Dune: Awakening Reviews
If you are a fan of Dune, there's a lot here to enjoy, the interplay between houses, the war of assassins, and of course the fear of being pursued by a worm and only just escaping, or perhaps not escaping. Despite the glitches, I have still found myself returning time and time again, and though some tasks can be frustrating or repetitive, it's such a beautifully realised world that I don't really mind. Even when I shut it down to take a break for a while, inevitably I will be firing it up again before long to see just how much further I can get, or what I can manage to get the resources together to build next. I'm so close to being able to build my ornithopter. Definitely jump in and explore!
Dune: Awakening heavily relies on its well-known universe, offering very average, sometimes outright boring gameplay mechanics. If you’re not a fan of Frank Herbert’s world, you won’t find a captivating story here. Instead, you’ll get hours of traversing a monotonous desert while engaging in equally monotonous resource gathering, with resources constantly respawning in the same spots. Unfortunately, in Funcom’s production, I found nothing that would make me want to spend more time with it, so I cannot recommend it.
Review in Polish | Read full review
The slow start in the deserts of Arrakis might feel dull, but as hours pass and new discoveries unfold, the pace picks up and curiosity grows.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
Dune: Awakening is an outstanding survival game during its early and mid-game, with a carefully crafted setting, enjoyable movement system, and a very satisfying solo experience. Its downfall lies in the endgame, with an empty Deep Desert, broken and soulless PvP, and a lack of meaningful cooperative content. Even so, it has a solid foundation and real potential — if Funcom manages to refocus the design into a more complete and balanced experience. A strong start with an endgame that still needs work.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Dune: Awakening is an excellent survival MMO that brilliantly captures life on Arrakis, usually to its benefit.
Dune: Awakening is a harsh survival game, an intriguing RPG, and a fierce open world PvP game all in one. Somehow, it pulls it off.
Dune: Awakening thrives in atmosphere, worldbuilding, and survival depth, even if its combat and grind somewhat drag behind its setting and systems.
If you are a huge fan of Dune, it's going to be easy for you to overlook those issues. If you're not, or just have a passing interest in the lore, you may find it's just too difficult to get into. It's a game that is capable of fantastic moments, marred by irritations and a feeling of bloat that ultimately holds it back from being truly great.
Dune: Awakening has impressed me at every turn. Stunning cinematics showcase an immersive story inspired by Dune's award-winning lore and set the scene for a thrilling adventure, focused on exploration, survival, base-building, and politics. In a time full of unfinished, bug-ridden game launches, Dune: Awakening is setting the bar higher for what the release of video games should be.
Dune: Awakening is exactly the type of game the industry needs more of: ambitious, respectful of its source material, and willing to take real creative risks. It's not perfect, and it's definitely not for everyone, but for those who connect with its vision, it offers a genuinely unique experience. If you're looking for a casual survival game you can play an hour here and there, this isn't your game. But if you want to lose yourself in one of the most convincing and complex virtual worlds ever created, Arrakis is waiting for you. Funcom has created something special here: a game that honors both Frank Herbert and the survival genre, and sets new standards for what ambitious MMOs can achieve when developers truly understand their source material.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Dune: Awakening's gorgeous environment is full of danger, mystery, and lore to uncover. Although its combat leaves much to be desired, its other aspects make for a fantastic experience that, with some polish, easily sets it apart from the crowd.
Dune Awakening is an impressive MMO adaptation, but its combat gets lost in translation.
For fans of the franchise, there’s nothing else quite like it. For MMO players tired of formulaic grinds and empty worlds, this is something richer, even if it comes at a cost. But be warned: if you’re looking for fast progress, you’re going to have a bad time. On Arrakis, everything fights back.
An immersive, immense MMO sandbox survival game that captures the fierce and mystical essence of Dune, with a merciless and seductive Arrakis. The combat system is subdued and there are technical uncertainties that limit its potential. But what fun!
Review in Italian | Read full review
If you aren't a big fan of Dune, you might ironically get more out of this game than someone who is, since you won't have to worry about it not living up to your expectations. While I can't help but be a little disappointed in the final product, Dune: Awakening is still worth playing if you are a fan of the survival genre and want to experience its unique location.
Dune: Awakening, from developer and publisher Funcom, presents a massive world that feels and acts like what you would expect from a journey to Arrakis. The gameplay is led by extensive crafting, action, and exploration. While the controls can get finicky at times, as well as the slow pace of gameplay, especially at the beginning, the game represents everything that Dune fans will appreciate.
Dune: Awakening builds on the solid foundation of Survival gameplay mechanics from Funcom's prior entry in the genre, Conan Exiles. While aspects of the game, such as combat and questing, are less than great, these flaws don't prevent players from enjoying the well-executed gathering, crafting and research-advancing progression loop, as well as simply existing in and exploring the world of Arrakis. Those who love survival games OR the Dune franchise will likely have a great time here, though others may have less reason to stick around to the endgame. The solo and group gameplay is distinct from one another, but either approach will allow you plenty of fun time in the sun, the sand, and (if you're unlucky) the belly of a sandworm.
Dune: Awakening delivers one of the most intense and immersive survival experiences I've enjoyed in years.
The mystery of the disappearance of the Fremen is also a solid enough hook to keep me going through the main quest instead of getting sidetracked, and every excursion I make to collect resources doesn’t feel like a chore. Arrakis was made for a game like this, and small creative liberties aside, I think Funcom might have nailed what it needed to nail here.
This unique MMORPG features many original elements, and you don't need to be a fan of the book or any film adaptations. However, to enjoy it, you need to be passionate about the survival genre, which forms the basis of this online world. Over the next few months and years, Dune could well flourish and become one of the top games in the genre.
Review in Slovak | Read full review