Many fans are curious about how the game will translate the rich narrative of the Dune universe into an interactive experience. In a recent Gamescom interview with Jeff Gagné, the World Director of Dune: Awakening, I gained insights into the development team’s methods of conveying the story. Although the full interview will be released later this week, here are some key points that shed light on the storytelling approach in the game.
Cinematic Storytelling: Voiced Dialogues and Cutscenes
In previous trailers, Dune: Awakening has hinted at a cinematic approach to storytelling, and this was confirmed by Jeff Gagné during our interview. Curious about the extent of this cinematic style, I asked whether all dialogues in the game would be voiced or if this treatment would be reserved only for major story events. Gagné clarified that Dune: Awakening indeed takes a comprehensive cinematic approach, with extensive use of voiced dialogues and cutscenes throughout the game.
“The dialogues are voiced, and I think this is probably the survival game with the most cutscenes ever made. There are a lot of cutscenes in the game—a lot!”
Environmental Storytelling Elements
In addition to the cutscenes and voiced dialogues, Dune: Awakening incorporates environmental storytelling to immerse players in the lore of Arrakis. Gagné discussed various in-game media that players will encounter. “Yes! There are a lot of shigawire reels that the player can find in the game. We have filmbooks and there are solido projections,” he stated.
These elements are designed to provide context and backstory as players explore the game world. Gagné provided an example involving ecology labs within the game: “When you go in testing stations, for example, the ecology labs… you can hear a solido projection. You can listen to them and hear ‘Welcome to station this and that, here we do…’ and it’s 5000 years old and still playing in loops, so players can learn a lot about the lore.” This specific example, briefly visible in the gameplay reveal video from Gamescom (see above), illustrates how the environment can convey parts of the story.
Gagné summed up this approach by stating, “So there is a lot people can read, people can hear, people can see about the lore of our version of Arrakis.”
The recently announced in-game radio stations will provide additional lore and atmosphere, further enriching the world of Arrakis. These stations, introduced at Gamescom, will contribute to the game’s overall ambiance with music, stories and propaganda while deepening players’ connection to the game’s narrative.
Stay tuned for the rest of our interview with Jeff Gagné, where we show more exciting features that Dune: Awakening has in store.
Dune: Awakening is set to launch on PC in early 2025, with versions for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S planned to release later.
