replace them with new sprite sheets that are compatible with the new lighting and shadowing system. But now that system is (mostly) set in stone. We’ll try and go back to putting out semi-regular updates.”
We’re still waiting for a release date for DORF, but if you’re a big Command and Conquer, Total Annihilation, or WarWind fan (any day in this job I get to work in a WarWind reference is a good one) then you can wishlist DORF right here.
Otherwise, get a load of the best grand strategy games, or maybe think even bigger with the best 4X games on PC.
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