Dust 4

DUST 4 focuses on tactical gameplay. Unlike vanilla BF2, weapons deal high damage, the AI is aggressive and accurate, and the player's default armour is reduced. The built-in launcher lets you tailor the difficulty — adjusting AI accuracy and soldier armour.

Maps are one of the mod's greatest strengths. Classic BF2 locations have been overhauled beyond recognition: new colour tones, lighting, vegetation, undergrowth, environmental details, and sounds. Control point placement has been completely redesigned for single-player and makes use of the entire map area. Third-party maps have also received a unified visual style and atmosphere. Locations such as Sharqi Peninsula and Oman look and play entirely differently from the original.

DUST 4 uses modern shaders with HDR and Bloom support. A dedicated widescreen shader eliminates HUD and interface distortions on widescreen monitors. Explosion, fire, smoke, bullet impact effects, and ambient audio have also been improved.

Two factions are available — Viper (a western coalition) and Claw (a Middle Eastern coalition). Both are fictional and not based on real countries or ideologies. Infantry composition and available vehicles differ between factions depending on the map.

Vehicles have been completely overhauled with new textures, HUDs, and model adjustments. Tanks now carry two shell types — armour-piercing and high-explosive. Ammunition type and weapon are switched with F, and the optical sight with X. New ground and air vehicles have been added.

Carbines, pistols, sniper rifles, and RPGs have been replaced with higher-quality models ported from other Battlefield titles and other games. Recoil settings, damage multipliers, and skins have been significantly changed. Some weapons and gadgets are original mod content.

Two new soldier classes have been added: a forward air controller and an artillery spotter. Both are equipped with binoculars and laser designators for calling in air strikes and artillery support. All soldier models have been reworked with new faces and equipment.

When health drops below 75%, the soldier's vision blurs, sprinting becomes impossible, and map icons disappear. Each soldier carries a single-use IFAK medkit. Without treatment, condition gradually deteriorates until death. Medkits can be restocked at supply points — marked with a yellow diamond — or looted from fallen soldiers. On large maps, the squad commander can request a gear drop and UAV reconnaissance.