"Your journey begins here, in the desert. Find the Fremen. Wake the Sleeper"
It might have felt like we were all living on Arrakis this past July with the relentless scorching heat. Rest assured that cooler temperatures are rapidly arriving, but not for that storied sci-fi destination commonly known as Dune.
Folding space back to that desolate planet where the spice Melange is harvested and water is held sacred, a new 27-minute gameplay trailer for Funcom's upcoming "Dune: Awakening" was just offered up this week at GamesCom 2024 in Germany and it looks like an epic thirst-inducing adventure indeed.
This riveting preview running nearly a half-hour long and hosted by Creative Director Joel Bylos was introduced at the Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024 event. The hotly-anticipated title appears to be slated for an early 2025 release date for PC only, with a Playstation and Xbox platform edition landing shortly thereafter.
Here's the official synopsis:
"'Dune: Awakening' is an open world survival MMO set on the most dangerous planet in the universe. This is your Dune. The most dangerous planet in the universe. A Dune where Paul Atreides was never born, and a War of Assassins rages between Atreides and Harkonnen. Where the machinations of guilds and powerful houses devour the unprepared as easily as the ancient sandworms that prowl the open deserts. In a world shared by hundreds of other players, will you rise to lead a Great House and control the flow of spice itself?
"Embark on an epic journey to uncover the mysteries of your past and the disappearance of the Fremen. Learn the ways of the desert. Craft a cutterray for harvesting, a stillsuit for hydration, and a stilltent for emergency shelter.
"Practice water discipline and beware the great sandworms. Build a base on solid ground and upgrade it into a mighty fortress using the powerful building system.
"Infiltrate bandit camps by utilizing advanced weaponry and tech: reach high ground with the shigawire claw, deploy your hunter-seeker, and repel direct fire with the Holzman shield.
"Develop and specialize your character by following the path of the Swordmaster, Trooper, Mentat, Planetologist, and Bene Gesserit, mixing and matching unique and powerful abilities.
"Spice is power. Risk the open desert to harvest it, then make your fortune on the exchange, or consume it to unshackle your mind and enhance your abilities beyond human limits - but do not let addiction overcome you.
"Explore the vastness of Arrakis, piloting crafted ornithopters and groundcars, from the depths of the Hagga Rift to the peaks of the Hand of Khidr. Band together with other players to venture deep into the ancient Imperial Testing Stations."
For fans of the "Dune" books, comics, feature films, and video games, this impressive project appears to be lovingly created with every attention to detail and immersion.
"Revealing gameplay for the first time is always a big moment, especially in a game where the interplay between all these systems can create completely unexpected moments, but the team has done an incredible job and we can't wait to see how the community reacts," said Funcom Creative Director Joel Bylos.
"Dune: Awakening" touches down for PC sometime in 2025.
