This game is a sequel of DUNE III created by the same author. DUNE IV, as well as DUNE III, is an advanced version of the game " DUNE II ". It was written completely from bland print. The game contains 12 levels for each dynasty (old episodes Atreides, Ordos, Harkonnen from DUNE III) and 10 new levels for each dynasty (episodes not present in Dune III), with original stories and maps (for comparison there were 9 levels only in "DUNE II"). Thus DUNE IV contains 5 episodes with the total number of missions equal to 56. So it's average playtime is about 40 hours.
In new episodes Atreides fight Freemen. And Atreides are able to slay sandy worms without any assistance. The light infantry has also got abilities of engineers and can capture buildings.
DUNE IV, in comparison with DUNE III, has lots of improvements, such as: high resolution, advanced game control, improved artificial intelligence and many other features. Game package also contains video and MP3-music.
From the very first missions you'll have to find the way to survive on planet Arrakis (Dune), learn how to mine resources (the basic wealth of this planet is spice), build bases (cities) and army.
It gets worse and worse as it goes on... Don't expect it to be a piece of cake, as your opponent won't leave you and your base alone for a minute (well, probably you'll be given a one-minute-break). There are missions where a couple of alliances will unite against you and in others everyone's going to struggle against everyone (what an excellent show!). Some missions are time-limited, some need player to show his quick wit and dexterity to accomplish the mission.
This time the opponent (AI) has grown wiser and will be searching for the weak sides of your defense. Forget about the times when player could with impunity attack opponent's harvesters. Those old fine days when player presumed to forget carelessly about own harvesters have sunk into oblivion. The opponent won't forgive it, do not underestimate him.
One more warning (though you'll see it in game too): be careful with sandy worms! Those are really malicious beings that can gobble up any unit. They are always hungry till your enemies or your army eliminates them (you'll doubtfully manage to do that yourself in case you play for Atreides as their "humanism feeling" has raised too high (it's right for old episodes only)).
If you want to get information about hot-keys enter "HELP" menu during game.
"MENTAT" menu allows you to find out information about all game units, buildings and also get comments about frequently used terms. It is strongly recommended to familiarize with info in "MENTAT" and "HELP" menus.
"ORDER" menu can remind your current level task in case you've forgotten it.
Network game
Game supports net-play though this mode was tested less than others because of network absence (it was emulated on one PC). In opinion of people who tried network mode it can be successfully played.
Preparing server
Server must be started before all clients.
Go to "Net Game" menu.
Set the Name for player on server (edit box).
Set players number to 2..8 (track bar).
Make "As Server" check box checked.
If you need optimized net mode (recommended), set "Dial-up" check box.
Press "Ok".
Select game map filename (list box).
Select server-player's alliance color.
Press "Ok" and wait for all client-players to connect.
When you see your MEP (Mobile Engineering Platform), you can start playing.
If you (as admin) want to pause the game, go to MAIN MENU (press "MENU" button on game panel during game), game for all players will be paused till you return to game. Also if you quit the game it will be finished for all the players.
Preparing client
Client must be started after server.
Enter "Net Game" menu.
Input client's nickname.
Set the network name or IP of server-computer in "Server" (Edit box).
Uncheck "As Server" check box.
Press "Ok".
Select client-player's alliance color.
Press "Ok" and wait till all client-players connection.
When You see Your MEP (Mobile Engineering Platform), You can start playing.
It is necessary to remember, that server should be the fastest machine among all the participants, as it has to control all game objects, dispatch network messages and transfer data if needed. Client machine can be some cheap P-1, able to display game world, receive commands from the player and send them to server.
Very important: GAME WILL BE PROCEEDING TILL SERVER-PLAYER DOES NOT CLICK "MENU"-BUTTON (ON GAME SCREEN PANEL). If someone needs to have a rest, server-player's got to press "MENU"-button (and "EXIT" in appeared menu to finish the game).
Installation
IMPORTANT: Game free for downloading. BUT 2 new episodes aren't accessible, i.e. you can play old episodes only. Besides, MP3-music is locked, you'll hear MIDI-music only. Locking has some more restrictions. To remove all restrictions and try all features of the game, I'd recommend you to start game by the DuneIV Launcher (DuneRun.exe).
Light version
Light version of Dune IV doesn't have differences from the full version except the absence of video and MP3-music. Light version was created for users experiencing problems with big files downloading or simply being to lazy to download full version.
*If any trouble with play intro, then download AviFixer (9 kb) and convert file Dune.dat to file Dune.dat as AVI-format. Run next command: ..Dune/avifixer.exe Dune.dat and then view file Dune.dat in Media Player.
Uninstalling the game
Simply remove game folder. Registry safety is guaranteed by the author. Author is not responsible for potential damage; the program was created correctly enough and well tested. Thus the worst thing that may happen is the absence of any file in folder "DATA" (with extensions *.DAT, *.FNT, *.RES). If *.MID and *.SND files don't exist the game will automatically turn off the music and sound effects.
Users experiencing problems during game (image corruption in full screen mode) should use ALT+F4 to leave the game. Modify file "DUNE.INI", to make "ScreenMode=2" . Start the game in debugging mode with parameter "-debug". Command line should look like that:
C:/DuneIV/Dune.exe -debug
thus game will be started in debug mode in a 640x400 window. Press ALT+ENTER to switch to full screen mode. If corruption stays on screen, return to window mode by pressing ALT+ENTER. You'll be able to play in windowed mode only. If game successfully works in full screen mode, you won't need to start it with "-debug" parameter (it may happen on some GeForce cards). Current patch includes all previous corrections for TNT.
To turn off sound subsystem, it is necessary to set "SoundSystemDisable=1" in "DUNE.INI" file. All sounds will be turned off (it may be useful for those who don't have sound-blasters).
Download 630 Kb (This last version of game. Just unzip this files with overwriting)
Problems
In case of any problems with installation or game, inform the author.
How to set the english language. In file DUNE.INI need to edit the string EnglishLanguage=1.
Cheats for DUNE IV
You'll need DuneIV Launcher to use cheats. It supports execution of the game with cheats enabled. The game will be started in windowed mode. Keep ALT pressed and input:
+Enter
- On/Off Full Screen
+G
- On/Off God mode
+S
- On/Off Map Shadow
+W
- For Victory
+L
- For Game Over
+I
- For Debug Info (FPS, Time, Memory Use, Enemy's Credit/Units Info)
