Author: Nik Ranger

Apex Legends dev responds to requests for Pathfinder buffs in Season 12 Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends’ Lead Balance Director John Larson has responded to the community’s plea for some big buffs to Pathfinder and also delivered an update on how the studio feels about the robot’s position heading into Season 12. Everyone’s favorite MRVN unit has been under the microscope as far back as Season 9 but so far Respawn has been adamant about keeping the grapple master’s abilities exactly the same as they are now. When asked why there’s been no update, Larson shed some light on what goes into buffing and nerfing a character and how even small changes can have big implications for game balancing as a whole. Respawn will not change Pathfinder in Season 12 In an interview with Dexerto’s own Kijanna Henry, the dev spoke a little about addressing the possibility of reworking the Forward Scout’s passive. Larson explained that he disagrees with the popular sentiment that it needs to match the strength of other characters: “It’s important to evaluate the kit as a whole…I don’t think there should be a world where every legend has an equally enticing passive, tactical, and ultimate.” As it stands now, the droid’s passive ability is Insider Knowledge, which allows players to shorten the cooldown timer after using Zipline Gun by interacting with a Survey Beacon. Completing a scan of the beacon also fully charges the ultimate ability right away. He went on to note that the team is open to making changes, but that there aren’t a lot of options that would keep Pathfinder in the pick rate sweet spot where he has been for the last few seasons. Some of the more popular fan suggestions have been about increasing Path’s utility while on a zipline, but Larson dismissed those ideas and explained that they would make him far too powerful: “Does he have less of an accuracy penalty on ziplines, or can he heal on ziplines? That would just straight up buff him.” It’s clear that the Apex team has done a lot of thinking about a potential swap, but if one does eventually show up, it’s not likely to be in Season 12.

Apex Legends dev responds to requests for new Pathfinder passive Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has responded to requests for a new Pathfinder passive and revealed why the community’s favorite MRVN hasn’t received one yet. When it comes to mobility and making incredible outplays in Apex Legends, there are very few characters that do it better than Pathfinder. The Forward Scout’s popularity is growing every day in the current meta, with his pick rate in Season 14 sitting at an extremely high 9.5%. Despite this, Pathfinder mains are still frustrated that he’s lacking a passive ability and believe Respawn should implement one in the near future. Well, in a recent Reddit AMA, a dev addressed the topic and gave Path fans some hope that a new ability could be arriving in the future. Will Pathfinder get a new passive in Apex Legends? Bringing up the topic of Pathfinder in the thread, user Moosemaster21 decided to ask whether the devs were still “brainstorming” any passive ideas for the Forward Scout and if so, will a new ability be arriving anytime soon. In response, Lead Game Designer Eric Canavese revealed they’re looking into making changes, but “don’t want to slap a new passive on a Legend who is already well-liked, powerful and performing well”. It’s clear that the Respawn team feels as if other Legends need more attention than Pathfinder, so there’s “no immediate need” to add a new passive. However, Canavese did conclude by saying that they’re “hopeful the future is friendly in upcoming seasons”. This confirms the team is still developing ideas for Pathfinder’s new passive and potentially hints there are plans to add it into the game in a future seasonal update. It’s obvious Respawn is hesitant to add more power to Pathfinder’s kit when his pick rate continues to rise. Only recently, the Forward Scout took over Wraith to secure himself as the second most popular Legend in Apex. Either way, it’s great to hear the devs are still listening to the community and their passive ideas for the Forward Scout. Path mains will just have to keep their fingers crossed that Respawn can develop a new passive for the MRVN that’s both balanced and interesting in the near future.

