PEAK‘s latest update, version v1.23.a, brings a series of significant adjustments to improve the player experience, especially in the challenging MESA region. With a focus on balancing, bug fixes and performance optimizations, the developers have sought to make the game fairer and more immersive. Among the changes are adjustments to damage mechanics, item spawns and enemy behavior, such as the dreaded scorpions and tumbleweeds. If you’ve experienced difficulties in this area, this update could be the key to overcoming obstacles more efficiently.

Summary

1. Detailed Balancing: Changes that Impact Gameplay

The v1.23.a update has brought significant adjustments to mechanics that might previously have seemed unfair or unpredictable. Here are the main changes and how they affect your MESA experience:

Tumbleweeds: More Consistency and New Mechanics

Damage and Repulsion: The damage and push caused by tumbleweeds are now more consistent, avoiding frustrating situations where the player was thrown disproportionately.
Size Scale: Larger tumbleweeds cause more damage and knockback, while smaller ones are less dangerous, adding a strategic layer when avoiding these obstacles.
DamageType: The damage has been changed to Thorns instead of Injury, which may influence the choice of defense equipment.

Dynamites: Less Common, More Strategy

The spawning of dynamites in suitcases has been reduced, avoiding excesses that could make certain areas chaotic. In addition, they no longer cause damage through walls, making combat fairer.

Scorpions: Adjustments for a Fairer Challenge

Adaptive Poison Damage: The closer you are to passing out, the less damage the poison deals, giving you a chance of survival in critical situations.
Line of Sight Required: Scorpions now only attack if the player is in their field of vision, reducing unwanted surprises.
Reduced Agro Radius: They are less aggressive from a distance, allowing for a more tactical approach.

Other Balance Improvements

Weight of [Item not informed] Reduced: A mysterious adjustment that should make it easier to transport an important item (no spoilers!).
Scout Cannon: 3 more seconds of protection against falling damage, helping with aerial maneuvers.

PEAK Update v1.23.a Patch Notes - Hotfix 2

2. Critical bug fixes: Kiln and Caldera problems solved

Some serious bugs that hindered progression have finally been fixed:

Lava in the Kiln: The lava climb was out of sync between players, causing inconsistencies. For the time being, the feature has been disabled until a definitive solution is found.
Fog in the Caldera: A bug caused the fog to continue rising unduly after the MESA, breaking the immersion. This has now been fixed.
MESA items: Now, region-exclusive items spawn correctly, and not just at the end.
Ultimate Badge and 24 Karat: Progression problems that prevented these achievements from being unlocked have been fixed.

4. Post-Upgrade Tips: How to Master the MESA Now

With the balance changes, some strategies have been updated:

Against Tumbleweeds:

Prioritize side dodging over blocking, as Thorns-type damage can be reflected off certain shields.
Look at their size: the larger ones require more care, but can be used to push enemies.

Managing Scorpions:

Use walls and obstacles to break your line of sight and reset the agro.
Carry extra antidotes – poison is still dangerous, but less punishing at critical levels.

Exploration with Scout Cannon:

Take advantage of the extra 3 seconds of fall immunity to reach distant platforms or escape from combat.

Known Bug (Lava in the Kiln):

While the lava mechanic is disabled, explore Kiln at your leisure to collect items before the final patch!

PEAK Update v1.23.a Patch Notes Review

I think this update shows that the devs are really listening to the community, you know? MESA was an unbalanced nightmare that a lot of people complained about, and they’ve not only fixed the most glaring problems, but they’ve also made the area challenging – just the way it should be. I’m glad they’ve kept the difficult essence of the game, only now with fewer random frustrations like taking damage from dynamite through a wall or being oneshotted by a tumbleweed out of nowhere.

I confess I’m still curious about the “[REDACTED]” item that has had its weight reduced. Could it be what people are theorizing about on the forums, or something completely new? These little mysteries are what keep the community excited between updates. Let’s hope they don’t take too long to reveal it – or maybe they’ll let the players find out for themselves in the next areas.

In the end, this patch got a lot more right than it got wrong. Of course, there are always a few annoying bugs that slip through, but the important thing is to see the game evolving over time. For those of you who were afraid to tackle MESA before, now is the perfect time to give it a go. And get ready, because with these adjustments, the speedrunners may already be breaking new records in this version. I can’t wait to see what’s coming in the next updates!

Complete Patch Notes

Hey, Scouts! We hear you loud and clear:

THE TABLE is tough indeed.

Part of me says...well. suffer . But it does seem to be a bit unfair at times, so this patch is to adjust the balance and fix bugs that are causing it!

NOTES:

IMPORTANT:

The lava rising in THE KILN has a problem where it is out of sync between players. We’ve disabled this feature until we find a solution!
We are investigating the issue where some players’ screens turn green or black. If you have any information about this, please let us know!

BALANCE:

Tumbleweed and knockback damage has been made more consistent.
Tumbleweeds now deal Thorns damage instead of damage.
Dynamite now appears in luggage a little less frequently.
Scorpions will now deal less Poison damage depending on how close you are to passing out.
Scorpions will now require line of sight to aggro you.
Tumbleweed and knockback damage now scales with the size of the tumbleweed.
Reduced weight of\[REDACTED] .
Added 3 more seconds of fall damage prevention when firing from the Scout Cannon.
Dynamite will no longer damage you through the walls.
Scorpion aggro radius reduced and movement speed slightly.

MAIN CORRECTIONS:

Performance was improved at MESA.
Fixed a problem where specific TABLE items did not appear until the end of the TABLE.
A problem has been fixed where the fog would continue to rise on the Caldera onwards.
Scout eye fixed – eye not working.
Fixed a problem where the 24 Karat badge didn’t trigger
Fixed an issue where the settings dropdown didn’t appear in Korean
Fixed an issue where, if the host player was dead, the new backpack would sometimes unlock when lighting the bonfire.
Fixed an issue where the Final Insignia could not be completed.

MINOR CORRECTIONS: