The traditional resource gathering aspect of the RTS genre is given a unique spin by Conflict Zone's introduction of propaganda. A unique way of assigning resources to your forces, command points are assigned according to your popularity with the media. Victory and total defeat is heavily dependent on them as they help sway the population's general perception of you. These command points are used to construct bases, tanks and soldiers for your forces. Lose the support of the people, and you could lose the support of your troops as well as the technology you wield at your command. You access new technology by championing the goals of your organization through your actions. Media coverage proliferates as play develops, casting generals in whatever light their latest round of decision making has adopted. So if you want funding for that ass-kicking advanced tank, hold off on icing out helpless innocents or abandoning wounded soldiers on the battlefield.
Generals of the ICP, being the good guys and all, gain popularity by protecting civilians and transferring them to refugee camps via helicopters. But if you're commanding GHOST, a good tactic to cause the ICP endless headaches is by parking your units in civilian areas. When the ICP tries to clear you out, the inevitable collateral damage to civilians and civilian buildings will send the ICP's approval rating plummeting. The bad guys have other uses for civilians though - civilians can be 'invited' to join GHOST by sending them to recruitment camps, where they'll be trained and brain washed as loyal soldiers of GHOST. Some civilians will also be trained as soldiers in civilian clothes, which can then be used to spy on the ICP. However, there is a downside to all this. GHOST generals have to rely on more direct methods to media manipulation. After building a media center, generals will then have to create cameramen. Send a cameraman along to cover a battle, and your popularity will shoot up if you're victorious. Lose, however, and you're in trouble. But if the odds seem stacked against you, you can always kill your own cameraman to hush up the entire unfortunate affair. Similarly, the ICP can target your cameraman before he gets a chance to report a GHOST victory.
