Dune: Awakening Set for May 20 Release, Benchmark & Character Creator Now Available
Funcom has officially announced the release date for its highly anticipated survival MMO, Dune: Awakening. Originally planned for Q1 2025, the game is now set to launch on May 20, 2025, for PC, priced at $49.99. Pre-orders will open soon, with players who pre-order receiving an in-game bonus—Terrarium of Muad’Dib, a decorative item featuring the legendary desert mouse from Frank Herbert’s universe.
Benchmark & Character Creator Now Available
In preparation for the game's launch, Funcom has released both a benchmark tool and a character creator, enabling players to test their system’s performance and design their in-game character ahead of time.
Benchmark Tool: Players can download the benchmark via Steam to see how well their hardware can handle Dune: Awakening, which is powered by Unreal Engine 5. The benchmark includes an ornithopter flight sequence and a dramatic sandworm encounter, showcasing the game's technical prowess.
Character Creator: Players can begin crafting their character immediately, with all customization choices carrying over to the full game on launch day. The customization process includes taking the Gom Jabbar test, selecting a home planet, caste, and mentor, each of which influences the character’s initial combat abilities. The game features four distinct combat schools:
Swordmaster
Bene Gesserit
Mentat
Trooper
While these choices will determine a player’s starting abilities, Dune: Awakening allows for hybrid character development, enabling players to mix and match combat skills from different disciplines as they progress.
Additionally, players who complete both the benchmark and character creator will be rewarded with an exclusive Frameblade knife skin at launch.
Funcom’s Vision for the Most Ambitious Survival MMO
Funcom has been working on Dune: Awakening since securing the Dune license in early 2019, before the release of Denis Villeneuve’s blockbuster film adaptations. Shortly after, Tencent acquired Funcom, allowing the studio to expand the game's scope significantly.
In a statement, Funcom has described Dune: Awakening as “the most ambitious survival game ever made”, and early footage suggests that this claim may be justified. The game will feature an open-world survival experience set in the harsh deserts of Arrakis, where players will battle sandworms, forge alliances, and fight for control over spice.
Moreover, Dune: Awakening will support NVIDIA DLSS 4 Multi Frame Generation, ensuring optimized performance for GeForce RTX 50 series GPUs. While a console version is expected, Funcom has confirmed that it will arrive at a later date.
Are you excited for Dune: Awakening? Will you be testing the benchmark and character creator before launch? Share your thoughts below!
