Dune: Awakening getting “largest beta yet” next month, and it’ll be open to “tens of thousands” of players

Dune: Awakening arrives this June, but there’ll be an opportunity to check out its sandy survival action ahead of its full launch. Developer Funcom has announced it’s holding the game’s “largest beta yet” in May, with keys being made available to “tens of thousands” of players.

Funcom unveiled Dune: Awakening in 2022, as part of its deal to make “at least” three games set in the Dune universe. It whisks players to Arrakis for an open-world, multiplayer survival adventure drawing from Frank Herbert’s sci-fi novels and Denis Villeneuve’s film adaptations.

Dune Awakening has been in closed beta for over a year now, but with its full release now looming following a brief delay, Funcom is preparing one final, large-scale beta blowout that’ll run from 9th-12th May. The studio is calling it Dune: Awakening’s “largest beta yet… with a huge number of new players joining compared to previous closed betas”.

It’ll give players a chance to experience survival in the vast, wormy deserts of Arrakis, as well as “most of” Dune: Awakening’s first story act – which Funcom says should equal around 20 hours of playtime. Unlike previous betas, there’s no NDA to sign, and all gameplay can be shared.

To be in with a chance of taking part in the beta, players have a number of options. They can either visit Dune: Awakening’s Steam page and hit the ‘Request Access’ button, or tune into the Global LAN Party Broadcast on 10th May, which will include developer chat and more. Funcom says “tens of thousands” of keys will be handed out during the broadcast, and these can be used to gain immediate access to the Dune: Awakening beta weekend.

Dune: Awakening gets its full Steam launch on 10th June, and an Xbox Series X/S and PS5 release is due at a later date. It’s looking pretty promising too; Eurogamer’s Robert Purchese came away impressed after going hands-on with it earlier this year, writing: “You can live out your Dune fantasy in the most faithful recreation of Arrakis we’ve yet seen in a game, pausing as the ground shudders from a nearby sandworm, ducking for cover as a sandstorm blows in, and searching crevices for the secrets of the world hidden within…. keep an eye on this one.”