Just in time for the cinema release of Dune Part 2, we get to see the first gameplay of the new survival MMO Dune: Awakening. We had the opportunity to speak with the developers at Funcom and have 4 facts for you that every Dune fan should know about the game. Because this game is being developed by true Dune nerds.
On March 4th, developer Funcom released a Direct
about Dune: Awakening. It included new information about the survival MMO, although nothing has been announced regarding a potential release date.
Funcom also invited MeinMMO to see the Direct earlier. During this, we had the chance to ask questions about the game to the Creative Director Joel Bylos and Senior PR Manager Natascha Röösli from Funcom.
We have answers here for you on four questions about the game that are exciting for fans of the Dune movies and books. Everything currently known about the gameplay and the information we brought back from the event can be read in our special: Just in time for the cinematic hit Dune Part 2: The first gameplay is here, but we will reveal more
You can watch the current gameplay trailer here:
Dune: Awakening – Made by nerds, for nerds? 4 supporting facts
Can I ride sandworms in the game?
In the first of the two new Dune films, it was only hinted at. In the second, we finally see it in action: The Fremen, the natives of the desert planet Arrakis, can ride the huge sandworms and look extremely cool while doing so.
In Dune: Awakening, the sandworms also exist: They are a constant, albeit mostly invisible, threat in the desert. Only fleeing into the air or onto rocky terrain saves you and your equipment like spice harvesting machines. If you spot them in time.
Unfortunately, you cannot ride the worms in Dune: Awakening. At least not yet. In a conversation with Natascha Röösli, she indicated that the team would really like to implement that mechanic:
Riding sandworms is very difficult to get right. And because we really want it in the game, we are working towards that. However, we don’t know when that will happen at the moment. […] We just want to be proud of a mechanic we built into the game, especially since it’s something as important as riding sandworms. We want to get it right and we want the player to say, “Okay, that’s fantastic”.
Natascha Röösli, Senior PR Manager at Funcom, 02/27/2024 in Los Angeles
Of course, it’s a shame that such an essential part of Dune likely won’t make it into the game at release. However, it’s better for mechanics not to be forced and then poorly implemented.
But it’s not all over yet: The developers themselves seem to want to have sandworm riding. If they find the right approach, they will probably introduce the mechanic as soon as possible.
How much of the official Dune lore is in the game?
Dune is much more than just the first book and its film adaptations. Frank Herbert alone published six novels and wrote a short story. Additionally, there is the Dune Encyclopedia and the works of Herbert’s son Brian Herbert together with science-fiction author Kevin J. Anderson. Particularly, the Encyclopedia gives enormous insights into the history of the Dune universe and how it works.
Among the especially obscure facts is, for example, that the technology
used in Dune is often powered by highly specialized animals and insects:
The light-emitting Glow Globes
, mentioned on almost every page of the books but never explained, contain tiny glowing worms. The wings of the Ornithopter, which are also known from the films, are said by the Encyclopedia to be powered by specially bred scallops.
When asked if crafting in Dune: Awakening also considers the animals used in the technology, Joel Bylos first had to grin: That was stated in the Dune Encyclopedia, and part of the agreement we reached is that the Dune Encyclopedia isn’t really canonical. We also spoke with the Herbert Estate about it. So we set that aside a bit. We focused on the mechanical side of building the machines.
Natascha Röösli later mentioned that they work very closely with the Herbert Estate. If they wanted to do something differently in the game than what is anchored in the official lore, they also receive support from Brian Herbert himself, who continued his father’s books.
But she also says: If something is not in the game, it’s usually because it’s too complex in terms of mechanics. Or we can’t really implement it in a way that does it justice.
The team behind Dune: Awakening seems to be doing its utmost to stay as close to the lore as possible. But due to technical limitations, not everything will make it into the final game.
How important is your guild in the political endgame?
As in every good MMO, you can also found guilds in Dune: Awakening, which can each join one of two factions. Together, you build bases, explore the desert, and harvest spice.
What is spice?
Spice is a drug that is essential for space travel in the Dune universe and is also used as currency. Anyone who consumes spice over a long period develops bright blue eyes, like those seen in the Dune films, for example, on the Fremen.
Specifically, the Guild of Navigators uses spice outside of Arrakis: By consuming the drug, they gain almost clairvoyant abilities with which they can chart safe courses for spaceships.
The background to this is that thousands of years before the story of Paul Atreides, humanity banned all computer-like technology. Consequently, specially trained humans must take on tasks such as the highly complex space navigation.
Once you have secured your survival and always have enough water available, your endgame begins. You can choose to focus on trade and crafting or to display political ambitions.
The Creative Director Joel Bylos explained during the Q&A with journalists that in the endgame, important politics is friendlier than in Eve Online
, but especially with clear direction: The so-called Landsraat, an intergalactic association of the great houses, gives you missions. If you fulfill them, you gain votes for your faction.
The catch? According to Joel Bylos, you have to learn about the goals and objectives of the Landsraat through espionage missions involving members of the great houses. Additionally, each guild can join one of the two factions, both of which are trying to fulfill the missions of the Landsraat. This can quickly lead you into conflicts with your fellow players due to limited resources.
However, if you play your cards right and complete mission after mission with your guild, you gain more and more influence. This way, you can work your way up from a band of nobodies to the status of a smaller house under one of the great houses.
Where does Dune: Awakening fit on the Dune timeline?
During the press event that MeinMMO was also invited to, Joel Bylos announced that Dune: Awakening takes place in an alternative version of the so-called War of Assassins.
The War of Assassins, as described in the books and supplementary materials, begins around the year 10,187 – about 4 years prior to the desert war revolving around Paul Atreides known from the first book and the film adaptations.
During these four years, tensions arise between the great houses, leading to several targeted assassination attempts. Arrakis is still firmly in the grasp of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen. House Atreides, already under the leadership of Duke Leto Atreides (Paul’s father), remains on its home planet.
The trigger for the war is the death of a member of House Moritani. Since he died on the planet Ecaz from a disease prevalent there, his father seeks revenge on the ruling family of Ecaz. Ultimately, House Harkonnen and House Moritani are on one side, while House Atreides supports House Moritani.
However, the main part of the conflict does not take place on Arrakis, but on various planets in the universe. In the final year of the war, however, it comes to light that Baron Vladimir Harkonnen has been hoarding secret spice reserves that he did not include in normal trade. This is one of the triggers for the recall of the Atreides to Arrakis, as you see in the first Dune movie.
Dune: Awakening falls within these four years of turbulence between the houses. According to Creative Director Joel Bylos, however, the preceding history of the Dune universe unfolded somewhat differently:
An important decision was made in the book and film universe that would have made the MMO on Arrakis impossible. For the game, the developers rewrote the history so that this decision turned out differently.
Unfortunately, the developers kept quiet about what the decision itself was. Therefore, we cannot say at this point what is different from the book and film universe. What is certain is that the team is trying to stay as close as possible to the books and films.
What decision do you think the developers made differently for Dune: Awakening? Or do you not care as long as you can become the next spice overlord on Arrakis? Let us know in the comments.
By the way, an exciting fifth point is that the game is heavily based on the visuals of the films. How close it is, you can read here: The new survival MMO Dune: Awakening aims for proximity to the films and has to step into big shoes
