Facebook Inspiring Command & Conquer ??? News

Comments from EALA's Jon Van Caneghem have caused a certain amount of uproar, with the suggestion that Command & Conquer could be taking a leaf or two out of Facebook apps to provide the future direction for the 14 year-old franchise.
 
Better known for bringing the Might and Magic franchise to the gaming world, Van Caneghem has recently taken a position to oversee the future development of the Command & Conquer franchise at EALA.
 
The main bone of contention seems to stem from little more than Van Caneghem mentioning Facebook in an interview with Gamsutra. 
 
"What you're seeing with all the social gamers on Facebook... they are actually already playing strategy games whether they know it or not," Van Caneghem told Gamasutra. "Taking a franchise like Command and Conquer and expanding it to a wider audience is part of the strategy."
 
It could be argued that Van Caneghem is suggesting that they need to look at the way in which the popularity of social networking apps spread and develop continually over time, rather than a suggestion that the franchise is about to become a casual experience that will have mums nodding in appreciation to the efforts of Kane.
 
Further comments from Van Caneghem reinforce the fact that he's solely looking at what a digital environment could bring to the franchise.
 
"It allows you to do everything you would have expected from a boxed game, but it adds a lot more to it..." Van Caneghem explained.  "Being connected and connected with players, and persistence, the social elements of playing against each other with other friends."
 
"For years we made games, put it in a box and hoped it sold well, and if it did we made sequels," Van Canghem concluded.