Dune: Awakening GPU Benchmarks, VRAM Usage, and CPU Bottlenecks: A Performance Deep Dive

 

June 18, 2025 — Dune: Awakening, the highly anticipated open-world survival MMO from Funcom, has taken the gaming world by storm since its release earlier this month, boasting around 100,000 concurrent players on Steam. Built on Unreal Engine 5 with cutting-edge features like Lumen Global Illumination and Virtual Shadows, the game delivers stunning visuals but demands serious hardware. Recent benchmarks reveal how GPUs perform, VRAM requirements, and unexpected CPU bottlenecks that could impact your experience on Arrakis. Here’s a comprehensive breakdown of the latest performance data.

GPU Performance: From Budget to Flagship

Benchmarks at various resolutions highlight Dune: Awakening’s GPU-heavy nature, with performance scaling dramatically across Nvidia, AMD, and Intel GPUs. At 1080p with maximum settings (no upscaling), the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 leads with 94 FPS and 63.5 FPS 1% lows, followed by the RTX 4080 Super and RTX 5070 Ti, both hovering around 90 FPS with ~60 FPS lows. The RTX 4070 Ti delivers 80 FPS with 64 FPS lows, while the RTX 4070 manages 68 FPS with 45 FPS lows, and the RTX 5060 Ti trails at 63 FPS with 41 FPS lows.

At 1440p, the RTX 4090 pulls ahead with 84 FPS, outpacing the RTX 4080 Super (73 FPS) by 20–25% and the RTX 5070 Ti (69 FPS) by a similar margin. The RTX 4070 Ti averages 58.5 FPS, leading the RTX 4070 (53 FPS) by 11% and the RTX 5060 Ti (44 FPS) by 33%. Budget cards like the RTX 3060 struggle, barely hitting 40 FPS with sub-30 FPS lows, making them unsuitable for high settings at this resolution.

4K is where the game becomes fully GPU-bound, with the RTX 4090 achieving 52 FPS, 26% ahead of the RTX 4080 Super (41 FPS) and 33% faster than the RTX 5070 Ti (39 FPS). The RTX 4070 Ti manages 34 FPS, while the RTX 4070 drops to 30 FPS, highlighting the need for high-end hardware at ultra settings. Using Software Lumen and balanced-mode upscaling, the RTX 5070 Ti hits 63 FPS at 4K, with the RTX 4080 Super at 67 FPS, though 1% lows remain around 45–48 FPS.

VRAM Usage: Surprisingly Modest

Despite its Unreal Engine 5 foundation, Dune: Awakening is relatively light on VRAM compared to other modern titles. At 4K with maximum settings, VRAM usage peaks at 10GB, dropping to 8.5–9GB with lower presets. At 1440p and 1080p, the game uses 8.5GB and 8GB, respectively, at max settings without Virtual Shadows. Enabling Hardware Lumen or reducing texture quality can shave off 500–1000MB, making GPUs with 8GB VRAM (like the RTX 4060 Ti) viable at 1080p, though players report crashes on 8GB cards due to memory issues in some scenarios.

For comparison, other UE5 titles like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 also use up to 10GB at 4K, but Dune’s optimization allows it to run on lower-VRAM cards with tweaks like upscaling or reduced textures. Players with high-end GPUs like the RTX 4090 (24GB VRAM) still face “out of video memory” errors, suggesting optimization issues rather than pure VRAM limitations.

CPU Bottlenecks: A Strange Limitation

One of the most surprising findings is Dune: Awakening’s CPU bottleneck, particularly at frame rates near 100 FPS across all resolutions. Midrange CPUs like the Core i9-12900K struggle to push past this mark, with GPU-busy deviation spiking to 20–30% in busy areas like trade centers. Even high-end CPUs like the Ryzen 9 7950X or Core i9-14900K hit this limit without frame generation, which is required for 144 FPS or higher. The Raptor Lake-based Core i9-13900K and i7-14700K are 15–20% faster than the i9-12900K at 1080p and 4K with upscaling, while the Ryzen 7 7800X3D and 9800X3D may offer better performance.

This bottleneck is unusual for a UE5 title, as games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 show less CPU dependency. Tweaking settings or upscaling doesn’t alleviate the issue, pointing to engine-level optimization challenges, especially in NPC-heavy areas. Players with older CPUs may need to cap frame rates or rely on DLSS/FSR frame generation for smooth gameplay.

Upscaling and Frame Generation: A Must for Smoothness

Dune: Awakening heavily benefits from upscaling technologies like Nvidia’s DLSS, AMD’s FSR, and Intel’s XeSS. At 1440p with balanced-mode upscaling, the RTX 4070 achieves 52 FPS with 50 FPS lows, while the RTX 4070 Ti hits 60 FPS with 47 FPS lows, and the RTX 5070 Ti reaches 75 FPS with 56 FPS lows. At 4K, upscaling is essential, boosting the RTX 5070 Ti to 63 FPS and the RTX 4080 Super to 67 FPS. Hardware Lumen, which uses ray-tracing cores, demands frame generation for stutter-free performance, even on top-tier systems.

At 1080p, the RTX 4060 Ti averages 67.5 FPS without upscaling but climbs to 140.3 FPS with DLSS Quality and frame generation, making it a solid budget option. However, players report stutters near trade hubs, where frame generation becomes critical to maintain fluidity.

Optimization Challenges and Settings Tips

While Dune: Awakening performs better than some UE5 titles like Elder Scrolls: Oblivion Remastered, it’s not without flaws. Stutters and FPS drops are common in NPC hotspots, and Virtual Shadows, labeled “experimental,” increase GPU and VRAM demands while offering sharper visuals. For low-end systems (e.g., RTX 3060 or GTX 1650), recommended settings include medium textures, low foliage, and FSR3 Ultra Performance upscaling to hit 30+ FPS. High-end systems (RTX 3080+) can run at ultra with DLSS Performance and frame generation for smooth 60–90 FPS.

Community feedback on Steam forums highlights crashes on GPUs with 8GB VRAM, like the RTX 4060 Ti, and even high-end cards like the RTX 4090, suggesting driver or engine issues. Nvidia’s hotfix driver (576.66) hasn’t fully resolved these problems, prompting players to lower resolutions or lock FPS to 60.

System Requirements and Hardware Context

The game’s minimum requirements include a GTX 1060 (6GB), Ryzen 3 1200, and 16GB RAM for 1080p at 30 FPS, while recommended specs call for an RTX 3070 or Intel Arc B580 for higher settings. These are modest for a 2025 title, but the CPU bottleneck and VRAM issues make midrange setups challenging. Looking ahead, Intel’s upcoming Nova Lake-S CPUs, rumored for 2026 with up to 52 cores, could alleviate these bottlenecks, offering a future-proof option for MMO enthusiasts.

Why It Matters

Dune: Awakening showcases Unreal Engine 5’s potential for immersive MMOs but also exposes its optimization hurdles. For players, understanding GPU performance, VRAM needs, and CPU limitations is key to enjoying Arrakis without frustration. As Funcom refines the game and new hardware like Intel’s Nova Lake-S emerges, Dune could become a benchmark for next-gen survival titles—if it can iron out its performance kinks.

Join the Conversation

Are you braving Dune: Awakening’s deserts? What’s your rig, and how’s performance holding up? Do you think future CPUs like Nova Lake-S could solve the game’s bottlenecks? Share your experiences and stay tuned for updates on this spice-fueled MMO.