Funcom Opens Dune Awakening Beta to All Pre-Orderers Following Fan Feedback
In a move that is sure to delight fans of the upcoming MMO game, Funcom has announced that it has opened the beta test for Dune Awakening to all players who have pre-ordered the game. The decision comes after the developer received feedback from fans who were surprised to find that a pre-order was not enough to secure a beta key.
According to a message posted to social media, Funcom confirmed that it had "heard [the] feedback" from fans and has now made the beta available to all pre-orderers. The beta, which is live now and due to close tomorrow, Monday 12th May, is being hailed as Dune Awakening’s "largest beta yet… with a huge number of new players joining compared to previous closed betas". This information was first reported by Eurogamer, a reputable source for gaming news.
The beta test for Dune Awakening has been ongoing for over a year, but with the full release of the game now looming following a brief delay, Funcom has decided to open it up to a wider audience. Players who have pre-ordered the game will now see a Beta Weekend product in their Steam library, and may need to restart their Steam client to access the Dune: Awakening Beta Weekend app. As Eurogamer reported, "We heard your feedback on this," the studio said. "If you already own or decide to pre-order any of the editions this weekend, you should now also see a Beta Weekend product in your Steam library. You might need to restart your Steam client to see the Dune: Awakening Beta Weekend app."
The move is likely a response to complaints from players on the game’s subreddit and Discord, who expressed frustration at not getting access to the latest beta despite having pre-ordered the MMO. In a statement, Funcom acknowledged that it had "seen several comments expressing concerns about server load and queues", and was "preparing accordingly". The developer assured players that there will be "thousands of servers grouped together in hundreds of Worlds available at launch", spread out across the globe to offer low-latency connections in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
As reported by Eurogamer, Funcom has a robust set of tools and processes in place to manage server load, having launched several MMOs and survival games over the past 25 years. The developer is confident that it can handle the demand, and will be able to spin up more servers if needed.
Dune Awakening was unveiled in 2022, as part of Funcom’s deal to make "at least" three games set in the Dune universe. The game 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. With its full release now looming, fans will be eager to get their hands on the game and experience the world of Dune for themselves.
The beta test for Dune Awakening will run from 9th-12th May, and players who have pre-ordered the game can now access the beta by logging into their Steam account. For more information on the game and the beta test, players can visit the official website or check out the game’s social media channels. According to Eurogamer, "If we see that we’re nearing capacity, we will be able to spin up more. This is not our first rodeo, we’ve launched several MMOs and survival games over the past 25 years, and we have a robust set of tools and processes in place, managed by an experienced live operations team."
