Dune Awakening’s first big developer stream has arrived. This is the first major stream for the game post-launch, especially after its recent appearance at Gamescom. During the stream, the developers showcased that the Lost Harvest release date is coming a day early on September 9th, and players can get their hands on quite a bit of new content. They also announced that another Free Weekend is coming from September 11th to experience Season 2.
The free content update contains the mentioned character customization feature, alongside plenty of new story content to play. The paid version includes some new locations to explore, with a few side story quests to complete and some extra cosmetics for your character and base building features, plus a new vehicle aesthetic class for a different look, similar to Conan Exiles’ DLC features.
Customization Update
To use the new customization feature, players can head to Arrakeen and visit Dr. Shaffer’s new store to utilize the feature.
Players should be able to find the new tattoo options. Players can make their tattoos different colors and adjust their skin color and other visual effects to really customize how their characters look. In addition, there are more masculine, longer hairstyles for those who want to be Vikings in space. Trust the Nordics to make that an option.
The appearance customizations will cost Solari. The developers said it only costs 1,000 Solari, which is not too costly for more advanced players.
The customization feature also has a lore impact. Players can meet new NPCs who show how to find these features through quests. There are characters in the Harkonnen and Atreides factions that will point you in those directions, too.
While not directly related to customization, there are more armor features and variants. The new armor in the game provides visuals that match the greater schools. The looks help you blend into the different schools within the game and their decor. The armor pieces are not named after those schools, but the armor is strongly inspired by those schools, so people can align themselves with factions like the Bene Gesserit. Some of the armors also have their own stats, so you may even find one that matches your build.
As for vehicles, there’s now more engagement with the vehicle naming options. This should help players find their vehicles and avoid confusion. It also helps you track the storage of your vehicles, so you know what to bring out from the storage list. You might want a scout for Spice, another for warfare. Naming helps players manage those assignments for vehicles. Vehicles also get a slight adjustment, with missiles targeting vehicle parts to better simulate damage, which is nice for dogfight balance changes. There are even hotkeys to change seats in vehicles to make it easy to mine from your buggy and drive off.
Story and Missions
One of the big talking points was the game’s storyline. The seasonal update features Arrakeen and a string of murders taking place. The victims have things in common, and so you, the player, will need to investigate the deaths. You will end up doing some exploring and get to meet big-name book characters in the game’s alternate setting. They didn’t detail who, but it’s interesting for fans of Dune’s book lore.
Contracts are a big feature of world-building and character development. The new contract boards are in the social hubs. Players will naturally look for these boards in player hubs in Arrakeen to make cities feel more alive.
The missions feature a variety of factions, alongside some more lighthearted experiences like kicking drunk people out of bars. There are plans to expand on this feature in the future with new missions to keep the variety going.
As for dynamic encounters, players can find events taking place in locations like the Hagga Basin. They will give you rewards for your quest, or even access to purchase items from traders there. The events can range from fighting nearby enemies to helping find items and other classic area quests from other RPGs.
Deep Desert and Future End Game Updates Teased
The interesting thing the developers mentioned is that they were working on an internal closed beta for 18 months, so they roughly knew what players would find as pain points, such as the game’s endgame.
The endgame was addressed, with developers saying that the endgame update is coming in Season 3. The developers said they will have much more to share when Season 3 content is being worked on in more detail. When they know what they want and what will be ready for Season 3, they will share details about it.
The Deep Desert is getting an update to make it easier for players not to lose their vehicles. It should make it easier to use buggies in the Deep Desert, according to developers, removing pain points of vehicles disappearing and “bugging” out. A view distance feature is also coming at some point after Season 2 to make visual accuracy in the Deep Desert much more effective, making scouting much more interesting.
There are also plans to bring in instanced PvP and rewards at some point after Season 2 launches. So PvP-focused players won’t have to entirely rely on the Deep Desert endgame PvP features.
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