Dune: Spice Wars News

Like the movies, there's still a lot more planned for the latest Dune strategy game, and in the latest Dune: Spice Wars roadmap for 2022 released today, developer Shiro Games reveals some of those plans - such as multiplayer, the 4X game's fifth major faction, and the ability for major characters to finally get in on the action.

Dune: Spice Wars released on Steam Early Access a month ago, and while it had a good reception it's clearly a long way from being complete. Fortunately, developer Shiro Games has some big plans for the space game, and has released a new Dune: Spice Wars 2022 roadmap to detail a few big things coming soon.

This summer will see two of the biggest new features, including the much-requested multiplayer mode as "the current priority". A fifth playable faction is also coming in the next few months to follow Atreides, Harkonnen, Fremen, and Smugglers. There are a number of other sides in the Dune series that would make interesting factions, and I'm personally calling out the Imperial House Corrino as the most likely candidate - although let's not forget Dune 2's House Ordos.

Read the rest of the story...

RELATED LINKS:

4X game Dune: Spice Wars is finding an audience on Steam

Dune: Spice Wars Early Access release date - 4X game out soon

Dune: Spice Wars' release date reveal is coming "soon"

Hey Everyone!

Community Update #1 is now live! With this update, we have made a number of changes based entirely on the feedback and suggestions of our players since launch, bringing a ton of new content, reworks, bug fixes and more to the game ahead of our next major update (Multiplayer)!

Check out the full list of changes below…

• New 10k hegemony bonuses for every faction:
  
  
  
  
• Atreides: Permanent prod bonus upon being elected for a positive resolution
  
• Harkonnen: Can convert captured agents
  
• Smugglers: Can build Underworld Headquarters in enemies’ main bases with new buildings
  
• Fremen: Can build special buildings in allied Sietches
  
  
• Unit actions queue system (Shift + Right Click):
  
  
  
  
• Combat view (F3):
  
  
  
  
  
• Drones now beep boop
  
• New click feedback for actions with associated colors
  
• Auto pause when opening menus (can be turned off in game options)
  
• Added the option to remove communication requests
  
  
• New special region - White Rift:
  
  
  
  
• New special region - Acid Lake:
  
  
  
  
• New Underworld Headquarters buildings (Workers Guild, Weapon Dealers, Activist Quarters)
  
• Retake of some units' blocking radius to match with their unit size and reinforce their role in the roster
  
• Oppressed trait is removed upon rebellion
  
• Marauder Camp discovery
  
• Development Advanced Thumpers (Fremen)
  
• Village building (Investment Office)
  
• Harsher penalty for losing too much Landsraad Standing
  
• Mission complications UI rework
  
• Alert for the Council Speaker when they are allowed to reroll resolutions
  
• Kulon Caravan death animation
  
• Confirm prompts when clicking a button in the escape menu might make you leave your current game
  
• Can no longer miss click and exit selection when choosing a target for missions, worm riding or shuttles
  
• New input to cancel current unit actions (C by default)
  
• Any faction can contest an occupation
  
• Agent traits Mentats and Suk Doctors now have distinct visuals on the agent's portrait
  
• New icons
  
• Relation loss with targeted faction when a mission is detected
  
• Standing loss when you attack a main base
  
• Ornis now boost escorted harvesters for all factions but fremen
  
• Option menu reload create its own new save slot
  
• No longer see faction specific unlock conditions when playing another faction
  
• Spying window header (unify all windows)
  
• Auto remove outdated traits from structure village traits (for old saves)
  
• Shuttles now fly at random heights for a more organic fleet look
  
• Escorting units with an ornithopter is now correctly supported
  
• Visual Effect for ornithopter escort
  
• Agent traits are now active even when agents are unassigned (but not when captured)
  

• Load and Save game menus to be easier to use and allow custom names:
  
  
  
  
• Economic dev tree
  
• Ranged units and projectiles impact position is more directional (better combat readability and spectacle)
  
• Rebellions no longer try to liberate the village and only occupy it instead, until someone makes them stop
  
• Worm riding is cleaner and more fluid
  
• Black Market & Settled Hiereg discoveries
  
• Sandstorm effects
  
• Paracompass development
  
• Weapons Facility building (Smugglers main base building)
  
• Combat drugs adjustments
  
• Hegemony victory is now 30 000
  
• AI will stockpile spice a little bit less often
  
• AI targeting balance
  
• Agents timer is less exponential
  
• New Sandworms detection, roaming and attack delay values
  
• Infiltrator 40 power on first hit
  
• Discovery rewards and time to complete adjustments
  
• Ornithopters cost less solaris
  
• Spying operations infiltration requirements new values
  
• Council Eye now gives +2 max agents and given agents are now taken to compute total agents; they can't be dismissed or captured
  
• Vibrations (less vibrations generated while in combat)
  
• Craft workshop rework
  
• Improved AI recon
  

• Ornithopters sometime did not listen to a direct recon order and simply moved instead
  
• Missile batteries don't target shuttles anymore
  
• Locals units' factions are now more lore friendly
  
• Army models possibly not removed from their army (#Kulons)
  
• Iakin Nefud was refunding more for AI
  
• Long freeze when opening pause window
  
• Terrain deformations around main bases
  
• Military units will now automatically join nearby sieges when they are idle
  
• House guards passive could be bypassed by some damage types such as the combat drugs DoT
  
• Crash when trying to display multiple saves
  
• Set the "add to selection" action to same input as shift queue
  
• Allow pause space rebind, allow to pause via "PauseBreak" button
  
• Input key names are now limited in width
  
• A faction under NonAggression Pact cannot contest an occupation of the other part
  
• Crowd manipulation can't be launched on a village while it's militia is out
  
• Updated the report bug link
  
  
• Units:
  
  
• Stealth Drone health 200 > 100
  
• Stealth Drone power 12 > 15
  
• Stealth Drone armor 2 > 1
  
• Stealth Drone range increased
  
• Stealth Drone upkeep reduced
  
• Fedaykin armor 4 > 3
  
• Elite Militia power 15 > 14
  
• Mercenaries melee > range
  
• Mercenaries passive now works on enemy kill (was working on ally before)
  
• Mercenaries health 500 > 400
  
• Mercenaries armor 3 > 2
  
• Mercenaries training time reduced
  
  
  Also a lot of balancing, quality of life, fixes and changes that could not be listed here
  

Keep the feedback and suggestions coming, they're gonna be invaluable as we continue to develop the game over Early Access and of course, thank you all for your feedback since launch which has helped us compile this update!

Stay tuned, as we'll have a roadmap to share with you all later this week and more news on upcoming updates over the coming weeks...

Shiro Games