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Whether you’re a book or movie lover, Dune is one of those franchises that is engrossing no matter which medium you consume it in. Despite its popularity though, there haven’t been too many video games that have explored the world of Arrakis but that all changes with Dune: Awakening.
If you want to learn more about this exciting and ambitious experience, we’ll reveal all we know about the Dune: Awakening release date, any trailers that have been released, what platforms you can play it on, and more.
Is there a Dune: Awakening release date?
At this current time, there is no Dune: Awakening release date out in the wild. However, if we were to guess when we’ll be able to get our hands on some form of Dune: Awakening experience, it’s likely to assume that there will be a Dune: Awakening beta in late 2024.
Beta sign-up functionality has been in place since December 2022 meaning that the game has been cooking for some time now. Moreover, journalists and content creators were shown Dune: Awakening gameplay at a GDC & PAX East preview event in April, suggesting that the starting mechanics are live and ready.
As for the ‘full’ 1.0 release of Dune: Awakening, we could be many years away. When the beta launches though, we’ll have more of a feel of where development is at.
Dune: Awakening trailers
Two official main trailers have been released for Dune: Awakening – the Pre-Alpha Teaser trailer and the Survive Arrakis trailer.
As you would expect, the Pre-Alpha Teaser trailer provides a peek into what it has to offer visually, revealing how the words on the page have been translated to video game form. There is no gameplay in this one but does appear to be all in-game footage which is a big positive.
The Survive Arrakis trailer on the other hand is all about the gameplay. It showcases base-building elements, vehicles, traversal, and a couple of frames of combat to really get the hype going. It is only two minutes long but there’s a lot packed in so you may need to give it a couple of rewatches to soak in all the info.
While the above are the two ‘official’ trailers, Funcom has also released a bunch of other videos on their official YouTube channel detailing some behind-the-scenes action of how the game is being created.
Dune: Awakening platforms
Dune: Awakening will launch on PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5, making it a multi-platform title. As for where you’ll be able to purchase it from on PC, the only current store that will be available is Steam where you can add it to your Wishlist.
It makes complete sense that Awakening will more than miss the boat on last-gen systems but it’s good to see that Funcom are suggesting that the full release will hit the current consoles and not lapse, going straight to the next iteration instead.
Is Dune: Awakening a real MMO?
Dune: Awakening is slated as an open-world survival MMO but does this mean it has all the fully-fledged elements of a true MMO? Well, we’re not sure that’ll be the case.
Funcom’s Conan Exiles title shares many similarities to this new Dune venture with a whole host of different survival elements coupled with complex base-building mechanics. This instantly throws Awakening into the same box as Conan since the usual MMOs are something that doesn’t delve too deep into this.
On the flip side, Dune Awakening’s creative director Joel Bylos has suggested that the game will have “old classic MMO open ended public dungeons” alongside other MMO favorites such as an auction house, true social elements, and a narrative that’s influenced by in-game politics.
So, it does look like Funcom is trying to fuse everything together and bring an incredibly cohesive experience that has not only MMO and survival elements but all in a huge open world. If the company goes through with the MMO elements it is stating the game has, it will be a fantastic hybrid that could be one for the ages.
Will Dune: Awakening have PvP?
Yes, Dune: Awakening will have PvP in the game but not at all times. What we mean by this is that there will be dedicated areas to PvP so that if you’re more of a PvE enjoyer, you can stay away from the carnage.
During the March 2024 GDC preview event we touched on earlier, Funcom stated that the “deep desert is a full PvP location” where “sands will shift when the Coriolis storms happen”. This makes the region a dynamic environment that is influenced by the weather, something that hasn’t really been explored in a game of this size.
Funcom also suggested that Dune: Awakening has a “very strong PvP focus” meaning that while there’ll be a bunch of content for those PvE gamers, the balance is more weighted to the desert’s stone-cold killers.
How to sign up for the Dune: Awakening beta
If you’ve read all of the above and like the sound of some survival action on the sand, you can sign up for the Dune: Awakening beta so you’re primed and ready for when it drops.
To sign up for the beta, all you’ll need to do is to head to the official Dune: Awakening website and hit the ‘Beta Signup’ button on the main navigation menu. Once you do, enter your email, check the required boxes, and you’re all set.
