Author: Nik Ranger

Respawn listens to Apex Legends player pleas by offering cheaper coins in-game Respawn EntertainmentAfter months of discourse from the Apex Legends community surrounding the high cost of in-game coins, Respawn has finally listened to the criticism and added lower costing currency packs. The Apex Legends in game currency, Apex coins, allows players to purchase cosmetic items for characters and weapons. Items may vary in cost which then requires players to purchase bigger currency packs. However, more often than not, fans find themselves forking out money for a pack to then only need to use a portion of the coins they have purchases to unlock their items. This issue is something that a lot of different communities have with most online games or any game that includes some form of in game currency. The options are usually either bigger, more expensive packs or require players to purchase multiple in order to unlock the item they desire. Now after player pleas, Respawn has given players a more budget option when they buy Apex Coins. While Respawn made no statement or formal acknowledgement of this problem and player concern, a recent development in the game suggests that they had heard the cries and were happy to answer them. Now when players go to purchase currency packs, they will have the added options of purchasing 500 Apex coins, setting players back $4.99 USD. It replaces the 1,000 coin, $9.99 offering as the cheapest bundle. Respawn/EA listened to feedback from players and have added a 500 Apex Coins option into the store. pic.twitter.com/3iuYYeb3bi — Apex Legends News (@alphaINTEL) July 5, 2022 The change means players don’t have to fork out big dollars and have plenty of Apex Coins sitting there waiting to be used — so you can spent just the right amount when you need.

Respawn accidentally leaks new Apex Legends weapon: Nemesis Burst AR Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends Season 10’s Collection event has officially been revealed by the devs with tons of the new content. However, the team accidentally leaked a new gun, the Nemesis Burst AR, in the trailer despite it not being ready for release. The full patch notes for Apex Legends Evolution Collection event have landed and the update is set to come to the game on September 14 with tons of new content. From Rampart’s heirloom, new skins, to tons of new bundles this event is certain to refresh the current season. However, not everything that was showcased in the event trailer will be in the game as players were quick to point out a new weapon. Apex Legends new Burst Assault Rifle With the Season 10 Collection trailer and patch notes out, players have been diving into the tiny details that were released. Fans were quick to realize that a new weapon appeared in the buy menu when showcasing Arenas: Nemesis Burst AR. The Nemesis Burst AR appeared only in name, since it had the picture of the R-301 Carbine, believed to be a simple placeholder for the unreleased weapon. With the available attachments in the picture, fans noticed that this will likely be an Energy weapon as it has the extended energy mag icon. With it being a burst AR it could be the energy version of the Hemlock, but all that remains to be seen. While this gun was only revealed with a picture and not actual gameplay the devs were quick to jump on Twitter to inform fans that this was shown on accident. https://twitter.com/RKRigney/status/1435993192768409600 Even though players were excited for a new weapon to be added to the pool it appears they’ll have to wait much longer. Apex devs confirmed that the gun is not ready for release “any time soon.” Without a set release date it could be seasons before this gun is implemented into the game and a lot can change. However, players can be excited knowing that a new weapon will come sooner rather than later.

Respawn lay out year one plans for Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment have confirmed their plans for year one of their free-to-play new release – Apex Legends, including releasing a roadmap to show fans what’s to come. After it’s stealthy release on February 4, the new free-to-play battle royal Apex Legends has quickly swept across the gaming world – with over one million unique players playing the game within eight hours of its launch. Yet, Respawn Entertainment still has more to come for the game – including a Battle Pass that will launch sooner rather than later and bring with it new cosmetics, in-game loot and even new Legends to play as. The game’s battle pass and season one will launch in March and give players access to exclusive cosmetic items that are earned through playing. According to the developer, each season will last for around three months at a time. Read More: How to download Apex Legends battle royale on PC, Xbox One, PS4 – reveal trailer, system requirements, and more – Season two is planned for the start of June, Season three should follow in September and Season four kicking off in December – giving players almost a full year of planning from Respawn and plenty of new content to look ahead to. Here’s the roadmap for what’s coming to Apex Legends in 2019. pic.twitter.com/iOle3XTQoG — Apex Legends Intel (@TitanfallBlog) February 4, 2019 Players can also look forward to being able to play the new free-to-play release cross-platform. In a recent interview with Eurogamer, Respawn Entertainment’s Lead Producer – Drew McCoy – confirmed that cross-play for Apex Legends is in the works and will be coming at some point in the game’s lifespan. However, there is no date set for that update just yet – but it can’t be too far into the future. Until then, you can check out our Apex Legends Guide Hub for our other guides and info articles, including ones for weapons, Legends characters, map and locations, micro-transactions, and much more. If there are any other guides you want to see us make, you can let us know by tweeting us @Dexerto with your idea!

Respawn explains how lag compensation works in Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentEver wondered how you can get hit behind cover in Apex Legends? It’s because of lag compensation. Respawn has opened up on how the system works, and why they decided to implement it into the battle royale. Lag compensation is a term familiar to fighting game players (it’s akin to rollback), although for battle royales, it’s practically unheard of. Typically if you boot up an FPS — say CS:GO, Valorant, or even Warzone — and you have high ping, you’re at an immediate disadvantage. The server won’t register your shots, you can’t run around corners without getting beamed by the enemy first, and more. However, Apex Legends bucks the trend with lag compensation. Respawn have opened up on how the feature works, and why they prefer to equalize the field rather than let low ping players dominate. How does lag compensation work in Apex Legends? According to developer Samy ‘Ricklesaucer’ Duc, lag compensation allows players on high ping to more fairly compete with those on low ping. “Our servers have to constantly look at not only what’s happening for you and your opponent at that moment, but also what was happening from both your perspectives at the time both of you input your actions,” he explained in an April 28 blog post. “Lag compensation is the art of merging slightly different experiences into one shared reality.” Read More: Respawn respond to 20-tick server complaints – While most online games just rely on server-side inputs, which always favor lower ping players, Respawn wants Apex Legends to cater to players who don’t have the most reliable internet connection. “Some games always give the advantage to players with lower ping, but we actively choose not to with our system,” Duc said. “Players with low ping don’t always have an advantage over high-ping players. You can play Apex Legends and play relatively well even if you have higher than average latency, which is really important for rural players, or for players in regions where connectivity is unstable.” Lag compensation leads to “nonsense,” but it’s intended The biggest criticism of this system comes from “nonsense” — the rather technical term used by Respawn to explain why some players get hit from behind cover. The devs have tried to minimize this, but they value the “fairness in online competition” by equalizing ping as much as possible. “It feels bad to get shot when you think you’re behind cover due to bad ping. It also feels bad to get shot by somebody before you could even see them due to bad ping. But the nonsense is distributed symmetrically,” developer Earl Hammon added. “We’re committed to reducing this at every opportunity. Not only do we want everyone to have a fair experience, we want you to have a fun one,” Duc said.

Respawn just banned over 2000 Apex Legends players using cheats RespawnRespawn just dropped the ban hammer and took down 2,000-plus Apex Legends cheaters. Cheating issues plague Apex Legends from the casual level all the way up the ladder to the battle royale’s best players. Most recently, the number one ranked Predator player received a ban after HisWattson called them out for cheating. An uptick in bans shouldn’t come as a surprise. In January 2023, Chris Bruzzo, EA Chief Officer, claimed banning cheaters is at the top of the Apex team’s priority list. Bruzzo elaborated that eliminating cheating is one of the best ways to reduce toxicity in games. Respawn kept true to its promise by dishing out a permanent ban to a player who goaded the devs to do so in February. And now, 2000 plus cheaters find themselves at the wrong end of a ban in the latest crackdown. Apex Legends devs go on offensive against cheaters On September 13, Respawn announced: “This morning, we banned 2,000-plus accounts that were using cheats. As a reminder, please report any suspicious player activity through our in-game tools.” Community members celebrated the announcement. Apex Legends pro HisWattson joked: “I was wondering why I couldn’t log in this morning.” Other players in the comment section took turns praising Respawn, as a second user added: “I’d like to give you a round of applause. Good going!” However, some community members still aren’t totally satisfied with the in-game process for reporting cheaters. A third player argued: “Thank you for the bans. But, many people still are not able to send in reports directly when they die to cheaters! I Would love to have a fix on that!” Hopefully, this wave of bans deters cheaters from ruining other players’ experiences. But as we have learned in the past, cheaters always find a way to slip through the cracks.

Respawn job listing confirms new Apex Legends map being planned Respawn Entertainment / Liam MacDonaldAs fans have dropped back into a new look Kings Canyon for Season 5 of Apex Legends, there is still disappointment from some that there wasn’t a whole new map. But, it looks like Respawn is busy working on something to come. It was announced in May that Respawn had opened up an entirely new studio in Vancouver dedicated to working on Apex Legends. This news immediately excited players as it should mean more new content and features, more often. Some have speculated about the mobile version of Apex, or cross-play being added, but a new map is also one of the possibilities. The latter now looks all the more likely, thanks to a Respawn job listing for the new studio. Posted on May 19, this vacancy is for an experienced level designer to join the team working on Apex Legends. In the job description, it says that the new hire will “create and own large scale multiplayer maps iterating through gameplay blockouts in a live playtest environment.” Perhaps the biggest clue that they’re working on new maps, rather than updates to the current ones is where it describes “helping realize the creative vision for taking players to new worlds.” The candidate will also be expected to “champion a gameplay first mentality,” and “be forward-thinking and pro-active in terms of finding ways to improve the players’ experience through map design.” World’s Edge was added in Season 3, and this led to speculation that Season 5 would have a new map (a new map every two seasons). But, technically Kings Canyon was around for three seasons before World’s Edge, because of ‘Season 0’ (before Season 1 officially started). This job listing could mean a new map in Season 6, but a better guess would probably be Season 7 or 8. This will give the developers ample time to create a new location from the ground up. In the meantime, expect to see more map overhauls like Kings Canyon got for Season 5. As for where a new map would be, the most likely option is the planet of Psamathe. The birthplace of Lifeline and Octane, we’ve seen numerous teasers about this planet, even as far back as Season 3. World’s Edge arrived instead, which is on the planet of Talos. In the Season 5 trailer, fans spotted a reference to Psamathe in the underground area Loba had broken into. Apex Legends has the whole Titanfall universe to choose from, so it’s still anyone’s guess which planet might be next.

Respawn job listing confirms Apex Legends new map plans for Arenas and BR Respawn/EAApex Legends players are always looking to the future and what might be coming next. While we’re getting a throwback to the original Kings Canyon, Respawn are also looking to make new maps. In the two years since Apex Legends launched, Respawn have made a number of huge map changes and introduced two new maps on top of the original setting of Kings Canyon. World’s Edge and Olympus have both proven to be popular with fans, even if it took a while to get the battle royale moved to new locations. While a new map doesn’t seem imminent, Respawn have plans for new original maps in the future, given that they want a new level designer. Respawn’s Jason McCord noted that the developers are looking for another level designer, just a year after they were searching for their last addition. Just like last time, any new designers that join the Respawn team will work on new map updates, the popular Town Takeover events, as well as maps for both the battle royale and arenas modes. McCord’s post also teases “special projects” as well, but there’s no real way of telling what they might be for Apex. They could, though, be related to Respawn’s other games that they have in the works. We’re also looking for a Level Designer. https://t.co/wcwv6TofCC This person will work on things like: – Town takeovers – Seasonal map updates – Arenas maps – Whole original maps like Olympus, etc. – Special Projects 👀— Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) June 25, 2021 As for when exactly we could see a new map in Apex, that’s up in the air. Respawn haven’t stuck to a schedule of releasing a new map with each alternating seasonal update. Kings Canyon survived by itself for three seasons before World’s Edge was introduced, and it was a further four updates before Olympus was added. Season 10 won’t be too far off and there has been no indication that a new map will come with that update, so we’ll just have to wait and see what the future brings.

Respawn “investigating” two major Wraith glitches in Apex Legends Respawn/EA[jwplayer UQowmNq2]Apex Legends developers Respawn Entertainment have confirmed that they’re working on fixes for two of the biggest Wraith bugs that currently plague the battle royale. As one of, if not the most, popular characters in Apex Legends, it’s a good bet that you’ll see wraith running around Kings Canyon or World’s Edge during games. However, in recent weeks, the Interdimensional Skirmisher has suffered a few issues. Most recently, with the start of the Lost Treasures Collection Event, players reported that her Marble Goddess skin had a broken hitbox – prompting Respawn to get a fix put into place, though, some players argued that it was fine. Yet, the devs have sprung into action once again, confirming that they’re weeding out a few other Wraith-centric problems. On their public Trello board, where Apex legends fans can see what problems are being addressed, Respawn noted that they were investigated two pretty big issues. The first of which is the bug where Wraith can use her gun while phasing. This has been cropping up in games with regularity, leaving non-Wraith users to be dismayed as she shoots from beyond the void. The other is the bug where, when players exit Wraith’s portal, they can see the legend being ‘pushed’ underground. This problem in particular has led to frustrations as players have lost games because of it. While some fans might get excited by the prospect of fixes being on the horizon, these bugs were only labeled as under investigation on July 2. This means that a fix hasn’t been found just yet. However, the devs have moved pretty swiftly in the past, so it might not be all that long before Wraith’s problems are a thing of the past. For now, though, we’ll just have to wait and see as to what they can do.

Respawn may have intentionally leaked a new Apex Legends weapon Respawn Entertainment, the studio behind Apex Legends, may have accidentally, or perhaps intentionally, dropped a teaser for a new unreleased weapon in their latest developer check-in. So far, Apex Legends has only had one new weapon added post-launch – the Havoc energy rifle – and so it’s expected that some new weapons are coming soon. The launch of Season 1 came and went, and while we did get a new Legend in Octane, there were no new weapons added alongside. Presumably at some point during Season 1 though, some additions will be made to the current arsenal, and Respawn may have in fact shown off a glimpse at what this might be. On March 27, the community manager Jay Frechette posted a ‘check-in’ thread on the official Apex Legends subreddit, discussing various updates and considerations that the team is currently discussing. What many people may not have noticed though, is that the images accompanying the post have some peculiarities – namely the weapon being wielded on Mirage’s back, in this image here. The image isn’t great quality, nor does it give a clear view of the weapon, but it certainly isn’t anything we recognize as being available in the game as of March 28. This wasn’t the only image that has caught some players’ eyes either, as the third image in the post also shows Lifeline with a rather large and unfamiliar weapon on her back. As for what these weapons are, your guess is as good as ours. However, it’s likely they are inspired by weapons from the Titanfall series, as most guns which are available now are. Some have suggested that the weapon on Mirage’s back could be related to the CAR SMG from Titanfall 2, which does bear some similarities. We will have to wait until a future update to see if these are indeed new weapons coming to the game, but if they are released like the Havoc before them, we may not get much notice. Just like how the game itself was released as a surprise, the Havoc was announced the day before it was added, so you never know when Respawn might decide to add in something fresh.

Respawn “improving” Apex Legends anti-cheat as pro players complain of rampant hacking Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has confirmed Respawn is “working” on anti-cheat improvements after pros complain about countless hackers. While the Apex Legends community loves most of the new content Respawn pushes out on a seasonal basis, there are some aspects of the game that players are desperate to see improve. One of which is the number of cheaters that use third-party software to gain an advantage over their opponents. Although the devs have certainly taken steps over the past year to improve their detection system, hackers are still running rampant in Ranked. However, after seeing complaints from a pro player on the issue, Security Analyst at Respawn Conor ‘Hideouts’ Ford has confirmed they’re “working” on changes to the anti-cheat. Apex Legends dev confirms anti-cheat improvements are coming Taking to Twitter on July 21, Apex pro player HisWattson criticized the devs by sending a message to cheaters telling them the best time to play to avoid a ban. In response, Hideouts called out the tweet as “cringe” and questioned why HisWattson assumed the devs don’t have anything “in the works to improve the anti-cheat”. Instead of revealing exactly what they have planned, Hideouts and the Respawn team clearly think it’s beneficial to remain tight-lipped regarding the anti-cheat changes, in the hopes they can stay one step ahead of the hackers. While this heated discussion does show how much frustration the cheaters are causing for pros and players alike, it did let us know that Respawn is “working” on improving their detection. As no details were shared by Hideouts, it’s impossible to know when these anti-cheat improvements are going to arrive in-game. With Season 14 just around the corner, it seems unlikely the devs will have the changes ready by then, but it is always possible they’re holding off on a big announcement. Either way, the tension is clearly building between the community and Respawn when it comes to cheaters, so let’s hope the devs have a long-term solution in the works.

Respawn hope to bring Wraith “under control” in Apex Legends Season 8 RespawnThe debate around Wraith is still raging on in Apex Legends. Despite change after change, she’s still a power pick in a lot of situations. However, in Season 8, Respawn are pulling out the final straw to try and bring Wraith “under control” once and for all. [jwplayer vP8vm9zZ] Wraith has been slowly tuned down over the 20-month history of Apex Legends from outrageously broken, to somewhat manageable. Despite being hit with a big set of nerfs in June’s Lost Treasures update though, she still reigns supreme in the Outlands. However, Respawn aren’t giving up hope on finally bringing the voidwalker “under control.” In an interview on the Third Party podcast, developer Daniel Klein said that more changes are on the way in Season 8. While he joked about just straight up removing Wraith from the game, Respawn actually have a direction they want to take. They don’t want to hit Wraith’s kit any harder. They want to see if they can “fix” her hitboxes. “I don’t want to hit her kit any more. We’ve pushed that to the breaking point where it’s barely still fun, but the extremely wind-up on her tactical — as much as it was necessary — it puts the ability more into the camp of cerebral power rather than satisfying in the moment power,” he said. “With Wraith, our approach is going to be very similar to Pathfinder. We’re going to take a look at her hitboxes and see how much wiggle room we have there. With Pathfinder, it turned out that we had so much… that was a 20% increase in hitbox size.” The Pathfinder changes were shipped in the Season 7 update earlier in November, and have made the grappling robot a bit easier to hit while dashing across Olympus and the other maps. Despite Respawn’s hopes though, nothing is locked in. They’ve only just started scouting out the work to change Wraith’s hitboxes. Klein stated he hopes the changes will be enough that Respawn could even look at buffing Wraith down the line, but the solution could be a dead end. “Nothing is guaranteed yet, we haven’t started work yet. I’ve asked one of our technical artists to take a look at it. Whenever he gets around to it, we will know more. “My earnest hope is that we can bring her under control with just hitbox changes, and then maybe even look at ways at making her more in-the-moment fun again, and find a balance point between her tactical now and what it used to be.” They’re not willing to risk “giving Wraith more power” by shipping some changes early before they tackle her hitboxes, so don’t expect ability buffs soon. However, in Apex Legends Season 8, expect Wraith to feel a little bit different.

Respawn hint that Apex Legends moving emote glitch won’t be removed Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment have hinted that Apex Legends’ moving emote glitch won’t be removed, despite appearing to be a way to exploit the BR’s movement system. Any game of Apex Legends’ size and scale is bound to suffer from the occasional bug or glitch, and the general opinion of the community is largely complimentary towards Respawn. One recent emergent bug allows players to emote while moving around the map, leading to some hilarious and bizarre gameplay. While some players called on Respawn to patch the issues, most are enjoying the hilarity provided by the odd movement and highlighted the harmlessness of the issues. While Respawn have not been explicit in how they will tackle the problems, they appear to be letting them stay, at least for the meantime. On May 10, Respawn’s official Apex Legends Twitter account posted a tweet showing players using the bug, leading many to the conclusion that they will not be patching it. When you take a break from the Apex Games to drop in with your bruddahs. 🛹 🎬: u/BottlecapYT pic.twitter.com/KIzxtmLDd0 — Apex Legends (@PlayApex) May 10, 2021 Similarly, Director of Communications Ryan Krigney made comments on a Reddit thread about the emote movement bugs, suggesting they don’t mind players using them in-game. In a discussion about the fact that the official Apex account posted the above clip, some players suggested that the Twitter team may be completely unrelated to the dev team, who could still yet patch it. Ryan Krigney, though, said “We do [work in unison with the devs]”, suggesting that the devs are fine with the emote movement glitch and will not be patching it. The response, and acknowledgment on Twitter, certainly suggest that Respawn do not mind the presence of the bug in-game. It does not appear on their dedicated Apex Legends Trello board either, again suggesting it is here to stay.

Respawn hint at Peacekeeper returning as ground loot in Apex Legends Season 9 Respawn/EAAn Apex Legends dev has hinted that the Peacekeeper shotgun might return to ground loot sooner rather than later, as players miss the gun with it being stuck in care packages only. As Respawn Entertainment have released new seasons for Apex Legends, they’ve had the tough task of keeping the game balanced while also keeping the meta fresh and interesting. This has included making changes to the maps, legends, and weapons. In the case of weapons, the changes go beyond just adding new ones and making buffs and nerfs. The battle royale developers have constantly rotated the fully-kitted gold weapons, as well as those that can only be found in care packages (aka supply drops). The latter causes some issues, as some fan-favorite guns, mainly the Peackeeper, have been stuck in the drops for a little longer than normal. Typically, weapons that aren’t the Kraber will spend a season inside a care package, but the Peacekeeper is now into its fourth season as a drop-only weapon, and players want it back as ground loot. Apex developer Eric Canavese responded to one of the calls for a change on the Apex Legends subreddit, diving into a bit of the science being picking the care package weapons. “We actually consider what the loot looks like with a ton of different combinations entering and exiting the care package,” he said. “This season we decided to keep the care package contents the same to allow for the meta to settle in with the addition of the 30-30, a weapon that has a somewhat similar charging mechanic – but this isn’t a hard rule or anything. We know the Peacekeeper is a fan favorite and is one of the first weapons we consider coming out of the care packages each season so keep an eye out in the future!” Comment byu/rkrigney from discussion inapexlegends As the dev suggests, once the meta settles down and players figure out what works and what doesn’t, Respawn will be able to make changes based on that data. Everyone from casual players to professionals have been hoping for a return to floor loot for the Peacekeeper, even if it means hitting it with a slight nerf to balance it out. A mid-season change to the supply drop weapons is rather unlikely, so it will probably be a case of waiting for Season 9, set to start in early May.

Respawn are going to ban players who are bad teammates in Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentIn a recent post, Apex Legends and potentially issue permanent bans. Apex Legends is currently one of the biggest battle royale games in the genre and many players are wanting to level up their in-game accounts as fast as possible, with ‘survival time’ earning XP points, meaning the longer you are alive in-game, the more XP you get. Respawn Entertainment have now announced in a Reddit post on May 10 that they will start potentially issuing permanent bans after some players have resorted to some unfair tactics such as “piggy-backing” to level up quicker in Apex Legends. What is piggy-backing in Apex Legends? Piggy-backing is a term used for when a player joins a game and makes no effort to participate, instead allowing other players in their squad to carry them to a good placing in order to gain more experience and level up faster. Respawn have announced that after doing some investigation of just how many matches have been affected by this behavior, they will “start instituting [temporary] bans for players that exhibit piggy-backing behavior” and even stated that ”extreme cases could lead to a permanent ban.” In the Reddit post, Respawn have also revealed their plans to fix hit registration on certain characters, as well as audio issues and Apex Legends crashing on the PS4. Respawn have also confirmed that this new rule change does not come into immediate effect, but it is likely that we will see it enforced in the near future in order to cut down on players having bad experiences with teammates in-game. Many will welcome this new change as teammates piggy-backing or not contributing to the team has been one of the main issues fans have had during their experiences on Apex Legends. However, there is also concern that players may be penalized for accidentally being AFK, so hopefully Respawn’s monitoring system is robust enough to filter out the accidental piggy-backers from the deliberate nuisance players.