Apex Legends dev responds to request for leaver penalty in public matches Respawn EntertainmentUnlike Ranked play, Apex players are free to leave regular public matches without fear of punishment, something that some want to be changed. However, a Respawn dev has explained why leaver penalties are unlikely to be added for non-Ranked BR. In the upcoming Collection Event, Evolution, a new warning is being added to Ranked play, if you are about to receive a penalty for leaving early. This prompted some conversation in the community about whether this would be added to unranked BR as well. The answer is no – as there will still be no penalty for leaving these games. But should there be? Some players think so, while others are strongly against it. Now, Respawn has explained their stance. Apex dev responds Respawn developer RobotHavGunz explained, “from a UX perspective, having a penalty in BR pubs feels overly strict. The idea of leaver penalties is two-fold – one is that you are agreeing not to leave (without consequence) and the second is that your teammates also are agreeing not to leave (without consequence).” “We only added the penalty to Arena pubs because we saw how impactful a leaver was on the match statistically. We don’t see the same impact on BR pubs. Hiding/camping is a viable strategy in BR in a way that it just isn’t in Arenas, for example.” Comment byu/paradoxally from discussion inapexlegends So, while it’s unlikely that a leaver penalty will be added in pubs, the developer agrees that they “see the case” for it – but the more serious alternative, ranked play, is where players should be punished for leaving. This will be good news for the many players who want to be able to drop in and out of public matches stress-free, even if their teammates hate them for it.

Apex Legends dev responds to request for controller remapping on console Respawn EntertainmentBeing able to remap buttons is important in any FPS shooter, particularly if you have a certain layout you prefer to use. However, for those playing Apex Legends on console this can be a frustrating issue. Apex Legends’ Season 10 update is well underway and many players are currently enjoying all the new content. While Respawn continuously looks for ways to improve the performance of its popular BR title, there are still a few issues that mainly impact the console crowd. One of the biggest complaints among players is the lack of customizable controller options. In fact, PC is the only system that gives complete freedom when it comes to remapping buttons for specific roles. This can obviously lead to some rather annoying problems on console, especially when the same button is used for multiple inputs. Apex Legends controller remapping “The limitations around controller buttons are definitely frustrating,” says Respawn’s RobotHavGunz. “There’s never a perfect way to map 16 buttons to the nearly infinite options offered by MKB. We try not to have options for everything, because that introduces UX issues of its own, but in some cases where it’s clearly interfering with utility, I think it’s warranted.” One of the most common controller problems comes from when players need to revive a teammate, only to end up opening a nearby door instead. Downed teammates can also interfere with the reloading of guns, making for some particularly aggravating deaths. “I’m a console player myself, and I can say we’re definitely aware of many of the common controller button frustrations,” said RobotHavGunz. “It’s a constant debate between interfering with learned behavior and working to tune usability.” Unlike keyboard and mouse, controllers have very limited options when it comes to customization. These constraints aren’t always a bad thing as they do help with creating muscle memory, but there obviously times where remapping buttons would alleviate a lot of issues. Read More: Apex Legends Season 10 review – “Core interactions in terms of controller functionality are not something we take lightly,” explained RobotHavGunz. “We tread very, very carefully, since a lot of players have muscle memory built up over thousands of hours that we don’t want to mess up. That’s not to say we won’t change anything out of a fear of upsetting the status quo, just that it’s a pretty high bar to clear.” Whether Respawn will allow console players to completely remap their controller inputs in the future remains to be seen, but for now, you’ll need to take extra care when reviving near a door or reloading next to a downed allied player.

