First you have the US, which has expensive and very destructive high tech weaponry.  To help pay for these weapons the US uses high-speed helicopters to ferry supplies between its supply centers and the supply depots that serve as the game's resource sources.  Some of the high-tech weaponry in the US arsenal include a supersonic Aurora bomber that can outrun antiaircraft fire and a Paladin tank which carries a missile defense laser in addition to its powerful canon.  US armor also has the ability to build predator scouts for improved line of sight or battle drones which hover near the tank and deal damage to nearby enemies.

China's weapons are not as advanced as the US's, but they do have their advantages.  Soldiers and armor gain an advantage when massed together, making the human wave tactic a strong part of China's battlefield strategy.  China can also build a mammoth tank so large that structures can be built on top of it.  China is nuke happy, and can upgrade units to make use of nuclear shells, build nuclear warhead-lobbing artillery, and, of course, launch nuclear missiles.  Among China's unique structures is the propaganda tower that spouts Maoisms so inspiring that it can heal nearby troops.  China's most high tech unit isn't a weapon at all, but rather a hacker that can break into the Internet to raise cash.  Hackers are pretty vulnerable to enemy fire, but it is a great sight to see a field full of hackers bent over their computers as little dollar signs pop out of their computers.

The GLA differs from the other two factions considerably.  Many of their units are weak in comparison to those of China and the US, but they have high mobility, subterfuge, and some nasty bio-weaponry in their favor.  Their decidedly low tech approach requires them to use human workers to ferry supplies back to their stashes, but they are also versatile.  Cars and trucks parked in the cities on the map can be taken by terrorists and turned into explosive weapons, hijackers can steal enemy vehicles, and mobs can incite civilians to attack the enemy's soldiers and structures.

The three factions are well-balanced and none of them are at a disadvantage when controlled by a player who knows how to use their strengths.  As a testament to this, the multiplayer statistics reported by the game when you go online reflect 33% wins for players of each faction plus or minus a point or two.   Now that's balanced. 

The game's AI will not provide too much challenge for veterans at the lowest setting, but rookie players will probably have their hands full.  The higher AI levels present an even greater challenge, but veteran strategy gamers will not have a problem beating the campaign even at the hardest setting.  The unit AI is pretty good for the most part, and the pathfinding is competent to the point where units know when they should get out of each other's way.  Tanks given an order to pull out are even smart enough to swing their turrets backwards to cover their withdrawal.  You'll need to keep your eye on larger groups, though, as sometimes small factions will break off and take a different route than the main body.  This can leave you with fewer units at the destination than you thought you were going to have or less of a combined arms attack than you had envisioned.

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