HAWKED News

Since its discovery, X-Isle’s been the setting for faction after faction throwing themselves into the fray in pursuit of its resources and treasures. Naturally, over time they’ve left their mark as points of interest across the map. Whichever faction has stashed the supplies or fortified the position, it’s certainly nice of them to leave it out in the open and ripe for a Renegade’s taking.

The newest, scariest kid on the block is VEKTR. Read on to discover points across X-Isle that’ll certainly interest the treasure-hunting sixth sense of any Renegade in Issue #2: Dark Arrival.


[h3]VEKTR Depots[/h3]
While their flagship dominates the skies, VEKTR keeps its ground forces supplied by stocking supply Depots across X-Isle. They’re chock-full of high-value Trinkets and other loot items, but impossible to unlock without the Datakey. You’ll have to wrench those from the cold, solid steel exoskeleton of the battle-ready DELTA that carries it – check out the VEKTR Destruction Manual for tips on how exactly to go about it.

Take out the DELTA, get the Datakey, and return to the Depot to unlock it and profit!


[h3]VEKTR Outposts[/h3]
Centralizing their efforts to take over the island and to keep a constant connection with their base ship, VEKTR has set up an Outpost on the southeast side of X-Isle. Fitted with its very own Extraction Point, it can work just as well to unload your Trinkets and Artifacts if redirected to the Riftwake. You’ll just have to deal with the high-risk dangers of capturing one.

Wipe out the VEKTR enemies posted there as well as any other opponents who have their eyes on such a prize and activate its three Terminals to capture the Outpost. Once it’s yours, you’ll have permanent access to its Extraction Point with no risk of losing it for the remainder of your hunt!

With only one Outpost on the southeast side of X-Isle, you may not always be deployed around that area of the island and won’t find it in every match.


[h3]GRAIL Air Drops[/h3]
As treasure-hunting is getting a bit more risky on X-Isle, GRAIL’s devised a way to ‘boost Renegade productivity for minimum risk’. They’ll be sending out Air Drops throughout a match. Catch ‘em and loot ‘em to find a mix of weaponry, armaments, Mods, and consumables.



There’s always more to discover on X-Isle, so check back later to discover more Points of Interest as they appear throughout updates!

Hey, folks! HAWKED Executive Producer Andy Duthie here. As we’re a few weeks past the major milestone of Issue #2: Dark Arrival, I wanted to take that moment to share with you more recent updates, what we’ve got cooking, our current challenges (some old, some new), and how we plan to tackle them.
[h2]Matchmaking[/h2]
Matchmaking issues remain a concern for our team. We want to make a game people like to play without any roadblocks, and you shouldn’t have to wait for unreasonable times to play HAWKED. We’ve implemented changes to soften waiting times in the past, but the issue remains a complex one, with solutions that are challenging both to pencil out and implement.

We are developing solutions and look forward to sharing them as we approach Issue #3. If you have any ideas or further feedback about your matchmaking experience, please let us know via the usual channels.
[h2]Upcoming Content[/h2]
We’re full steam ahead on Issue #2: Dark Arrival, and there’s some cool events and content coming up soon:

• Bjorn’s Doomsday Beach Bash (June 20): Bjorn sees fire, but he's determined to go out with a splash. Take on limited-time Quests to unlock exclusive summer rewards!
• Venture 2 (June 27): The story of Issue #2: Dark Arrival continues! As GRAIL struggles to get back on its feet in the wake of VEKTR’s attack, a legendary figure from the past is called upon to help mobilize the Renegades.
• Bounties (Every Friday): Check back on the website every week to find out what the latest Bounty is. We’re closing the first month of Bounties with a bang—and bigger prizes—from June 28.

We don’t want to leave any players behind as the adventure hurtles on. Adding new platforms to our roster has always been an important goal for us, and with HAWKED recently becoming available on Xbox One and Epic Games Launcher, it’s super to see veteran and new Renegades boarding the Riftwake in Issue #2: Dark Arrival.

Even more new platforms are coming, too. One we’re very excited to launch is Steam Deck, and we’re focused on flicking that switch by the release of Venture 2, or close after.