Apex Legends dev responds to player concerns about Loba’s Season 7 buff Respawn EntertainmentLoba’s Black Market Boutique was changed in the Apex Legends Season 7: Ascension patch update, but it was met with a few concerns of the buff being too strong. The devs have since explained why a “nuclear option” was needed for the thief and how it could be reverted. In the Season 7 update, Loba’s ultimate ability was upgraded so that “ammo taken no longer counts towards Black Market’s maximum” cap, meaning she could either steal or simply keep hostage munitions in the immediate area. This now opens up the potential for her to ‘starve’ out nearby teams that are trying to maneuver a prolonged firefight. While her new prospects made a lot of players excited, some could easily see how this could immediately be reverted by the developers. “I’ll say this: within a week they’ll change that buff back,” one Reddit user said. “A full squad can scoop absolutely all the ammo in a POI. Just scoop it up and hide or carry it…. It will make ammo even harder to find around.” Respawn Senior Game Designer Daniel Z. Klein emphatically agreed, admitting that the change “scares” him, but also explained that the High Society Thief’s ultimate wasn’t getting quality use. “This is a change that scares me, but seeing how little Loba uses her ultimate and how little it benefits her team (almost no benefit at all) I decided we needed to invoke the nuclear option here,” he said of the buff. While the devs might not be happy with the state of Loba’s ultimate, there are mounting concerns about how this could get out of hand. As it is, it’s not difficult to charge her ultimate, so there’s legitimate worry that the frequency of the ability can eventually give the Legend a stranglehold on ammo. That is why, at least according to Klien, the option to revert the buff is still on the table if her ability becomes too impactful of an exploit: “Hold me accountable if this was a screw-up, and if you’re right and it makes the game miserable for everyone else because there’s no more ammo then yes, we will revert it.” However, when presented with the possibility that the buff could fundamentally affect the looting habits of players, the dev remains confident that the loot pool is wide enough for it not to be an issue, since there’s “plenty of tough choices to make around weapon mods, equipment, healing, ordnance.” For Loba mains, a lot hangs in the balance, and whether or not her Season 7 buff will be reverted remains to be seen.

Apex Legends dev responds to new “Revenant hint” found by fans EAApex Legends fans are a notoriously suspicious lot, dissecting every new asset that’s coming to the game for hints about upcoming content. This time, a new loading screen message has fans on alert for Season 4 hints. The new hint comes in the form of a loading screen within Apex Legends and one that depicts Skyhook Tower in some sort of peril. This led Reddit detectives to immediately jump to conclusions. “If this is real, bye-bye skyhook tower,” u/ProyalMC said. “Crypto’s ready for it to go. Map updates make me think there’s this next season and then there’s the even next season, then Kings Canyon back?” The return of the original game map has long been hinted at by Apex Legends developers, even as the popularity of the new World’s Edge map continues to grow throughout Season 3. However, many have expected that this won’t happen until the new season launches, which has yet to be announced by EA and Respawn. However, a game designer from Respawn going by the name SpamminBandies thinks fans may be jumping the shark with this one. “It’s the new fallback image for if something failed to load,” he said on the Apex Legends subreddit. Despite the message, fans were quick to disagree, and even think he was hiding something important. “I see through the lies of the Jedi,” one Reddit user said in response. “There’s more than meets the eye.” Many other users agreed and thought that this new image was an easter egg of some kind. Whether this screen turns out to be a teaser for the upcoming new season or not remains to be seen. The existence of Revenant as the next Legend in Apex Legends was leaked months ago, including supposedly his full lore and set of abilities at the time. Of course, EA and Respawn have yet to officially confirm the character is coming to the game, but he has been spotted in-game as the character behind the Shadowfall LTM.

Apex Legends dev responds to invisible walls bug on new Broken Moon map Respawn/EAAn Apex Legends dev has revealed that Broken Moon will be getting some tweaks after players found an invisible wall in some spots. The long-awaited Season 15 update for Apex Legends has finally landed, giving players the chance to get to grips with a new legend in the form of Catalyst, as well as the new Broken Moon map. The new map is the battle royale’s fifth map in total, following Kings Canyon, World’s Edge, Olympus, and Storm Point, and has proven to be a hit with players. Its massive size means games are a bit more spaced out, with Respawn trying to make it more like World’s Edge rather than Storm Point. Though, there have also been a few issues in the early days. Broken Moon invisible wall is being fixed in Apex Legends A number of players have found that, when it comes to the Promenade point of interest, there is an invisible wall deflecting their equipment. Some have taken to social media, showing off clips of grenades just bumping into this invisible wall and not hitting their target. Well, Respawn’s Aaron Stump, one of the level designers, has now confirmed that they’re aware of that, as well as some of the foliage around Broken Moon that appears to be deflecting bullets. “The invisible wall in Promenade is known and is being fixed – unfortunately might not go in until 15.1. There are also some bugs with foliage blocking bullets, a map-wide pass on foliage has been done,” he tweeted. According to Stump, the 15.1 update will bring some quality-of-life changes to Broken Moon, but those are being worked on by other developers. With Respawn being aware and working on the invisible wall bug, it shouldn’t be too long before an update for that is rolled out. It could even come in an overnight hotfix, meaning you don’t have to download anything. Though, we’ll just have to wait and see.