Respawn gives update on Apex Legends Nintendo Switch version Nintendo/RespawnApex Legends game director Chad Grenier has dropped a small update regarding the Nintendo Switch version of the battle royale, confirming that it is still in the works. When Apex Legends first launched back in February of 2019, it was only released for players on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC. As it’s exploded in popularity and cemented itself as one of the premier battle royale games around, more and more players have begged for their chance to play Apex on a different device – be it mobile, Switch, or something else completely. With their recent job listings, Respawn have confirmed that a mobile version is being released at some point and though they’ve also confirmed a Switch port, due for release in ‘Fall 2020’, they’ve remained tight-lipped on it since. Well, that it is until Chad Grenier, the game director behind Apex Legends, started responding to a handful of fans’ questions on Twitter on October 1. The Respawn dev was inundated with queries about the upcoming cross-platform play beta – including how it’ll work in ranked, how it could expand the game when its released fully, as well as more technical questions. One of the questions Grenier responded to asked if the devs had “dumped” the Nintendo Switch version from production. “We are still working on it,” Grenier swiftly replied, “Can’t say more.” Given that Grenier stated that he can’t say anything more, it seems likely that the Switch version of Apex Legends won’t get any further, official announcements until later down the line – perhaps, only when its close to releasing. In the meantime, Respawn will likely have their hands full making sure that the crossplay goes off without too many hitches as well as making sure that they’re also ready for the launch of the next-gen consoles. The Switch version may be on the backburner, but it hasn’t been scrapped.

Respawn give update on crossplay and balancing in Apex Legends Season 2 Apex Legends during EA Play 2019, and even went into detail about what the future holds for crossplay, and various balance changes coming to the game. Fans have a much clearer idea of what to expect from the future of Apex Legends thanks to the unveiling of Season 2 during EA Play 2019. Season 2 will bring a new Legend to King’s Canyon, along with a new weapon, Battle Pass and a variety of other changes. Fans might be interested in hearing what Respawn’s stance on crossplay is as well. Is Crossplay an option? In an interview with Game Informer, Respawn executive producer Drew McCoy and lead product manager Lee Horn explained what they thought about crossplay eventually coming to the game, along with how the balancing changes are made. The team feels that crossplay would certainly benefit the game, but it’s a lot of work for their small team to add in right now. “If it wasn’t a ginormous amount of effort and work, we’d probably already be doing something there,” explained McCoy. “It’s just one of those things where we’re still a fairly small team so we have to pick and choose our battles.” Crossplay is becoming more and more popular in gaming with Fortnite and Rocket League being two of the highest profile games offering it. More balanced Legends are coming As for the new Legend, Respawn thinks she, along with some Season 2 changes, will help make the game a bit more balanced, and make some of the lesser used characters more valuable. McCoy also confirmed that who the most played Legends currently are. “I think to no one’s surprise Wraith and Pathfinder are our super-played characters,” he said. “And then Gibraltar and Caustic on the other side. As people have seen throughout the season, we’ve tried to sort of nudge those closer together. For Season 2 we will have another set of balance changes that will….we always strive to make our characters pretty even choices. So it’s sort of pick who you want to play who fits your style.” Gibraltar and Caustic in their current states don’t offer a whole lot to a team, but Respawn is hoping to fix that. They don’t go in-depth about what those changes will be, so we’ll just have to wait until Season 2 starts on July 2.

Respawn give another update on broken Apex Legends hit reg RespawnApex Legends developer Respawn Entertainment has provided another update on broken hit reg issues in their battle royale title, after numerous complaints from players after the Season 5 update. Although the Season 5 update was one of the most exciting ever, with new character Loba joining the Apex Games, hit reg issues have plagued the game since, with players baffled as their shots don’t connect despite being on target. Shortly after the new season launched, players immediately noticed the problem, and devs were quick to announce that they were aware of the issue. While a new season is supposed to be one of the most exciting times in the game’s life-cycle, bringing new content, fixes and updates to the game, the moment has been a little stifled by the hit reg problems. Most players at this point have found themselves having some kind of issue, but if you’re lucky enough to have not, this clip from pro player Diego ‘Diegosaurs’ Navarrette will give you an idea of what exactly players are dealing with. Although this isn’t the worst of it, you can both see and hear the shots connecting on Diegosaurs’ side, though no damage is actually dealt. During the days since the update went live, Respawn have clearly been hard at work trying to figure out what the issue is so that they can come up with a solution, and have provided players yet another update to put their minds at ease. We are aware that players are still encountering issues with hits not registering in-game and are actively working on a solution. We will update you here as soon as we have more information on a fix and appreciate everyone’s patience! — Apex Legends (@PlayApex) May 18, 2020 They say that they’re aware of issues persisting but are still working on a fix, and will provide an update “as soon as there is more information.” This isn’t the ideal response in the eyes of Apex Legends players, who would likely have been hoping for a fix by now, but given the ongoing global crisis, these issues must be slightly harder to resolve. The developers did previously roll out a hotfix on May 14 to fix the issues, but they have persisted since, so clearly that wasn’t the fix needed. Hopefully, though, they will have an update soon enough and put an end to these hit reg issues, or risk losing players to the likes of competitors such as Warzone or Fortnite. TSM have already had to delay their invitational tournament for Apex due to the problems, at Respawn’s recommendation.

Respawn want Gibraltar to become “sexier pick” through Apex Legends bubble changes Respawn EntertainmentGibraltar may not be the most glamorous character to play in Apex Legends, but there’s no denying his power. Respawn wants to change that though by making Gibby a “sexier pick” — with a bit more “selfish power” — in changing his bubble. Gibraltar has been a formidable force in the Apex Legends meta for a while now. His pick rate in competitive matches is somewhere between 80% and 100%, even if he suffers from a low pick rate of under 4% in casual play. For that reason, Respawn are hesitant to nerf Gibby — even if pros and high-level players are pleading the dev for changes. If they do nerf him, his already low pick rate will plummet in casual play. However, there is a way to get around it, and Respawn are considering it. They want to make Gibraltar “sexy” to play, giving him some “selfish power” that’ll make even the sweatiest Wraith and Octane players pick him up. Developer John ‘JayBiebs’ Larson told players in a July 12 podcast that Gibby’s design hits the mark, with his ‘Dome of Protection’ bubble being “a really cool ability in how it can shape fights and influence engagements in a relatively agnostic way.” However, when it comes to making changes, he explained that it’s a “little scary because we don’t want to tank that pick rate anymore for the majority of the player base.” “We all want pick rates to be healthy, so the sort of question is how can we make him a sexier pick without incorporating too much power.” Fortunately, he did have some ideas, such as adding a health bar to his bubble — as suggested by Cloud9 pro Zach Mazer. “It’s an idea we talked about not too long ago, and I don’t think the door is closed on that idea whatsoever,” JayBiebs said. “It’s relatively safe as a change that wouldn’t affect casuals as much.” Ultimately, the developers just want to make changes that will give Gibraltar more “selfish power” and make him “a little sexier” so people will pick him outside of competitive play. With Season 10 on the horizon, the first set of changes could drop as soon as August. We will update you once Respawn locks anything in.

Respawn fixing Apex Legends lag on Olympus after Season 12 complaints Respawn EntertainmentPlayers have been dropping into Apex Legends Season 12 in droves to check out the Olympus changes, but it’s not been the same for everyone. Console players have reportedly experienced massive lag on the new map, and Respawn are fixing it. The updated Olympus map is one of the biggest draw cards in Apex Legends Season 12. After first being released in Season 7, the “Sabotaged” map is its second big update in less than two years. With a couple of new POIs including Phase Driver and Terminal opening up the South side of the map that was rather bare, there’s a whole new way to approach the map in the Defiance update. However, it’s not been smooth sailing for everyone. While PC players have been mostly fine with exploring the new Olympus, console players have been suffering from major FPS drops due to a lack of optimization. Players on older consoles like the PS4 and Xbox One have been suffering the most. The chorus of complaints has been heard by Respawn though, and a fix is on its way. “Heads up, legends: We’re aware of and investigating an issue causing frame rate loss on Olympus for our PS4, Xbox 1, and Switch players,” Respawn told players on February 8 just hours after the update dropped. Exactly how long it’ll take remains to be seen, but the fix should at least bring console players back up to their baseline 60 FPS instead of dropping into the teens or low-20s. Heads up, legends: We’re aware of and investigating an issue causing frame rate loss on Olympus for our PS4, Xbox 1, and Switch players. More info to come as we have it. — Respawn (@Respawn) February 8, 2022 It’s also spurred on conversation on when Apex Legends’ next gen launch will finally hit live servers. While an exact release date hasn’t been confirmed by Respawn, the game is now rated on the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S with a release date of February 8, the same day as Season 12’s launch. It is yet to hit online storefronts. We’ll update you once Respawn fixes the performance issues on Olympus.

Respawn finally fix Apex Legends hit registration bug in May 20 patch Respawn EntertainmentRespawn have released a new Apex Legends hotfix patch on May 20, with the game’s 1.39 update set to target one of the biggest issues in Season 5 so far — the hit registration issue that has plagued the battle royale in recent weeks. In any competitive first-person shooter, hit-registration is one of the most crucial parts of the gameplay. If hit reg isn’t working properly, bullets and damage will not be properly recorded server-side. It’s one of the biggest FPS issues there is. Apex Legends players were, reasonably so, pretty peeved when they discovered the title’s big Season 5 update had thrown the entire hit-reg system out of whack. Respawn confirmed the issue soon after and got to work on squashing the bug. Apex Legends update 1.39 targets hit reg issue On May 20, the Apex devs confirmed they had found the root of the problem, and sent hotfix update 1.39 live on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. Unfortunately, there are no patch notes, but producer Josh Medina did confirm the fix. “New patch available! Go check your updates and download,” he announced soon after the ~50mb patch went live. He also confirmed the new update — helmed by Respawn engineer Samy Duc — was designed to “fix hit reg.” Just wanna say that the guy who busted his ass to fix hit reg is my dude @ricklesauceur I hope he actually enjoys the long weekend and now we can update his code schedule lol — Josh Medina (@lowkeydbjosh) May 21, 2020 Respawn have pushed an update to fix the issue, but that is no guarantee the issue will be resolved entirely. The developers previously rolled out a hotfix on May 14 to fix the bug, but it persisted beyond the patch. It does look like the long-standing Season 5 bug may finally have been resolved, though. Pro players like Tanner Roach and Jack ‘NiceWigg’ Martin reported the bug truly had been squashed, after testing their gunplay post-patch. Apex’s broken hit registration issue was certainly the biggest bug plaguing Respawn’s hit battle royale in Season 5. It was also, however, far from the only problem the devs have had on their radar in the last few weeks. Other issues that will see server-side fixes in coming weeks include buzzing noises that can be heard during matches, a strange Revenant ult bug, reconnect issues, and more, Respawn confirmed earlier this week.

Apex Legends: Respawn share first sneak peek at rumored Wattson character Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends developers Respawn Entertainment have given players a sneak peek at what’s likely to be the next Legend added to the game. Over the past few weeks, Apex Legends players have been in full anticipation for Season 2, which is expected to be considerably better than the first season, which many view as lackluster. Respawn have already confirmed that every new season will introduce a brand new Legend into the game, with Octane having been the character added at the start of Season 1. On June 6, Respawn posted an announcement for their appearance at the EA Play event in Los Angeles, which included a short clip that offers a teaser for the brand new Legend. The announcement tweet included the phrase “It’s sure to be…electrifying,” which has many players convinced that the new character’s abilities will be based around electricity. T-two days until we go live from EA Play! Don’t forget to mark your calendars. It’s sure to be…electrifying. ⚡ https://t.co/hNhIyKjgwR pic.twitter.com/khDv8MNa6L— Apex Legends (@PlayApex) June 6, 2019 Although this is the first official look at the new Legend, details about the character had surfaced months ago, revealing the name to be Wattson. Back in March, data-miners leaked images of Wattson and her abilities, one of which looks potentially like Tesla Trap, which would fall in line with the whole electricity theme. Prominent Twitch streamer Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek, who normally gets information about Apex Legends before it becomes public, has discussed the Legend on numerous occasions, saying that he didn’t like playing as Wattson at a testing event, and that the character is “not going to be that sick.” 550Apex Legends at EA Play Apex Legends will be doing a major reveal stream during the EA Play gaming convention in Los Angeles, California. The stream will be taking place on Saturday, June 8, starting at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET / 6 PM BST. Respawn are expected to do an in-depth reveal of the upcoming Season 2 which they’ve confirmed will be launching prior to the end of June.

Respawn finally respond to Battle Pass bug in Apex Legends Season 3 Respawn EntertainmentDevelopers of Apex Legends, Respawn Entertainment, have responded to Battle Pass bug that has plagued their Titanfall-esque battle royale since the release of Season 3. The big Season 3 update made some strides to fixing many of the community’s biggest bug and glitch complaints, but a new one was also discovered after the new battle pass was added. Just like the similar system in Fortnite, the battle pass rewards players for playing throughout the season and completing challenges. However, some found that XP was not being added correctly, and thus seemingly receiving no progress on their battle pass. On October 4, Respawn Entertainment added the issue to “General Bugs” on their Trello board – the place all Apex Legends players should head to in order to find out the status of known issues. The problem is described as: “The Match summary page will show incorrect total amount of battle pass XP”, with the problem being brought to Respawn’s attention via Reddit and Twitter. It has also been flagged as “coming in a future patch”, meaning Respawn have likely identified the cause of the problem and are currently working on a patch to resolve the issue. Other known issues on the Trello board include challenges not tracking in some situations and healing being stopped by a firing weapon. Given the nature of Season 3’s launch – seeing the culmination of months of hard work and a wealth of new content – it is unsurprising to see isolated issues. However, some players were becoming frustrated with the lack of tangible progress as a result of the issues. Respawn appear to be on top of it and working on a fix, but they have not yet provided a date for the release. In the meantime, players will have to remain patient as Respawn sort a patch. But, at least you don’t have to worry about your battle pass progression not tracking properly.

Respawn finally respond to Apex Legends ‘visual clutter’ issues Respawn EntertainmentDevelopers Respawn Entertainment have responded to ‘visual clutter’ complaints in Apex Legends Season 11, with players protesting that enemies can be incredibly hard to decipher. Plenty of Apex Legends players have grown accustomed to the game’s unique visual style and graphics. A colorful and vibrant environment is complemented by diverse characters and a wealth of unique POIs. However, now in its eleventh season, players are calling on developers Respawn to adjust certain parts of the HUD and visual indicators to make the game better to play. Currently, players are given fairly significant indicators on screen when they are being hit, on top of an already busy HUD. These indicators come in the form of colourful patterns at the edges of player’s screens, reflective of armor being damaged. The graphics, paired with minimap, kill feed, and more, have led players to complain about ‘visual clutter’ making Apex more difficult to play. TSM content creator Albralelie asked Respawn’s John ‘JayBiebs’ Larsen: “Thoughts on settings regarding visual clarity? Honestly you can leave aim assist alone if we can just see what we’re shooting at.” Replying, developer Josh Medina said: “I brought this up to people this week to discuss in the near future what we can do using the reference shots provided [in] a thread from this week.” I bought this up to people this week to discuss in the near future what we can do using the reference shots provided a thread from this week lol — Josh Medina (@lowkeydbjosh) January 8, 2022 While he did not commit to changes coming, Respawn’s response will be welcomed by players who want a less busy screen whilst playing, or simply customization options to reduce some of the clutter that makes playing difficult at times. Albralelie, for example, suggested “being able to turn off things like particle effects on snow/bullet impacts on walls.” The change would probably take some time to implement, but Respawn sound refreshingly willing to listen to player feedback on the topic. For now, players can look forward to Season 12, which will undoubtedly bring new content and some other quality of life changes.

Apex Legends is finally getting in-game damage tracker in early Season 8 Respawn EntertainmentThe wait is over… Respawn is finally on the verge of adding an in-game Apex Legends damage tracker — one of the battle royale’s most requested features — as soon as “early Season 8,” the devs confirmed on Dec. 30. [jwplayer VEi3mnK7] A way to track damage in the middle of any given game has been one of the most requested Apex Legends features since Respawn first dropped the battle royale back in 2019. Fans have been fairly vocal about their desires too — all the way back in October 2019, players were demanding the Apex Legends developers get to work. Respawn has reportedly been hard at work on the feature since mid-2020. “It’s on a list!” McCord confirmed back in early October. Now, that wait is finally over; according to the Apex Legends design director, the heavily requested feature should be added to the game as soon as “early Season 8.” “If you can wait like… one more week,” McCord originally tweeted in response to a player asking how far away the Apex Legends feature was. The dev soon updated that prediction though, revealing it “didn’t make the cutoff for this patch.” “I spoke too soon,” he replied soon after. “It should be in early Season 8.” What will Apex Legends damage tracker look like? Respawn has yet to unveil exactly how the in-game tracker will work, or what it would look like on the Apex Legends player HUD, but we can imagine it would be quite simple. Considering the popular battle royale already tracks every point of damage dished out by Apex Legends players across the game, and presents them at the end of the match, it’ll likely just be a matter of slapping that on-screen in-game as well. Other similar titles, like Blizzard’s Overwatch, don’t show in-game damage on-screen in competitive matches. Instead, the stats can be found in the character select menu. Apex Legends may follow suit, adding it to the inventory page. As for when the feature will officially arrive, Respawn has only given us a vague date to go off for now: “early Season 8.” The best bet on that front, then, is the second patch update of the year. The battle royale’s eighth season is set to begin in early Feb. 2021. That seasonal swap over — currently penciled in for Thursday, Feb. 4 to celebrate Apex’s two-year anniversary — will come with a huge Season 8 update; expect the long-awaited arrival of the in-game tracker to come bundled in that patch.

Respawn finally address major level 500 bug in Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentDevelopers from Respawn Entertainment have revealed that a fix is on its way for the level 500 bug that has been affecting Apex Legends players. Since Respawn announced that they had increased the level cap in Apex Legends, many of the game’s hardcore players have been experiencing an unusual bug after leveling up. This bizarre glitch made Apex Legends literally unplayable for many players who managed to reach the prestigious level 500, preventing them from being able to connect to the game’s servers. In many titles, those who reach the maximum level are often rewarded for their time spent on a game with impressive badges, however, Apex Legends players have unfortunately been unable to show off their achievement at all. After the bug was first discovered in the popular battle royale many have been calling on developers to implement a fix and on January 17 they revealed that one was soon to be on the way. Respawn’s community coordinator ‘Garza’ apologized to fans on their Trello board, revealing that they were expected to release a server patch for the bug on January 16, however, certain issues arose that caused it to be delayed. “This did not go out last night as intended as issues and concerns arose. will continue to update this thread when I get more info. Sorry,” Garza expressed, revealing that the fix would take a little longer than expected. Although the server patch was delayed by the developers, Respawn explained that they are working on dealing with it as well as many other issues and it will likely be fixed over the coming days. According to the Apex Legends Dev Tracker, the exact time of release for the patch is still yet to be determined, however, more information should be soon to follow. This should come as good news to those who have been affected by the patch, as it won’t be long until they can finally return to playing their favorite game without many issues.

Respawn finally address Apex Legends healing bug, Mastiff issues and more Respawn EntertainmentDevelopers of Apex Legends, Respawn Entertainment, have revealed a number of new bugs they are investigating, as they try to give players the best possible in-game experience. Community reception to Apex Legends has been overwhelmingly positive, as it tries to maintain its strong position in the oversaturated battle royale market. While players have flocked to Apex, criticism has centred around Apex’s slow implementation of new content, as well as the number of bugs affecting players’ experiences. In an attempt combat the number of issues players are having, Respawn have set up a dedicated Trello page where players can report bugs, and follow the progress of acknowledged ones. However, it appears players will have to be patient as, on July 19, Respawn added five new bugs to the Trello page, that they are going to start investigating. These bugs range from the relatively insignificant, to more noticeable and frustrating issues, some of which players have been vocal about for months. 600Healing cancel bug Arguably the most important of the bugs listed, players have been experiencing errors around healing. Specifically, if a healing button is spammed after the animation has already been triggered, healing can be cancelled and the player will remain damaged. Prior to Season 2, players were able to simply spam the heal button, so that they would instantly pop their next syringe or shield cell when ready. Localized voice overs Other bugs added include issues surrounding the ability of players to switch the language of localized voice overs, a feature which was only recently added to the game. The full list of issues added on July 19 can be viewed below. 600Mastiff not counting for challenges Also, there have been issues with the Mastiff – the game’s legendary shotgun – registering towards challenges players are trying to complete. While players will be frustrated with the issues, particularly if they struggle to heal, it is clear the extent to which Respawn are trying to reduce the number of bugs in their game, and maximize players’ enjoyment. For all the latest Apex Legends news, including bug fixes and updates, stay tuned to Dexerto.

Respawn extends Apex Legends Season 10 ranked split due to server issues Respawn EntertainmentAfter a calamity of server issues plaguing players, Respawn is adding a week onto the Apex Legends Season 10 ranked split. The extended time will cut into the second split, but you will now have a little push to hit your goals. Apex Legends’ servers have been struggling since the launch of patch 10.1. The new Evolution Collection event might have brought a ton of players back to check out the new skins or the Rampart buffs, but some haven’t even been able to get into the game. Respawn attempted to “ramp up server capacity” and “scheduled fixes” ahead of the weekend, but decided to pull the trigger on the split extension regardless. “Despite improvements today, we’re still seeing roughly three times the normal rate of disconnect errors in [Apex Legends], and a full return to normal may take until our next planned patch on September 22,” Respawn said in a September 17 tweet. “We’ll extend the current ranked split by one week—that update will go live Monday.” The first split was set to end on September 21, but will now be extended until September 28. Despite improvements today, we’re still seeing roughly three times the normal rate of disconnect errors in @PlayApex, and a full return to normal may take until our next planned patch on Sept 22. We’ll extend the current ranked split by one week—that update will go live Monday. — Respawn (@Respawn) September 17, 2021 It comes after streamers like NiceWigg, Rogue, and LuluLuvely called on Respawn to give casual players a chance to hit whatever their goals are — Gold, Platinum, Diamond, or even Master. “Ranked split has to be extended for those who aren’t playing Apex everyday all day and are trying to hit a certain rank,” NiceWigg said before the extension. “This is probably frustrating for them, people don’t play everyday — it’s the least you could do,” Rogue added. It is understood the second Apex Legends Season 10 ranked split — set to take place on Kings Canyon — will still finish on November 2, ahead of Season 11’s launch.

