“Long live the fighters!” says the sub-title to this game, and that about sums
up the spirit of this addictive game. This is definitely a game for the boys – or grown up boys – and adolescents and teenagers who are familiar with the Dune franchise will love this computer game from Westwood Studios.
This computer game is loosely – very loosely - based on the characters and events that took place in the trilogy of “Dune” novels by Frank Herbert (one of the masters of Science fiction). There are the (noble) Atreides, the (scheming) Ordos and the (odious) Harkonnen. The player is given the choice which side he would like to play – who on earth would want to be the Harkonnen? The objective of the game is to harvest and trade the valuable spice for units and reinforcements. Once a formidable arsenal of Siege Tanks, Sonic Tanks and Ornithopters has been amassed, the player may like to seek an alliance with the Freemen (the original inhabitants of the planet Dune) or engage in head to head combat with his adversaries – the Harkonnen and the Ordos.
This is one of the more popular (and successful) games on the broad theme of conquest and conversion. This game has been classified as a strategy game, though perhaps military strategy would have been a more apt description. The basic game play revolves around building structures and units, capturing enemy buildings and destroying enemy units. But before various structures can be built, the area must be overlaid with a layer of concrete – and once the structures are standing, they must be defended against enemy attacks as well. The key to this game is the spice – that must be harvested to generate the funds to build the units and structures…and so on.
Before condemning this game as a mindless waste of time (aren’t they all?), a few things need to be said in its favor. First, one need not be familiar with the world of Dune (as created by the author) to play this game. Indeed, it stands – or falls - on its own strengths. Second, if you like it, and have the time to kill, the game can be addictive. Third, for their time, the special effects, the music and the cinema sequences are good. Lastly, (from a psychological point of view), if you need to work out your frustrations at an unruly and chaotic world, and feel in a particularly destructive frame of mind, then this is the game for you!