Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty

The story of the planet Dune has produced a legendary book, a legendary movie, and, of course, a legendary game! I am quite sure that if you've come to this page, you've already been a victim of this game! Countless sleepless nights, sleepovers, missed dates... What Wolfenstein 3D was to first-person shooters, Dune 2 is to real-time strategies. I can safely say it's the mother of all modern RTS games.

You don't have to like Dune (the books and film) or Dune (the game) to play this, but it helps. But even without the sci-fi background, this is a fun and absorbing strategy game. If you've any idea what Muad'dib or the Kwisatz Haderach are, then you're probably going to split your still-suit in excitement.

I'm desperately racking my brains for something derogatory to say so I can at least moan about something but unfortunately the only thing I can come up with is the lengthy disk accessing before you get into the game proper although I'll not talk about that because it doesn't really affect the gameplay. Nope, I'll just have to be content to swallow my pride and heap unreserved praise onto Dune 2.

Dune 2 is addictive. If Syndicate could be described as Populous 2 with guns, then Dune 2 is Sim City with heavy artillery. Dark, moody, atmospheric, addictive. Brilliant.

Myös käännöksenä Dune II saa hyväksyttävän arvosanan. Grafiikka on käännetty esimerkillisesti ja ero PC-versioon nähden on käytännössä olematon. Ääniefektit ovat hyviä ja puhe on jopa parempaa kuin PC:ssä. Ainoa vika on levykeohjelmointi. Levyasema ei paljon valita itse pelin aikana, mutta siihen asti päästäkseen on korppuja syötettävä tiuhaan tahtiin. Kiintolevyltä pelaaminen onkin jo toinen tarina. Hatunnosto Westwoodille siitä, että vielä muistavat Amigankin olevan elossa.

I wasn't expecting all that much from Dune II and I'm happily surprised with the end result. If only there wasn't so much disk swapping and accessing. Nevertheless it is a cracking little game which thoroughly deserves to be given a slap-up meal down at the chippie and taken out to a movie afterwards. It deserves a place in your collection (so long as you have Syndicate as well).

It is the deceptively simple gameplay, coupled with the atmospheric sound effects and maddeningly calm voice of the computer which lifts this game out of the war-gamers cul-desac and onto the motorway.

This game was not a designer's gem anymore. While the designer still played a major role in the development, you cannot credit the designer with inventing the game. Dune II is not a brainchild of a gifted individual anymore, but a product of a well-functioning corporate team.

A game that grows on you if you stick at it. There's plenty of depth and challenge and it's quite well executed. A good attempt at a difficult genre to succeed with.

Anyway, overall, the game is amazing for the period in which it came out. It used a lot of new technology, and the developers came up with some great ideas that have become expected from RTS games these days. Unless you’re a masochist, however, I wouldn’t suggest that most people play it now for the first time. Getting used to the archaic command method and limited AI can only bring pain to those raised on games like StarCraft and WarCraft 3. But, hey, some people are into that kind of thing.

Was Grafik und Menu/Maussteuerung anbelangt, hat sich gegenüber dem PC-Original wenig geändert, die (32 farbigen) Intro-, Zwischen- und Menubilder machen immer noch wesentlich mehr her als die eigentliche Spiellandschaft. Die Animationen sind nicht weltbewegend, und das Scrolling ruckelt wie eh und je, ein flotter Turbo-Amiga wäre daher sicher angebracht. Aber derlei kleine Schwächen nimmt man gern in Kauf, wenn das Gameplay so ausgefeilt ist wie in dieser interplanetaren Stratego-Wüste!

Dune 2 ist ein schöner Strategie-Spaß der mittelfristigen Art. Durch ein bißchen mehr Abwechslung und Tiefgang hätte das Spiel bei der Gesamtwertung sogar die 80er-Grenze überschreiten können. Das Programmierteam Westwood muß man sich wirklich merken; die Burschen haben sowohl bei Strategie-, als auch bei Abenteuer- und Rollenspielen ein glückliches Händchen.

Dune II is a masterpiece for its time. It didn't popularize the RTS genre simply for being first, it did so because it did the concept surprisingly well. Unfortunately, while the gameplay is timeless, the interface and the AI are not. These issues alone, coupled with the fact that RTSs really haven't changed all that much since this game's release, limit this recommendation to RTS fanatics and the curious. Later games are far more streamlined, but even with its faults, its still an excellent way to put Dune to a game, and a fitting start to a new weekend General genre.