Porting a game from PC to console is no small feat, particularly when the game originates from a genre deeply rooted in the PC ecosystem. Making sure the transition between platforms doesn’t sacrifice any of the game’s essence can be challenging. However, with Dune Awakening, the development team’s motto has become “designed with a controller in mind.”
Curiously, there hasn’t been any announcement regarding the release date for the console version. In fact, the PC version, which is expected to debut first, also remains shrouded in mystery. To gain some clarity on what considerations are being made for this inevitable multi-platform launch, I had a chat with Nils Ryborg. He’s a producer on Dune Awakening, and before joining Funcom, he worked on porting Pillars of Eternity to consoles at Paradox. His insights prove invaluable for understanding this intricate process.
“The challenge we faced, I remember with Pillars of Eternity—oh, the memories,” Ryborg chuckles. “UX was a big puzzle we needed to solve, and we drew some inspiration from action RPGs, especially in terms of movement. Pillars is essentially a tactical game, and controllers naturally have limitations. So, we introduced AI architects to help NPCs make better choices, allowing players some degree of control.”
Ryborg elaborates, “We aimed to simplify character movement, enabling players to make quick decisions and engage in real-time combat more effectively. We didn’t strip away the features that let players pause and strategize complex maneuvers, though. And, of course, we paid attention to basic UX elements, like cycle buttons and such. The driving force was to meld action RPG elements with as much of the tactical side intact as possible.”
Given the approach at Paradox, what about Funcom’s strategy with Dune Awakening? Did they take a similar path or find ways to ease the transition?
“Starting with a console-first design certainly simplifies things,” Ryborg explains. “It’s easier to port back to PC from there. Building a game purely for PC with mouse and keyboard controls makes the console port tricky. So, we’ve kept the controller in mind from day one.”
“That said, while we’re launching on PC first, we’ve got it set up pretty well. As far as console UX is concerned, I’m not too worried. There’s the usual technical stuff, you know, where consoles have certain hardware restrictions. It just has to run smoothly without being overly complex.”
For now, console gamers eagerly awaiting Dune Awakening will have to be patient for more updates. But they can rest assured that the version they’ll eventually get will closely match what their PC counterparts experience.
