Gamescom Opening Night Live producer and host Geoff Keighley has revealed that Funcom’s Dune: Awakening will be one of several games to be shown off live on-stage at the event, which is scheduled for August 20 at 11 AM Pacific. Keighley says Funcom will be showing off “an extended look” at gameplay for the upcoming open world survival MMO.

Several other titles have also been confirmed for Gamescom Opening Night Live so far, including Monster Hunter Wilds, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Civilization 7, and more. 

Dune: Awakening is in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. A release date for the title hasn’t yet been announced.

Along with the trailer, Dune: Awakening also got another video with Funcom creative director Joel Bylos, as well as cinematographer Greig Fraser talking about translating elements of the Dune setting from Dune Part 1 and 2 into video game form. Check out the video, dubbed Creating Worlds, from Book to Film to Game, below.

The last time Funcom spoke about Dune: Awakening back in June 2023, it described the five core pillars of the game—Survival, Politics and Intrigue, Infinite Exploration, Combined Arms Combat, and Expression and Customisation. These pillars combine to form the word SPICE.

Much like Funcom’s other survival game Conan: Exiles, players in Dune: Awakening will have to start out from nothing and build their bases from the ground up. Dune: Awakening doesn’t yet have a release date, but we do know that there’s a beta that players can sign up for on the official website. The game will be coming to PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.

Players can run guilds with tanks, sand bikes and more and come into conflict with each other. However, massive sandworms also lurk on the planet, and you’ll need to think fast to survive. Unlike most MMOs which rely on hot bars and cooldowns, Dune: Awakening’s combat is more “second-to-second and intense,” per game director Viljar Sommerbakk when speaking to PC Gamer.

You need to start from the ground up, not unlike Conan: Exiles (another Funcom survival MMO), but Dune: Awakening has its unique flavor (or spice, if you will). A release date hasn’t been revealed, but players can sign up for the beta here.

Some of the titles appearing include Larian Studios’ Baldur’s Gate 3 (which exits early access in August), 11 bit studios’ Frostpunk 2, a brand new game from Klei Entertainment, and Funcom’s Dune: Awakening. The publication also says that a “significant chunk” of the titles are “completely new reveals.”

Oddly enough, the PC Gaming Show will cause AI to deliver all the news, which it assured will “absolutely, definitely, 100% not backfire, implode,” etc. Whether this is a comedic bit for the show or an actual use of the technology remains to be seen.

The PC Gaming Show 2023 will air on YouTube, Twitch, Steam and more. Stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks.

The game’s Steam listing gives us more details on the upcoming game, which is set to take place on the planet of Arrakis. Players will be able to meet characters from the books and movies as they travel across the Dune setting.

The game will also feature deep character creation and customisation, with skills and abilities that are developed the more they are used.

Dune: Awakening will also feature third-person combat, with skirmishes breaking out between infantry, ground vehicles, and flying vehicles. Players will be able to use everything from Holtzman gadgets to an array of firearms.

Sign ups for the beta for Dune: Awakening are available on the game’s official website.

Funcom had previously confirmed that it was working on a Dune survival title. Taking the stage at Gamescom Opening Night Live, the company unveiled Dune: Awakening, which is described as an open world survival MMO.

As per the game’s Steam page, Dune: Awakening is set in a vast and seamless open world Arrakis that is populated by “thousands” of players, who will be tasked with surviving the harsh world, controlling the spice trade, and more.

Dune: Awakening is in development for PC. A beta is also planned, registrations for which are also open.