Dune: Awakening has announced that it is disabling Steam Family Sharing for all players to help address cheating in the game. The decision made by the Dune: Awakening development team is the latest effort to address the growing issues that the game has been facing for some time, which threaten to take the shine off the new adaptation of Frank Herbert's work for video games.

Funcom released Dune: Awakening on June 10, bringing players an open-world survival MMO in which they embark on a journey to conquer the most dangerous planet in the universe. It all starts on Arrakis, the iconic planet of vast deserts and home to the terrifying sandworms. Players can customize their character, including choosing skills and abilities, and encounter characters from the Dune books and movies. Dune: Awakening offers players a unique way to explore Arrakis, and to improve this experience, the developers have made a tough decision.

Dune Awakening Deep Desert Base Build
How to Build a Deep Desert Base in Dune Awakening

The Deep Desert is a PvEvP region in Dune Awakening that will eventually require players to build a base to process endgame materials.

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Dune: Awakening has temporarily turned off the Steam Family Sharing feature. In a note on the game's Steam page, the developers say they made this decision to combat players who abused the feature to gain an unfair advantage. The text apologizes to those who used Steam Family Sharing legitimately and says that there is no estimated time for the feature to be available again. Although Funcom has not said how cheaters used Steam Family Sharing, speculation points to the use of alternate accounts to access Landsraad vendors on opposing faction servers, or to enjoy more fiefs and vehicles than a character is entitled to.

Dune: Awakening Continues Its Fight Against Toxic Player Behavior

In addition to announcing the disabling of Steam Family Sharing, the statement confirms that developers have already banned hundreds of Dune: Awakening players who got an unfair advantage and removed “large amounts” of exploited Solaris from the game. According to Funcom, cases of cheating and exploits continue to be investigated, and more cheaters will be banned as they are identified. Finally, the text confirms that the situation is being monitored, and that fixes to the problems caused by cheats are coming in upcoming Dune: Awakening updates.

Dune: Awakening has been plagued by players accessing resources they shouldn't, using glitches to duplicate items, and ruining the experience for others. A recurring problem has been the theft of resources, entire bases, and Dune: Awakening vehicles, such as the Ornithopter. With this new announcement from Funcom, players hope that developers will be able to effectively remove these toxic players and put the game environment back on track to offer a positively engaging experience.

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Dune: Awakening Tag Page Cover Art

Dune: Awakening
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Open-World
Survival
MMO
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Systems
PC-1 PlayStation-1 Xbox-1
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Released
June 10, 2025
Developer(s)
Funcom
Publisher(s)
Funcom
Engine
Unreal Engine 5
Franchise
Dune
PC Release Date
June 10, 2025
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WHERE TO PLAY

DIGITAL
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Rise from survival to dominance on the most dangerous planet in the universe. Dune: Awakening combines the grit and creativity of sandbox survival games with the social interactivity of a large, persistent multiplayer game to create a unique and ambitious Open World Survival MMO.

Awaken The Sleeper

Your journey begins on Arrakis, with its vast deserts and colossal sandworms. Meet characters from the movies and books as you follow your story across Dune. Discover new allies and enemies and exploit your relationships to uncover the mystery that lies just beneath the surface of the sands.

Choose Your Identity

Craft your identity and build your prowess, from deep character creation to skills and abilities taught by specialists like Mentats and Bene Gesserit. Declare your loyalties by what you wear and become known by what you do, whether you are a specialized master or multi-talented adept.

Explore Arrakis Like Never Before

Dune: Awakening brings the epic landscapes of Arrakis to vivid life. Explore boundless rolling dunes, ancient underground Ecology Labs, and deep canyons pockmarked with caves, where bandits seek easy prey. Wander the bustling villages before braving the lawless and ever-changing deep desert.

Genre(s)
Open-World, Survival, MMO
Platform(s)
PC