Summary
Funcom’s survival MMODune: Awakeningis finally here with one of the most immersive survival experiences in recent memory. Set in an alternate reality wherePaul Atreidesnever existed,Dune: Awakeningtakes players to its version of Arrakis, where the expansive, desolate, unforgiving, and breathtaking-to-behold desert teeming with possibilities awaits them.
Dune: Awakeningdoes a fairly good job early on of telling players everything they need to know, but things eventually open up in more of a sandbox way and the game stops holding their hand. From there,Dune: Awakeningbecomes a game of trial and error (mostly error), where players are forced to learn from their mistakes. That’s ultimately why knowing some of the game’s unwritten rules beforehand can only benefit them in the long run.
What Dune: Awakening Players Need to Know
Prioritize the Fremen Quest Line
SinceDune: Awakeningisn’t just a survival game and is instead also an MMO, that means progression behaves quite a bit differently than survival enthusiasts might expect. Whereas most survival games hinge their progression on survival itself,Dune: Awakeningis mostly driven forward by the “Find the Fremen” quest line. This doesn’t mean players can’t gain some ground by ignoring the story completely, only that not prioritizing the Fremen trial quest line will ultimately lock them out of thumpers, advanced harvest tools, base-building features, and evenDune: Awakening’s Ornithopter.
Dune: Awakeningdoes a fairly good job early on of telling players everything they need to know, but things eventually open up in more of a sandbox way and the game stops holding their hand.
Dune: Awakeningis filled with quests for players to complete, so the"Find the Fremen" quest linecan sometimes get lost in the mix. However, players can ensure they are tracking the quest line by heading to the “Journey” tab inDune: Awakening’s in-game menu, navigating to the “Find the Freme” section of the “Story” tab, then selecting the quest and pressing T to track it.
Utilize the Status UI
The status UI inDune: Awakeningmight be one of its most underrated and therefore underused features, but it can really come in handy in a game that’s this demanding. Pressing T will bring up the status UI inDune: Awakening, which shows players’environmental risks— heat, radiation, PvP zones — and has a day-night meter. That meter tells players exactly when dawn arrives, and in turn, the prime time for dew collection. Just as the light turns blue on the UI’s day-night meter, players should fill their dew collectors for optimal output.
Fast-Travel Via Ornithopter Pilots
One of the most beneficial pieces of info players should know aboutDune: Awakeningis that they can fast-travel via Ornithopter pilots fairly early on. This is one of the easiest things in the game to miss, but it’s also one of the game’s most useful features. At tradeposts inDune: Awakening, players can find Ornithopter pilotsstanding near a blue hologram of an Ornithopter, generally in a corner somewhere. By paying them 2500 solaris, players can fast-travel to the game’s main hub areas, Arrakeen and Harko Village. These areas have a variety of services available to players, including the bank, plenty of vendors, and advanced class trainers.
Ornithopter pilots can also take players to other tradeposts free of charge.
Don’t Spend Intel Carelessly
Something that is very easy to do inDune: Awakening, especially for those who are attempting to complete everything in the game, is carelessly spend Intel in the Research menu. It doesn’t take long to realize just how easy it is to rack up a bunch ofIntel inDune: Awakening, and because of that, players might be tempted to spend it on schematics that look enticing.
However, there are multiple quests inDune: Awakeningthat depend on players researching specific things, and if they should come to that quest and not have the Intel to unlock what it calls for, they’ll be stuck until they do. As such, it’s better just to wait until a quest calls for something to be unlocked or if there’s an absolute need for an upgrade — like a more powerful Power Pack, for instance.
Always Plan for Loss
Finally, perhaps the most important unwritten rule ofDune: Awakeningis that players should always plan for loss, regardless of what they are doing.Dune: Awakening’s Arrakisis harsh and unforgiving, and the smallest misstep can result in entire inventories and even bases being wiped. In light of that, one of the best things players can do to ensure they are safeguarding their future is to visit one of the banks in either Arrakeen or Harko Village to store solaris and precious items.
Also, players should always make sure their taxes are paid if they want to keep theirbase inDune: Awakening, as neglecting to pay them will cause their base to decay. If players are planning to take an extended break from the game, they should at least make a blueprint of their base using a Solido Replicator and then store all of their valuables in the bank before logging off.
