Emperor: Battle for Dune

It all started with Dune II (Westwood had nothing to do with the original Dune game). It all started going wrong with Dune 2000 and now, with Dune 3D, Westwood has put a bullet through the head of innovation and embraced the concept of mass-market gaming like a long-lost brother.

Not that there's anything wrong with that, or indeed with bands like the Backalley Boys -each to their own. In fact, in the realm of multiplayer gaming, mass acceptance is central to success. EverQuest could be one of the worst games in the world (and, in my opinion, is), but if you have good people (and lots of them) playing on a regular basis, then that can go some way to ensuring you have a good time.

Unfortunately, no one is playing Emperor, or not yet anyway. On our last visit to Westwood's online service (at 3am GMT - prime time for online gaming) we could find only four people willing to get it on with us. Not good.

However, with its simplicity and pace, not to mention the simplistic 3D engine, Emperor is rather well suited to online play. Westwood has always strived to make its games easy to dial into and this new 3D Dune is no different. The gameplay is no different from the C&C series- what is unusual for Westwood are the graphics and the fact they are utterly without charm or humour. With Tiberian Sun or Red Alert 2 in your collection there is absolutely no reason to play this online.