Funcom, the studio behind Dune: Awakening, has introduced it can lay off some staff as a part of a restructuring effort. The information could come as a shock to many followers in gentle of the MMO’s widespread reputation since launch, though the group has handled its justifiable share of points, too. Regardless, whereas work on Dune: Awakening will proceed, not all the unique workers might be concerned in it going ahead.
Whereas Funcom has been releasing video games for over 30 years, its newest effort has been its largest hit. Following a powerful early entry interval, Dune: Awakening landed in Steam’s top 10 most popular games after its full launch, hitting a peak of over 175,000 concurrent gamers simply 5 days after popping out. Nevertheless, issues at the moment are altering for the sport, and Funcom has confirmed that these modifications will lead to some workers members having to half methods with the studio.
In a statement to GamesIndustry.biz, Funcom introduced that it was transitioning “from improvement to long-term dwell operation,” and that this shift would imply letting go of some staff. The corporate didn’t specify how many individuals can be affected, as it could not know that but itself, saying the group remains to be assessing the impression and in search of new alternatives for many who it does impression. Funcom additionally talked about Dune: Awakening‘s upcoming console release within the assertion, explaining that getting ready for that growth whereas transferring into ongoing help mode would require some restructuring throughout the studio.
Even earlier than the information of those impending layoffs, Funcom has confronted some ups and downs this 12 months. On one hand, Dune: Awakening was the most important launch in firm historical past, promoting quicker than any of its earlier titles. On the opposite, fan perceptions of the sport have wavered since its launch. The fanbase was cut up on modifications to the endgame, and Funcom needed to apologize to some Dune: Awakening players and reimburse them for misplaced in-game objects after an replace prompted a glitch resulting in some customers dropping bases and tools. The title’s PvP components have additionally been a degree of rivalry, though the studio has been fast to reply to suggestions about all these points.
Wanting ahead, there may be nonetheless lots on the horizon for the MMO. Funcom has detailed several Dune: Awakening updates coming in the future, together with a revamped endgame and the Chapter 3 growth someday in early 2026. Extra updates and DLC will observe, though the timeline and particulars for these are much less clear. Within the meantime, Funcom has requested for understanding throughout this troublesome transition and mentioned it is not going to make any extra feedback on the matter.