The spice must flow… out of Early Access with the full retail edition of Dune: Spice Wars

Shiro Games and Funcom’s Dune: Spice Wars brings a full 4x strategy experience to the sands of Arrakis next week.

Control the spice, control the universe

With a massively-budgeted movie series currently rolling, Frank Herbert’s classic series of Dune stories are enjoying a nice renaissance. Being that we’re talking about a grand sci-fi saga with all the trimmings, it’s a property that sits perfectly poised to make a splash in the world of video games.

Dune has never really been a video gaming ‘force’ for some reason, though that’ might be coming to a close, thanks to Funcom and developer Shiro Games. their 4x strategy title Dune: Spice Wars has been in Early Access for a while, but it’s finally worked its way to a full retail launch.

Dune: Spice Wars is a grand strategy 4X game played in real-time, with countless paths to planetary domination and control over the spice. In solo or multiplayer, gain the upper hand through any combination of intrigue, warfare, politics, industry, and subterfuge.

The sci-fi masterpiece by Frank Herbert, Dune, is the narrative foundation upon which Dune: Spice Wars is based, and it informs the game’s design deeply, going beyond flavor and setting. The epic scope, Machiavellian plotting, and brutal backstabbing shine through every facet of the gameplay, which remains easily accessible thanks to clear tutorials and an easy to learn, but hard to master array of systems and mechanics.

Funcom press release

House Ecaz makes its arrival in the game with its emergence from Early Access, bringing a political powerhouse for players to field in the game. It’s a house that’s included in what’s final major pre-release update to Dune: Spice Wars, bringing the faction total to six.

Funcom says that player will have “countless paths to planetary domination and control over the spice”, as they engage in solo or multiplayer action in this new ‘final’ version. Means of “intrigue, warfare, politics, industry, and subterfuge”, or any combination thereof, can be used to bring the rugged world of Arrakis to heel.

Dune: Spice Wars emerges from the sands of Early Access, for launch on the PC this September 14th.