[h2]The Impact of Issue #2 & Our Feedback Cycle[/h2]
Like any live service game, we’re only as strong as our relations with our player base, and that’s built on good old communication, teamwork, and a dash of intuition. We’re fortunate to have a vocal community that is just as determined to make HAWKED the game we know it can be.

When Issue #2 hit, we’re certainly happy with the impact the new patch has had on existing players. Our survey ratings increased significantly during and after its launch. We have processes to cut through the noise and get to the crux of the message, to distill feedback from players into tangible issues, and then begin formulating solutions and improvements.

Receiving player feedback from a variety of places, especially Discord, Reddit, and Steam, we prioritize subjects by activity. That might include things like likes and upvotes. So if you’re planning on giving feedback through our socials, it’s best to look for similar topics already posted rather than flooding them. Posts with little activity are easy to miss, a post with many similar comments and upvotes piled in, well, that’s something that would more easily catch our attention!

Collecting popular and active feedback, we then bring it to a discussion between myself, the Development Director, and the Creative Director. Knowing the capabilities and work plans of our extended teams, we then prioritize these issues into three distinct categories: NOW, LATER, or NEVER.

• NOW: Finds a place into our next patch cycle, usually up to a month away.
• LATER: Added to our backlog to be addressed at some point in the future.
• NEVER: Something that is either too technically challenging for us or doesn't fit with the direction of our vision.

We then convey this back to our Community Managers, who in turn formulate it into communications with our player base. A key connection here is also our developers, who ask for specific survey questions to get answers that strongly impact their work — so take the time to answer them!
[h2]Community Challenges – Monthly to Weekly[/h2]
We’ve always aimed to have events, challenges, and contests to complement our content releases. We ran our first Community Challenge (Trinket Trials) in May. It ran across the conclusion of Issue #1: Renegades and the launch of Issue #2: Dark Arrival, so it was an uncertain period. Though we weren’t happy with the results, we got enough data and learnings to retool and point us in a new direction, closer to our original vision.

Using player activity times, analyzing top performers, and reviewing other metrics from the first Community Challenge, we were able to introduce Bounties. We wanted it to require less of a heavy commitment for players, more and a greater variety of rewards, and a faster, more quickly refreshed pace of challenges. Now you can look forward to a new challenge every week, with varying challenge levels, new objectives to pursue, and even better rewards to push for.

Our first-ever Bounty was a success and you all managed to earn an exclusive Weapon Pattern, with a couple of more lucrative rewards for one random Renegade and the top-performing Renegade. We’ll be looking closely at how Bounty #2 turns out—so good luck!

With the vote results coming in, the Class Card Contest also recently concluded. We wanted to involve you in the ongoing saga of HAWKED and give you a truly consequential opportunity to shape it. The engagement, creativity, and care each participant showed in their entries was inspiring stuff. We’re looking forward to organizing similar events in the future!



If you’re experiencing issues or have ideas to improve your HAWKED experience, jump on Discord. We read everything, and your voice really can make the difference.

Thanks again, Renegades! See you on X-Isle.

[Incoming Transmission: BJORN]“A rousing success, Renegades! I knew there was Viking spirit in you. Come, let us celebrate… but not too hard. The robot awaits.”

[Incoming Transmission: BJORN BJORNSSON]“My treasure-seeking friends! Will you join me in the glorious pursuit of VEKTR? Those fiends are up to something. Their obvious objective is the treasure that lies within X-Isle's most hidden chambers. Go now, prise them open, and see if we're simply dealing with spirited rivals, or something more sinister.”

Look alive, Renegades. GRAIL has tasked Renegades to work together and initiate another counterattack against VEKTR. You’ll need to raid 30,000 Treasuries to discover VEKTR’s true plans. Your Bounty? A tidy 1,000 Wonderium. Log in and play at least one match from June 14–21 to be eligible, while unlocking as many Treasuries as you can.

This may be a Challenging assignment, but failing to complete it will strengthen VEKTR’s hold over X-Isle, giving them unhindered access to powerful Artifacts. VEKTR cannot be allowed to use this treasure for their nefarious goals, whatever they may be.