Apex Legends dev responds to glitched Season 7 drop location Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends developer has taken responsibility for a glitch involving a care package landing outside of the map. A video posted to Reddit shows a player attempting to reach the care package and dying instantly upon landing. Apex Legends Season 7 is upon us and players are getting to grips with the brand new Olympus map and Legend, Horizon. With so many significant features being introduced this season, it’s understandable a few bugs and glitches will be found. Well, a video posted to the Apex Legends subreddit shows a glitch involving a care package on the new Olympus map. A player is seen attempting to land on a care package labelled on the map. However, it appears the package has landed in a location that players cannot access. The player then reaches the ground and dies instantly before being able to claim the loot. A Respawn developer has commented on the thread, taking full responsibility for the glitch. Apex Legends dev responds to Olympus glitch A Senior Level Designer on Apex Legends has responded to the video with an apology on the thread: “I’m sorry…this is a bug on my part.” This open and honest response to a glitch has sparked praise and thanks for the developer from the Apex community. It’s not very often an individual dev addresses the community on a bug and takes responsibility for an in-game issue. They continued, revealing the reason for the glitch on the Olympus map: “The nav mesh was generated there so the care package believes this is a valid spot.” This explains why the care package is still indicated to players as accessible on the map. The dev finalises the comment with an indication of when we can expect a fix for this glitch: “I’ve fixed this locally, but the fix won’t be sent out till a future patch.” Although it’s disappointing this glitch will be around for a while longer, the community appreciated the transparency of the statement. Overall, It’s great to see Respawn bridging the gap between the community and the creators of the game in this way. It’s an aspect of the games industry that developers and publishers often overlook.

Apex Legends dev responds to demands to remove SBMM Respawn EntertainmentSkill-based matchmaking might be a part of Apex Legends for a while after a response from a Respawn dev suggests the online feature is here to stay. A portion of the Apex Legends community is still reeling from the effects of SBMM since it pairs people in all playlists with other players of similar ability. While more skilled players want it removed to destroy noobs for highlight clips and content, others look for a casual setting to play with friends of varying skill levels. A response from Respawn Entertainment Principal Coder Michael Kalas was essentially the nail in the coffin for people wondering if Apex would ever scale down the matchmaking feature. A player chimed in to ask if “random matchmaking in the ‘Play Apex’ mode” could become more prevalent instead of the effects from SBMM that makes every game, Ranked or not, filled with competitive players. The developer simply replied with a gif of Dave Bautista with the iconic ‘Deal with it’ sunglasses superimposed on him. While it was a brief response, it echoes what the Apex community have been hearing about SBMM from the devs. Even in the Season 4 patch notes for the game, Respawn gave a ‘Matchmaking Update’ to the community. In it, the devs doubled down on their decision to include SBMM saying that it “has existed in Apex since launch and [they’ll] be continuing to improve on it over time.” In that update, they acknowledged that SBMM has been a “contentious topic among players” but maintained their position that it’s going to stay while they look for natural improvements to make. Previously, Respawn Senior Systems Designer Eric ‘Ghost’ Hewitt told their players that SBMM “will become the norm for most MP games,” citing the “indisputable evidence” that “it helps out something like 80-90% of the community with retention for most of those games.” SBMM will become the norm for most MP games, as there is indisputable evidence through data that it helps out something like 80-90% of the community with retention for most of those games… which hurts us 10%’ers, I know. Still though, ours might need some tuning potentially — Eric Hewitt / Ghost (@GH057ayame) November 24, 2019 Ghost’s comment on November 24 and the February’s Season 4 patch notes both suggest that SBMM or its residual effects still need some refining. The decvs will continue honing their online matchmaking system to appease their players, as much as they might want SBMM taken out of Apex Legends.