Respawn explains why they won’t add “small” Arenas maps to Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends devs have explained why Season 9’s Arenas mode will not be getting “small” maps, despite calls from some players to add more close-quarters locations. Arenas came as the biggest overhaul of Apex Legends Season 9, providing players a smaller, 3v3 mode where they can focus on taking out one enemy team over and over again. The matches take place over multiple rounds, meaning it can become a best of 5, best of 7 or best of 9 depending on how many rounds the opposition manages to win. However, some players have suggested that the mode’s maps are too large, even with a closing ring. At the moment, there are two specifically designed Arenas maps – Party Crasher and Phase Runner – as well as three maps taken from POIs of the battle royale maps – Artillery Battery from Kings Canyon; Thermal Station from World’s Edge and Golden Gardens from Olympus. A post from one fan stated exactly that, suggested Artillery should be removed as an Arenas map due to its size, and replaced with Octane’s Gauntlet, which saw the speedy Legend’s Town Takeover replace Kings Canyon’s West Settlement. However, Lead Game Designer at Respawn Daniel Klein responded, saying: “It would be too small! It’s important to have multiple POIs in an Arenas map, ideally POIs with direct line of sight between each other. This might be one good POI (although there’s a lot of sight blocking with the tall structures), but it wouldn’t be enough for an arenas map.” Another player responded to suggest trying out smaller maps and seeing how they play, but this idea was quashed by David Bocek, another game designer at Respawn. “We experimented with lots of stuff!” he said. “We learned a lot about what works and what doesn’t, and unfortunately small maps just didn’t really work imo. In my personal experience, they felt like they got too same-y really quickly, you lose most of the interesting and meaningful decision-making about where to go based on where you think the enemy will go, weapon loadouts, etc. The POIs like the health bins and the cash stations and the care package just felt all too close together too.” Bocek finished: “I’m no level designer, this was just my personal experience with it, but wanted to note that we have been experimenting a lot with this before launch, and will continue to do so!” In short, it sounds like small maps resulted in very repetitive matches; exactly the kind of thing devs seek to avoid when designing a new mode. We certainly wouldn’t rule slightly smaller maps out in the future, but not every popular POI will transfer seamlessly to Arenas.

Respawn explains why Alternator wasn’t buffed in Apex Legends Season 7 RespawnApex Legends’ Alternator has been kicked to the curb as time has gone on. The Light SMG does woeful DPS compared to other weapons, even in the early game. However, Respawn are hesitating on buffing it, saying it’s in “a decent spot right now.” There’s a lot of guns in Apex Legends you can just throw aside as soon as you find a new weapon. However, none might be more tossable than the Alternator. The Light SMG has been underperforming for seasons now, and is once again remaining untouched in Season 7. Its slow rate of fire means it has pretty low DPS, meaning if you can control another gun, you just swap instantly. However, it holds a special place in the hearts of a dedicated community, according to Respawn developers. That’s exactly why they aren’t buffing the Alternator despite it underperforming — it helps newer and inexperienced players get a grip of the game. “The Alternator isn’t a super competitive gun, but it has a good-sized fanbase that uses it consistently. It’s good for early-midgame and for players that miss more shots and have trouble with recoil,” Respawn dev AmusedApricot said on Reddit. There are some benefits to the Alternator that players do enjoy. Its recoil pattern is dead easy to learn — just drag it straight down. This, along with its easy spray control and high magazine size, makes it a much more valuable weapon than players think it is, devs stated. “The Alternator’s easy recoil and high mag size are more valuable for some players than the pure DPS dropoff because neither they nor their enemies are reliably hitting every shot and dropping people in one R99 mag,” AmusedApricot added. “This isn’t just ‘bad players’, a lot of players would find surprising success with the Alternator if they chose to run it, even though it’s not as good as the R99.” With all this being said, Respawn believe the Alternator is “in a decent spot right now” and “performs well in the space it is meant to.” However, they aren’t closing the doors on a potential buff to make it a real threat down the line — out of pure interest. “It might be interesting to make it strong at some point in the future though, but let’s see how R99 and Volt play together!”

Respawn explains strange G7 Scout issues in Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentThe Apex Legends community noticed that the G7 Scout wasn’t exactly behaving like other rifles, and a Respawn developer explained why the gun’s “inconsistencies” aren’t a bug. Members of the community noticed that the marksman rifle considerably slowed down their characters when aiming down the sight (ADS), as opposed to other Assault Rifles (AR). They were convinced it was due to a bug until an Apex dev responded. Respawn Game Designer for weapons David ‘AmusedApricot’ Bocek clarified any confusion about the Scout’s effect, explaining that it was purposefully placed due to its unique classification. Although the G7 Scout is considered an Assault Rifle, it behaves similar to a sniper rifle, but that’s because the weapon is still meant to be a marksman’s primary weapon. “It’s not really a bug, although it is inconsistent with other ARs,” AmusedApricot said. “I would like the Scout to be in a “marksman weapon” classification or something, but then it’d be the only one and that’s not really great, so for now it’ll just have some inconsistencies with typical AR stats.” The dev explained that the scout is supposed to have “tradeoffs.” The weapon is plenty strong to hold its own, and it has incredible range, so the team at Respawn left the slow ADS movespeed that a typical sniper would have. A clip captured by user ‘slickwhelp’ showed them holding a G7 in the Firing Range ADSing to the right, while a Bloodhound trailed them with a different rifle. The difference in movespeed was noticeable with the Scout player getting a slight head start on the other person, a few moments later they were left in the dust, relatively speaking. “According to the Apex Gamepedia, the ADS speed for Mozambique is -0%, even though it’s a shotgun,” user ‘PaulpFiction_’ said. “And the RE-45 is -5% even though it’s a pistol. So it’s just another exception that proves the rule IMO.” In a heated gunfight, expect a G7 to give you a ton of stopping power at varying distances. But just remember, that looking down the sights will influence the ADS movement accordingly.

Respawn explains how often new Apex Legends BR maps will be added Respawn EntertainmentRespawn have revealed how often Apex Legends fans can expect a new battle royale map, explaining their process, and how their map designs have changed with Apex’s age. Apex Legends fans have become accustomed to having a selection of battle royale maps, alongside the smaller environments designed specifically for Arenas mode. Season 11 – dropping on November 2 – will bring a new tropical map known as Storm Point. It joins Kings Canyon, World’s Edge, and Olympus as the fourth battle royale map in Apex. Kings Canyon is Apex’s OG map, having been present since launch back in February 2019. World’s Edge came with Season 3 and Olympus with Season 7. A pattern is therefore pretty hard to discern. However, speaking ahead of the Season 11 launch, Respawn opened up on their map design and let players know exactly what to expect. “Our cadence on BR map releases continues to remain the same,” Respawn said, “releasing new maps at a pace that really lets players get familiar with each new setting and environment. Giving players time to focus on specific locations, and learn the ins and outs of each map.” Read More: Wattson finally gets huge buffs in Season 11 – There have been some complaints from players over the rotation of old maps in Apex, with fans arguing for the permanent addition of certain locations. Respawn, though, seem committed to keeping all their maps in the game. They continued: “Our earlier maps were designed with a singular experience in mind, but with Storm Point in mind, we have created a map that will seamlessly evolve alongside our live service updates for years down the road.” Once again then, it seems that long-term planning is at the heart of Respawn’s development process. They have already confirmed their development schedule is roughly a year ahead of the game, so we can expect a host of new content in the near future. Maps seem to be planned for every three or four seasons, which has been the case previously, allowing players some time to get to know their new environments before being sent anywhere new. For now, though, players can get excited about Ash, Storm Point and all of Season 11: Escape.

Respawn explains decisions that led to Apex Legends Season 1 Battle Pass Respawn Entertainment explained the thought process behind the Season 1 Battle Pass for Apex Legends and what future Battle Passes could be like. After weeks of waiting players now have a concrete release date for Apex Legends’ Season 1 Battle Pass. The Battle Pass is coming March 19 and will feature 100 tiers of unlockables and is available for 950 Apex Coins. Like Fortnite, Apex Legends is giving players the chance to purchase the Battle Pass just once and then using the rewards from it to fund future Battle Passes. In a perfect world, players would spend the initial $10 for the Battle Pass and never have to put another dime of real money into the game again. When the curtain was dropped and the contents were revealed, however, some fans were disappointed with the contents of the Battle Pass. There weren’t a whole lot of skins available for characters and the final tier is just another weapon skin. After seeing what Fortnite does with its Battle Pass, it’s easy to see where Apex can improve in the future. Respawn Entertainment encourages fan feedback across social media and has said they are also listening to suggestions. The team released a blog post about the Battle Pass and what could happen with it in the future. They said they are always looking to innovate and the Season 1 Battle Pass is just the first version on the long road of improvements. The initial Battle Pass exists for players to play and learn the game and the team said it could add in things like quests and challenges in future Battle Passes. Apex Legends is still in its infancy so there’s still plenty of room for it to grow and expand in the future. This Battle Pass was created so first-time spenders could get a large base of weapon and character cosmetics for a low price. All of this sounds like the best is yet to come for Apex Legends. You can read the entirety of the post below. Hey All, Leeeeeee-RSPN here with a quick post on Battle Pass Season 1 philosophies – where we are with the first iteration of Battle Pass and where we might go in the future. TL;DR Season 1 is about keeping it focused and allowing players to earn a lot of rewards at a great value (you even get the cost of the base Battle Pass back if you reach level 97). We’ll begin adding more and more innovations each season, as we evolve the Battle Pass. Our first Battle Pass is all about letting you continue to learn and experiment with the core Apex Legends experience while earning awesome loot at the same time. You’ll notice the first version isn’t built around a complex quest system where you need to do a 720 backflip off of Watchtower Artemis and get two Wingman headshots before hitting the ground. While we think there’s really cool design space in quests and challenges for future Battle Passes, we wanted the initial version to allow our players to just play and learn the game. All of the rewards in the Wild Frontier Battle Pass are exclusive to Season 1 and will never return to the game after the season ends (excluding Apex Packs and the content dropped in them). We’ve added a Battle Pass progression bonus tied to playing a variety of characters, because we believe true mastery in Apex Legends means being a badass with anyone in any situation at any time. This season is about exploring the new meta and variety of team comps driven by the launch of our first new Legend, Octane. In terms of rewards, we’ve tried to create a Battle Pass where first-time spenders can get a strong base of weapon and character cosmetics to fill out their initial collection at a deep discount. In addition, we’ve included our first ever three-stage evolving Legendary Havoc weapon skin (for veterans who are looking for the new hotness), as well as Epic and Legendary Apex Packs. These rewards are all in addition the 1,000 Apex Coins you can earn through the Battle Pass, which you can put towards unlocking the next Battle Pass. As a studio, we’re always striving to innovate like we did with our Ping system, the Jumpmaster, Respawning, and more. We look to do the same with our Battle Pass. Season 1 is just the first version on a long road of improvements, updates and tweaks. We have a lot of cool ideas in the works, but we want to hear yours too, so let us know on Reddit, Twitter, wherever. We’re listening.

Respawn explain why Loba will be buffed in Apex Legends Season 6 Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment Senior Game Designer Daniel Klein has confirmed that Loba’s falling popularity in Apex Legends means she will be buffed at the start of Season 6. Season 6’s launch in Apex Legends is set to be the game’s most significant update for some time, introducing Rampart and a brand new Crafting system. While the majority of the community’s attention has been on the major new mechanics, Respawn have now confirmed that a moderate buff will be in store for Loba, who was added with the start of Season 5. While popular at the beginning of Season 5, the High Society Thief’s popularity and viability declined somewhat over the course of the season. Some have indeed called for a buff to Loba, and Respawn have now confirmed that she will be strengthened when Season 6 launches. During a discussion about Rampart’s introduction into the world of Apex Legends, one fan asked what’s in store for Loba in Season 6. Daniel Klein, a game designer working at Respawn, responded to confirm her buff, and explained why she is set to receive it. “Loba’s definitely weak,” he said. “She started the season off strong and fell to the weakest spot by the end; that seems to be the way most of our new legends behave. We’ve got a little bit of a buff coming for her in 6.0, but it’s not much.” “We’re somewhat limited technically by what we can do,” he finished. “For instance, if we wanted to let you take 3 or 4 items out of her ult, that would require UI work, so that’s not happening any time soon.” While the buff does not sound like it will be a significant game-changer, it will still be welcome to Loba mains, many of whom have felt her relative strength dwindling. Klein did not delve into the kind of buff she will be receiving, but we will bring you the exact details on all Season 6 changes when the patch notes are available.

Respawn explain why hitboxes are a “curse” on Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentDaniel Klein, Senior Game Designer at Respawn Entertainment, has explained why different sized hitboxes are a “curse” on Apex Legends, and why he would encourage the studio to avoid them if he had a “time machine.” Hitboxes are a deeply contentious topic in almost any shooter, regardless of design or reputation. From Rainbow Six Siege to Call of Duty, every shooter under the sun has had its criticisms over hitboxes, particularly relating to irregularities with them. There are few things as frustrating as feeling like an opponent should have been dropped by a well-aimed headshot, only for them to turn and eliminate you. However, hitbox discussions become particularly contentious when different in-game characters have different shaped hitboxes, as is the case in Apex Legends. It is most often used as a balancing factor, meaning the more powerful characters are easier to hit – for example tanks in Overwatch. But, in Apex, it can create imbalances and unfairly disadvantage larger Legends. When asked about different sized hitboxes on Reddit, Senior Game Designer Daniel Klein commented that they were a “curse” on Apex Legends, and he would go back and avoid them if he could. In answer to a question about the varying amounts of damage different sized Legends take, Klein said: “If I had a time machine, I’d go back to when we started working on Apex and yell at everyone: DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT DIFFERENT HITBOX SIZES! DON’T DO IT! YOU’LL CURSE US FOREVER!” He went on to explain that it’s very hard to measure how much damage should be adjusted for different size Legends, and that in most cases it’s considerably more important than whatever equipment a Legend possesses. Klein continued: “Let’s put it this way: Caustic with Wraith’s hitboxes would have a higher win rate than Wraith with Caustic’s hitboxes. Like no question. This means we had to find something that directly acted on the level of success/failure that hitboxes work on; and a damage multiplier was the best solution.” To mitigate the issue of bigger and smaller Legends, Respawn added passive perks called Low Profile (incoming damage increased by 5%: Lifeline, Pathfinder, Wattson, Wraith) and Fortified (Incoming damage reduced by 15%, not slowed by bullets: Caustic, Gibraltar). It seems that Respawn are conceding that the damage multiplier is the best of a number of bad options when it comes to negating characters with massively varying hitboxes. He describes Low Profile and Fortified as “chewing gum and duct tape holding the game together.” In the Season 7 patch, Respawn gave Pathfinder’s hitbox an update, giving him more shootable area. Regardless of what Respawn do, different sized hitboxes are here to stay.

Respawn explain why frustrating Apex Legends collision bug still isn’t fixed Respawn Entertainment have explained why the fix for Apex Legends’ frustrating collision bug has yet to be released, almost two months after stating they had prepared it. Apex Legends had a relatively smooth launch, with very few glitches or bugs affecting the early portion of the game’s lifespan, helping it see massive growth in its infancy. Since then, glitches have become more and more apparent in the game, including the collision issue that sees players land quicker than others after jumping as they get pushed down quicker by those falling behind them. Players jumping out of the drop ship are encountering issues. Why haven’t the player collision issues been fixed? Apex Legends fans have been complaining about the collision bug for months, dating back all the way to March in their annoyance with the advantage some players get during the drop. It seemed like Respawn Entertainment had solved the issue back in April, telling the game’s subreddit that the problem had been fixed on their side, and would be released in the next patch for the game, which turned out to be the v1.13 update. When the v1.13 update for Apex Legends dropped on Monday, May 20, it seemed certain that collision issues would be a thing of the past, but the patch notes made no mention of the glitch, much to the annoyance of fans. With many questioning why the developers said the fix was coming only to omit it, a Respawn Entertainment developer called /u/glutinousriceball on Reddit confirmed that while the issue had been fixed, they had chosen to focus on certain things ahead of others. “Sorry for the delay,” wrote the Respawn developer. “It is still fixed locally, but our recent patches have been made for very specific things only. I thought a more general patch would be made sooner, but I was wrong. All that being said, I’m flattered people are looking forward to this particular fix.” While the good news is that the the issue is still fixed, there was no specific reason why it wasn’t included other than focus on other problems. Respawn also failed to clarify when the fix would be included in a patch, so it’s possible that Apex Legends players may have to wait for a number of weeks to see the next update, and hope that this is included.

Respawn explain why Apex Legends update for PS4 and Xbox was delayed Respawn Entertainment have responded to Apex Legends console players, many of whom were left waiting for the December 3 update to be available on their system. The big Apex Legends update was meant to go live on all platforms on Tuesday, December 3, and featured some long-requested changes, including an increased level cap. Unfortunately, it was not without problems, not least major performance issues for PC players. Console players were spared these problems though, because, bizarrely, the update simply didn’t roll out on their platform at all. For some time, console players were left in the dark as to why the update was not available for them to download, wondering if it was perhaps their own system with the issue. The update finally became available on consoles around 24 hours later than expected. With so many exciting changes promised, some began to become understandably impatient, prompting a response from Respawn, who have now explained that the latest patch didn’t go to plan in more ways than one. In response to players asking when the update would be available, Apex Legends game director Chad Griener responded: “Team has been working all day and pulled an overnight on the console patch. We believe we have a fix for the framerate issue on all platforms, we are currently running internal tests to verify. If all goes well expect some news soon, otherwise we will continue to work on it. Apologies for the inconvenience, it’s important for us to make sure it’s right before we push the update.” It turns out that Respawn actually attempted to stop the update going live on PC too, after realizing the performance issues it would cause, but weren’t able to stop it going live in time. Griener explains that they “didn’t detect the issue early enough” and that patch rollouts “are like a heavy train, once in motion can’t be stopped.” Presumably, the extra time spent working on the update meant that no such performance issues hit console players as they did PC players. Many in the community have asked for more reasonable and respectful comments towards developers when such issues occur, as some vitriol was seen on social media after the unexplained delay in the update for console players. Now that everyone has their hands on the update, it’s time to get excited for the upcoming winter event, details of which have already been leaked.

Respawn explain changes to Ranked Play coming in Apex Legends Season 4 Respawn EntertainmentAhead of the fourth season of the immensely popular battle royale, developers Respawn Entertainment have revealed a number of changes coming to Apex Legends’ ranked play. At the end of January, the designers behind Apex Legends’ Ranked Series explained a number of changes that players can expect going into Season 4 – Assimilation, which has been confirmed as dropping on February 4. Reset to rankings midway through Season 4 The post, dated January 23, revealed a few major changes coming to Ranked Series 3. Arguably the most notable is that there will be a reset to ranked standings midway through each season. With an Apex Legends Season equating to roughly 12 weeks, the ranked cycle will now be roughly six weeks, resetting midway through the season. “This means that Series 3 will have two shorter splits, each with a soft reset,” Respawn said. “Split 1 will be played on World’s Edge while Split 2 will be back on King’s Canyon to keep things fresh.” This news will likely be welcomed by players, many of whom have hoped for a chance to return to King’s Canyon. ‘Master Tier’ to be added before Apex Predator The next change detailed is the addition of a ‘Master Tier’, which will slot in between Diamond Tier and Apex Predator. This is to reduce the number of players who achieve the rank of Apex Predator, which will now only allow the top 500 players per console. “The RP required to make it to Master Tier will still be 10,000 RP as Apex Predator was,” Respawn explained. “Apex Predator tier will now be exclusive to the top 500 players per platform… We feel this should give more prestige to making and keeping your Apex Predator rank, while still keeping the tiers above Diamond very exclusive.” Other changes include rewards, but these are minor and will likely not affect players to a significant degree. Scoring and buy-in system to stay the same The post details a number of aspects of the Ranked Series that are staying the same, including the entry costs for matches at respective tiers. The new Master Tier will cost 60RP – the same as a match in Apex Predator. The post concludes by saying: “We’ll continue to evaluate and improve Ranked Leagues, but we’re happy with the progress so far. A big thanks to all the players that grind the ladder and show us what high skill games of Apex Legends really look like.”

Respawn explain why Apex Legends Finishers can’t get any more brutal In wake of some new concepts surfacing for Finisher moves in Apex Legends, a developer from Respawn Entertainment has revealed why the in-game executions can’t be more brutal than they already are. Finishers are Legend-specific cosmetic items in Apex Legends that players can equip in order to perform executions on downed enemies, eliminating them with style. While they may not be the most important thing in the game, they’re still something that people are definitely interested in and always like to ask Respawn to add more of. In fact, some of the more creative players have taken matters into their own hands and created several amazing Finisher concepts themselves For example, here is one made by Reddit user ‘Vaarnex’ for Caustic, which involves the insidious Toxic Trapper killing off a downed enemy by slashing their neck with a broken glass beaker. There’s no denying that this would be an awesome Finisher to use in-game, and even a Respawn developer who goes by the Reddit username ‘lowkeydbjosh’ thought it was “pretty cool.” However, in that same comment, the dev also made it clear that they would not be able to add that to the game, since it wouldn’t be classified as “Teen-rated.” This then reveals why Respawn can’t add Finishers that are too brutal or graphic, since they would not fit the guidelines established by the game’s official Teen rating set by ESRB. At first glance, the reason does seem to make sense, but it has since cast a lot of players into confusion because of several other Finisher that are actually in the game that displays the same level of ferocity. Fans brought up Lifeline inserting needles into the neck of downed enemies as they struggle, Bloodhound stabbing people in the side with a knife, and even the robot Pathfinder strangling victims with its grapple rope to the point where their necks get ripped apart. The existence of these Finishers has raised the question as to why they are allowed to be in the game while the fan-made Caustic one above wouldn’t be, since they all are of the same level of viciousness. The idea behind Finishers opens the door to a world of possibilities, but now we know that Respawn has to stay behind a line drawn in the sand when it comes to displaying too much brutality. Those hoping for more aggressive execution styles seem to be out of luck, unless, of course, ESRB end up changing the game’s rating to Mature, which many thought should have been the rating given anyway.

