Today marks the premiere of the second Dune: Awakening Direct, and with it comes 30 minutes of in-depth interviews and game footage showing character creation, the MMO-like server structure, the narrative ramifications of a world where Paul Atreides was never born, and the spiritual journey that the player will undergo in the new game that recently shot past 1 million wishlists on Steam, inspired by the classic epic science fiction novel by Frank Herbert, developer Funcom has announced. An official gameplay reveal for the title, which still lacks a release date, is scheduled to premiere in August at Gamescom, while sign-ups for the game’s beta remain open through the official website.
The latest topics include:
- Alternate History
- “Discover the path that could have been. One moment which changes everything; the pebble which triggers the landslide. Paul, never born. The Atreides and Harkonnen at war. The Fremen, missing. And yet, the spice must flow. This is your Dune.”
- “The absence of Paul Atreides creates a power vacuum into which new factions and conflicts are dragged, including you. How much of that space will you fill?”
- Narrative and Spirituality
- “Senior Narrative Designer Léa Talbot guides us through how religion and spirituality play a part in Dune: Awakening. To Paul Atreides, the beliefs of the Fremen were a tool, but you are not Paul Atreides. You will have to survive by other means. Nevertheless, you will follow the teachings left by the Fremen, for whom learning to survive in the desert remains a profoundly spiritual journey.”
- Character Creation
- “Learn all about character creation with Producer Nils Ryborg as he shows us one of the first things you will do in the game, showing off the depth of choice when it comes to customizing your appearance and origins. Expression and customization is one of the core pillars of Dune: Awakening, and this is only the tip of the iceberg.”
- Server Structure and MMO Elements
- “Although Dune: Awakening is a survival game at its core, it is also an amalgamation of genres, notably the MMO. Join our Dune: Awakening Direct host, Soe Gschwind as she picks the mind of Funcom’s Creative Director, Joel Bylos, about what makes the game an MMO, including how servers will be populated and separated.”
Key segments of the Direct, including a new story trailer:
Game description:
Rise from survival to dominance on the most dangerous planet in the universe. Dune: Awakening combines the grit and creativity of sandbox survival games with the social interactivity of a large, persistent multiplayer game to create a unique and ambitious Open World Survival MMO.