EA mines Tiberium

Last week, speculation was rife as to whether EA was on the verge of officially confirming the next installment in its long-running Command & Conquer series would return to the first-person shooter genre. Pulling the trigger on that announcement today, Electronic Arts has revealed a new franchise based on the Command & Conquer universe--Tiberium. Named after the energy-providing alien crystals of the C&C games, the first title in the series is already well into development.

The first game, simply called Tiberium, is described as being a mix of "tactical action and visceral first-person shooting." Gamers step into the shoes of Commander Ricardo Vega, exploring an alien tower over the wasteland, which was once the Mediterranean Sea. The tower, believed to be a dormant relic of the Third Tiberium War, turns out to be the base of a planned alien invasion. As all hell breaks loose, Vega finds himself on the front lines of the battle for the planet.

Tiberium will have both single and multiplayer modes and has already been in preproduction for two years. Mike Verdu, general manager at EA Los Angeles, comments, "We are growing Tiberium from a simple backdrop to a fully realized universe with its own unique, hybrid squad-based shooter gameplay."

Tiberium is currently expected in autumn 2008 and will be coming to the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.