Respawn reveal plans for Apex Legends update – hit reg, Caustic and Gibraltar fix, more EA/RespawnRespawn Entertainment, developers of popular battle royale Apex Legends, have provided an update on their game, and what they’re looking to adjust going into the next patch. Since its February 2019 release, Apex Legends has exploded onto the battle royale scene, even hitting 50 million players faster than Fortnite Battle Royale did. However, the game has recently faced criticism from players over the lack of new updates and a number of bugs plaguing the game. The post, from May 10, starts by saying that they [Respawn] are “currently working on the next patch that will have improvements in the areas we’ll discuss below.” It goes on to address the game’s long-standing issues around hit registration and character models. Hit reg and Fortified to be addressed The next update will finally address issues surrounding hit registration, which mainly stemmed from mismatches in the game client and the character models while performing animations. However, they also state that there may be other issues causing incorrect hit detection, and there is not a fix ready for all possible causes. They also address issues with “fortified”, relating to Gibraltar and Caustic, two of the larger characters in the game. This is the perk which gives the two characters 10% damage reduction, but it has been causing unexpected problems, where players take damage to their health even when a shield is equipped. There is good news for Apex players here, as they state that a “fix will be deployed” in the next patch. ‘Slow-mo’ at the start of matches Another update is given on issues with players falling into ‘slow-motion’, particularly at the start of games. Respawn state they have made changes to decrease the likelihood of this occurring, but that it is not solved in its entirety yet. The final significant area the ‘check-in’ addresses is the game’s audio. They have made improvements to footstep audio, presumably making it easier to track and understand enemy movements. There are also improvements coming to the game’s overall audio, with stuttering and distortion hopefully becoming less common. It also goes on to give an update on players ‘piggy backing’, and issues with PS4s crashing after the 1.08 patch update was released. There is still no fixed date for the next patch, or next season of Apex, but the post states that they will keep players updated before its implementation.

Respawn & EA “working very closely” to build Apex Legends Mobile esports Respawn EntertainmentWith the release of Apex Legends Mobile, EA and Respawn Entertainment are looking into the best ways of growing the esports side of the new port. Competitive Apex Legends has been growing globally. EA has been liking the viewership that the battle royale has been pulling in, despite the complications that the scene has been going through in the global health situation. As such, EA SVP and General Manager of Competitive Gaming, Todd Sitrin, told Esports Observer that there “absolutely” are plans to continue growing the competitive side of Apex. But the gaming giant has plans for both the Apex Legends scene we already know and an emerging one that could revolve around Apex Mobile. While Apex has an enormous global playerbase, Sitrin wants to capitalize on mobile esports’ potential as far as their battle royale is concerned. “Our organization is a big believer in mobile esports,” Sitrin said. “We’ve been waiting for the right property and the right community that wants to embrace it. We think there are two big opportunities: one is around Apex Mobile and the other is around FIFA mobile.” While the EA SVP admitted there’s more potential for mobile gaming in the Asia market, he has “Respawn and our team working very closely together. So obviously we’ve been in discussions around that for quite some time.” This comes on the heels of Respawn adding in the 3v3 Arenas mode that emphasizes a tightly packed competitive experience. “We’re committed on Apex Legends to have much more consistent competitive programming and have been implementing player and fan feedback and adding new content such as Arenas mode,” he said. Sitrin said that EA is “very bullish” on growing the Apex Legends esports scene considering how much success they had before global closures. From the sound of it, fans of competitive Apex are going to be getting a lot more programming in the near future as the companies figure out new solutions for its esport as well as Apex Mobile.

Respawn drops fresh teaser for next Apex Legends character ‘Crypto’ Respawn Entertainment / Reddit, FrozenFrohApex Legends fans and dataminers have been chomping at the bit for information surrounding the game’s next addition to the legends roster and Respawn Entertainment might have just given them their first look. It has been previously speculated by members of the game’s online community and dataminers that the next character will be called Crypto, and now they have an official response to such claims. On August 1, Respawn developer Tina Sanchez has posted two photos to Twitter that seem to uncover some behind-the-scenes work on the development of a new character – and their in-game movements. “Working on Apex Legends stuff,” she tweeted, along with a few snaps of the dev team using motion capture suits. If this tweet never got people talking, the second one – which was a little more cryptic – never exactly ruled out that they were working on Crypto. Working on Apex Legends stuff :lovestruck:@jitterbot @_moyparra pic.twitter.com/CeGxxqvldR — Tina Sanchez (@Teanah) August 1, 2019 It’s worth noting that this hardly confirms anything about the new character, though. In fact, there’s a very good chance that the team were just recording emotes for the current roster of characters. However, that hasn’t stopped a lot of Apex Legends fans from reading between the lines and getting excited for the next character. Eagle-eyed players had already spotted a face that they believe to be the new addition during the Season 2 trailer. Since then, dataminers have found a game file labelled ‘crypto_laptop_tease’ before a mysterious electronic device appeared in Kings Canyon.

Respawn doubles down on Apex Legends tap strafe removal in upcoming season Respawn EntertainmentDespite initially delaying its removal, Respawn has doubled down on eventually getting rid of Apex Legends’ tap strafing movement mechanic soon. The developers are concerned about “mobility creep”, and won’t be giving the mechanic to controller players to compensate. Tap strafing has been controversial since its rise to prevalence in Apex Legends. Once a niche bit of movement tech, all the best mouse and keyboard players are tap strafing around the Apex Games to get around corners quickly or change direction in mid-air without losing momentum. The drawback? It’s not available on controller, and it’s not meant to exist in the first place. So Respawn have been working on removing it from the game — and got as far as nearly pushing a patch in Season 10 before reverting it. While it’s been spared for the last couple of months, time is still ticking towards its eventual demise with the developers refusing to change their mind on the subject. “It exists as a design problem (not a balancing mechanic) where the lack of readability and how it compounds with movement abilities are the biggest causes for concern,” developer John Larson told players on January 7. “In most trivial examples, sure, I can learn a player will tap-strafe around corners to cut off LoS faster. But add things that enhance mobility, and learnability and counterplay quickly become clouded. “If a sweaty Path is grappling near me with a shotty, I know the tap-strafe into my face is coming, but even with the quickest of reflexes how can I improve my chances?” The idea to bring tap strafing to controller also doesn’t sit well with Larson or other developers. An additional point Larson brought up in his latest statement is concerns surrounding “mobility creep” in Apex Legends. With new Legends like Ash further ramping up the amount of movement tech in the game, smaller issues that are input-specific will become more evident. “Mobility creep is a real concern. If something feels good (ie: movement in Apex), doubling down on that too much can warp gameplay in the grand scheme of things,” he stated. Until then feel free to tap strafe to your heart’s content in Apex Legends, but just know it’s time is nigh.

Respawn double down on plans for Apex Legends single-player content Respawn/EARespawn Entertainment have reiterated their desire to do more single-player content in Apex Legends, however, it might have to wait for now. Apex Legends might be a multiplayer, battle royale title, but that hasn’t stopped players from wanting single-player content like a story or limited-time modes from Respawn. Ever since the game launched over two years ago, rumors have swirled about single-player content, with Respawn saying it’s been planned, but maybe not to depth that some fans wants. We finally got some single-player content with the quests in Season 5, as you could tackle them alone and not suffer too much. As we approached Season 9 and all that has to offer, Respawn have once again touched on the single-player topic. Speaking to Eurogamer about the new season, Respawn’s Chad Grenier said they would “love” to deliver more single-player focused content, but, there are few things from preventing it right now. “We dipped our toes in a PvE mode a few seasons back with quests and the team certainly loves to make that kind of content. A lot of our team comes from a single-player background… we made the single-player campaign in Titanfall 2,” Grenier told Eurogamer. “And so with all of the awesome legends and all the lore and storytelling that we’re doing, the team naturally I think would love to deliver some sort of content that’s like that, like single-player PvE content.” Grenier added that Respawn put their full focus on the battle royale side of things amid the global pandemic, where everyone was working at home, so that there wasn’t burnout. The Apex game director further noted that the “desire is there” to make single-player content, though. “Because our focus is on PvP, we had to move away from that type of content for the time being. That’s not to say in the future that we might not see some kind of PvE or campaign or something like that,” he added. “But right now, we’re not really focused on it – we’re thinking about how to continue with a PvP game and continue storytelling. They’re making awesome shorts like Northstar that was just released. But the desire is certainly there.” So, we might get more single-player stuff in the future, but don’t expect anything just yet, even if Respawn have confirmed that they’re working on seasons 13 and 14.

Respawn disable Bangalore skins to combat Apex Legends invisibility bug Respawn EntertainmentRespawn has made the decision to disable a handful of Bangalore’s in-game skins for the foreseeable future, after the Apex Legends character was disappearing completely while using the buyable cosmetic upgrades. Since the release of Season 4, Respawn’s battle royale has been plagued with a number of bugs and glitches, including an invincible fridge, strange dogs appearing at the Harvester, and now an invisibility cloak for Bangalore. Apex Legends players have been reporting the glitch—which removes Bangalore’s character model completely and leaves only a floating weapon to be seen by enemies—for some time, and now Respawn has finally taken action. The two offending skins, Bangalore’s default legendary Apex Overdrive, and the spacesuit skin’s color-swapped alternate ‘Killer B,’ which gives the outfit a yellow wash, have both been disabled by Respawn for the foreseeable future. “We’ve currently disabled the Apex Overdrive and Killer B Bangalore skins as we work through a bug causing her to become temporarily invisible,” Respawn devs revealed in a tweet on the official account on February 19. While there was no indication regarding when players would be able to re-access the oufits, Respawn did confirm they would be looking to “turn them back on in a future patch, once this doggone issue has been fixed.” We’ve currently disabled the Apex Overdrive and Killer B Bangalore skins as we work through a bug causing her to become temporarily invisible. We’ll turn them back on in a future patch once this doggone issue has been fixed. — Apex Legends (@PlayApex) February 19, 2020 Did Respawn also secretly address another hot topic? While Respawn has yet to directly address the mysterious dog sightings players have been reporting across World’s Edge, their update regarding the Bangalore invisibility exploit may have a small hat-tip to the mystery. On February 12, an eagle-eyed Apex player shared what appeared to be a dog running across the new Harvest platforms. It took the community by storm. Soon, many were theorizing that Loba—a potential canine-based legend—was on her way. While Respawn has remained fairly tight-lipped over the whole mystery, phrasing in the Feb 19 Bangalore skin update may have revealed their hand. More specifically, the use of the word “doggone,” which could have been made simpler for the community by using the word ‘annoying,’ seems to point towards the dog theories, and potentially suggests Bangalore was the root of the issue. For now, however, the focus is on the Bangalore issue, and it looks like Respawn is finally making sure that they can stamp it out once and for all. While there’s been no immediate fix, and some have been left without their cosmetic skins, at least it’s progress — now, if we could just a get plumber in to look at this fridge in Fragment East that’s still playing up…

Apex Legends devs hint Titanfall-style PvE modes could be coming soon Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends could be dipping into Titanfall 2’s wheelhouse again in Season 5. Respawn devs Moy Parra and Tom Casiello have teased PvE gameplay inspired by the company’s past FPS franchise “possibly” coming soon. At its core, Apex has always been about players-vs-player combat — after all, that’s the point of a battle royale. Still, fans have been eager to see the character-rich title transcend that and deliver a narrative, along with PvE elements. AI combat is one of the battle royale’s most-requested features. Respawn loyalists know the devs can deliver too. They shipped a highly-praised single-player Titanfall 2 campaign before Apex. Now it looks like fans may finally be getting their wish. The player-vs-environment hype machine rumbled back to life earlier this week when Loba came face-to-face with an old Titanfall enemy: Spectres. These lumbering battle-robots were a centerpiece feature in the franchise’s storyline. The automated warriors debuted in the new Apex teaser, which focused on Loba’s revenge mission against Revenant. Their appearance — one of the first in Apex — sparked questions. Mainly, does this mean they’ll be a PvE enemy? Casiello, Parra tease “bigger role” for Titanfall’s Spectres YouTuber ‘kandyrew’ was lucky enough to be watching the Season 5 trailer alongside Casiello and Parra, and was able to ask them directly: “Are [the Spectres] going to play a bigger role in PvE action, like the Prowlers?” Casiello was vague on confirmed details, but did admit Apex fans would “possibly” see more of the Spectres quite soon. “Spectres aren’t as prevalent this season,” the Apex writer added, “but we’re getting things together… figuring things out.” “There’s definitely a purpose to the Spectres beyond eye-candy,” Parra continued, explaining nothing in their teasers were ever irrelevant. “With these [trailers] we go through a long process to never show something players can’t experience.” For fans, this certainly sounds like they’ll be seeing more of the Spectres as Season 5 rolls on. The enemies played a big role as battlefield combatants in Titanfall and its sequel. Could the robots take on a similar role here, to face Apex’s Legends? This lines up with what Apex game director Chad Grenier told Game Informer back in April too: “We’re always bringing in stuff from Titanfall…” he said. “There could potentially be a pleasant surprise for Titanfall fans in Season 5.” For mobile readers, the related segment begins at 11:17 in the video below. The Respawn animator scuppered any ideas the Titanfall enemy’s debut in the trailer was confirmation Season 5 would have PvE right off the bat, however: “For now, at least, they’re serving the plot of the story happening right now.” A PvE storyline isn’t the only thing the Apex devs have teased for Season 5 either — Casiello also revealed King’s Canyon could lose more than just Skull Town, and dropped a big hint we may not have seen the last of Forge either.

Respawn devs keep teasing an Apex Legends TV show and it could be coming soon Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends fans could be getting their TV series wishes fulfilled a lot sooner than expected — Respawn devs keep teasing plans for a show based on the battle royale and it looks like it could be coming very soon too. The immense success of League of Legends show Arcane has kicked video game adaptation talks into high gear across the industry, and that includes popular battle royale Apex Legends. An Apex Legends series, or even a movie, has been very high on player wishlists since the game first debuted back in 2019. The oft-demanded idea has major legs, players claim, because of the title’s rich vein of characters and heavily-detailed backstories told through cutscenes and comics. Respawn Entertainment seems to have the same ideas too. In fact, Apex Legends devs keep teasing a TV series, on Netflix or elsewhere, and their thinly-veiled teasers are now pointing to a fast-approaching debut date. Apex devs keep teasing TV series Respawn’s developers teasing an Apex Legends television show or film series is nothing new, with then-director Chad Grenier declaring back in 2020 he’d “love to do [a series]” set in the battle royale’s growing universe. Then, six months ago, Ryan Rigney — who has also since departed Respawn — responded to show questions with a zipped-mouth emoji during a Q&A. Now, more recently, more clues are starting to pop up. On December 28, an eager Apex Legends fan re-edited Arcane’s now-iconic “Enemy” intro to instead include the battle royale’s colorful cast. The edit — which is incredible, Dexerto must say — quickly caught the eye of several Respawn devs. New clues suggest reveal coming soon On December 30, the game’s lead writer, Amanda Doiron, responded with a gasping emoji, and one of the title’s producers, Tim Lewinson, shared the clip with a message: “I have some conversations to follow up on come January.” Read More: 5 things Apex Legends needs to do in 2022 – While neither confirmed anything, Lewinson’s reply is the first time we’ve seen dates mentioned. This suggests an official announcement may be coming soon. I…have some conversations yo follow up on come January 👀 #ApexLegends https://t.co/6GZLiknRXS — Himothy 🇯🇲 🇨🇦 (@VancouverTim) December 30, 2021 While it’s all very exciting to hear about a potential Apex Legends series coming to life, especially after the success of other shows like Arcane and Castlevania, it’s worth taking any hints and teasers with a pinch of salt. The January hint does suggest the wheels are already turning behind the scenes, but considering how long Riot Games and Fortiche took to make Arcane, we may not be any closer to watching an Apex Legends show in 2022. Instead, it may just be writing and casting news next month. Basically, unless Respawn unveils their plans, nothing is locked in — until that happens, keep up with all the news in our dedicated Apex Legends TV series hub.

Respawn devs have “got things cooking” for a new Apex Legends support character Respawn EntertainmentThe Apex Legends developers have confirmed they’re working on a new support character for the battle royale’s roster following Mad Maggie’s release, with plans to bolster the “underserved playstyle” in a future update. Right now, Apex Legends has two support characters — Loba and Lifeline — and only a single option for players who want to fulfill their “healer” fantasies in the Outlands. It’s been a point of contention for battle royale’s fans for years, with support players in particular have felt aggrieved watching Respawn pump out assault characters. Since Loba’s release, Fuse, Horizon, Ash, and now Maggie have all been added to the attacking class. Respawn hears those complaints loud and clear. Basically, the wait is nearly over — gameplay engineer Chris Winder has confirmed the Apex Legends devs have “got things cooking” for the game’s third support. The devs are “always looking towards what types of experiences that we’re not servicing,” Winder said in a media press conference this week. “We’ve released a number of aggressive characters so [we’re] thinking about servicing those other play styles less served by recent characters.” That mainly includes support characters, the dev said. “Support is definitely one [of those underserved classes],” Winder explained. “Obviously there’s not too many support characters in the game. So yeah, we may have some things cooking along those lines.” The Apex Legends development plan also includes “other kinds of character classes,” Respawn’s engineer added, that have been left by the wayside recently. It’s worth mentioning Winder’s latest tease doesn’t necessarily mean the very next Apex Legends character will slot into the support class. Respawn work on a development cycle 18 months out from the game’s live version, meaning we could still be waiting a while to see “Support 3” hit the roster. The character is certainly on their way though, and Respawn has pledged to continue “looking for those open spaces” in their legend design to avoid lengthy waits like this again. Read More: Who is Mad Maggie in Apex Legends? – Maggie will be the next Apex Legends character to hit live servers, and will make her Outlands debut February 8. Catch up on all her abilities and lore here.

Respawn developer hits out at Apex Legends leakers who “ruin” the game Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment Project Lead Drew McCoy hit out at the types of leaks that “ruin” the game, in the aftermath of the events that led up to Apex Legends Season 4’s big surprise. Games as a service have given rise to leakers and data miners who stay on top of every update or mistakes from studios to share online with their following. Leaks for Apex Legends range from routine cosmetic releases to major story plots revealed before the devs get to announce them. But sometimes there are discoveries that could spoil a huge plot twist that the studio could have been working on for months. For Apex, there have been a few instances of that being the case, the latest coming in the form of a crucial interaction between Forge and Revenant that prematurely came online and quickly spread across the web. In the hours after Respawn publically released the video which seemingly held Forge’s fate, McCoy touched on the topic of leaks with Apex fans. “Leaks are the absolute worst. I’ve never worked on a single project where it was purposeful or wanted,” McCoy said. “We spend insane amounts of time and energy to create cool surprises. Really sucks when someone wants internet points bad enough to ruin that.” Since it keeps popping up: Leaks are the absolute worst. I’ve never worked on a single project where it was purposeful or wanted. We spend insane amounts of time and energy to create cool surprises. Really sucks when someone wants internet points bad enough to ruin that. — Drew McCoy (@DKo5) January 27, 2020 Senior Animator at Respawn, Moy Parra, voiced disapproval for the leaks, but was more focused on the “silver line.” The devs’ reactions to the amount of leaks spurred a conversation online between people who supported the view and those who say leaks could be good for a title like Apex Legends. “Leaks build hype,” said ‘Desu,’ who describes themselves as an admin for prominent dataminer ‘That1MiningGuy. “They encourage people to keep playing, they show what is to come. If we didn’t have these leaks we’d just be blindly hoping for another event and LTM till the next season. Surprises are great, but keeping the player base active and excited is better.” https://twitter.com/That1MiningGuy/status/1221936066153930752 In fact, That1MiningGuy said he was willing to remove everything he’s published about Apex, but says that the content he’s posted has received “encouragement” from Respawn. “Drew [McCoy], I’m a big fan of yours, and am willing to straight-up delete everything I can regarding Apex if you want me to,” That1MiningGuy said. “The direct addresses to me have been encouraging/saying it’s fair game what I do.”

Respawn developer gives update on Apex Legends hit reg and audio issues After the v1.1.1 update for Apex Legends failed to deliver any fixes for hit registration and audio issues, players are getting impatient, but a member of the Respawn Entertainment development team have ensured fans that they are “working on it”. The latest patch for Apex Legends addressed mostly balancing issues, with both Legends and weapons being tweaked to (hopefully) improve gameplay. However, there was some notable omissions from the patch too. There was only one single bug fix, despite the handful of bugs that have been present since launch, and the fixes for hit reg and audio problems, which have been mentioned by Respawn weeks prior, also didn’t get any attention. On March 22, Respawn Community Manager Jay Frechette stated that they were “aware and testing a fix locally” for hit reg issues, and also stated that they would an answer “next week” for the audio issues. The next week came and went without any said answers, and when the v1.1.1 update dropped on April 15, still without fixes for hit reg and audio, some players were understandably disappointed. The patch stated: “We are actively working on many improvements and we’re aware of the reports around audio issues, slow mo servers, hit registration, and more.” A developer, known as u/Scriptacus on Reddit, responded to a rather obvious instance of poor hit registration, denying that their priorities were split. Although Legend and weapon balancing came first, Scriptacus explains that the engineering and design teams are distinct from one another. As for the lack of updates on the issues, the developer states that there simply hasn’t been any significant progress made, as they are unable to replicate the problems in the ‘dev environment’. This means there is “no ETA” on either the audio issues or hit reg problems, but we are assured that “progress is being made.” More updates are expected soon for Apex Legends, but there will still be balance that needs struck between new content and cosmetic items, and technical fixes. While some players prioritize the former, others prioritize the latter, and Respawn must try to appease as many as possible.

Respawn dev finally gives an update on Apex Legends audio issues and PS4 crashing Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment have given an update for the rising audio issues players have been experiencing throughout Apex Legends. The studio launched their battle royale on February 4 and were welcomed by an incredible reception from fans. Since then multiple bugs have been reported throughout King’s Canyon and the team behind the game have been hard at work trying to resolve the more pressing issues. One of those persistent problems have been the clunky or sometimes absent audio that comes in and out during firefights as well as when tons of people land around the same location, making the game difficult to play. After the Respawn team addressed the problems PlayStation 4 players have been experiencing after the 1.08 update, Community Manager Jay ‘Jayfresh’ Frechette responded to a fan who laid out the think of the consistent sound problems. “The game sfx audio was 100% when it launched,” Reddit user ‘SunnyXtreme83’ said. “But now it sometime tears up or completely unhearable specially when Skulltown is a hotzone and [the majority of players] drops there. The sound tears badly unabling us to hear anything no gunshots no footsteps and the game lags.” For some time the Apex Legends community thought there developers must not have been the wiser about the consistent audio problems. But Jayfresh was quick to respond, saying: “Yep we are aware of that and audio team is on it. We’ll be talking more about what they’ll be addressing next week.” The Respawn team also said they think they know what was causing the PS4 crashes. He pointed to “the “Pick Me Up” Banner Frames for Lifeline” that were trying to “call up a non-existent file.” They have since issued a “partial fix live now disabling the Banner, [though] crashes may still occur when unlocking the Banner or equipping it and we’re continuing to work on fully resolving the issue,” according to the dev. When will an Apex Legends update come out? It didn’t seem like the Respawn community manager’s words were going to hold over impatient fans, as Jayfresh’s response was quickly downvoted with players saying they’ve been waiting for the devs to address it for weeks. Players have been waiting for crucial fixes to come for the game’s audio problems and beyond. But there might have to be a bit more waiting as the devs work hard on putting out the small fires popping up here and there. With reports of Respawn Entertainment announcing more details on Season 2 during the E3 conference, one could imagine that the devs would want their game as polished as possible before hitting the stage floor. The Apex Legends community is starved for solutions to the growing amount of bugs found throughout King’s Canyon, and Respawn is sure to make them priority in the near future.