Apex Legends dev responds to Crypto exploit giving easy Ranked Points Respawn EntertainmentEric Hewitt, a developer at Respawn Entertainment, has responded to a bug with Crypto’s drone which enables players to unfairly gain assists and Ranked Points (RP) in Apex Legends. Crypto is a popular choice in Apex Legends, having been added to Respawn’s battle royale with Season 3 in November. Billed as a Surveillance Expert, Crypto’s tactical ability allows him to deploy an aerial drone. This provides him with a comprehensive overview of the area in which he is located, ideal for slower play-styles and ambushing opponents. However, since the start of Season 4 players have noticed that his drone can be manipulated to gain extra RP in ranked mode. The glitch relates to the ability of players to scan opponents. After scanning an enemy, Crypto’s teammates are made aware of their location. If they are then downed or eliminated after being scanned, Crypto receives an assist bonus. However, the current glitch enables Crypto players to receive the assist bonus, regardless of whether or not their team downs the scanned opponent. In other words, Cryptos are currently being rewarded for other teams eliminating mutual enemies. Have you seen the crypto drone assist bug? Getting assists for scanning enemies that other teams down. Huge way to get free RP/max assists per game — Greg Stephens (@MrGstephe) February 7, 2020 This is obviously unintended, and there is no reason for it to be in the game. Thankfully, it has been brought to the attention of Eric Hewitt, a Senior Systems Designer at Respawn. On February 7, he responded to confirm that the issue is under investigation, and a fix should be made available soon. “I know our trusty ranked designer is working on putting in a fix for this,” he said. yeah, I know our trusty ranked designer is working on putting in a fix for this — Eric Hewitt / Ghost (@GH057ayame) February 7, 2020 He did not elaborate on his comments, so it’s not known what the initial cause of the issue is. Regardless, it’s good to see such a swift response to an issue affecting a large portion of the player base. You can keep up to date with all the issues Respawn are working on at their Apex Legends Trello board.

Apex Legends dev responds to cross-play hopes from players Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends developer has responded to fans still waiting for cross-play to be introduced to the game – and offered some words of advice. When Fortnite first officially started supporting cross-platform-play in September 2018, with users across all different devices able to play with each other, it set a new precedent for players’ expectations going forward. After years of requesting it, Fortnite officially broke the seal, and since then other popular titles such as Rocket League, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone have given players the chance to play with their friends, regardless of whether they play PS4, Xbox One or PC. Obviously, having watched some of their closest battle royale competitors get cross-play, Apex Legends players are growing increasingly frustrated, sending daily messages to the Respawn Entertainment team begging for it to be added. The team at Respawn said over a year ago that they felt cross-play was “important” to have, but that it would require a lot of work, as Apex Legends was never designed with cross-play in mind. Though we haven’t had many updates since, one developer has responded to a fan who reminded them of their cross-play comments over a year ago. After asking “if this is something that is still being worked on”, Respawn Design Director Jason McCord reached out to offer an update. “I hear you guys,” he said. “But you’re asking the wrong person. I can’t talk about things that aren’t announced.” Finally, he offered some words of advice, simply saying “don’t give up on it,” imploring players to keep pushing for cross-play. I hear you guys. But you’re asking the wrong person. I can’t talk about things that aren’t announced. My advice – don’t give up on it. — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) June 4, 2020 So, while it’s not exactly the good news players are hoping for, McCord’s response does suggest that it’s still a possibility, and fans need to stay vocal about what they want in Apex Legends. Whether or not the game ever gets cross-play is still unknown, but it seems McCord and the team consider it a possibility, so keep pleading with Respawn and it might come sooner rather than later.

