Although Dune: Awakening only launched five months ago, the survival MMO has had quite the turbulent early access journey from its launch into “Mostly Negative” reviews on Steam to its player count dropping – but a new free trial could see things turn around.
Dune: Awakening now has fewer players on Steam than Funcom’s previous survival game, Conan Exiles, does – and the latter released back in 2018. It doesn’t look like things have gotten any better since the more recent title’s new update, which addressed issues that made many fans, including myself, quit with features like the Base Backup Tool and more, either (judging by SteamDB statistics, anyway).
A new free trial has arrived, however, and it might spell a brighter future for the online game. As per Funcom’s latest post on Steam, the trial – which allows players to create a character on any Sietch and World and play without restrictions (aside from some chat locks, “to avoid things like bots and griefing”) for a good 10 hours – will last through November 27, giving people the opportunity to experience a solid week of Arrakis-based shenanigans.
That’s not all, either. Alongside the free trial comes the biggest sale Dune: Awakening has had since its early access launch in June – a whopping 25% discount. “To anyone who wishes to take up permanent residence on Arrakis during or after their free trial,” as Funcom reveals, “they can purchase the game at a 25% discount until December 1, the highest discount we’ve had yet!” It’s a pretty nice deal if you ask me, especially ahead of Steam’s 2025 winter sale.
