I prefer Red Alert 1 over Red Alert 2, am I missing something? Anyone still prefers to play RA1 or OpenRA than RA2?

I played a lot of Red Alert 1 through OpenRA, and I have to say, I’m really impressed by how well the game’s mechanics work together still.

What I love about RA1 is the feeling of combined arms. Artillery is extremely important, but it’s also vulnerable, so you need to protect it with tanks in front and anti-air nearby. Scout with air and hit ground with artillery. Or send some infantry to die to see whats there.

The enemy has many ways to deal with it: they can send aircraft to destroy your artillery, use their own artillery, or rush you with tanks and overwhelm your defenses.

Infantry may be weak, but it still has a role. Every unit seems to have a purpose, and the battlefield feels like a constant interaction between tanks, infantry, artillery, and aircraft.

Attacking with tanks first, infantry in the sides and the back, then while they are fighting send in the airforce.

Now I tried going back to Red Alert 2, didn't play it for like 2 decades. And while I appreciate the beautiful graphics, animations, and personality, I found myself feeling like something was missing. It seems more focused on powerful individual units rather than armies working together.

In many games, I see players relying on the same popular units: Siege Choppers, Battle Fortresses, Prism Tanks etc. I hate these. I rarely see V3 Launchers being used, and aircraft often seem limited to early-game harassment or attempts to snipe important buildings early on. The huge strategic role that air power and artillery have in RA1 feels reduced.

In OpenRA, I enjoy the slower pace: pushing forward carefully, gaining territory, building positions, and winning battles one at a time. Almost every unit feels like it has a situation where it can be useful.

I also still prefer the visual style of RA1. The clean pixel art, especially with OpenRA’s zoom options, gives you a very clear view of the battlefield. RA2 looks beautiful, but sometimes the extra detail makes it harder to read what is happening.

So I’m curious: am I missing some deeper layer of Red Alert 2? Is there more strategic depth there that I haven’t discovered yet...? Anyone still prefers to play RA1 or OpenRA than RA2?