Dune Awakening – everything we know so far

Dune Awakening is an upcoming survival MMO from the creators of Conan: Exiles. It aims to adapt the books and films, giving players the challenge of surviving on Arrakis, the most dangerous planet in the Universe.

In Dune Awakening, you’ll awaken as The Sleeper, before you are cast out into the desert with little more than a knife to your name. From there you can gather, craft, and build up your own Guild, fending off giant sandworms and other players as you try to control the flow of Spice on the planet’s surface. It’s certainly shaping up to be one of the most exciting upcoming games on the horizon, and may well end up making a charge on the internet’s best MMO games lists when it releases.

Here’s what we know about Dune Awakening so far, including a look at the story and setting, gameplay, latest trailers, news, and everything else we know right now. As more details are revealed, this page will be updated.

Dune Awakening – cut to the chase

•  What is it? An MMO set in the world of Dune
•  When can I play it? TBA 
•  What can I play it on? PC 
•  Who makes it? Funcom

Dune Awakening trailers

The latest trailer we have for Dune Awakening was revealed earlier this year. It’s called the ‘pre-alpha’ trailer, showing off in-game landscapes, as well as providing a look at the weather systems that will dictate the flow of survival. Check it out below:

We’ve included some more Dune Awakening trailers throughout this article, but if you’re hungry for more you should visit Funcom’s official YouTube channel. The most interesting to look out for are the Shigawire Reels, a series of short videos explaining different aspects of the lore.

Dune Awakening story and setting

Dune Awakening is an MMO set in the world of Frank Herbert’s Dune series. It takes place on the desert planet of Arrakis, where a royal family called House Atreides has settled to take control. After a swift betrayal, the political landscape of Arrakis is sent into chaos, with multiple factions warring over the control of the planet’s primary resource, the Spice. Spice grants extrasensory abilities in the world of Dune, allowing pilots to navigate long-term space expeditions and more. It’s only found on Arrakis, so has been the source of conflict for millennia.

You play as The Sleeper awakened and forced out into the brutal desert environment. As you progress, you’ll set up your own House Minor, and can then align with one of the major powers fighting for control of the region. It’s been revealed that you’ll meet characters from the books and films during Dune Awakening’s story, though for now, we don’t know the specifics.

Dune Awakening gameplay

We’ve yet to see much gameplay from Dune Awakening so far. During the PC Gaming Show 2023 event, Funcom did show off how vehicles will work and touched on the survival mechanics at the game’s core. You can head here to check out the full video.

When you start Dune Awakening, you are cast into the desert, with nothing but a scrap knife at your disposal. Enemy camps can be looted to slowly gather materials to help you survive, as you build up an assortment of tech, weaponry, and survival gear. Arrakis is described as ‘the most dangerous planet in the Universe’, and it’s clear that Dune Awakening aims to focus on survival mechanics to emphasize this. 

Water is more valuable than gold on Arrakis, and you’ll constantly need to make sure you have enough not only to survive but to thrive as well. Once you start building up your Guild, you will need water for industrial purposes, all with the ultimate goal of capturing and controlling pockets of Spice. 

Environmental hazards are plentiful in Dune Awakening, with huge sandstorms constantly raging on the surface of the planet. These are best avoided at first, but once you have a fleet of vehicles and more resources, you can use the storms to your advantage. Ground vehicles include sandbikes and tanks, and then there are aerial vehicles as well. Ornithopters can be used to traverse great distances and to avoid the giant sandworms that can ambush you on the ground.

Combat is referred to as ‘Combines Arms’, and consists of melee (swords and knives), ranged (guns), vehicular (ground and air vehicles), and abilities (sorcery). These are all used in tandem, and the player can decide what to focus on. Dune Awakening is primarily a PvE game, with multiple players on the same server co-existing and looting separately. There’s also a PvP aspect, in that players can attack each other and fight over resources like Spice.

Dune Awakening latest news

You can now sign up for the upcoming Dune Awakening beta
Funcom has announced that players can now register for beta access for Dune Awakening. Head to the game’s main site, and enter your e-mail to be part of future tests. Currently, we don’t have a date for when the beta will launch.

That’s all we know about Dune Awakening so far. For more on the top games available right now, check out our guides to the best PC games, best PS5 games, and best Xbox Series X games.