Ultimate Badge Guide in PEAK

One of PEAK's more recent updates added the Flying Disc. This item, featuring the game's beloved Bing Bong on its green surface, is key to unlocking the Ultimate Badge (presumably in reference to ultimate Frisbee, rather than this being the pinnacle of PEAK achievements).

This guide will discuss how to earn the badge, including offering advice to make earning it a bit easier.

The Basics of the Ultimate Badge

The Ultimate Badge is a badge earned by catching a Flying Disc that has traveled at least 100 meters. This is a unique item that is found at the Crash Site right when you spawn, which has little utility outside earning the badge (although it can be used to bonk your allies and cause trouble). Like the Astronomy Badge, it encourages a bit of fun and experimentation with an otherwise (mostly) useless item.

The throw is long enough that you'll typically need the catcher to be downhill or otherwise below the thrower, which can make resetting if you don't make a catch a chore, as you often won't be able to easily just throw it back to your disc partner. Instead, you may have to grab the disc, walk over to them, hand it to them, and then reposition to try again. This badge isn't extremely difficult to get, but it can require patience and genuine cooperation.

Getting this badge earns you a visor cosmetic item and, if on Steam, an achievement.

Making a Clean Throw

Throwing the Flying Disc 100 meters with enough accuracy that a fellow climber has a chance to actually catch it can be pretty difficult. For one, it isn't always easy to judge when someone is 100 meters away. One strategy you can use if you don't want to eyeball the distance is to get to the top of a biome and look at the campfire without activating it. The campfire will show the distance climbers are away from it. This means you can roughly judge your distance from someone if you stay near the fire as the thrower and then have them position themselves appropriately far.

As the thrower, communicate everything you are doing and anything you need the catcher to do. You want the catcher at least 100 meters away (realistically more so there is room for error if they need to move to catch) and then you want to lob the disc by holding Q. The goal is for you to throw the disc the required distance and the other person to grab it out of the air. This is much easier if you can position yourself so that you're throwing to someone lower than you. The area near campfires is again often good for this, as the top of biomes tend to have a fair bit of mostly flat, clear, downward sloping land leading to the campsite.

The ideal way to throw will vary and takes some practice, but a good strategy is to aim slightly above a person's head, aiming up higher if you can't get the distance you need even at maximum throw strength. Because there is only one disc, you should try to have the catcher positioned so that if your throw is miscalculated, or they miss the catch, the disc gets caught on nearby terrain. You can throw in a way where a miss means the disc just flies off the cliff, but then everyone had better do their jobs right on the first attempt.

The thrower doesn't get the Ultimate Badge, even if the throw is caught and meets all the conditions needed to earn the catcher the Ultimate Badge. A pair of climbers needs to make the required throw and catch at least twice if they both want the badge, swapping roles once the first catcher gets it.

Making a Clean Catch

Actually obtaining the Ultimate Badge requires that you make what can be a moderately difficult catch, even if the thrower gives you everything you need. One of the worst parts of going for this badge is simply the fact there is a single Flying Disc, so missing a catch means your only options are to either give up or go wherever the disc landed, recover it, and then hand it back to whoever you want to perform the throw. Even then, this takes time, which is a limited resource in PEAK.

To make a good catch, stay in communication with the thrower and be ready to react once they release the disc. Even if they do a good job, you'll likely need to adjust a little bit, with your goal being to get your cursor positioned, so the disc will pass over it while in catching range. As soon as you think you're in a good position, spam E to try and catch the item (mechanically, you're just picking it up out of midair). There is no reason to perfectly time your button press exactly when the disc is in range; spamming will generally result in an overall greater length of time your character has a chance to grab it and will improve your overall chance of success.