Dune: Awakeningthrows you into Arrakis, where you’ll need to survive the harsh sun, enemy scavengers, and sandworms. Rather than being set in the Dune universe we know from the movies, Dune: Awakening takes place in a version of the world where Paul Atreides had never been born.

If you are considering playing Dune: Awakening, you’ve come to the right place. Here, we are going to look at reviews, costs, and the time expenditure of Dune: Awakening to help you decide if it’s worth playing or not. Overall, the decision is up to you, but we’ll help you with the choice.

Review

First and foremost, it’s important to know that Dune: Awakening is amultiplayer survival game,where you will be able to see and work with other players on your server. Whileit’s possible to play solo,you are also able to team up with those around you. This works together with the classic survival aspect of the game, as you’ll need to obtain resources and build your base.

Here at TheGamer,Staff Writer Harry Alston has a few thoughts on the game, especially in regards to theamount of content present,stating, “There’s just so much to do, and such a massive expanse of sand to cover”.

This amount of content can pose a problem to solo players though, as “you’re able to progress at your own pace, but the scale of resources required for some of the endgame vehicles and gear is astronomical”. This can’t fully be felt in the early-game content, but as the game progresses,you’ll really start to see how many resources you actually need.

I love the idea of massive guild raids, with Ornithopters and buggies and gigantic worms disrupting the whole thing. But now I’ve started, I don’t really know how populated this endgame area is going to be. Only the real diehards are ever going to reach it.

In terms of how the game runs, Dune: Awakeningpresents a relatively smooth gameplay experience.There are bugs that can lead to some bizarre or humorous experiences, but when the game launched,players could join and immediately get to playing.

As Harry stated ina piece about the state of servers at launch, “[they] didn’t go down once, and we were able to play the game for ten hours straight. There haven’t been that many bugs either, which is outstanding for a game of this size. The NPCs work as intended, other players move naturally in the world around you, and the story progression is clear-cut, with all your goals clearly signposted throughout the desert”.

Overall, Dune: Awakeningdelivers a typical survival game system set in a familiar world.Rather than trucking along by yourself,it’s encouraged to play with others.The world is dangerous, so you want someone to watch your back and help you strive towards greatness. If you are a fan of survival games and Dune, then this game may be a natural fit for you.

Cost

At launch on July 25, 2025,Dune: Awakening will cost $49.99 USD.You can also purchase theDeluxe Edition for $69.99 USD,and theUltimate Edition for $89.99 USD.What’s the difference between all these versions though? An infographic was shared by the developers, highlighting the differences. We’ll also go over the perks below.

Blue Dasher Ornithopter Swatch

Dusk Rider Sandbike Swatch

The ‘Head Start’ doesn’t apply anymore, as the game is already out for all players. As such,we’ve removed it from the list of perks.

Time Expenditure

As a survival crafting game,you can play Dune: Awakening pretty much forever.There is endgame content that you can play through, which will take a while to get to. Additionally,the tutorial alone can take around ten hours.

Overall, it’s safe to say that if you want to get serious about Dune: Awakening, you are looking at a large time investment. As mentioned above,there is a lot of grinding involved in the game,so you can expect to spend dozens of hours playing and still not get all there is out of the game.

What Players Are Saying

Worth It For Dedicated Survival Crafters - Jacob Whaling

Dune: Awakening is an absolutely massive survival crafting game, and it has almost everything you’d expect to see in a survival crafting game, right down to the janky combat. While Dune: Awakening may not be winning any awards for its originality, what sets it apart from other games in the genre is its sheer scale.

There’s a seemingly endless number of technologies to research, places to go, and things to do. A new upgrade is always around the next corner, so the desire to sink hundreds of hours into this alternate version of Arrakis is strong. The world is also a lot of fun to explore, especially for fans of the books or movies, with nice bits of lore for the truly dedicated to discover.

Dune: Awakening is definitely better enjoyed with a group of friends, however, as the staggering number of materials required for late and endgame technologies like the Ornithopter may be a bit out of reach for all but the most dedicated solo players. Still, even playing on your own, there are dozens of hours of fun to be had, so it’s definitely worth giving it a try.

Beautiful When The Sun Is Low - Jack Filsinger

Dune: Awakening has had a fair mix of skepticism and excitement thrown its way from its announcement to its release. Much to my surprise, it seems safe to say that the sheer size and complexity of this alternate version of Arrakis are well worth the effort to explore.

Undoubtedly, the game is a drain on your time, especially if you choose to adventure alone. But, there’s always another reward, weapon, item, or quest to explore around every dune, and that feels worth celebrating.

Worth Exploring The Massive World - Harry Alston

Dune: Awakening is an enormous game that goes above and beyond what you’d expect from an ordinary survival crafting game. When you first build your Ornithopter and take to the skies above the desert planet of Arrakis, you realize the absolute scale of the world around you.

A game this size does come with some caveats. Its combat isn’t revolutionary. The resources required for endgame gear require some serious grinding. But if you take the time to get to grips with its world, Dune: Awakening rewards you with some of the most unique and interesting moments you’ll have had in a video game for some time.

If you’ve been looking for a survival game to really sink your teeth into, Dune: Awakening gets the job done. Even if you aren’t too familiar with Dune, this game is enjoyable and will leave you yearning for the next best thing to craft.

Worth It If You’re Looking For A Long-Term Survival Game - Jacqueline Zalace

The dangers of Arrakis truly feel dangerous. There is nothing quite as thrilling as running across sand while a sandworm approaches. Once you make it to the other side, you can take a deep breath before realizing that you are going to die of thirst soon.

Dune: Awakening isn’t groundbreaking, but the scale and immersiveness are enough to make it worth playing if you are a fan of either Dune or survival games. Just be sure to team up with someone to make the resource expenditure a little more bearable.