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.