Dune Awakening is around the corner. A new survival MMORPG that has a lot of promise and has one of the few actually set with a release date, May 20, 2025.
There are the normal survival mechanics we have all come to expect from the ever evolving survival genre. And with Arrakis being the world to explore there will be plenty of survival to be had. Lets take a look at this up coming game and what it has to offer. My surface level opinion is that it looks solid. There’s plenty of skepticism to go around the MMORPG space, but this has a lot of potential if we look at what the developers are leaning into. My high level hope is that we could see another game with Planetside scale battles. Large scale PvP is a very tough beast to conquer, but lets see what Dune Awakening will be able to cook up.
Combat
We haven’t seen a ton of game play footage, but what we have seen looks good overall. There is heavy criticism in the community around melee combat and feeling on slower than desired by a number of people. It has been said this is supposed to be more of a shooter, we’ll have to wait and see how the game and the wholistic combat shakes out. It doesn’t seem to be postured more as a shooter with a number of weapons, vehicles, and PVP. There would need to be some stealth mechanics well designed to make melee viable in the kind of world that is coming to light.
Dungeons
Dune Awakening will feature a variety of underground facilities to explore and conquer, serving as the game’s version of dungeons. These locations will provide a refreshing contrast to the vast desert landscape above, offering unique environments, challenging encounters, valuable loot, and formidable bosses.
While I’m cautiously optimistic, I hope these dungeons live up to their potential. Too often, instanced areas in MMOs end up feeling shallow—quickly explored, easily defeated, and lacking true depth. A well-designed dungeon system could add a thrilling PvE experience, introducing real danger and rewarding adventure. Time will tell if they deliver, but I’m eager to dive in and see for myself.
Groups and Guilds
As an MMO, group and guild mechanics will play a central role in Dune Awakening. Players can team up in groups of up to four, while guilds will offer larger-scale organization. Though the exact guild size cap hasn’t been confirmed, it seems likely that limits are in place to prevent the formation of massive “megatribes” similar to those seen in Ark’s official PvP servers.
And yes—there will be PvP, and it could be glorious. The developers are taking an opt-in approach, meaning only certain zones will allow PvP, keeping it high-risk, high-reward. If I had to guess, the best loot and rarest resources will be found in these contested areas, leading to intense guild skirmishes and strategic battles. The blend of survival mechanics, resource management, and high-stakes PvP has the potential to create some truly engaging endgame content.
The vehicles we’ve seen so far range widely in size and function, giving me strong Planetside vibes, which could make for some epic large-scale conflicts.
A New Frontier for MMOs?
Dune Awakening could be answering the call for something fresh in the MMO space. There’s a huge opportunity here to deliver a unique sci-fi survival experience, but also a risk of falling short of expectations. From what we’ve seen so far, though, the game looks promising—offering deep group gameplay, a solid content lineup at launch, and a player-driven economy with meaningful PvP.
A lot of potential, a lot of hype, and I can’t wait to see how it all unfolds. Dune Awakening launches on May 20, 2025—we’ll be diving into Arrakis, and we hope to see you there!