Respawn dev reveals Apex Legends reconnect feature finally on the way Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends may finally be set to get one of the battle royale’s most-requested quality of life changes — the ability to reconnect to casual and ranked matches — according to Respawn developer Josh Medina. Disconnect errors have plagued Respawn’s mega-popular battle royale since it was released in February last year. From the notorious server-related “code:leaf” error to net issues, every Apex fan will have their own disconnect horror stories. There were rumors in the game’s early days a reconnect feature was actually already in the works. A supposed patch containing the fix was even leaked by Mixer star Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek, but it never landed on live servers. Instead, Respawn devs simply offered up solutions for how not to leave the game. Fans had their hopes dashed again in a March 8 update when former community voice Jay Frechette admitted the feature had “too many risks.” Worry no more, however. More than 13 months later, Medina has revealed the opposite — the Apex devs are finally working on a reconnect feature for the battle royale. Even better, it’s set to arrive on live servers “real soon.” The good news came after pro player Mac ‘Albralelie’ Beckwith took to Twitter to complain about lag issues. The Team SoloMid star found himself “frozen mid-tournament.” He was slapped with a game-breaking “code:rock” soon after. Michael Kalas, one of the many responsible for Respawn’s servers, suggested the game “fell behind” Albralelie’s actions. Former pro Marcel ‘Veineless’ Lehmann chimed in by suggesting a reconnect feature would solve all the issues. “The number one way to fix this, and 90 percent of the other frustrating server-related issues is a reconnect feature, pretty please,” Veineless said. Then came Medina’s reply, which all but confirmed it was on its way: “Real soon.” It makes sense Respawn would be looking to solve this highly-requested demand ahead of the game’s push into Season 5. With tons of new content on the horizon, the devs may want to get all their ducks in order in preparation. Reconnect capabilities aren’t the only long-awaited changes coming soon either. Fast-talking legend Mirage is also finally getting a buff after spending more than 14 months locked in the tier-list cellar, according to Respawn’s balance team.

Apex Legends dev responds to ‘leaked’ lobby area found by players Unlike other battle royale games, Apex Legends doesn’t have a lobby or ‘waiting area’ where players convene before the match starts, and Respawn have now explained why they chose to scrap it. In games like PUBG, Blackout and Fortnite Battle Royale, players will spend anywhere between ten seconds to a minute in a lobby area where they can run around, pick up weapons and shoot opponents, while the map loads and players join to make a full game of 100. Apex Legends is the only battle royale that does not have such a waiting area, but some players have spotted what looks like one thanks to a glitch in the game, prompting questions. The lobby area in Apex Legends is sometimes visible due to a bug. Players will recognize this area as the entrance to the training map/firing range, and it appears to be filled with all the players ready to board the dropship. However, this screen is only visible thanks to a glitch, and typically players never see it, as they instantly enter the match after choosing their legend. A Respawn programmer explains that initially, they had planned to use this as the waiting area, but since they managed to get loading times down so low, there was no longer any need to have a waiting area at all. The developer also confirmed that the waiting area was indeed the same location as the training area, explaining: “You start in a little cave and then you head out and slide down to the target range.” The weapons were all available to use too, like in the training area, but you couldn’t deal damage to other players, similar to other battle royale games’ waiting areas. Many players were actually disappointed to hear that the lobby area had been scrapped, although obviously having loading times so low that it is unnecessary is a huge achievement for the development team.

Respawn dev responds to criticism of monetization in Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment’s Director of Communications took to social media to engage with the community’s biggest concerns around the game, and Apex Legends’ monetization system was a hot button issue. Ryan Rigney has been the face of the Apex Legends dev team for a while now, and he continues to embrace that role by openly engaging with the player base when big problems arise. In the early hours of October 14, he ventured on to the game’s subreddit and talked about a variety of issues plaguing the game – ranging from problems with Wattson’s ultimate to the philosophy of in-game transactions and their role in the game’s economy. His answers may not please everyone, but it’s a good start to increasing the flow of information between Respawn and its players. Apex Legends dev explains how monetization is a “balance” When asked about the pricing and distribution of in-game items in Apex as compared to Destiny 2, this is what he had to say: “I’ll say that different genres have different expectations and monetization teams on every game are trying to strike a balance between making the business a healthy profit and not making items unattainable for non-spenders or low-spenders.” While that answer might not be what all players wanted to hear, it’s hard to argue against. The high rarity items in Apex are designed to keep players spending until they get them, and anyone who opts not to go that route will have to commit a huge chunk of time to make progress towards one. This not only means that they’re playing the game more in order to get the item, but they’re also more likely to continue playing after finally earning it. He concluded: “It’s not really my discipline tho[ugh] so I can’t speak as a real owner of these decisions could.” Comms Strategy Thread 🧵 How do you talk to customers when you’ve got problems? When the product doesn’t work, something’s screwed up, etc. There are only two things people want in these situations: They want to know what you’re doing to fix it, and they want it fixed ASAP. — Ryan K. Rigney (@RKRigney) October 13, 2021 All of this follows an October 13 Twitter thread where he documented the tightrope that all game dev teams must walk in order to satisfy the player base and their publishers. While Rigney might not be directly in charge of those decisions, it is clear that he’s using his voice to keep players in the loop as much as possible.

Respawn dev promises “very exciting” changes to Apex Legends anti-cheat RespawnRespawn Entertainment have promised “very exciting” changes to Apex Legends’ anti-cheat systems as the battle royale continues to fight against hackers. Cheating is a plague in almost every video game. Apex Legends is no different and, while Respawn’s battle royale has not suffered to the same extent as some of its rivals, it has undeniable issues in terms of cheaters ruining matches. Respawn have long since reiterated their commitment to making Apex Legends as cheat-free as is possible. Back in July, they revealed that they were “improving” the game’s anti-cheat systems. However, issues continue to emerge, especially at high levels. Now, ahead of 2023 and Season 16, Respawn have promised yet more changes. Respawn pledge more improvements to Apex Legends’ anti-cheat In a December 23 tweet Respawn’s Connor Ford, a dev specifically working on Apex Security, promised anti-cheat upgrades. He said: “Hyped for the new year. Very exciting additions and some changes to the Apex Anti Cheat 🙂 Also want to stream more in the new year and have some good apex discussions there.” Unfortunately, he did not delve into specifics or provide a timeline for the changes. We may not actually receive major details as Respawn try and keep their exact anti-cheat strategies under wraps. Season 16, though, does seem a likely point for the changes to be implemented. Season 15 will be the longest in recent memory and its successor is already promising huge changes. We expect a new SMG, the previously mined Nemesis assault rifle, and an overhaul to legend classification and abilities. There are rumors that there won’t be a new legend with Season 16, but fans would surely take a season that prioritizes QOL changes and balancing over new content that exacerbates issues. Effective anti-cheat changes may well be the cherry on top of Respawn’s cake.

Respawn dev pokes fun at Fortnite taking another Apex Legends idea Epic Games/RespawnRespawn animator Moy Parra took a cheeky jab at rival game Fortnite for copying Apex Legends again after a new Fornite skin set is released. Since the release of Apex Legends in February 2019, Respawn has received a lot of credit for introducing many unique features into their battle royale title. Epic Games, who have also introduced unique features of their own such as the building mechanic, seem to have been inspired by many of the moves Respawn has been making in the genre. Many players highlighted Fortnite’s Season 2 update, which featured Loot Vaults, closely resembling the same concept as those in Apex Legends. And no one can ignore the ‘ping’ callouts and respawn beacons/vans, which Apex also did first. Then, after Fortnite revealed a new addition to their item shop on February 30, even Senior Animator at Respawn, Moy Parra, poked fun at their rival game. The new skin set released by Epic Games, which was even brazenly titled “Crypto Collective Set,” looked quite familiar to fan-favorite Apex Legends character Crypto. I feel like I’ve heard of this guy before but can’t quite place it 🤔 https://t.co/3B7gp3Ya6J — Moy Parra 🎮 (@_moyparra) March 1, 2020 The new skin set even seemed to match the colorway of the popular legend, with similar shades of green and black on Epic Games’ new cosmetic pack. “I feel like I’ve heard of this guy before but I can’t quite place it,” Moy expressed, mocking how blatant it looked to fans of the two battle royale titles. And this wasn’t the only skin either, as some players pointed out a similarity between Fortnite’s ‘Caution’ skin and Apex Legends’ ‘Caustic’ character. He also looks familiar ? pic.twitter.com/gnRNLf7dd4 — Blackshark190 ? (@20blackshark05) March 1, 2020 Epic Games has not been shy about adapting what has inspired them in the past, as was seen with many of the trending dances that made their way into the game as emotes. Of course, it wouldn’t be fair to ignore all of the great innovation which Fortnite also brought to battle royale genre, and gaming in general. One could easily point to the battle pass system as one shining example. However, the Fortnite developers seem happy to take inspiration directly from their rival titles, even if they do receive some backlash over some of their new features’ similarities.

Respawn dev hints that Apex Legends SBMM has possibly been turned off A developer at Respawn Entertainment has hinted that skill-based matchmaking (SBMM) may have been switched off or changed in Apex Legends. SBMM is a widely controversial topic among gamers in many titles such as Fortnite and the newly-released Call of Duty title, Modern Warfare. Many fans of the popular battle royale game, Apex Legends, have also been frustrated with the use of skill-based matchmaking in their matches, with some even claiming that it was “ruining” their online experience. SBMM is used to match players of similar skill levels together using various algorithms, however, many hardcore fans have deemed it unfair, arguing that their matches have become too difficult to win against some of the game’s top players. Since the beginning of Season 2 in Apex Legends, skill-based matchmaking has become the standard in online matches despite the fact a ranked playlist with SBMM was also introduced during that period. However, one Respawn developer, Josh Medina, hinted that changes have been made to the matchmaking system after replying to Apex Legends streamer Xfactor’s thoughts on his recent matches. “I’m solo Q’ing as usual. Either the SBMM is turned off or broken but its the most fun I’ve had in weeks,” the Facebook streamer expressed, revealing that it felt as if Respawn had begun testing new alternatives to the current state of matchmaking. The Respawn Entertainment producer simply responded with the classic eyes emoji, suggesting that the streamer may have been correct in his predictions. The removal of skill-based matchmaking from Apex Legends would come as good news to many of the battle royale’s fans including top stars such as TSM TannerSlays who even called the system “zero fun.” Although it is unclear what changes, if any, have been made so far to the game’s matchmaking system, fans will be eager to get into action to test things out on the Mirage’s Holo-day bash event which started on December 12.

Respawn dev exposes Apex Legends player who claims they were wrongfully banned Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends bans don’t come lightly, but one player left out one important detail when trying to appeal their ban. Like most competitive multiplayer games, Apex Legends is home to players that cheat, exploit, and even send offensive messages to their team. Depending on the severity of the situation, Respawn can choose to issue time-limited or permanent bans, the latter being reserved for the most serious cases. However, sometimes players try to appeal their ban and it is then up to the devs to decide whether it should be lifted. This wasn’t exactly the case for one Apex Legends player, who took to social media to voice their frustrations – only for a Respawn developer to call them out on their blatant lie. Apex ban called out by Respawn Bans can be issued for various reasons in Apex Legends. In fact, reports can be sent out for those that blatantly troll, verbally harass, and cheat. No one wants a toxic environment when playing online games, particularly when you’re just trying to have fun. As a result, Respawn is always keen to rid its popular BR title of any unsavory players. Of course, that doesn’t stop certain people from taking to social media to voice their displeasure at a recent ban. Posting on the official Apex Legends Reddit page, one player stated that their account was terminated for saying “our boy Gibby is gay”. The thread quickly garnered a lot of attention online, with many Apex Legends players quickly siding with how unfair the ban was. However, Respawns Director of Comms, Ryan K. Rigney, was quick to point out that the player had missed out one rather glaring detail. Read More: Who is Seer in Apex Legends? – “That’s one of the messages I was shown,” said the developer. “You’re still leaving out another though that got a strike on your account on March 31st. Hint: it includes a word that starts with the letter N.” While Respawn’s callout resulted in some rather hilarious comments and the deletion of the original thread, it just goes to show how tuned in they are to the ban process.

Respawn dev explains why Forge’s abilities wouldn’t work in Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentRespawn developer Daniel Klein has explained why Forge’s planned abilities – before Revenant murdered him in cold blood – would not work in Apex Legends, if he was ever to be added as a playable character. Following the addition of Rampart in Season 6, there are now 14 unique Legends in Respawn’s battle royale, and with even more on the way, fans are always speculating about who could be next to join the cast in the Apex Games. While Respawn has already been hinting towards the Season 7 Legend, after players discovered a teaser for a new character called Horizon in the firing range, there are plenty of characters in the Apex universe who could be also introduced. One character who has been heavily featured in the Apex lore but was not added as a playable Legend is Forge. The People’s Champ was known for his melee combat skills but was killed off by Revenant before his scheduled arrival in Season 4. Respawn confirmed it was all a ploy to misdirect data miners. Since then, Apex players have been eager to see the return of Forge, in some manner, but game designer Daniel Klein, who focuses on Legend design in particular, explained why his abilities couldn’t have worked in Apex Legends. Fake concept art and abilities were leaked in the game files, to put off the leakers. Forge’s abilities were heavily melee-based and the Respawn dev claimed it would be difficult to make use of them with the standard Apex Legends playstyle. Comment byu/haynesy-69 from discussion inapexlegends After one Apex Legends player claimed that Forge’s abilities were “wasted potential,” Klein responded revealing that the leaked set of abilities were only made to trick the community and that they would not have been used. “With respect, his abilities were s***posts that we would never even put into prototyping,” he explained. “You can’t have a melee character in a gun game and have them be both impactful and healthy for the core combat loop of the game.” Forge’s “leaked” abilities were: Pull Shot (Hook): Short-range grapple that pulls enemies into you or can be used to launch yourself into the air. – Ground Slam: Press crouch while airborne to slam into the ground below. – K.O. Punch (High Jump): Jump forward in a direction. Press crouch while airborne to slam into the ground below. – One-Two (One-Two Punch): Bullrush in a straight line. If you hit an enemy along the way, press again to do an upper-cut launching you into the air. – On The Ropes: Enhances your melee to do more damage the lower your health is. Dealing melee damage gives you temporary overshield. – Victory Rush: Killing a player with a melee attack restores your health and gives you a 30% speed boost for 10 seconds. – While his abilities did not synergize well with the current Apex Legends playstyle, players are still holding out hope for the character to return, in some fashion, for a later season. However, it does not look like Respawn has any intention of bringing the character back anytime soon, but we’ll just have to wait and see.

Respawn dev explains Rampart’s weakness ahead of Apex Legends Season 6 Respawn EntertainmentRampart will be the newest character joining Apex Legends when Season 6 starts up, and Respawn devs themselves have already given us a strategy to deal with her. The kit and abilities of the newest Apex Legend were revealed on August 16, giving us an idea of what Rampart will bring to the game. Her abilities will lock down an area with pieces of buildable cover which is sure to make Rampart a more defensive-minded character, if you couldn’t tell by her name. During a recent AMA though, Respawn Designer Daniel Klein gave players a great way to deal with all the fortifications Rampart will be throwing up when she arrives in Season 6. Instead of attacking her constructions head-on, the first course of action that most Apex players would probably try out, Klein suggests softening things up first with grenades. “Grenades are truly the bane of Rampart’s existence,” Klein said. “If a Rampart’s fortified with walls and her HMG, just throw a few nades her way and she’s gonna have to go and rebuild somewhere else.” Spamming grenade after grenade might not be the end-all, be-all solution though, as the designer also threw in a suggestion for which character could pair well with the new legend. “Now Rampart + Wattson, that might be a scary combo…” Comment byu/rpm319 from discussion inapexlegends Wattson’s electric fences paired with Rampart’s abilities would certainly make for a tough challenge for any player to take on during a match. Something to definitely keep in mind the next time you’re playing with a cooperative teammate. Crypto’s Drone apparently is a danger to her abilities as well though, disabling or destroying Rampart’s fortifications as it does other abilities, making him a natural counter to her straight out of the gate. As for when we’ll actually get to play Rampart – she’s set to make her first appearance when Season 6 kicks off, courtesy of returning Titanfall 2 antagonist Kuben Blisk, on August 18.

Respawn dev drops cryptic hint about Apex Legends TV show Respawn EntertainmentRyan Rigney, Director of Communications at Respawn Entertainment, has dropped a cryptic hint about the potential for an Apex Legends TV series. Apex Legends’ popularity has perhaps even surpassed the most hopeful anticipations of EA and Respawn. The battle royale has been confirmed to have upwards of 100 million players, and shows no signs of slowing down. Naturally, Respawn and EA are considering further business ventures to ensure Apex Legends’ longevity and financial viability. We have subsequently seen Apex launch on the Nintendo Switch, as well as the mobile version coming soon. One potential avenue for Apex Legends to explore is TV or film. We have seen ultra-success for the likes of The Witcher on Netflix (admittedly a book adaptation rather than out-and-out video game adaptation), as well as Pedro Pascal’s The Last Of Us TV show coming to HBO soon. Moving away from live action, there are number of animated shows coming to Netflix based on games, including League of Legends, Dota2, Cyberpunk and Resident Evil. Not much has been said about a TV adaptation of Apex Legends, but Ryan Rigney, Respawn’s Director of Communications, gave a cryptic hint during an AMA on Reddit. Asked about a Netflix or Amazon Prime TV show, Ryan Rigney simply responded with the zipped mouth emoji, which many took to mean something is potentially in the works, but he is currently unable to disclose any more information. One reason the game’s Legends are so interesting is the back story Respawn have already given to them. It’s a possibility that the existing backstories would be used as inspiration for any TV show, delving deeper into them as characters and fleshing out the relationships between them. Respawn have, in the past, stated that they’d love to make an animated series about Apex Legends. Exactly how that would look is unknown, but we’d be as excited as anyone to find out. Later this year, an official Apex Legends comic series is releasing, called ‘Overtime’, which will have four editions.

Respawn dev confirms Crypto buff is coming in Apex Legends Respawn Entertainment[jwplayer UQowmNq2]Respawn design director Jason McCord has revealed that they are looking at Crypto to receive some of the next character buffs in Apex Legends. Since Crypto’s introduction to the battle royale in Season 3: Meltdown, the Legend has surprisingly flown under the radar, with characters like Wraith and Pathfinder continuing to remain as prevalent as ever. After he was later found to be the Legend with the lowest pick-rate and win-rate in the game, Crypto mains claimed that some buffs were desperately needed to bring the Surveillance Expert to a viable state. It seems as if Respawn is now in agreement as they have revealed that their design team is now exploring options on how to make Crypto a competitive pick in Apex Legends. One Apex Legends fan reached out to Respawn dev Jason McCord on June 12, asking when Crypto mains could expect to see some improvements made to their favorite character. The player also highlighted the need for Crypto to tap into his drone whenever he wants to scout for opposing players, suggesting that some sort of AI feature in the drone could be a welcome change to the character. McCord responded, revealing that, while Crypto is in need of a buff, they are still in the early stages of figuring out what exactly would be the best changes for his kit, “we’re still talking about stuff.” We are talking about stuff. Still a ways out probably, but agree that he needs something! — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) June 12, 2020 He followed up, explaining that the desired changes to Crypto might take a while before they eventually reach live servers. “Still a ways out probably, but agree that he needs something!” he added. Respawn recently introduced a major rework for Mirage after the Legend was also found to be underperforming and it is quite possible that the Apex dev team might have something similar in mind for Crypto. However, as of now, it is unclear just what changes the drone-based character could receive, although Respawn will likely provide more information later in Season 5.

Respawn dev teases beloved Apex Legends drop spot could be returning Respawn EntertainmentCapitol City was one of Apex Legends’ most beloved drop spots on World’s Edge, specifically the construction buildings on the west side. It was removed seasons ago, but leading into Season 12 a Respawn dev has teased it could be returning. When World’s Edge dropped into Apex Legends, there was only one spot players were dropping into: Capitol City. Now known as Fragment West and East, the unified city once had construction buildings galore with players zipping from side-to-side taking constant fights. One specific construction building — next to the one that currently exists on the South side of Fragment West — was heralded as the place to drop. It was removed just as quickly as it was added though, and players have been longing for its return. That return could finally be happening in Season 12. Respawn level designer Rodney Reece is now toying with the hearts of Apex Legends players worldwide by hinting at a potential Capitol City return in the near future. “Take a bow, Kristen [the level designer for the construction buildings]. We made something people miss. Now only if we could somehow bring it back,” he said after a post of the old drop spot went viral. While World’s Edge changes aren’t on the menu for Season 12 — Olympus is getting an overhaul — there’s potential for the old construction buildings to be included in something like Arenas or the new 9v9 Control LTM. Take a bow, Kristen. We made something people miss. Now only if we could somehow bring it back . . . https://t.co/bX0FpwITCV https://t.co/kI8hBgZhCU — Rodney Reece (@RodneyReece7) January 29, 2022 Control, which is new for Season 12, will involve taking control of various points of a map in a domination-style game mode. The construction buildings would be a perfect addition, which some players have been hypothesizing. As for Arenas, there isn’t really a map like that Capitol City drop, so it’d bring some more variety to the 3v3 game mode. It could all just be bait, but given the resounding community interest in getting the World’s Edge drop spot back, Respawn might be tempted into bringing it back.

Respawn denies claims they’ve “abandoned” Titanfall due to Apex Legends focus Respawn EntertainmentJason Garza, a developer at Respawn Entertainment, has moved to shut down claims that the company has “abandoned” Titanfall to focus more on Apex Legends, after a hacker raised awareness for the growing ‘Save Titanfall’ campaign. On July 4, Respawn rushed out an Apex Legends update after a hacker launched a DDoS attack and sprinkled a series of messages in the client that lead players to a website called ‘Save Titanfall.’ The premise of the campaign is simple. They want Respawn to deal with the hackers running rampant in Titanfall, claiming it’s “completely unplayable” despite still being sold today. Ryan Rigney, the Director of Communications at Respawn, slammed the hacker for “ruining a holiday” and said they “achieved nothing of value.” However, it did raise awareness to the point where players started asking Respawn whether they’d abandoned the game. Jason Garza, the Community Coordinator at Respawn, recently took on some questions about the state of the game. He revealed that only one or two members are still working on it but insisted that it hasn’t been “abandoned.” “We’re working on it,” he said. “The Titanfall community is not forgotten or abandoned or anything like that. We’re still working on it, it’s just we can’t telegraph our moves, and we only have like one or two people on it because everybody else is on Apex.” He reiterated that it is “something we do work on” but insisted that these things take time. “You can’t just press a button, and everything’s fixed magically,” he said. Titanfall fans aren’t convinced, though. The consensus is that having one or two people working on the game while the rest of the team are devoted to Apex Legends practically is abandonment, at least in their view. “Oh my god! The janitor and phone call assistant are working on Titanfall!” joked one fan. “I’d rather you just admit that you’ve abandoned Titanfall,” wrote another. Read More: Secret Octane buff confirmed in Apex Legends – So it seems like the jury is still out on if the game has been abandoned. But, more importantly, hackers are still running rampant, which is the marrow of the issue; fans want it to be resolved once and for all.

