I’ve spent about 160 hours in Dune: Awakening — all of it in PvE with friends. Not a single minute in the high-risk PvP areas. We didn’t reach the Sandcrawler yet, but we enjoyed almost every step of the journey.

Who can actually play this game?
Anyone who can log in daily, or at least weekly. Everyone else? Nope. You’ll lose your base — all those invested hours gone — either because you missed taxes or because you built in the deep desert, where everything resets weekly. What starts as a thrilling survival mechanic ends up feeling like a system that forces you to log in on a schedule.

The world of Arrakis
The world is beautiful. Unreal Engine really shines here — from A to B it’s stunning. But look too closely, especially at higher levels when you raid base after base, and you’ll notice copy-paste points of interest. That was disappointing and broke some immersion.

Grind and progression
Yes, there’s grind — collecting resources is a core loop. But the moment you get the Ornithopter, the game changes completely. The sandworm only matters when you’re farming sand or spice, and reaching that stage was full of fear and joy. I loved that moment of transformation.

New DLC
Funcom, seriously? A bike as “new content”? If you’re endgame, it’s useless. Sure, there’s a questline, but it’s short, and the reward is just not worth it. It doesn’t add motivation or longevity.

Verdict
Dune: Awakening is a blast — it captures the atmosphere of Arrakis brilliantly, and the sound design (the screams in Hakko Village!) is pure gold. The game offers plenty of fun, and I’ll always remember the moments of wonder with my friends.

But the forced weekly logins, the repetitive structures, and the lack of meaningful new content eventually made it feel like work. My wife even told me: “Don’t play that one game again where collecting turns into a job.” Sadly, she was right, even though she thought of another game.

So for now: I recommend the game if you love Dune and have time to commit. I had a great run, but I’ll be uninstalling until there’s more content worth returning for.