Awakening Reaches Huge Player Milestone During Advanced Access Period

Summary

Dune: Awakening attracted 93,634 concurrent players on Steam during the early access launch.
The game will officially launch on June 10, expected to see a surge in player count.
Despite some technical issues, Funcom is enhancing the game with private servers and Twitch drops.

Survival MMO Dune: Awakening isn’t even officially out yet, but it’s already hitting major milestones. During its advanced access period, Dune: Awakening has attracted almost 100,000 concurrent players on Steam.

Originally announced nearly three years ago, Dune: Awakening has remained highly anticipated, especially among fans of Frank Herbert’s Dune universe. Rather than directly adapting the events of the books, the game presents an alternate timeline, placing players on the desert planet of Arrakis to explore its harsh environment while investigating the disappearance of the Fremen. Originally scheduled for release on May 20, 2025, Dune: Awakening’s launch was pushed back by a few weeks to June 10, with Funcom squeezing in one last beta before going live.

Dune: Awakening Different Editions Explained

In this guide, players will find information on all editions of Dune: Awakening to help them pick the right one before they purchase.

Following the successful final beta of Dune: Awakening, the game has launched into its five-day advanced access period with remarkable momentum. According to data from SteamDB, the game reached a peak of 93,634 concurrent players within just hours of its early access launch – a significant milestone by any standard. What makes this achievement even more impressive is that access during this period is limited exclusively to those who purchased the $70 Deluxe Edition or the $90 Ultimate Edition. The full Dune: Awakening launch is set for June 10, when players who opted for the more affordable $50 Base Edition will be able to join. Given the broader accessibility, it’s expected that this is when the player count will truly surge.

Dune: Awakening Hits 93K Concurrent Players On Steam

All things considered, it’s a very solid start for the open-world survival MMO Dune: Awakening. At the moment, the game holds a “Mostly Positive” rating on Steam, with about 76% of nearly 1,900 reviews coming in favorably. Of course, it’s not without its issues: some players are reporting crashes and performance hiccups, which are being actively discussed in Steam community threads. So while the overall response is encouraging, it’s clear there’s still work to be done on the technical side.

Funcom, however, seems to be doubling down on making the experience deeper and more engaging. It has recently confirmed the inclusion of private servers, which should give players more flexibility and control over their gameplay. On top of that, to mark the early launch, the studio has teamed up with Twitch to give players some extra goodies. From June 5 to June 24, 2025, Dune: Awakening Twitch Drops are live, offering up three exclusive Observer building pieces to help players get started with their base-building journey.