Command & Conquer: Red Alert
Command & Conquer: Red Alert is a real-time strategy video game in the Command & Conquer franchise, developed and published by Westwood Studios in 1996. The second game to bear the Command & Conquer title, Red Alert is the prequel to the original Command & Conquer of 1995, and takes place in the alternate early history of Command & Conquer when Allied Forces battle an aggressive Soviet Union for control over the European mainland.
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA, read 5 September 2026.
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- Released
- 1996
- Developer
- Westwood Studios
- Platforms
- 4 systems
- Critics
- Not scored
- Steam Deck
- Unknown
- Download
- Not stated
The record
| First released | 22 November 1996 |
|---|---|
| Developer | Westwood Studios |
| Publisher | Virgin Interactive |
| Platforms | PlayStation Portable, PC, PlayStation, Steam Deck |
| Genres | Strategy |
Source. Catalogue facts from Wikidata Q388225, seeded 30 August 2026.
How long is Command & Conquer: Red Alert? How long to beat it
Total play time for Command & Conquer: Red Alert is about 41.2 hours to do everything, and around 27.1 hours to reach the end of the main story. These are player-submitted times from HowLongToBeat, not our own, shown with the number of players behind each.
| How you play | Hours | Players logged |
|---|---|---|
| Just the main story: straight through the critical path | 27.1h | 64 |
| Main + the extras: story plus the side content most people do | 30.4h | 22 |
| Completionist: everything: 100% the game | 41.2h | 9 |
Source: HowLongToBeat community submissions, read 2026-10-19.
Where Command & Conquer: Red Alert sits on the grid
The grid places every game in the catalogue on measured axes rather than on an opinion. This is where Command & Conquer: Red Alert lands on each map it has the data for, with the share of the catalogue it beats on each axis.
- Year
- 53ahead of 9% of the catalogue
- Reach
- 56ahead of 93% of the catalogue
Percentiles are against the games that carry a reading on that axis, not the whole catalogue: counting a game with no figure as a zero would flatter everything that has one. How the grid works.
What readers say about Command & Conquer: Red Alert
Reviews written by people who have played it. These are separate from the GamingPickz Score and are never averaged into it: that score comes from thousands of Steam reviews with a sample-size correction, and a handful of unverified ratings would distort it rather than improve it.
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Where Command & Conquer: Red Alert appears
The ranked lists and finder pages Command & Conquer: Red Alert qualifies for, from its own genre and platform to what it takes to run.
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Part of the Command & Conquer series
Command & Conquer: Red Alert is one of 5 Command & Conquer games we track. See the whole series ranked by the GamingPickz Score, plotted on the grid, and listed in release order:
Command & Conquer: Red Alert head to head
See Command & Conquer: Red Alert compared side by side, on score, price, specs and more:
Common questions about Command & Conquer: Red Alert
What platforms is Command & Conquer: Red Alert on?
Command & Conquer: Red Alert is available on PlayStation Portable, PC, PlayStation, Steam Deck. It first released in 1996.
Who made Command & Conquer: Red Alert?
Command & Conquer: Red Alert was developed by Westwood Studios and published by Virgin Interactive.
How long does it take to beat Command & Conquer: Red Alert?
about 27.1 hours for the main story, 30.4 hours with the main extras, 41.2 hours to complete everything, from HowLongToBeat's player-submitted times. These are community medians, so your own run may be shorter or longer.