Respawn delays Apex Legends tap strafing patch after “unexpected side effects” Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment have delayed the Apex Legends update intended to remove tap strafing after the developers saw it disrupted other movement techniques in the game. The studio is still planning to remove the tap strafe mechanic from Apex soon, but have yet to find a solution that wouldn’t affect other key movesets as well. It’s because of this that Respawn will hold off on the patch update for now. “The Apex Legends team has recently discovered some unexpected side effects of our planned changes to tap-strafing,” Respawn said in a Sept 13 tweet. “It is still our intention to address some of the most egregious use-cases of tap-strafing, but for now we are delaying our planned change to a later patch.” Seasoned Apex players have a litany of tools at their disposal for outplaying and outmaneuvering their competition in the battle royale. Movement is sacred in Apex. We weigh every change to these systems carefully and value feedback. After further testing, we’ve concluded we need to take more time to get this right to make sure related movement mechanics aren’t caught in the cross-fire. — Respawn (@Respawn) September 13, 2021 Respawn are aware of how important these mechanics are for their player base, and they’re approaching the tap strafe nerf with caution to avoid any unintended gameplay elsewhere. “Movement is sacred in Apex,” Respawn continued. “We weigh every change to these systems carefully and value feedback. “After further testing, we’ve concluded we need to take more time to get this right to make sure related movement mechanics aren’t caught in the cross-fire.” Respawn are still moving forward on the planned changes though holding back on it for now out of an abundance of caution. There’s been plenty of top Apex Legends streamers and pros members speaking out to #SaveTapStrafing like iiTzTimmy, Rogue, ImperialHal and more, but Respawn are sticking to their decision. Unless the studio changes course, tap strafing is still scheduled to be removed in Apex Legends despite the brief delay.

Respawn give update on Titanfall 3 as they focus on Apex Legends EA/Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment have announced that they are delaying work on Titanfall 3 as a result of the incredible popularity of Apex Legends, having hit over 50 million players in the few months since its February release. Why are Respawn delaying Titanfall 3? Respawn Entertainment are the developers behind Apex Legends, the free-to-play FPS battle royale game that was released in February 2019. Since its release, its incorporation of many aspects of Titanfall to the battle royale genre has proved wildly popular, hitting 50 million players faster than Epic Games’ Fortnite Battle Royale. However, it appears that there are negatives to this popularity, as Respawn have announced they will not be working on Titanfall 3 anytime soon, so they are able to focus on Apex Legends. In a blog post released on April 25, Respawn said that the launch of Apex Legends had gone beyond exceeding their expectations, and that “50 million players in the first month (and more since) is staggering for any game, let alone a new IP from a relatively small team who were taking their first swing at a free-to-play game.” However, it seems that the popularity of Apex Legends may have been detrimental to the prospects of Titanfall 3. They state that “in order to fully support Apex Legends, we are pushing out plans for future Titanfall games.” “We know we have a lot of work ahead of us,” concludes the post, “but we’re up to the challenge and are looking forward to building Apex Legends to its full potential together with our players.” When can we expect Titanfall 3? Respawn are clearly reluctant to split their resources between Apex and a new Titanfall title, as they look to capitalize on the incredible success Apex has experienced early in its life cycle. The original Titanfall was released in early 2014, with Titanfall 2 following roughly two and a half years after, in October 2016. However, it has already been two and a half years since that game’s release and, after Respawn’s update, it doesn’t look like serious development will start anytime soon. Hence, a 2021 or 2022 release date now looks likely for a new Titanfall game, but this could easily be altered by how well Apex Legends maintains its early popularity.

Respawn stands by Apex Legends tap strafe removal despite criticism Respawn EntertainmentRespawn’s controversial decision to remove tap strafing from Apex Legends will hold despite widespread criticism. The “forbidden fruit” of movement must be removed to stop mobility creep, developer John ‘JayBiebs’ Larson claimed. Tap strafing’s removal from Apex Legends has started a chorus of complaints from the wider player base, especially the PC community. The movement trick, which let players quickly turn around corners and change direction mid-air, became a staple over the last couple of months. However, much like bunnyhop healing, Respawn are pulling it from the game. The developer’s original reasoning cited inaccessibility and a lack of counterplay; points that JayBiebs elaborated on in a September 1 Twitlonger. The Apex Legends dev admitted, “the player in me loves the idea of it for skill expression.” “However,” Larson continued, “my designer brain started to churn, and the more I saw, the more I felt this mechanic seemed like the forbidden fruit.” As a PC-only mechanic, tap strafing wasn’t accessible for controller players. Its removal might seem like a direct nerf to mouse and keyboard (MnK) players — once again pushing enthusiasts to the sticks — but that’s just a “strawman argument”. “When it comes to accessibility, we often must consider controller players given the constraints compared to MnK. But, accessibility does not equal balance design, and it’s a strawman argument to treat it as such,” he said. “This is why I believe tap-strafing exists solely as a design problem. “Even in a MnK only Apex world, or a scenario where controller and MnK could tap-strafe just the same, I don’t believe it would be a healthy change with the freedom it currently allows.” MOVEMENT TECH AND MOBILITY IN APEX Read: https://t.co/IW7hy1bh3j — JayBiebs (@RSPN_JayBiebs) September 1, 2021 JayBiebs added on to Respawn’s August 31 tweet that Apex developers are tackling mobility creep, a problem that is becoming more prevalent. “I can buy that a tap-strafe at normal velocity in a gunfight occurs infrequently and is relatively mild enough to not immediately kill with fire,” he said. “But, Path grappling past and tap-strafing back into your face with a Mastiff, or Octane cranking 90s while maintaining ridiculous speed, bring up greater gameplay concerns. He concluded: “While many love the freedom that Apex’s movement system affords, constraints are just as important.” Larson said “movement should feel unchanged for controllers and for [mouse and keyboard] players who hadn’t heard of the term ‘tap strafe’ until yesterday.” The developers are also working with pros on ensuring the changes don’t impact other sorts of movement tech, including wall bouncing, to not drastically change the skill caps or ceilings of Apex.

Respawn cracks down on Apex Legends DDoSers with ban wave Respawn/EARespawn Entertainment have started cracking down on Apex Legends players who DDoS the lobby in other to pick up free wins and rack up ridiculous amounts of eliminations. Just like any other multiplayer game, Apex Legends has had its fair share of problems with cheating. From god mode hacks, to aim bots, and wall hacks, most players have had matches ruined by cheaters at some point or another. The battle royale developers have, over the course of many ban waves, started rooting out these cheating and started to clean everything up. However, plenty of problems still persist. In recent months, some trolls have been DDoS’ing matches so that every opponent lags out, handing them a free win, and the chance to pick up some insane numbers in the way of eliminations and damage. Apex Legends Ranked DDoSers banned It’s pretty prevalent in Ranked game where either the lobby will lag just as the game starts, making everyone but the DDoSers stand completely still, or you attack their team and then they deploy the attack. However, Respawn are cracking down on it. On Twitter, Respawn’s security lead Conor Ford, aka RSPN_Hideouts, started responding to a few clips of DDoSers running wild, confirming that the devs were looking into fixing it. It wasn’t long before he confirmed that the ban hammer was being swung again. “Console reckoning for DDoSers and DDoS customers incoming. You can’t hide any of it,” he tweeted on March 22, before joking about how many eliminations some DDOS’ers had racked up. Console reckoning for DDoSers and DDoS customers incoming. You can’t hide any of it ♥️ — Conor Ford / Hideouts (@RSPN_Hideouts) March 23, 2021 The exact number of players who have been caught up in the ban is, at the time of writing, unknown. However, it is so prevalent and there have been so many reports that it should be a pretty hefty number. It was only recently that Ford and the Respawn security team managed to get rid of nearly 1000 high-ranked cheaters. So, hopefully, the crackdown continues.

Respawn to continue making new Apex Legends characters as long as it’s “healthy” Respawn EntertainmentDoes Respawn have a character cap in mind for Apex Legends? There’s no arbitrary number, with the developers vowing to keep releasing new Legends as long as they are “healthy” for the game. It’s always a concern with live-service games — just how much fresh content can players expect? New characters and maps keep things interesting, but there’s only so many niches you can cover. As far as characters go, Apex Legends doesn’t have an extensive roster compared to other games. There’s 22 of them as of Season 14, and plenty more leaked for the years to come. Beyond what we know so far though, how many more characters will Respawn add to the battle royale? What’s the golden number when the Apex Legends developers will stop releasing new Legends? Respawn isn’t setting an arbitrary Legend cap for their battle royale where they’ll reach that number and stop development. However, they will start slowing down on new characters once they start intruding on pre-existing niches. “We want to release Legends that have ownable playspaces and bring value to the squad,” developer Devan McGuire said in a Reddit AMA. “As the roster grows, this task gets harder. “We also want to ensure that we’re not just bringing new powerful Legends to Apex but that older Legends still have a viable place in the landscape. It’s important that we take the time to do this for the health and future of the game.” This is a similar philosophy Respawn used for weapon additions in Apex Legends. There hasn’t been a new gun since Season 11’s addition of the C.A.R. SMG — excluding the Throwing Knife in the Gun Run LTM. The reason? There’s no place for a new gun in the game right now. Players don’t need to worry about content drying up in the battle royale any time soon if that’s the case. Given plenty of player calls for more support Legends and plenty of other niches to fill, there’s still plenty of life left in Apex Legends and the characters joining the Apex Games.

Apex Legends devs will nerf Revenant climbing if it’s too powerful Respawn EntertainmentRevenant’s climbing abilities were drastically improved in the Apex Legends Genesis Collection update, allowing the robot to scale skyscrapers across all the Outlands. However, Respawn are already considering nerfs — if players want them. Revenant mains had plenty to be happy about in the Genesis Collection update for Apex Legends. Not only did the robot get a handy buff to his climbing ability, he netted himself an heirloom too. However, while Respawn can’t take the heirloom away, they’re keeping an eye on his power after the climbing buff has seen Revenant players scale buildings and prey on unsuspecting opponents a little too easily. While the developers believe the Legend is in a decent spot, lead game designer Daniel Z. Klein is listening to the community’s reaction to the change, and may implement a slight nerf if the climb becomes too problematic. It fits with Revenant’s theme of being an assassin to try and be as quiet as possible while climbing, however Respawn will “absolutely increase the volume” if the climb sound is too quiet, and his win rate climbs too quickly. The floated change was rather controversial when it was posted on Reddit, with many players asking for the devs to perhaps make it even quieter. Is Revenant’s super climb too quiet? Respawn says they’ll “absolutely” make it louder, if needed. pic.twitter.com/XbVKijPu2L — Apex Legends News (@alphaINTEL) June 30, 2021 However, you can breathe easy if you’re a Revenant main, because the nerf isn’t set in stone. It’s still too early to tell how effective the small change has been. It doesn’t rule out the fact that Respawn are looking at the potential for a change — if player consensus swings — but for now, you can happily climb quietly, before launching onto your enemies with that sick heirloom scythe.

Apex Legends devs will consider Crypto rework if hacker’s play rate drops any lower Respawn EntertainmentCrypto could well be the next Apex Legends character to receive an ability rework, the Respawn dev team has revealed, as they look to balance the hacker’s ever-sinking Season 8 play rate with his overall “healthy” win rate. Everyone’s favorite Apex Legends hacker has Respawn in a pickle. Since his release in early Season 3, the Surveillance Expert’s pick rate has slowly been trending down. Part of that is, of course, due to the release of other more popular legends like Fuse, Loba, or Apex Legends meta-breaker Horizon. Primarily, however, there’s a disconnect between the player base, and Crypto’s play style. It’s an issue Respawn are considering fixing with a Season 9 rework. “Crypto’s got a really low pick rate in Season 8, but a healthy win rate,” one of the battle royale’s live balance designers, John Larson, explained during an appearance on the popular “Bird’s Eye” competitive Apex Legends podcast. According to Apex Legends Status, he has a 1.4% pick rate. That’s overshadowed, by a lot, by popular Legends like Lifeline and Bloodhound (both around 14.3%), as well as Wraith (12.1%), Bangalore (9.2%), and more. Long-term Crypto players “love the character,” Larson continued, but due to the fact Tae Joon Park’s main Apex Legends ability — his iconic Surveillance Drone — “isn’t streamlined,” many players shy away from putting any meaningful hours into the character. That, in turn, leads to Crypto’s pick rate plummeting over the seasons, to the third-lowest in the game. To boost his “pretty low” pick rate, Crypto would “need a rework.” Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean Respawn are automatically pulling the trigger on an overhaul for the Apex Legends hacker — you can breathe easy, Crypto mains. Right now, the balance team is simply in ‘wait-and-watch’ mode. The fact the Surveillance Expert still boasts a solid win rate and has been appearing in pro matches in recent weeks means he isn’t in dire need of a touch-up just yet. While Crypto may not be getting a rework as soon as the upcoming Season 9 update dropping on May 4 — unless his play rate dips any lower, that is — Respawn has inked up some quality of life changes they want to give the hacker. These include “allowing him to see the minimap and kill-feeds while in drone view,” and making the switch between his drone mode and “FPS mode” smoother. Read More: Who is the Season 9 Legend in Apex Legends? – The Season 9 update will also see long-awaited changes for Octane, Loba, Horizon, and a mini-rework for flagship Apex Legends healer, Lifeline. The seventeenth Legend (likely the leaked “Valk” character) should also make their debut.

Respawn confirms they’re investigating Apex Legends audio issues Respawn EntertainmentAhead of Apex Legends Season 16, Respawn Entertainment developers have confirmed that they are investigating audio issues in the battle royale game. We know that the next big update in Apex Legends will include no new Legend for the first time in its history, instead opting for a series of tweaks to existing characters. A gold shotgun bolt and Nemesis Burst AR will be landing in the game as well. On top of that, the devs have also given a huge buff to the Hemlok, as it will be stored inside Care Packages moving forward. But, what about noise pollution in Apex Legends? Apex Legends devs respond to audio issues before Season 16 An interview was conducted by GLHF and posted to Video Games FN asked Respawn staff directly. The reporter asked: “The next question is something that comes up in the community a fair bit – noise pollution.” Of course, this is referring to the audio issues the Apex community wants to see the back of. When asked about if there are plans to address the problems, particularly with inconsistent footsteps, senior design director Evan Nikolich replied: “I mean, we’re definitely investigating it. The tech is… our engine tech was not built with BR in mind.” EA released a gameplay trailer for Season 16 on February 8, as seen below. After being pressed on the source engine, Nikolich suggested it’s going to require gradual improvements rather than one quick fix. They said: “It is Source Engine-based, but it’s very modified from Titanfall, forked long ago from Valve’s Source Engine.” “So it’s definitely something that bothers us personally, as well, we’re always trying to work on it and figure out ways to help improve the footsteps. “While we don’t have a direct fix this season, and I’m not sure we’ll ever be like a silver bullet fix, this is something we’re constantly working on season over season.” Apex Legends Season 16 players might have been hoping for major changes to audio when the next major patch drops on February 14, but it appears this one is going to be a slow burn for the developers to get right. For more information on S16, check out our own developer interview, where the Respawn team laid out their vision for the future of the battle royale.

Respawn confirms queer Apex Legends characters playable at Esports World Cup Respawn EntertainmentRespawn has confirmed that the queer members of its Apex Legends cast will be playable at the Suadi Arabian-backed Esports World Cup. The Esports World Cup announced on April 12 that Apex Legends has joined its impressive lineup of titles for the summer tournament taking place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The announcement caused a stir in the Apex community as many players pointed out that the game is full of gay and transgender characters, while same-sex relations are considered an offense in the country, according to Human Rights Watch. Respawn has since responded to those insinuating that the queer Legends will not be playable at the event. “We are not changing the game — all Legends will be playable,” Respawn told Kotaku. “No Apex Legends content, Legend or Cosmetic, will be restricted at the EWC event.” Apex Legends and other EWC titles like Overwatch and League of Legends have multiple cosmetics that celebrate Pride Month. Whether teams or players will use those cosmetics during matches remains to be seen. Esports organizations have opted out of events hosted in Saudi Arabia in the past, most notably Moist Esports. The creator-owned Rocker League team declined an invitation to EWC’s predecessor, Gamers8, in 2022 sighting the country’s stance on LGBTQ+ individuals. Saudi Arabia updated its stance on LGBTQ+ travelers in 2023, adding to the state-ran Saudi Tourism Authority website a section about whether gay visitors are welcome. “Everyone is welcome to visit Saudi, and we ask that they follow and respect our culture, traditions, and laws, as you would when visiting any other country in the world,” the FAQ section says. The Esports World Cup kicks off sometime in the summer of 2024 with over 18 titles represented. Whether the country’s stance on queer and LGBTQ+ people will impact how the tournament is received or its viewership remains to be seen.

Respawn confirms next Apex Legends patch will fix frustrating queue bug Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends has seen a spike in its player base recently climbing up the chain of Battle Royales. Fans have been losing their minds lately with a bug that takes them out of queue but Respawn has said that will be fixed in the next update. Apex Legends allows players to party up in teams of three to take on 19 other teams to battle it out to become the Champion. Before a team can drop in though they need to wait in a queue to find a match but there has been a bit of a problem with doing that in a timely fashion. There’s nothing worse than waiting in a long queue just to have to do it all over again, the good news is that Apex devs are listening to their players and are coming to the rescue. Respawn says fix for queue bug is coming soon Players have been complaining for a few months about a bug that will randomly remove them from the queue they are in, causing them to lose their spot in line. Jack ‘CouRage’ Dunlop has been streaming a lot of Apex lately and has fallen victim to this tweeting out his frustrations. @PlayApex Hey friends, any update on the game randomly un-queuing? I’m just a young man trying to sit in a 5 minute queue and use the bathroom without it kicking me out of queue 5 times — Jack “CouRage” Dunlop (@CouRageJD) August 7, 2021 CouRage was annoyed that he was stuck wasting about 30 minutes in a queue because it kept taking him out randomly. There has been speculation that this bug only happens to high elo players, but there have been Silver players complaining about the same exact thing. However, fans should fear no more because Respawn responded to CouRage letting him know that the dev team is aware and a fix should be coming very soon. Since Apex Legends’ latest Season 10 patch just came out on August 3, there may be a week or two before the next one comes out. Players just have to deal with this annoying bug for a little longer because this issue should be resolved soon, according to Respawn.

Respawn confirms more Apex Legends LTMs coming to test new features Respawn/EARespawn Entertainment have confirmed that Apex Legends players can expect to see a few more LTMs coming in the near future, including ones that will test new ideas and mechanics. When Apex Legends first launched back in February of 2019, it came with just the main battle royale mode, but it has expanded a whole lot in the last three years. Arenas has been added as a permanent aside to the battle royale mode, and there has been a slew of LTMs – limited-time modes – over the last few seasons, with the likes of Control and Second Chance being pretty different from the main game. These LTMs have also been used by Respawn as a way to test new features that may become permanent additions either in the battle royale itself or an off-shoot like Arenas. That’ll be continuing in the future. Apex Legends game director Steve Ferreira, and design director, Evan Nikolich spoke to The Loadout about the future plans for the battle royale and where they could take it over the next few years. On the topic of new LTMs and game modes, Nikolich noted that Respawn is all about “experimenting and trying new things” to bring “variety” to the fan base as well as testing potential new features. “LTMs also allow us to give players new ways to practice their skills and allow us to test out new mechanics for the core BR experience,” Nikolich noted. “For example, Evo Shields came from a previous LTM, and we loved the mechanic so much we brought it into the main BR experience. You can expect to see us continue playing with LTMs in Apex.” On top of that, Ferreria added that the developers will keep on innovating, but they want to keep the feel of the game the same. So, while we might get some tweaks to the game in the near future, don’t expect anything too over the top.

Respawn confirms Legends will get older over time in Apex Legends universe Respawn EntertainmentIt has been confirmed by developer Respawn Entertainment that Legends will grow older as time moves on, as they look to expand on their evergrowing Apex Legends lore. Respawn Entertainment has always had a heavy focus on the stories of the various legends to help build an immersive Apex universe for fans to be invested in. In order to enhance the lore further, it has been confirmed by Respawn that the existing Legends will continue to get older over time. Our first indication of this came in February, when all the Legends’ ages were quietly updated by 1-2 years. This came as a surprise at the time, as most players simply expected Legends to remain at their current age in perpetuity. Although it is not clear on the full details or how fast they will age, we asked Respawn at a recent press conference for Season 18 about making Legends older, and how it might impact the story-telling side of the game. Currently, the Legends themselves are a diverse bunch with an incredibly varying age range, with the youngest Legend being Vantage at 19 years old. In comparison, the oldest Legends are hundreds of years older, with the oldest being Revenant at a staggering 359 years old. Respawn confirmed that Legends will continue to get older, but that time passes more slowly in the Apex universe tha in the real world. Although it wasn’t specified, judging by the most recent age update, it looks like time is roughly half-speed in Apex. Taking this into consideration, it will certainly be interesting to see how the aging of the characters impacts the overall storyline and the differing effects it has on the younger and older Legends. How else is Respawn building on Apex Legends lore? In Season 18, released on August 8, they continued to build on the lore by largely focusing on Revenant’s gameplay rework as the character is said to have: “woke up with new powers at his fingertips.” However, there is a challenge for the Respawn team to keep the story moving along while also serving an active live service game. The developers said that they do always have lots of big ideas about advancing the story, but that not everything can come together. One of their key ideas was to build on the continuing story of Loba vs Revenant, which has certainly invested many players, and the rework for gameplay purposes simply presented a great opportunity. The developers have also highlighted that they have not forgotten about the Legends that haven’t been focused on in the lore in recent Apex Legends seasons. They’ve assured players that these characters are on their radar, and that they’ll have their time to shine soon enough. Season 18 of Apex Legends released on August 8, featuring updated ranked changes, balancing, map updates and more.

