Dune Awakening's most obnoxious PVP strategy has been halted in latest hotfix

Dune Awakening’s developers definitely listen to the community, as one PVP strategy was nullified thanks to the June 18, 2025 hotfix. This update, 1.1.0.15 added quite a few changes to the game, such as increasing PVP respawn timeout, removing a deprecated item, and a few other noteworthy changes. However, one tiny little thing no doubt made many players, solo or otherwise, very happy.

There was a strategy going around that was infuriating players, because it required zero skill, and zero effort. All you had to do was some grinding, and any player, no matter how well-equipped, could be beaten. Trooper, Swordmaster, Mentat or Bene Gesserit, none could stand to the power of the Ornithopter class.

Dune Awakening’s 1.1.0.15 hotfix stopped the worst PVP strategy in the game: vehicle damage

Ornithopters were easily one of the most annoying parts about PVP in Dune Awakening’s Deep Desert. Players were constantly being harassed by them in PVP, and while it was admittedly a valid strategy, because vehicle damage was a thing, it was the sweatiest, least amount of effort you could put into PVP.

Joke's on PVPers; this strategy no longer exists! (Image via Funcom)

Vehicles took no damage when hitting a player either, so you could figuratively (and literally) teabag your enemies by just landing on them. Sure, you could argue that players have missile launches to use against Ornithopters, but by then, it was likely too late. You were already being smashed.

This latest Dune Awakening hotfix does show that the developers are actively trying to make the game better, and removing this weak PVP strategy is one of the best things they could do. While there’s still some love that needs to be shown in updating the Deep Desert, this was a good step.

While many players go in groups in PVP zones, especially if they’re in guilds, solo players really struggle as soon as they hit the open sands of the Deep Desert, thanks to players who enjoy griefing via vehicle damage.

Thankfully, that’s a thing of the past. It seems like every other day there’s a patch adjusting or updating the game in little ways, but this was a really big one. We noticed that the servers were going down for a few hours a day pretty much every day during early access, to update and fix the game.

As long as Funcom’s developers are listening to player feedback, I think Dune Awakening has a ton of potential, and this PVP hotfix is certainly an indicator of their awareness. There is no doubt in my mind players will find some other equally horrifying way to easily win in PVP, but at least this one’s gone forever.

Check out our other Dune Awakening guides and features

About the author

Jason is an Esports and Gaming journalist at Sportskeeda holding an amazing 11 years of experience under his belt. Having put out 4000-plus articles and amassing over 12 million reads for Sportskeeda, he is among the company’s most experienced writers. Jason holds a Bachelor's degree in English from UNC Pembroke and was inspired to become a gaming journalist very early on in life after reading Nintendo Power.

Jason is a jack of all trades when it comes to gaming journalism. He’s a key writer in Sportskeeda's MMO department, but he also likes to help out in other categories, like streamers, RPG, card games, and whatever else is needed. A solo gamer at heart, Jason's favorite titles include Earthbound and Dragon Warrior.

Jason places high value on accuracy and relevance in his write-ups. He achieves this with thorough research to sift facts from rumors. One of the biggest highlights of his career is his interview with Canadian pro wrestler Kenny Omega about his inclusion in the Like a Dragon game series. He is also good friends with journalist Kazumo Hashimoto, who he admires for the kind of stories he works on and his deep ethics.

A true cinephile, one of Jason’s primary hobbies involves enjoying cinematic experiences. He also loves reading, be it fiction or manga, when not working. Additionally, he streams on Twitch and posts his gaming insights on YouTube.

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Edited by Jason Parker