Destiny 2 Exotic Disabled Amidst Exploit Concerns

Bungie has temporarily removed the Hawkmoon exotic hand cannon from Destiny 2's PvP modes due to a game-breaking exploit. This isn't the first time Destiny 2, a live-service game, has faced such issues; the infamous "Laser Tag" weekend, featuring an overpowered Prometheus Lens, is a prime example.

Despite largely positive reception for the recent "The Final Shape" expansion, bugs persist. One such issue renders the new No Hesitation auto rifle ineffective against barrier champions, seemingly due to a conflict with its unique healing rounds.

Hawkmoon, a popular weapon since its Season of the Hunt return, has become a Crucible problem. Its combination with the Kinetic Holster mod allowed players to bypass its Paracausal Shot perk cooldown, resulting in overpowered, essentially unlimited, damage-boosted shots. This exploit led to numerous one-shot kills in Crucible matches.

Bungie's response was swift, disabling Hawkmoon in Crucible before the Trials of Osiris weekend. This follows another recent exploit involving easily farmable rewards in private matches which was also quickly patched. While the private match exploit primarily yielded resources, the rarity of deepsight weapon drops made it a concern for Bungie. The quick removal of this relatively minor exploit, however, left some players frustrated.