Dune: Awakening gains private servers early in early access to give players more choices with the MMO’s gigantic desert world. Funcom has confirmed that early access players will be able get their hands on private servers starting June 5th. But the developer has been clear that some key limitations will be in place to keep the game’s large scale multiplayer essence in place.
A Shared World With Limits
Even while these private servers offer more control, they’re still part of a greater shared World — that range of interconnected servers that all access the same social hubs and Deep Desert. The organised team and structure were purposely designated to remain true to the MMO like elements and large engagement of Dune: Awakening.
Funcom said that early on in development, the team made the choice not to entirely separate the players from the bigger multiplayer space, as that would lose a key element of the gameplay loop as well as worldbuilding.
As a result of this, private server owners will be prohibited from hosting or managing central hubs or Deep Desert areas. As a result, their ability to customize is more limited than for other survival titles, including Funcom’s own Conan Exiles.
What Players Can Control
Despite some restrictions, private servers come with a ton of useful features. Players can either choose or not choose PvP to occur throughout the Hagga Basin, whether that’s the entire map or certain areas. You can disable security zones completely for full PvP.
Further tweaks will let you turn off sandstorms and taxation mechanics. The owner of a server can choose a name for the world and they can lock it so that anyone can see it but not join unless they have a password. The owner can visit anyone else’s server if they have the credentials. In fact, private server users will be able to claim land, which you can’t do on the official servers.
Keeping the Core MMO Spirit Intact
According to Funcom, the implementation of private servers while keeping the game’s size and immersion was a tough job. The goal of the team was to give the right balance between customisation and the MMO roots of Dune: Awakening.
Although, the customization options might be less than other survival titles. However, the shared World allows players to experience new gameplay while keeping the unique aspects of that game intact.
Launch Date and Early Access Details
Dune: Awakening will be out for PC and PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S on June 10, 2025. Players who have pre-ordered for early access will get a five-day head start beginning June 5. Early access comes after a brief delay meant to fix problems found in the closed beta. For players who are excited to jump into the action, there are additional details of global launch times, post-launch plans, and the MMO’s business model.