List of games based on Dune

1992's Dune from Cryo Interactive/Virgin Interactive blends adventure with strategy.[7][8] Loosely following the story of the 1965 novel Dune and using many visual elements from the 1984 film of the same name by David Lynch, the game casts the player as Paul Atreides, with the ultimate goal of driving the Harkonnens from the planet Dune and taking control of its valuable export, the spice.[7] Key to success is the management of spice mining, military forces, and ecology as the player amasses allies and skills.[7]

Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty, later retitled Dune II: Battle for Arrakis for the Mega Drive/Genesis port, was released in December 1992 from Westwood Studios/Virgin Interactive.[9][10] Often considered to be the first "mainstream modern real-time strategy game", Dune II established many conventions of the genre.[9] Only loosely connected to the plot of the novels or films, the game pits three interplanetary houses — the Atreides, the Harkonnens, and the Ordos — against each other for control of the planet Arrakis and its valuable spice, all while fending off the destructive natural forces of the harsh desert planet itself.[9]

Dune 2000, a 1998 remake of Dune II from Intelligent Games/Westwood Studios/Virgin Interactive, added improved graphics and live-action cutscenes.[11] Though gameplay is similar to its predecessor, Dune 2000 features an enhanced storyline and functionality.[11]

Emperor: Battle for Dune (Intelligent Games/Westwood Studios/Electronic Arts) was released on June 12, 2001.[12] A sequel to Dune 2000, the real-time strategy game features 3D graphics and live-action cutscenes, and casts players as Atreides, Harkonnens, or Ordos.[12][13]

Released in 2001 by Cryo Interactive/DreamCatcher Interactive, Frank Herbert's Dune is a 3D video game based on the 2000 Sci Fi Channel miniseries of the same name.[14] As Paul Muad'Dib Atreides, the player must become leader of the Fremen, seize control of Dune, and defeat the evil Baron Harkonnen.[14] The game was not a commercial or critical success, and Cryo subsequently filed for bankruptcy in July 2002.[15]

Dune Generations logo

In 2001, Cryonetworks disclosed information about Dune Generations, an online, 3D real-time strategy game set in the Dune universe.[16][17] An official website for the upcoming game featured concept images, a brief background story and description of the persistent gameworld, and a list of frequently asked questions.[18] The game would be constructed using Cryo's own online multimedia development framework SCOL.[19]

Within "the infrastructure of a permanent and massive multiplayer world that exists online," Dune Generations would let players assume control of a dynasty in the Dune universe, with the goal of first mastering the natural resources of their own homeworlds and ultimately rising in power and influence through conflicts and alliances with other player dynasties.[17][20] Each of the three available dynasty types — traders, soldiers, or mercenaries — would provide a different playing experience, all with the long-term goal of gaining control of Arrakis and its valuable spice.[17][20]

A preview video trailer was released in November 2001.[21] The game was still in the alpha testing stage in February 2002,[22] and the project was ultimately halted after Cryo filed for bankruptcy in July 2002.[15]

The Dune Wars mod[23] is a total conversion of Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword to the Dune setting. The mod was featured by Tom Chick in the relaunched Tom vs Bruce series.[24] In 2015 an updated version of the mod called Dune Wars: Revival was released.[25]

Based on the PennMUSH text environment, Multi-User Shared Hallucination, DuneMUSH, began in December 1992 and ran through August 1994.[26][27] MUSH, Dune III, was later created on MUSHPark. Its timeline was set 100 years prior to that of the novel, and ran for a few years before closing in 2011.[28]