I don’t know if Westwood intended it or not, but the writing and world building of C&C:TS lays out almost to a tee looming ecological disaster we are facing and the total unwillingness to deal with it in a meaningful way. This is despite the fact it was released at the height of the “End Of History, All The Problems Are Solved” 90s

Tiberium, the strange crystalline substance that serves as the in-game resource you use to fund the construction of your base and army, is sweeping across the planet. Tiberium gathers valuable minerals from the soil, but also emits radiation and gases that are toxic to all life. Vast swaths of the Earth lie covered in tiberium, leaving nothing but total ecological devastation in its wake. Millions of climate refugees flee North, the colder climate slows the rate of Tiberium spread. Much of the earth’s surface is almost alien, foot infantry needing to wear basically spacesuits to survive. Scientists warn the governing powers that without interference tiberium could push humanity towards extinction

So what do the two superpowers, the Global Defense Initiative and the Brotherhood of Nod do, facing this cascading catastrophe? Nothing. Instead, they harvest tiberium for the valuable minerals it contains (thus ensuring its spread). High exposure areas are openly abandoned by them, the residents of such zones literally calling themselves The Forgotten. All of their resources are not put towards saving the biosphere, ensuring humanity’s survival, are instead put towards the globalized, permanent war economy. GDI and Nod fight to the death while the world burns so they can be kings of the ashes. It was hard to miss as I replayed the game for the first time in over a decade how starkly reflected our current civilizational dilemma with accelerating climate change, and the total apathy of the people who hold power in our society. Dark stuff indeed