Funcom exec says optimizing Dune Awakening for Xbox Series S "is a challenge"

Dune: Awakening is aiming to push hardware capabilities with its open desert worlds and large-scale PvP battles. However, the less powerful specs of the Xbox Series S present a notable challenge for porting the game, according to Funcom chief product officer Scott Junior.

In a recent interview at Gamescom (via VG247), Scott Junior discussed the studio's optimization efforts. The Xbox Series S in particular presents challenges due to its lower specs. It's worth noting that Microsoft has already made memory optimization easier on it.

Junior stated PC will launch first to complete optimizations.

So, it's one of the reasons we're coming out on PC first. There's a lot of optimisations we need to do before we release on the Xbox. But yeah, Xbox Series S is a challenge.

While the game will leverage powerful components, even older GPUs should run it well albeit without ultra settings. The Unreal Engine allows for scalability, but Funcom is focusing on lowering asset details and employing technologies. This aims to maintain visual quality across a range of hardware.

"Unreal does a lot of the work for us in some ways. What we're more doing is optimisation of assets, and using various technologies, be it FSR or something else, to replicate frames," Funcom wants Dune: Awakening to look good on all machines. "We want the game to look stunning on high-end, whether you have a RTX 3070 or a 4090, but we also want it to look good... I don't think we've released our min-spec yet."

When asked if the game's ambitious scale could still demand much from lower-end PCs, Junior remained optimistic. Through ongoing beta testing and optimization, he believes the title will perform smoothly on hardware years old.

With beta tests ongoing, the studio is collecting data on performance and pushing servers to their maximum player capacities. According to Junior, future betas will aim to completely fill out entire virtual worlds in order to stress test the game at its intended scale.

Dune: Awakening is coming to PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5.