From the moment I launched the Tempest Rising demo, I had a great feeling. The opening cinematic, with its cheesy dialogue from heavily armored soldiers and a nervous scientist, immediately brought a smile to my face. The music, UI, and unit designs perfectly captured the vibe of my high school days, fueled by Mountain Dew, Pringles, and late-night Command & Conquer sessions with friends. This game expertly recreates that feeling, and I'm thrilled to see what Slipgate Ironworks has planned for launch and beyond. Whether battling bots in Skirmish or facing off in Ranked Multiplayer, Tempest Rising feels incredibly comfortable and familiar.

This nostalgic experience is no accident. The developers aimed to create a real-time strategy (RTS) game that evokes the classics of the 90s and 2000s, while incorporating modern quality-of-life improvements. Set in 1997 in an alternate history where the Cuban Missile Crisis escalated into World War 3, the game unfolds in a world transformed by strange, energy-rich vines that sprouted after widespread nuclear devastation.

Tempest Rising Screenshots

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Since the demo focused solely on multiplayer, I'll have to wait for the full release to experience the story mode, which will feature two 11-mission campaigns, one for each main faction. The Tempest Dynasty (TD) is an alliance of Eastern European and Asian nations devastated by WW3, while the Global Defense Forces (GDF) unites the United States, Canada, and Western Europe. A third faction exists, but details remain under wraps until the campaign's release.

The Tempest Dynasty immediately captivated me, not only because of the hilariously named Tempest Sphere—a death ball that crushes enemy infantry—but also due to their unique "Plans" system. These Plans activate faction-wide bonuses; your Construction Yard can activate one at a time, requiring only sufficient power generation and a 30-second cooldown.

The Logistics Plan accelerates building and resource harvesting, speeding up mobile harvesters. The Martial Plan boosts unit attack speed and explosive resistance, while granting Machinists increased attack speed at the cost of health. Finally, the Security Plan reduces unit and building costs, improves repair capabilities, and expands radar vision. I discovered a satisfying rhythm, cycling between economic growth with the Logistics Plan, rapid construction under the Security Plan, and aggressive offensives empowered by the Martial Plan.

This flexibility extends to other aspects. Unlike the GDF's reliance on Refineries, the Tempest Dynasty uses Tempest Rigs—mobile harvesting units that relocate after depleting a resource field. This makes my favorite "fast expand" strategy exceptionally effective, regardless of distance from my base. Deploying Rigs to remote locations ensures uninterrupted resource gathering.

The Dynasty's Salvage Van is another fun unit, capable of repairing or, in Salvage Mode, destroying nearby vehicles for resource gain. I enjoyed ambushing unsuspecting opponents, destroying their vehicles to deplete their forces and claim their resources.

Power plants can switch to Distribution Mode, accelerating nearby building construction and attack speed (yes, some upgraded Dynasty buildings have cannons!), at the cost of taking damage. Fortunately, this mode deactivates at critical health, preventing accidental self-destruction.

While I favor the Tempest Dynasty, the GDF offers its own appeal, focusing on buffing allies, debuffing enemies, and battlefield control. Their Marking mechanic, where units mark targeted enemies for increased Intel upon defeat (used to create advanced units and structures), is particularly effective, especially with Doctrine upgrades that inflict debuffs on marked enemies.

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Each faction boasts three tech trees, allowing for strategic specialization. Beyond the tech trees, constructing specific advanced buildings unlocks powerful cooldown abilities that can significantly alter the course of battle. While both factions have area-of-effect damage and troop-spawning abilities, the GDF also features spy drones, remote building beacons, and a vehicle-immobilization ability.

The Dynasty's fewer building types, each upgradable to an advanced version, make losing a structure to an enemy Engineer particularly impactful. However, the Lockdown ability prevents enemy takeovers (while temporarily disabling the building). The Field Infirmary, a deployable healing zone, proved incredibly useful, complementing the Dynasty's existing repair capabilities.

There's much more to explore, especially the Custom Lobbies for cooperative play against challenging AI. Until then, I'll happily continue my solo campaign, crushing bots with overwhelming swarms of death balls.