Respawn confirms fix for no teammates in Apex Legends is coming in 9.1 update Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment believe they’ve got a fix worked out for the no teammates in a duo queue bug, but they’re waiting a little longer before “declaring victory.” Just like other multiplayer games, Apex Legends has got its fair share of annoying bugs and niggles that might seem easy to fix but actually take a while to get sorted out. The most annoying of these have revolved around Legend abilities, but in the last few months, there has been a major headache for players who queue up for duo games by themselves. More often than not, if you queue up as a solo and search for a duos match, you won’t actually find a teammate and will have to battle it out all by yourself. Some players don’t mind it, given they can pick up some bragging rights for scoring a win over duos without having anyone to watch their back. However, most of the time, you’d rather just have a teammate, so Respawn have been hard at work to figure the problem out, and it seems like they’ve got it sorted in the 9.1 patch that’s coming on June 29. Respawn’s Ryan Rigney answered some complaints about the ongoing issue on Twitter, saying the devs believe they’ve got it straightened out. “Our engineers *think* we’ve fixed it this time but this one in particular has been so hard to nail down that we want to wait and see before declaring victory,” he said. https://twitter.com/RKRigney/status/1408183936937775108 https://twitter.com/RKRigney/status/1408186491801645063 The new fix will roll out as a part of the update on June 29, but as Rigney notes, it’ll take a little stress testing from players before we find out if the issue is gone for good. If not, it’ll be back to the drawing board for Respawn to see if they can get it ironed out. Though, many players are hoping that won’t be the case.

Respawn confirms Caustic nerf coming to Apex Legends in “near future” Respawn EntertainmentCaustic’s balancing in Apex Legends has remained a topic of debate for several seasons. With the start of Season 8, Respawn confirmed that their team agrees with the community’s feedback and will be nerfing the Toxic Trapper at some point. Success in Apex Legends requires a combination of skillful gunplay and smart use of each Legend’s abilities. While Respawn has confirmed many times that the battle royale’s primary focus revolves around gunplay, they are certainly aware of the impact Legend abilities have on the game. While every character has been buffed or nerfed in some way since their release, Caustic has remained a controversial Legend after receiving several buffs in Season 7, and the community did not hold back from criticizing Respawn for the character’s balancing. In a Reddit AMA following the release of Season 8, one user asked “Why wasn’t caustic nerfed after the significant calls from the community? [His abilities] are directly counteracting the design philosophy that was given at the release of the game, which was guns first, then Legends.” Following further criticisms that the game was “becoming more like Overwatch,” a common concern from the community during Season 7, John Larson – Associate Live Balance Designer at Respawn – responded with an explanation. “Good question. I think ever since the change to gas allowed teammates to play in gas with relatively no repercussions, there was a lot of unrealized potential that was quickly tapped into within the past couple months. Caustic is undeniably strong and has the highest win rate in matches that last longer than 20 minutes. Caustic plays a unique role as a defensive legend that can act offensively in certain scenarios, and we have to make sure we tweak him in a way that removes frustration without hurting how it feels to play as Caustic. Long story short, we hear the community feedback, as a player, I feel it’s valid, the data backs up that he’s strong, and he’ll be getting some attention in the near future. In regards to Apex becoming “Ability Legends,” as new characters are introduced, it’s important they take up unique design space. This opens the door to potentially devastating synergies between legend abilities. I’ve seen (and experienced myself) the clips of chaotic ability driven end games, and that’s something we’re actively working on resolving.” Following this response, TSM streamer and former Apex pro Mac “Albralelie” Kenzie Beckwith provided another suggestion on how to address Caustic’s balancing. He proposed that the gas from Caustic’s barrels should only debuff opponents to make them more vulnerable, instead of doing damage on their own. Thought of a balance change for caustic i talked about on stream a few days ago, basically remove damage from the barrels but give anyone in the gas a vulnerable status effect which increases all damage taken by a % while also highlighting anyone in the gas for all team mates. — Albralelie (@TSM_Albralelie) February 6, 2021 Whether or not Respawn decides to change the function of Toxic Trapper’s abilities like Albralelie suggested, or simply reduce their damage or duration remains to be seen. Either way, a Caustic nerf will certainly come as welcome news to much of the community, particularly professional players and content creators.

Respawn confirms Apex Legends Season 11 will finally bring back LTMs Respawn EntertainmentMissed new limited-time modes (LTMs) in Apex Legends? Respawn have confirmed new LTMs will be coming in Apex Legends Season 11 — beyond what players got in recent seasons. While the default battle royale is enjoyed by many, a lot of Apex Legends players love pushing the boundaries in the game’s various LTMs. Respawn makes new ones — or brings back older ones — every season pretty regularly on top of the default experiences. However, Apex Legends hasn’t had a new, proper LTM since the War Games event in Season 8. While the Genesis event in Season 9 brought back the original Kings Canyon and World’s Edge, the War Games LTM properly shook up the way Apex was meant to be played with a bunch of different gimmicks. Shadow Royale made its return in Season 10 in time for Halloween, but Apex Legends players are itching for something new. Developer Steven Ferreira has confirmed new Apex Legends LTMs will be coming in Season 11 ahead of its November 2 release. “Yes, I’m not going to spoil what they are, but yes, we will get more limited-time modes and events this season. For sure,” he said in an interview during the Season 11 launch. The specifics weren’t revealed, but Apex Legends players can look forward to new and unique experiences in-game — maybe even tinkering with the new Storm Point map or changing up Arenas. There’s also hope they will be more regular rotations. Instead of an Apex Legends LTM or two a season, players want Respawn to bring back a roster of the game’s best. With the arsenal they’ve built out over the last two years, there’s very few choices players won’t love.

Respawn confirms Apex Legends Arenas LTMs are “on the table” for the future Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends Arenas mode has proven popular amongst the playerbase and developers are now looking into ways they can build upon its foundation. Arenas is the latest mode to hit Apex Legends in Season 9, which has given players a whole new way to play the battle royale title. This 3v3 mode enables players to practice their teamfighting and flex their mechanical prowess over other players. While it still may be early days for the Arenas mode, players have already been calling for adjustments to the weapons, Legends, and leaver penalties. However, Respawn has also been keen to address these issues. While they announced that a ranked mode would be coming to Arenas in a future update, the developers have shown their interest in adding Limited Time Modes (LTMs) to Arenas. Apex Legends Arenas LTMs LTMs have always brought something different to the battle royale table. Not only do they serve to shake up existing modes, they also enable players to take part in more casual events. While we know that Respawn is keen to make adjustments to the mode, we have also now been given details on the addition of LTMs. Speaking over on the official Apex Legends Reddit page, Lead Game Designer Carlos Pineda gave insights on the future updates to Arenas. “Arenas LTMs are definitely on the table, but they take time to develop,” says the Respawn developer. “We’d have to weigh that against other features.” It certainly seems that LTMs are on Respawn’s mind, but the team is busy turning their attention to the current leaver issues impacting the game mode. “Much like you, we hate when people leave early, so we are definitely looking into leaver penalties and loss forgiveness for Arenas.” Read More: How to get Apex Legends Mirage Edition – With Respawn announcing that ranked Arenas will be coming in a future update, it’s no wonder the development team wishes to tackle this issue first. In fact, many Apex Legends players and the developers themselves have spoken out about ways they could potentially combat this frustrating issue. So, there you have it, Apex Legends Arenas mode will receive its own LTMs in the future. Quite what they will entail remains to be seen, so be sure to check out our Apex Legends page for all the latest updates.

Respawn confirms Apex Legends crossplay won’t pair console and PC players Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends crossplay is going to keep PC players separate from their console rivals — for the most part — Respawn has confirmed, after fans expressed concerns mouse & keyboard fans would “dominate” once the new link-up feature is introduced. In a TikTok video, Apex Legends software engineer Jake Smullin said the Respawn team had seen “lots of console players worry about [crossplay]”. The main worries were that PC based players would “dominate” lobbies with console-based fans. There’s no reason to panic, Smullin explained; there’s “no chance” Apex Legends will match computer-based players up with console opponents. That is, he added, unless you have a PC player on your fireteam too after the crossplay update. “I wanted to clear something up about crossplay. You will only be in PC crossplay lobbies if you have a PC player on your team,” Smullin wrote in his TikTok video, which was unearthed by DBLTAP on July 26. “Have been seeing lots of console players worrying… but don’t. Everyone should be excited! So, please, no more ‘not crossplay, PC is gonna dominate us’. Crossplay is going to be huge for Apex Legends.” After more than a year of waiting, Apex Legends crossplay was finally announced during the 2020 EA Play event in June. Respawn didn’t pen in any specific launch date, however, simply confirming it was coming “this Fall.” Crossplay has been one of the most-demanded features for the battle royale since it was released in early 2019. With more modern titles connecting the different gaming platforms together, it was only a matter of time. Apex rivals Fortnite and Warzone have boasted crossplay features for some time now, while Rocket League — which is set to go free-to-play later this year — and Destiny 2 also recently made the crossplay switch. Don’t forget, crossplay isn’t the only thing Respawn has planned for Apex Legends this year either. The character-based battle royale will finally make its long-awaited debut on Valve’s Steam game browser. Apex’s platform move will happen in Fall. The cross-platform feature will also be vital for Apex as the next generation of consoles land these holidays. The title’s player base is expected to partially fragment again when the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 are released in December. Apex’s planned release on the Nintendo Switch — currently penciled in for mid-October — will only compound any potential problems too. Basically, Respawn’s decision to hit that crossplay button has come at the perfect time.

Apex devs “working on” Wattson changes, will include hitbox nerfs Respawn EntertainmentWattson has been the most contentious Apex Legends balancing point in the last few seasons. While Respawn have confirmed they will be giving her a buff, the changes will also include a nerf, to maintain balance. Wattson is far from being the most popular Legend in Apex Legends. In fact, she has the second-lowest pick rate in Season 9 at 1.6%, only higher than Rampart at 1.5%. However, despite this, Respawn believes the Legend is totally balanced — and even “outperforms” some of the more meta picks like Wraith. The tug-of-war between developers and players over Wattson has hit fever pitch though after the Genesis Collection update, which saw a “major buff” to the Legend only giving her extra Nessies to drop on the map. After the update, lead game designer Daniel Klein confirmed that they plan to “make it more in the moment fun and powerful to play Wattson while removing some of the invisible power.” This means the changes will “likely need to include a nerf”. “Wattson doesn’t have much room to increase her power, so once we make changes to make her feel better, we’ll also have to nerf other parts of her kit to make up for this,” he said on Twitter. https://twitter.com/danielzklein/status/1409571480006905856 Wattson hitbox changes likely solution, Respawn says Developer John ‘JayBiebs’ Larson added later on July 15 that Respawn’s first ‘solution’ for Wattson is likely to be a hitbox change. Regardless, the Legend won’t be receiving “a straight-up buff”. “I think, and we can talk about this, low-profile removal, that’s the single biggest thing for a character. That’s massive. In Arenas [and] BR, Lifeline and Wattson are at the top just because of high values. “So we beefed out Lifeline a bit, make her hitbox match a bit better, and Wattson, when we make these changes, will inevitably, for the health of the game, most likely a hitbox change will accompany that. However, they want to try and increase Wattson’s “fun factor” to tap into her utility and make her more enjoyable to play, without being completely overpowered. “We wouldn’t be so cheeky if we didn’t have changes in the works. Right now we’re trying to work on the fun factor for her. There’s a lot of usability there that we can change, a lot of changes with the ultimate. We are working on it.” The related segment begins at 50:25. It’s a bit more of a solid indication of Respawn’s ideas on Wattson after Klein said devs were “working on stuff” in the immediate aftermath of the recent update. We will update you once Respawn finalizes the changes — perhaps in Season 10, which is fast approaching.

Respawn confirm new game modes are coming to Apex Legends A community manager from Respawn Entertainment has assured fans that new game modes will be added to Apex Legends in the near future. The game burst onto the battle royale scene in February 2019, achieving unprecedented success in the opening months to rival market leader Fortnite, but popularity has decreased in recent weeks due to a lack of updates from Respawn. Currently, the only mode that is available is trios and Apex fans have been desperate for developers to add other playlists such as team deathmatch to spice up their gaming experience – finally, their wish may be granted soon as a Respawn employee verified that changes were on the way. Apex confirms new game modes During a question and answer session on the official Apex Legends subreddit, a Respawn Community manager with the username u/JayFresh_Respawn gave players a number of updates on the state of the game’s development. One Reddit user asked whether Respawn would take their feedback on board and implement new modes into the game and got the response he was looking for. The answer was short, but straight to the point. Apex could also follow in the footsteps of Fortnite and add a ranked variant which would match players based on their skill to allow players a more competitive experience – perhaps even custom games, which were shown during a Twitch Rivals broadcast, will become available for the general public to participate in.

Respawn confirm fix coming for fill teammates not working in Apex Legends Respawn EntertainmentSince introducing the heavily requested ‘no fill’ option in Apex Legends, the feature has been somewhat buggy, with players not getting any teammates even when they have the fill option selected. Respawn have confirmed a fix is on the way. As there is no option to play solo in Apex, as the developers have said that when they tested it, it was “unhealthy” for the game, for a long time there was no way to play the game without having teammates forced upon you. Respawn took steps to address this in the Chaos Theory update in Season 8, by adding a no fill option. Selecting this will mean that you will queue only with members of your party – which can be just yourself if you don’t have a partner. This was great news for players who didn’t want to play in a squad – perhaps to complete a challenge or an easter egg, without getting dragged around by their squad. Apex Legends fill teammates not working Unfortunately, it was immediately buggy for some players. Although selecting ‘no fill’ would indeed not give any teammates, when returning to the ‘fill’ option, it was like the game didn’t recognize the change. Read More: Who is Valkyrie in Apex Legends? – This left some players permanently stuck without teammates, even when they had the fill option selected. Respawn immediately acknowledged the bug and marked it as ‘investigating’ on their public Trello board. The good news is that they now have a fix, which will come in a future update. Although Respawn haven’t specified what patch this fix will be included in, we can be pretty certain it will be part of the big Season 9: Legacy update on May 4. Some players have also had the opposite version of this bug, where having no fill selected would still give them teammates. This is also part of the fix. Hopefully, in Season 9, the fill/no fill options will work much more reliably. It will also be interesting to see if the new 3v3 mode, Arenas, will launch with a no fill option, but it’s very unlikely, given the nature of the mode.

Respawn confirm fix coming for Apex Legends invalid token error Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment appear to, finally, have a fix for Apex Legends’ pesky Invalid Token error message that ruins has outright stopped some players being able to play at all. [jwplayer A8oCoIXs] Since launching back in February of 2019, Apex Legends has had its fair share of annoying bugs and error codes. From Loba’s bracelet not working to the infamous Code Leaf error, there has been bumps along the way. The developers, Respawn, have tried, across numerous updates, to root out the issues. They’ve succeeded in getting rid of some, but not all of them. That includes the annoying Invalid Token error that has been appearing for a number of seasons, but most prominently in Season 6, and still in Season 7. The error message became increasingly prevalent after the Aftermarket event in Season 6, preventing players from getting into games. However, there appears to be a change on the horizon, as Respawn Entertainment look set to finally make the long-standing error a thing of the past. The developers updated their public Trello board to show that they’ve got a fix coming in a future patch for the error. It had previously been labeled that they were “investigating” the issue and looking for a fix. Now, the issue is marked as “Coming in future patch.” Sadly, there is no date mentioned for when said patch would be rolled out, just that a fix is finally coming – much to the excitement of Apex fans who are still having annoying run-ins with the ongoing problem. On top of the Invalid Token error, the devs have also got fixes for the issue with placing Rampart’s ultimate on a Trident, Octane’s Jump Pad taking away the ability to jump afterwards, as well as some Steam-only issues. Again, sadly, no expected release date for the update is mentioned on the Trello board, but given that they’ve got different issues ongoing rectified, Respawn will likely to get the fixes out to the live servers sooner rather than later.

Respawn clarify FPS rumors for Apex Legends on next-gen consoles Respawn Entertainment/XboxApex Legends design director Jason McCord has clarified comments about a possible FPS cap on next-gen consoles, explaining that he wasn’t actually referring to next-gen consoles. [jwplayer KEHOOBWR] FPS means “frames per second” and represents how many times your screen refreshes over a second. Generally, the rule for most games is higher FPS = smoother movement and graphics in-game. Both the Series X and PS5 will be able to support games up to 120 FPS, double the amount from the previous generation of consoles, but not all games will be able to take advantage. When an Apex player asked if Apex will be locked at 60fps on both next-gen machines or if the frame rate will be uncapped, McCord replied: “Nope. Locking the game on consoles lets us give a more consistent framerate for the lower-end machines.” Nope. Locking the game on consoles lets us give a more consistent framerate for the lower end machines. If we uncapped it, you’d see much bigger spikes and valleys, and the game would feel worse. — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) October 9, 2020 This response implied that there would still remain an FPS cap on next-gen consoles too, to keep performance fair and consistent across the board. Most likely at 60 FPS. However, after this news, and noticeable disappointment from players who were looking forward to next-gen optimizations, McCord has clarified, saying he misread and wasn’t specifically referring to next-gen. Just to clarify, I didn’t mean anything for next gen. We haven’t announced anything. I misread the context here because it was referring to a previous tweet that I didn’t see. https://t.co/1qc065ScQC — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) October 10, 2020 “I didn’t mean anything for next-gen. We haven’t announced anything. I misread the context here because it was referring to a previous Tweet that I didn’t see.” This means that there’s still a chance of next-gen optimizations for Apex Legends. Even with a capped 60 FPS, console players, especially those on the lower-end versions of PS4 and Xbox One, often complain of framerate drops in gameplay. The PS5 and Xbox Series X should do a much better job of keeping things at a consistent 60 FPS. here’s an early look at Apex Legends running on an Xbox Series X preview unit. It includes gameplay and a look at Quick Resume, load times, and video options. 📺Full video here: https://t.co/Xfs9OZZ36s ⬇️ preview pic.twitter.com/SRLa2RfTGp— Tom Warren (@tomwarren) October 6, 2020 In fact if Apex is able to keep framerate drops from happening, we’d wager being able to keep things going at a steady 60 frames a second would be a significantly more noticeable upgrade for many players than making it able to go all the way up to 120. All that being said, Respawn’s battle royale is still doing well with a loyal community of fans, and it will look to keep things going as players eventually start to move to new consoles to play through Season 7.

Respawn confirm Apex Legends Loba ultimate nerf is being fixed Respawn EntertainmentComing into Apex Legends Season 12, Loba fans noticed her Black Market Boutique ultimate no longer blocked doors – a surprise nerf to her kit – but it appears this change was, indeed, unintentional. Apex Legends Season 12 brought with it a whole plethora of content for players to explore. From volatile new Legend, Mad Maggie, to the all-new Control mode, Defiance has largely been a hit with the game’s community. As can be expected, though, it hasn’t quite been smooth sailing. The recent 1.91 update has accidentally broken King’s Canyon, leading to its subsequent removal, and supportive Legend, Loba, also saw a bizarre nerf to her ultimate. Once upon a time, her Black Market Boutique could be used to block doors; a feature that was apparently removed coming into Season 12. Following player feedback, however, Respawn have confirmed that this nerf was entirely unintended, and are looking to reverse it. Apex Legends devs confirm Loba ult nerf was accidental While the Black Market Boutique has the obvious advantages of acquiring new gear, it also can be used as a glorified shield in times of crisis. With 100 HP, it can be the difference between life and death. It could also be used to block enemy advances, as doors would stick on it and be unable to open fully. In Season 12, though, objects appeared to simply pass through the shop, limiting its usage as a barricade. According to the Apex dev tracker Trello, however, Respawn are investigating the issue and have confirmed a fix will be coming in an upcoming patch – so Loba fans rejoice! You’ll be able to block entrances and exits to your heart’s content. Whether or not this will also be applied to other Legends remains to be seen, as some players originally noted that Revenant’s Death Totem was also unable to block doors following the Season 12 update. Either way, at least Loba mains will be able to cause chaos once more and giggle away from the backline once they’ve translocated out to safety.

Apex Legends is finally getting a report system soon Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment have confirmed that a system for reporting cheaters in-game will be added to Apex Legends. The prevalence of cheaters has been one of the biggest complaints Apex Legends has faced since its release. Respawn have stated that they have in fact been taking action against cheaters, revealing that they banned more than 16,000 players in the first week alone, but players continue to run into suspicious activity. Read more: Apex Legends balance update patch notes – Wingman and Peacekeeper nerfs, Hitbox updates, Season 1 news – While cheating is an unfortunate but inevitable aspect of almost any multiplayer game, the main reason players have found it so frustrating in Apex Legends is that there is no in-game report function by which to alert the developers to a suspicious account. It is possible to report players suspected of cheating, or other infringements of the game’s rules, but doing so requires going to the EA website and filling in a form. Fortunately, this issue does look set to be rectified. Apex Legends Product Manager Lee Horn confirmed that Respawn have heard the complaints and will be addressing them soon. “A more detailed post about cheating is coming, so I don’t want to steal [Community Manager] Jay’s thunder, but a reporting feature is definitely on the way.” While no exact ETA for the feature has been confirmed, players can likely expect more information quite soon. Respawn Associate Producer Josh Medina confirmed that a “state of dev” update coming “this week” – presumably, therefore, by March 10 at the latest – would cover “other subjects not pertaining to balance”, which seems likely to include addressing the cheating issue. Respawn Entertainment are also expected to reveal more details regarding Season One, which is believed to be releasing on March 12, although no official date has yet been confirmed.

Respawn confirm all Apex Legends will get Heirlooms but Crypto isn’t next Respawn EntertainmentRespawn design director Jason McCord has confirmed that each of the Apex Legends’ characters will be receiving their own Heirlooms and revealed an update on Crpyto’s ultra-rare cosmetic set. Since the release of Apex Legends in 2019, players have been customizing their favorite characters with some of the incredible cosmetic items that are available to purchase or unlock in the battle royale. There are many unique cosmetics such as skins and charms for players to collect, however, ultra-rare Heirloom sets are by far the hardest to find in-game. What are heirlooms in Apex Legends? Unlike many of the other character and weapon skins, Heirloom’s are specifically based around certain Legend and their lore, which include a melee weapon skin, a banner pose, and an intro quip. While only six of the thirteen Legends have an Heirloom set of their own, fans have been calling on Respawn to add more so that they can finally equip their favorite Legend with some of these items. After one Apex Legends fan asked Respawn dev Jason McCord if Crypto would be next to receive an Heirloom set, the design director provided a brief hint on which Legends to expect going forward. I bet all legends get their heirlooms eventually… but I know the next 2 legends planned. Don’t wait? — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) July 8, 2020 McCord explained that it was quite likely all Legends would get their own Heirloom set “eventually” but with new characters apparently being released each season it might take a while for them to catch up. Read More: How to change reticle colors in Apex Legends – “I bet all legends get their heirlooms eventually…but I know the next 2 legends planned. Don’t wait,” he responded, suggesting that Crypto’s ultra-rare cosmetic set could also be quite a while away. Fellow Respawn dev Josh Medina also chimed in with a response, further confirming that there were no immediate plans to release an Heirloom for the Surveillance Expert. While it is unclear which Legends might be next to receive these unique item sets, it appears as if only two Heirlooms are currently planned for the near future, with both of them, potentially, coming at once.

