The Mesa update for PEAK adds a new item to the island: Balloon. Balloons might be a lighthearted toy in the real world, but in PEAK, they’re a surprisingly important survival tool. These colorful, floating helpers can greatly reduce fall damage, giving you a second chance when a single slip could otherwise mean game over. They’re especially useful in the later stages of your climb in PEAK, where the paths become narrow, unstable, and punishing.
Mastering the Backpack in PEAK - How to Actually Use It
Using the backpack in PEAK should be a straightforward process, but it's not super easy.
What Do Balloons Do In PEAK?
As mentioned above, balloons are a practical survival tool that can reduce fall damage. Once you’ve gathered a bunch of balloons, you can equip them from your inventory. When activated, the balloons will float above your head, ready to help if you lose your step.
However, they’re not parachutes, meaning a massive fall from the top of a mountain will still hurt. The balloons will significantly reduce the damage from smaller slips. This can mean the difference between surviving a bad step and having to restart your run. The more balloons you have equipped, the better the damage reduction.
Equipping balloons also ties into the Aeronautics or Achieve Flight badge in PEAK.
How to Get the Aeronautics badge in PEAK?
The Aeronautics Badge, also known as the "Achieve Flight" badge, is one of PEAK’s easiest achievements, but it still requires some preparation. To get this badge, you don’t have to climb faster or fight off the elements. Instead, you need to collect and equip one of the most whimsical survival tools in the game: Balloons.
To earn the Aeronautics Badge, your goal is simple: equip six Balloons at the same time. It sounds easy, but finding all six balloons will take a bit of grinding.
Where to Find Balloons in PEAK?
Like most items in PEAK, you’ll need to search through luggage boxes scattered across the island. Sometimes, you can get lucky and find your first balloon right where you land at the start. This isn’t guaranteed, so don’t count on it every run.
Balloons can also appear as single items or in bunches. Once you’ve collected five to six balloons, equip them from your inventory to complete the Aeronautics Badge challenge. You can equip multiple and combine them into a bunch or do all separately.
Even outside the Aeronautics Badge challenge, keeping a set of balloons on hand can save you from accidental death during tough climbs later in the game.
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 83 /100 Critics Rec: 100%
- Released
- June 16, 2025
- Developer(s)
- Landcrab
- Publisher(s)
- Aggro Crab, Landfall
WHERE TO PLAY
- Engine
- Unity
- Genre(s)
- Adventure, Exploration, First-Person
