Dune: Awakening

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Engaging game loop with unique systems; steady, meaningful progression; and an active community.

Très bon jeu, chronophage mais très bien pensé

It feels like Arrakis, but it doesn't feel like a game. The world is very nice; feels hot and desert-y, there are sandworms, there's a big sun, and avoiding being out in the sun is something that you need to pay attention to. Sandworms are a risk going over the open dunes, and overall it feels very Dune-like. But the systems to turn it into a game are so half-hearted that it's almost comical. Take crafting, for instance. The first gun I made was a Karpov38 Rifle. Yay. Now, many hours later and with access to top-tier resources I can make... wait for it.... A Karpov38! Yay! There are a handful of other weapons which are all exactly the same issue - good job, now craft it again with rarer minerals for a slightly bigger number. At this day and age, with a game like this, I'd expect some excellent customization or branching trees or, god, Anything to give it some meaning or fun! Harkonen heavy weapons, Atreides light rifles, a Scope for my weapon!? Vehicles are the same thing.... You craft the frame, chasis, tracks, etc for a bike, then you assemble it. Do you get to choose different parts? Different tracks? Fast Fremen frame vs armoured Harkonen frame? No. Frame 1, then 2, then so on up to frame 6... That's it... I'd say go the Conan Exiles route - Wait about 5 years and come back, shell out a fortune for everything that's locked behind DLC, and you might have the start of a worthwhile game...

It’s the most immersive MMORPG I’ve ever played, perhaps with the sole exception of the legendary and venerable Star Wars Galaxies (yeah, I’m old 😄). It also has a bit of a survival element that sets it apart from other games in the genre. I love pretty much everything about Dune: Awakening: exploration, research, crafting, gathering, combat, housing… I’ve read that the endgame is lacking, but I can’t really comment on that yet. So far, my first 40 hours have been absolutely worth it. I’ve also come across some older reviews that make me think the game wasn’t nearly as good when it first launched. I think we should give credit to — and respect — developers who stick with their games over time, polishing, expanding and improving them while listening to the community. There are some textbook examples of this, like Cyberpunk 2077 and No Man’s Sky. If you’re a fan of old-school MMORPGs, I’m pretty sure you’re going to love this game.

As a fan of Conan Exiles it's great that they could make a game based around the Dune IP with all the exploration, jank, random escalations and base building. This game follows a very similar loop of resource tiers and gathering locked by harder zones. Activity progression flows nicely and there's plenty of ways to solve the games challenges. Story wise I'm fairly early on so can't comment on the arc of it all but they got the voice actor famous for playing Garrus Vikarian as a quest giver so points for that! However I really don't like the live service aspect, thankfully we will get a single player experience soon. It's tiring when people build mega bases right in a through way so I won't miss the office park apocalypse; the NPC structures are done quite well though. Die by a worm once, you won't regret it...or maybe you will. TLDR: Visuals 7/10 - Nice vistas and weather but lacking cloth and hair physics, performance is ok. Audio: 8/10 - Great sound design and some good music but gets samey after a while. World design: 9/10 - More nooks and crannies than a 20 km2 crumpet sprinkled with content. Quest design: 7/10 - It's there to make you explore, and explain your "powers". Gameplay: 8.5/10 - It's basic but like Conan Exiles, the jank is part of the experience. Stability/Bugs: 2/10 - I experienced, several glitches and bugs, fixed by quiting and restart. Overall another fun title, worth the price and the time if you have it.

A very good game. I really enjoyed the game's universe in multiplayer.