The graphics are really sharp (although the dozen or so different types of infantry can be damnably difficlt to distinguish between). I normally despise the idea of 3D for 3D's sake and, thankfully, the gang at Westwood have conceived and implemented the 3D engine almost perfectly. Jumping back and forth between real missions and the sprinkling of busy-work missions is a little jarring, but definitely adds to the replay value of the title.Д«ut I still haven't talked about the big thing - the move to 3D. It's all sort of loosely tied together with the fabulous Westwood cutscenes but, since the game is a lot less linear than previous Westwood titles, the sense of progression isn't as strong. While most of the missions seem to have a firm context, there seems to be a few random missions thrown in to the mix. If you've already fought there you begin the fight with part of the map already revealed (although you still have to find your opponents) and, if you're really lucky, you even get a base. Once you've selected a territory to attack, you go to fight itself. You can only attack those territories that border your own. Each territory is owned by you or one of your two rivals. In between most of the missions, you'll need to determine the larger course of the war on a Risk-like map. Units also seem to have a hard time getting out of each other's way or, in one memorable skirmish game, around trees.Д«ut despite these tactical shortcomings, Emperor offers an intriguing strategic level to the game.

It becomes even more of a problem when you've got units of different speeds and roles. While it's a neat feature, it seems like an afterthought.

Basically you have to create each formation yourself and then issue move orders while holding down the 'J' key to keep the formation together. If your defense is at all concentrated, these small-scale attacks should prove easy to counter.ДЄnd although the game boasts a formation feature, it's not that well implemented. The AI sends out units in a trickle rather than forming them into groups. This may be more a factor of the open-ended nature of the skirmish games, versus the limitations imposed by the missions themselves. It still suffers somewhat from the lack of organization that plagues the AI in the campaign. This is all the more puzzling given that the AI in skirmish and multiplayer games is a lot more robust. Even on the hardest setting, the campaign AI just doesn't measure up to a significant challenge. I was kind of disappointed in the challenge level of the game. Most of your attention, however, will be on trying to find some level of tactical sophistication in the clash of units that characterizes the game's battles. This frees up a lot of your attention for other tasks, like avoiding sand worm attacks or the storms that tear through your armies. Just build a refinery and the various harvesters and carryalls will take care of the rest. The game really takes control of the resource harvesting aspects of the game. One big change is the automation of the resource side of the game. Sure, it's cool to have Fremen or Sardaukar, but allying with the subhouses basically just gives you access to two new units.

You really feel as if you're making a choice between allying with one subhouse or another but the actual effect of allying with one subhouse seems a little less significant. At least not in the single player campaign. The five subhouses aren't as important to the game as I had originally thought. There's really something to like in each House (although each House seems to have a handful of units that are truly essential, the rest being a little too specialized to be of much use in a general engagement). House Harkonnen is weighted much more towards the force side of the equation while House Ordos relies on a much more delicate approach. Emphasizing a balance between finesse and force, I find them to be the most versatile. Each of the three Houses has a distinct but not overpowering advantage. And if you're a Dune nut who likes strategy games.you get the idea.Д«ut let's talk about it as a game. Dune nuts'll dig it, and strategy gamers will dig it too. Better still, the game is in complete accord with the books and the film. It relies on many of the same conventions we've become familiar with, but it renders them all in gorgeous 3D in a rich science-fiction setting. But although the game reaches back to Westwood's earliest success, Emperor is a new direction for the company. Emperor: Battle for Dune is the first sequel to Dune II, the great-granddaddy of all real-time strategy games.

Emperor battle for dune