Far Cry 2, Red Alert 3 golden

It's difficult to determine which is more impressive: a game that features an open-world savannah with 50 square kilometers of free-roaming space or a game that includes parachuting armored bears, war dolphins, and psionic Japanese schoolgirls. Either way, gamers will soon be able to judge for themselves, as both Far Cry 2 and Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 have gone gold in advance of their respective ship dates.

Ubisoft's Far Cry 2 will be available for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC beginning October 21. The ambitious open-world shooter is a sequel of sorts to Crytek's original Far Cry, released for PCs in 2004. With Ubisoft Montreal now at the helm, the game trades in the original's tropical locale for a wide-open African plains, replete with megalomaniacal warlords, destructible environments, and dynamic weather effects.

As detailed in GameSpot's previous coverage, the game also features "non-scripted artificial intelligence." Ubisoft also boasts that the game will include a dynamic storyline, where the narrative will change depending on which allies the player chooses to befriend and which meet an untimely demise.

With the PS3 edition of Red Alert 3 on indefinite hiatus, EA said today that the PC game will arrive on October 28, two weeks in advance of the Xbox 360 version. The first new installment in the hyperbolic real-time strategy Command & Conquer spin-off since Command & Conquer Red Alert 2: Yuri's Revenge, Red Alert 3 will continue the deeply sardonic alternate-history tone of its predecessor.

Following on from C&C: Tiberium Wars, EALA's latest C&C RTS features three single-player campaigns, as well as a host of online multiplayer options. The game will also include the series signature melodramatic cutscenes, and EA has signed on such celebrity talent as George Takei, Jenny McCarthy, Gemma Atkinson, and Tim Curry. The game is available in a $49.99 standard edition and $64.99 premier edition for the PC or $59.99 for the standard Xbox 360 edition.

Coincidently enough, both Ubisoft and EA chose to announce in close proximity during August that they would be offering game giveaways to those who preorder their respective games. Those who preorder Far Cry 2 through Ubisoft's online store will receive the original Far Cry gratis, while Red Alert 3 pre-purchasers will be given a complimentary download of Red Alert 2. Additionally, EA is offering the original Red Alert for free through its Web site.