Dune Awakening patch 1.3.20 splits Deep Desert into PvE and PvP instances

Dune Awakening’s latest update makes a pretty major change to how its endgame desert works. With patch 1.3.20, every official world now has at least one PvE and one PvP instance of the Deep Desert, while Hagga Basin is now fully PvE across the whole map, including the shipwrecks.

That means players who want to avoid open-world PvP have a clearer path now, especially in one of the game’s most important zones. According to the patch notes, the PvP version of the Deep Desert has also been reset to its original launch state.

The change follows Funcom’s recent acknowledgment that most of the game’s players were sticking to PvE. Earlier this month, the studio said more than 80% of lifetime players had engaged exclusively with PvE content, which made the game’s earlier mixing of PvE and PvP in places like the Deep Desert look increasingly out of step with how people were actually playing.

Patch 1.3.20 also includes a few balance and technical tweaks. Funcom says it has adjusted drop rates, reduced boss health in Testing Stations for groups of different sizes, and added performance and memory optimizations.

The Testing Stations change seems aimed at one specific complaint: group runs could actually feel harder than they should. Lowering boss HP in those fights should make co-op play less of a slog, though Funcom says it’ll keep watching feedback and participation before making more changes.