The top performing Renegade and one random Renegade will also receive a special Golden Bounty: your choice of either an Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 or a PlayStation DualSense Edge™.*

• Objective (Challenging): Unlock 30,000 Treasuries
• Bounty (All Renegades): 1,000 Wonderium
• Golden Bounty (1 Renegade): Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 or PlayStation DualSense Edge™
• Golden Bounty (1 Random Renegade): Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 or PlayStation DualSense Edge™
• Time Limit: June 14, 2024 16:00 CEST - June 21, 2024 16:00 CEST
• Status: Success

Beat VEKTR to the punch and every Renegade will be generously compensated with 1,000 Wonderium within 48 hours of the bounty’s completion.

Let’s get looting, Renegades!

*The Terms & Conditions for this Bounty can be found here.


[h3]What are Bounties?[/h3]
Bounties are a new weekly challenge system in HAWKED. Keep an eye on the official website and social channels to take on the latest Bounty, then play HAWKED, work together as a community, and smash the objective within the time limit to get an exclusive reward.

If the objective is reached, Bounties will be awarded to all Renegades who logged in and played at least one match in HAWKED during the Bounty period.

Bounties vary by difficulty. While one Bounty might be a breeze, certain Bounties need an extra push to nail the objective.

Special Golden Bounties, including physical and real-world prizes, may also be awarded to top bounty hunters and random Renegades, so check back often for opportunities to win big prizes.

To counter VEKTR’s cybernetically enhanced suits, GRAIL has fished some space-grade suits of their own out from storage. Sure, some would say the Starfarer Bundle (225 GE-0 Cash) looks antique, but others would call it vintage.



Available until June 20, check out the full collection in the Shop – stop by the lower deck of the Riftwake and chat with GE-0 or access it via the navigation menu.

There have been big changes to the Shop with the release of Issue #2: Dark Arrival. We’ve massively reduced base prices across the board, including an average of 30% price reductions on certain item categories. Read all about our pricing changes!

Not long ago, we challenged you to craft a Class Card of your own for the chance to have your creation immortalized as a legendary Renegade. Blown away by the treasure-looting and danger-shooting guts and grit of the entries, we upped the voting round from five entries to seven — with you having the final say on the winner!

As a reminder, all seven finalists will be rewarded, but only the most-voted entry will be added to the game.

So, without further ado… Drumroll!
[h2]Winner and Master Card-crafter[/h2]
Congratulations on the amazing effort, Renegade! You’ll be awarded 1,170 GE-0 Cash, and your entry will be developed into an Official Class Card!
[h3]Raven by Raven0V[/h3]


When GRAIL calls for the capture of rogue Renegades working for VEKTR, Raven the Bounty Hunter answers. Draped in a black coat, and with his battle-worn Fantome rifle in hand, he’s ready for the hunt. You can run, but you can't hide...

A card for Renegade seeking to specialize in tracking. The Warden’s Glass, Collar of Scorn, and Collector Coil does just that while adding a dash of bounty hunter role-play to the match. Playing the style of a solo and daring hunter, the combination of Huntclaw and Echo-Pulsar allow for an easy flank and finish maneuver to take down your prey.
[h2]Runner-Up[/h2]
Hats off to you, 720 GE-0 Cash is coming your way!
[h3]Disciple de Patecatl by ZéDaManga[/h3]

[h2]Finalists[/h2]
All of our finalists will receive 300 GE-0 Cash each!
[h3]Hound Bomber by ImFlame-[/h3]

[h3]Back Again Ben by INV4L1D[/h3]

[h3]Chantico by KINGOFARRYTHING[/h3]

[h3]Class Clown by DamageGGs[/h3]

[h3]Bloodhound, The Tireless Hunter by OrangeCoffee[/h3]


Congratulations to all of our finalists, and a big thank you to everyone who entered the Class Card Contest! Prizes will be distributed within two weeks, and we’ve started development on the winning Class Card, which will be added to HAWKED in a future patch.

Many of you crafted entries close to Class Cards already in the works and planned for future releases. While they couldn’t be put up for voting in the final round, we’d like to reward these entries for their foresight and will be sharing the complete list in a future article!