Respawn respond to complaints about Apex Legends 20Hz tickrate servers Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends players have been calling for an upgrade to the game’s 20Hz tickrate servers for a while, and Respawn laid out exactly why people shouldn’t be expecting a jump anytime soon. Players have been filing complaints for Respawn to invest in 30-60Hz servers like other online shooters, especially when issues with hit registration and the like start plaguing the battle royale. It’s because of issues like these that the studio published a huge explainer of ‘what makes Apex tick’ to give these issues their proper space and enlighten us as to what’s happening in the game’s backend. In it, they touched on why the upgrade wouldn’t “result in a meaningfully different experience” even though people like to claim that Apex Legends would have much smoother gameplay with higher tickrates. “The tickrate of a server is the number of simulations that the server runs per second,” Respawn explained. “This mostly means that at the end of every tick, the server saves the world state and replicates it to all clients. This includes a lot of information that allows our weapon, map, and Legends’ design to be of the highest fidelity. ” Unlike Apex, a lot of games don’t “compute full world states on each tick,” which already makes every tick in the battle royale complete more processes than other titles by comparison. Taking that into consideration, when you factor in the bandwidth costs that would naturally come with higher Hz, it starts taking a toll on how players would otherwise experience a match. In explaining the ‘upsides’ to increasing Apex Legends from 20Hz to, say, 60Hz, the devs laid out all the math for people that want a complete picture of how the upgrade would actually affect the game. “20Hz servers result in about five frames of delay, and 60Hz servers result in three frames of delay,” Respawn explained. “So for triple the bandwidth and CPU costs, you can save two frames worth of latency in the best-case scenario.” Instead of upgrading Apex Legends server tickrates, Respawn are more interested in “more efficient improvements” like solving problems that directly contribute to reducing latency, getting rid of problematic servers, and more.

Respawn changes Apex Legends’ map rotation after player backlash Respawn EntertainmentRespawn have pushed a major change to Apex Legends’ permanent map rotation, removing the Night Kings Canyon map, and shortening how long regular Kings Canyon is available. Apex Legends’ map rotation has been divisive. For some, having more choice has made the game better, as they can choose to ignore aspects they don’t like. However, it’s had an impact on queue times, and has also slowed down some players’ Old Ways event grind. Respawn have been keeping their eye on the map rotation as a result, and has made sweeping changes just a week after its initial release. “After taking in all your feedback over the past 7 days, we’ve decided to make some changes to map rotation,” the team said on Twitter. Those changes include removing the night version of Kings Canyon from the map rotation permanently, and shortening how long regular Kings Canyon is available. As a result, players will launch onto World’s Edge more often. Read more: How to get a free Wraith Twitch Prime skin – The map rotation only affects casual play, and will not have an impact on ranked. “Kings Canyon is still available in Ranked if you’re wanting to jump in immediately,” Respawn added. We’re hoping this will allow players the chance to keep grinding that Season 4 Battle Pass or try their skills at the new Bloodhound Town Takeover. And as a reminder, Kings Canyon is still available in Ranked if you’re wanting to jump in immediately. — Apex Legends (@PlayApex) April 16, 2020 Since the start of the Old Ways event on April 7, players have had a choice of queuing up for duos and trios, either on Worlds Edge or King’s Canyon. However, Respawn have wanted to add a bit more focus onto the new event though, trying to give players a chance to further explore the Bloodhound Town Takeover on World’s Edge, and grind for more battle pass rewards on Apex’s second map. “We’re hoping this will allow players the chance to keep grinding that Season 4 Battle Pass or try their skills at the new Bloodhound Town Takeover,” Respawn added. As more data comes in, there might be more changes on the way, so don’t expect for this to be the last you hear of map rotations in Apex Legends. The Old Ways event runs until April 21, so you only have a few days left to get grinding to pick up some of those sweet rewards.

Respawn CEO explains why they have ‘gone dark’ on Apex Legends content EAVince Zampella, Respawn Entertainment’s founder and CEO, has admitted that the Apex Legends developers don’t know how quickly they should be coming out with new content for their hit battle royale game. Titanfall developers Respawn surprised gamers when they launched Apex Legends without warning on February 4, but it became an overnight success, with many Fortnite players keen to test out the new game. However, thanks to Fortnite Battle Royale’s fortnightly updates, it’s an audience that has become accustomed to regular fresh content. Speaking at GamesBeat Summit 2019, Zampella admitted that the success of Apex Legends had taken Respawn by surprise too. How often should Respawn update Apex? Perhaps it would be unfair to compare Apex to Fortnite, but Zampella said that his team was still struggling with the pace of change. “We didn’t expect it to be as big as it was,” he said. “We’re still figuring out internally what the cadence of content has to be and how we support it. We’ve been a little dark because we’re kind of figuring out internally what we have to do.” (Zampella begins speaking at 4:33:37) He also said that Respawn had been caught out by the bugs that the game’s players had discovered – fixing these has diverted their attention away from fresh content. “When you get that many people stress testing the game, you find flaws that you never imagined,” he explained. “We’ve been fire fighting, fixing things. We’re gonna put the focus back on those quality of life issues and make sure everything is perfect before we really start to build more content.” Apex Legends has a lot of bugs that need fixing There is a large hacking problem on PC in Apex Legends, something the console players are able to avoid, but there are some serious bugs that affect all of the platforms too, some of which have existed since the game’s launch. The developers have said fixes are coming soon, but there’s currently no definitive timetable. At the same time, the game has only had one new weapon and one new ‘legend’ character since launch, and not a single change to the map – leaving some players wanting more.

Respawn CEO explains why Apex Legends won’t rival Fortnite’s social plans Respawn Entertainment’s CEO Vince Zampella has admitted Apex Legends will never really challenge Fortnite’s grand plan to become a “social hub,” but admits that’s by design as his battle royale doubles down on its character-based focus. Epic has been looking to push the boundaries of video gaming in recent months with Fortnite, with major events like the game-deleting “The End,” and the Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker crossover, company founder Tim Sweeney recently revealed. All these new events, which are geared towards bringing more fans and creators into the game before arming them with new creative tools so they can build their worlds, are aimed towards turning the game into a “social platform.” While arch-rival Fortnite may be aiming to create a ‘hub’ for players, recently promoted Respawn and now-DICE CEO Zampella said Apex wasn’t going to wade into the challenge, but stay focused on “character-based” development. According to Zampella, who spoke about the direction of Apex and bringing DICE under his Respawn umbrella in an interview with the LA Times on January 2, comparing his title and Fortnite is like ‘chalk and cheese’ in regards to their aims. Instead of the “social hub” ambition Epic has latched onto with their title, Respawn is remaining locked onto “better ways to developer characters,” as well as making sure “mechanics and art coalesce into visual storytelling opportunities.” “We tend to rapidly prototype characters at a high rate and throw them away when they’re not working,” added incoming Apex Legends overseer Chad Grenier. “We do 10 times more prototypes than what actually make it into the game.” While Fortnite is moving towards the cartoonish crossovers, Apex is embracing the “sci-fi space” theme single-player predecessor Titanfall first set in place. While the world is “generic,” he said, the characters create the universe. “That’s terrible for me to say about my own game, but we wanted something more identifiable by going into characters,” he said. “To identify with a character, either by play style or because you like who they are and what they stand for, it was important for us to take that next step. Character-based is now super important to what we do.” Apex certainly has a wide cast of colorful and crazy characters already solidified into its arsenal. From lovable robot Pathfinder, to death-obsessed scientist Caustic and fan-favorite warrior Wraith, there’s already plenty of great storylines, with more planned in the near future. Melee-focused Forge, near-complete Rosie, aka Loba, and shadowy robot villain Revenant, who took control of King’s Canyon in Apex’s recent Halloween event, are all looming on the horizon from the many prototypes Zampella teased. Considering Respawn keeps their secrets closely guarded when it comes to character developments, as Bangalore voice actor Erica Luttrell revealed on December 30, it may be some time before we hear official news on new characters. It is expected, however, that Revenant will be joining the Apex Games party with the release of the game’s fourth season. With Season 3 winding to a close, it’s likely new teasers for the next period of the battle royale are just around the corner.

Respawn CEO reveals “struggle” of meeting content demand in Apex Legends Apex Legends exploded in popularity following release in February 2019, and the CEO of Respawn Entertainment has revealed the developer has been struggling to cope with the demand. The release of the battle royale was kept a secret, making their enormous success on launch all the more impressive; Apex managed to beat rival game Fortnite’s record after gaining 10 million players within the first three days. Despite popularity decreasing in recent months, Apex remains one of the world’s most played games and Respawn CEO, Vince Zampella, admitted that the developers are struggling to meet the demands of so many players. Speaking to GameInformer, Zampella revealed the success of Apex took everyone at the studio by surprise, suggesting they weren’t prepared to cope with the millions of gamers logging on each day. “Apex took off beyond our wildest imagination,” he said. “They are good problems to have, but we’ve been struggling with keeping up with demand and servicing that many millions of players. It’s been a busy first half of the year.” Zampella also stated that due to the success of Apex, the development of other games, such as Titanfall 3, had to be shelved to focus on their new star. He said: “The success of Apex Legends led us to focusing our resources on supporting that game and push out plans for Titanfall a little further.” [Timestamp – 2:52 for mobile users] Despite Zampella’s assertions, only two new items have made their way to Apex thus far – the Havoc energy assault rifle and the new legend Octane – players are eager to see more regular content updates in the coming months. The second season for Apex Legends is just around the corner, officially kicking off on Tuesday, July 2, with fans desperate to see a vast improvement on the season one battle pass which left people seriously underwhelmed. Given many players are likely to flock back to Apex to try out what the new season has to offer, Respawn will surely have taken steps to prepare for another influx of users.

Respawn CEO addresses Apex Legends “ass-hat” debacle amid monetizing backlash EARespawn Entertainment CEO Vince Zampella gave a statement regarding the backlash regarding Apex Legends‘ Iron Crown event and a developer calling players “freeloaders” among other things. The Apex Legends subreddit is in a bad spot following the August 16 update that saw the developers apologizing for the way microtransactions were implemented for the event. One developer in particular, Drew McCoy, engaged in a back and forth between several Reddit users and at one point called players “freeloaders” and “ass-hats” which has not sat well with the community at all. Zampella released a statement on August 19 condemning the actions of the developers and their words, while giving an apology to the fans. “On Friday, we gave Apex fans an update on how we were changing the Iron Crown event,” he wrote. “Some of the team then joined a discussion with our community on Reddit, and things got to a pretty bad place. Some of our folks crossed a line with their comments, and that’s not how we want Respawn to be represented. I apologize to any of our fans that were offended.” With that said, Zampella does stand behind his team, even if he doesn’t agree with everything they said. “I will always stand behind the team here at Respawn and support them on speaking out against some of the toxic and nasty comments aimed at their families and loved ones,” he said in the statement. “But we shouldn’t contribute to it when we do comment, and add to the very thing we want to prevent. Last week we didn’t do that, going forward we will be better. Having an open, healthy relationship with our community is incredibly important to all of us at Respawn.” The subreddit has banded together and turned the “freeloaders” comment into a rallying cry showing just how fresh the wound still is. This statement from Zampella is the first step in the long road to winning back the trust and respect from the playerbase.

Respawn Beacon glitch drops Apex Legends players at wrong locations Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends players are being dropped off at wrong locations on the map after being respawned, due to an odd bug that’s appeared in the game. Apex Legends may be in the middle of its second season, but there are still various bugs, glitches, and exploits causing issues in the game. While many of them have a minor effect in-game, some are pretty serious, and have the potential to be game-breaking and ruin players’ gaming experiences. Case in point – a relatively new bug is causing eliminated players who get brought back via Respawn Beacons to get dropped off at the wrong location. Read More: Wraith bug keeps players endlessly trapped – Normally, when someone is respawned using a Beacon, a drop-ship flies down and hovers over that very spot on the map, allowing the player to jump down. However, with this odd bug, the ships are flying to a completely different location, leaving players at places on the map they did not expect to be dropped off at. This issue was brought to everyone’s attention by user ‘lonelogic16‘ on Reddit, who posted gameplay footage of the bug in action. In the clip, the player’s teammate approached a Respawn Beacon to bring him back into the match, but the drop-ship ended up taking him to a completely different area. Read More: Ultimate Season 2 Legends tier list – “Potential bug?” the user wrote. “Respawn station at the compound near broken forest doesn’t drop you ff in the right area.” Others in the comments section confirmed that they had fallen victim to this issue as well, and judging by some of their experiences, this bug isn’t exclusive to any single Respawn Beacon. “Happened to me last night at the area north of Hydro Dam between The Cage and Swamps,” wrote ‘subcons.’ “Was so confused when I hit the ground. Also on Xbox.” Why this bug is a serious issue There are several reasons why this bug should be filed under the seriously game-breaking category. For one, respawned players have no weapons or items, and if they’re not dropped off at the Beacon they were brought back with, then they won’t be able to loot the crates at that location, thus being forced to run around with virtually an empty inventory. Read More: Who is Nomad in Apex Legends – Secondly, being forced to land away from teammates causes players to have to play individually until they can regroup, which can often lead to hopeless solo engagements against full squads. Last but not least, this also causes some to be dropped off inside the Ring, forcing them to sustain damage until they can get into the safe zone, if they even manage to at all.

Respawn bans cheaters abusing Apex Legends “infinite RP” boosting exploit Respawn EntertainmentRespawn is cracking down on Apex Legends cheaters abusing an “infinite RP” ranked exploit, boosting players from Bronze to the top of Predator. The developer has handed out thousands of bans — although none of them have been permanently suspended. There’s nothing more prestigious than hitting Predator rank in Apex Legends — and some people will do anything to get the shiny red-and-gold icon on their player card. A ranked ‘exploit’ has done the rounds in Apex Legends Season 11, with squads teaming up and dropping on Replicators to craft Respawn Beacons and farming kill points (KP) off each other. While this was somewhat useful in previous seasons to get a bit of KP, the ranked changes in Season 11 have made it a lot more effective. You’re no longer limited to six kills for points — you can kill an infinite amount of people to reach the maximum 170 points. Then, you can play for placement to try and get the full 270. Some players abused this exploit to climb all the way to the top of Predator. However, Respawn is finally cracking down on the practice, issuing thousands of bans on December 7. “2,051 users have now been banned for various amounts of time for colluding in ranked matches to trade kills to earn Ranked Points. Ban times are 7-60 days depending on how much they abused this,” developer Conor ‘Hideouts’ Ford said on Twitter. “A chunk of these users made it to pred unfortunately. Fortunately, all of these users will be getting purged from the ranked leaderboards. GGs, play the game with some integrity next time.” 2,051 users have now been banned for various amounts of time for colluding in ranked matches to trade kills to earn Ranked Points. Ban times are 7-60 days depending on how much they abused this. Breakdown is as follows: PC: 607 PS4: 859 X1: 562 Switch: 22🔨❤️ — Conor Ford / Hideouts (@RSPN_Hideouts) December 7, 2021 None of the 2,051 bans will be permanent suspensions — topping out at that two-month mark. However, future exploits will lead to more serious sanctions, including perma bans. “For the players that exploited this a lot, they will not be able to play until next February. If they do it again they will be perma banned,” he said. Read More: Apex Legends Dark Depth leaked skins – While it relies on Respawn Beacons being in the crafting rotation, which changes weekly, you can expect players to abuse this in Apex Legends even with the warnings. However, don’t expect to get away with this exploit in the future.

Respawn ask players for feedback on Apex Legends weapon & legend balance EA/RespawnRespawn Entertainment developers have asked Apex Legends players for their feedback on any weapon or legend changes they would like to see implemented in the game. As Season 4 is now underway, players have been reacting to many of the new changes that came with it. There were balancing changes in the game’s latest update, on top of alterations to the World’s Edge map and the introduction of a brand new character, Revenant, which players have been enjoying. Although the update brought some fresh content to the Apex Legends servers, there are still some changes that many players have been hoping for and developers at Respawn have called on fans to share their feedback. Respawn lead game designer, Carlos Pineda, asked players to contribute their feedback on the current state of the characters in-game and to decide on which legends need a buff and why. The Apex Legends developer has received a massive number of responses so far with many fans calling for buffs to some of the fan-favorites such as Mirage and Lifeline. Trying something new! Let’s talk about #ApexLegends legend meta! Curious to hear who you feel needs a buff/nerf… RULES FIRST: – SaySimilarly to Pineda, Apex Legends weapon designer, David Bocek, also called for fans to get involved, asking them for feedback on any future changes they think would be needed for the game’s guns. “Let’s talk about Apex Legends weapons! I’d love to hear your thoughts on recent weapon changes and overall weapon meta!” he expressed. Doing a counterpart to @pinedsman’s thread! Let’s talk about #ApexLegends weapons! I’d love to hear your thoughts on recent weapon changes and overall weapon meta! THE BEST FEEDBACK IS DESCRIBING HOW THE GAME MAKES YOU FEEL! Telling me exactly the fix you want is not as helpful. — David Bocek (@AmusedApricot) February 9, 2020 The tweets garnered responses from many of the game’s top personalities and pro players, who each shared their own ideas about what they would like to see in Apex Legends. a lot of chars need buffs to make em baseline viable in comp, but most importantly: Lifeline BangaloreNerf Wattson and Gibraltar — Liquid Mendo (@Mendo) February 5, 2020 Lifeline needs a buff because with gibraltar’s recent changes, her passive isnt nearly as good as gibraltar’s and her healing drone hardly does anything, not to mention the sound it makes when healing people is very loud and can get you killed. Her ult is too rng as well — HusKerrs (@HusKerrs) February 5, 2020 There are so many ‘fun’ characters in the game that end up not being fun at all because they are so terrible. Octane, Bloodhound, Mirage… etc They can all use changes or buffs that don’t necessary make them meta but just more competitive — FURIA Jxmo (@Jxmo_1) February 6, 2020 Many players seemed to agree that Gibraltar could do with a nerf after some of the recent changes to his abilities. Although the developers asked fans for their thoughts, they made no promises that any of the popular ideas would be implemented, however, they expressed that they would consider every suggestion that came their way.

Respawn are ramping up efforts to crackdown on Apex Legends cheaters Respawn EntertainmentRespawn’s battle against Apex Legends cheaters has been waging for a long time now, but they’ve promised to ramp up their efforts and pursue “several options” to crack down on them once and for all. Cheaters have been running rampant in Apex Legends ever since the game first released in 2019. They use everything from aimbots and wallhacks to other tools capable of infiltrating player’s lobbies and stop them from connecting to the servers. Respawn fought back by dishing out multiple ban waves and even threatened to take legal action against them. Now, after promising to take “huge steps” to crack down on them once and for all, they’ve finally started ramping up their efforts. “The Respawn team is pursuing several options to crack down on cheating in Apex Legends,” they said. Those options include hiring more people to help with manual bans, developing more tools to automatically detect and stop DDOS attacks, and investigating ways to catch and remove cheaters faster. “Playing against cheaters sucks,” they added in a separate comment. “We’ll keep you updated as we ship the above changes and pursue new ones.” Respawn making moves to tackle cheaters in #ApexLegends 🚫 Report them all and let’s get these cheaters outta here 😈 https://t.co/u6bUknho1z — Apex Legends News (@alphaINTEL) June 28, 2021 Most people were ecstatic with the news. They agreed that it’s “about time” Respawn ramped up their efforts to deal with cheaters and purge them from Apex Legends before they run it into the ground. However, a small portion of players was more subdued because Respawn has made similar promises several times before. “I’ll believe it when it happens,” said one of those players. “I really do hope it happens [though.] It needs to be addressed. The key takeaway, though, is that Respawn is proactively trying to tackle the issue head-on, and they’re keeping players in the loop along the way.

Respawn have fixed Muzzle Flash in Apex Legends but not for all weapons Respawn EntertainmentDevelopers Respawn Entertainment have implemented a fix for muzzle flash in Apex Legends as part of the System Override Collection Event, but hasn’t applied to every single weapon in the game. Since Apex Legends first dropped back in February of 2019, one of the biggest criticisms against it has been the frustrating presence of strong muzzle flash in the gunplay. The bright flash of light that emanates from the tip of a gun when fired seriously limited visibility, inevitably affecting shooting accuracy when aiming down sights. Despite the constant complaints and negative feedback, Respawn didn’t do much to address it during the game’s first year of existence. However, that all changed on March 3. The official patch notes for the System Override Collection Event update revealed that the developers have finally done something about the annoying game mechanic: “Reduced the intensity of muzzle flash while aiming down the sight for all weapons except shotties and snipers.” The weapons that are not be affected by this change include all shotguns and snipers currently in the game: EVA-8 Auto – Mastiff – Mozambique – Peacekeeper – Longbow DMR – Kraber .50-cal – Triple Take – Sentinel – Charge Rifle – A change to muzzle flash was hinted as early as January 9, when Respawn producer Josh Medina confirmed that they were working on a fix. It’s taken this long to implement because, according to Medina, the effects were a “deeper issue that expected” and the devs “wanted to properly fix instead of half ass it,” which took more time. Shortly after that, prominent Apex Legends data miner ‘That1MiningGuy’ claimed that Respawn were testing out different ways to address the issue, even a potential system that would add a flash limiting effect on Barrel Stabilizers. While that’s not what ended up being implemented, it could still be something they think about adding in the future, depending on how well this current fix ends up working out. This is not the only weapon-related quality of life improvement that Respawn haved implemented with System Override. The event’s update also adding a red dot to the iron sights of the Prowler and L-STAR that will “stay properly centered during weapon sway and bob movements.” Speaking of weapons, the patch considerably nerfed the Peacekeeper and buffed the Sentinel, both of which aren’t affected by this muzzle flash fix. The System Override Collection Event kicked off on Tuesday, March 3 and will last for two weeks, wrapping up on Tuesday, March 17.

Respawn are “considering” Apex Legends loss forgiveness if hackers ruin ranked games Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends players have had to deal with losing RP in ranked matches ruined by hackers for a long time now, but it seems like that could change after the developers revealed a loss forgiveness system could be in the works. Apex Legends is an intense game at the best of times, and the ranked experience is even more of a roller-coaster ride with precious RP points on the line. For that reason, it’s all the more painful to see a ranked game ruined by a hacker. However, it does happen from time to time, and when it does, there’s no system in place to prevent players from losing RP points. It’s treated no different from any other elimination and loss, which is painful. Apex Legends players have been vocal about it for some time. The consensus is it’s unfair, unjust, and downright absurd. Fortunately, it seems the devs are inclined to agree, and they’re finally considering doing something about it. The news came straight from the horse’s mouth. Jason McCord, the Design Director of Apex Legends, briefly mentioned it in the latest Respawn Responds video. “We are currently looking into what we can do for players that have had their game impacted by a cheater,” he said. ”This might look something like retroactive loss forgiveness where you’ll get your RP back if we find that you had a cheater in your ranked match.” Unfortunately, he didn’t elaborate any further. But it’s still music to the ears of thousands of players who know all too well what it’s like to have a ranked game ruined by a hacker. Respawn has doubled down on their efforts to stamp hackers with anti-cheat measures. However, it’s still a big problem, especially in terms of how it impacts regular players. A loss forgiveness system is, without a doubt, a step in the right direction.