Apex Legends dev responds to confusing Ranked bug stealing RP from players Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends players are experiencing a strange Ranked bug that’s failing to give them RP compensation when they’re matched with no players in their squad. While the arrival of the Heroic Defender Newcastle in Season 13 has been popular with the Apex Legends community, it’s the Ranked Reloaded overhaul that’s getting most of the praise. With heavily requested features like demotion and a Rookie tier being added, it’s taken the Outlands’ most competitive mode to a new level. Despite this, the Ranked Reloaded update has experienced a few hiccups since its release, one of which involves the RP compensation feature that is supposed to protect players who are placed into a match without any teammates. According to some members of the community, the forgiveness system doesn’t appear to be working, causing them to lose the maximum amount of RP. Apex Legends dev responds to Ranked forgiveness bug Posted to the Apex Legends subreddit on May 11, user gibLight2 highlighted a bug that was occurring with the RP compensation system in Ranked Reloaded, causing solo players with no teammates to lose the maximum amount of RP. This thread quickly garnered a lot of attention with countless players sharing that they’ve experienced the same glitch since Season 13 kicked off: “This is a bug… I was desperately trying to get to Masters and I had two games where we didn’t get a third teammate and also did not get the loss forgiveness”. A dev quickly responded to the post, explaining that they were investigating the glitch and that they would update everyone as soon as they knew any more information. Strangely, the dev returned shortly after to reveal that they couldn’t “reproduce” the bug and that it was likely an “end of game display error”. Despite this, users in the thread are claiming this issue has been present for a while and has been happening occasionally for multiple seasons: “It’s been a bit inconsistent for a while now, had a few games last season that didn’t give loss forgiveness to be fair.” It’s possible this RP forgiveness bug is extremely rare, so we’ll have to wait and see whether the devs can pinpoint what’s causing the glitch to occur. Either way, it’s clear the Ranked Reloaded update has added some massively positive changes to the competitive mode, let’s hope Respawn can iron out the issues with future patches.

Apex Legends dev responds to concerns over “frustrating” SBMM system Respawn/EAAn Apex Legends dev has responded to players’ concerns with skill-based matchmaking and has suggested changes could be on the way. The majority of competitive games like Apex Legends implement their own SBMM (skill-based matchmaking) system that attempts to match players with those similar in skill to give you the fairest experience. However, previously the SBMM system, that many developers use, has been proven to have its flaws. Frequently, lower-ranked players will make their way into the high-skill lobbies. A Reddit thread started on December 17 by Apex Legends player JakkoWasHere got a response from the devs after they hit out at the SBMM system. “I’m level 99, but every time I go into a match, it’s full of level 500 sweaties with 20k kills,” said JakkoWasHere. “It’s not cool, it makes me frustrated.” The thread from JakkoWasHere got a response from Respawn dev Aaron L. who assured them that being a high level doesn’t necessarily mean the player is highly skilled: “Just to be clear here… high level does not imply high skill.” The Respawn dev then followed up on his comment suggesting that changes to the casual queue SBMM could be on the way. Yeah… pub’s matchmaking can be a bit volatile at times,” said Aaron. “It’s on my radar.” While it’s not direct confirmation that SBMM changes are coming, Aaron’s comment that it’s on his radar suggests that Respawn is monitoring matchmaking and whether their systems could be improved. While it may not amount to anything, this will definitely be positive news for players frustrated by the opponents they face off against in public matches.

Apex Legends dev responds to complaints over “boring” Ranked split in Season 15 Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has responded to complaints about the “beyond boring” 76-day Ranked split and confirmed it won’t be this long again. While a lot of Apex Legends players are satisfied taking down opponents in pubs, others want to compete in a more high-stakes environment. Well, that’s exactly where Ranked comes into play, with the matchmaking system aiming to pit opponents of a similar skill level against each other to compete for RP and rise up through the tiers. Unfortunately, over the past few seasons, Apex players have voiced their frustrations over a number of problems holding the competitive mode back. One of which was the length of the current split, which concludes on January 17 and has lasted a total of 76 days. Apex dev confirms Ranked splits won’t be as long in future Typically, an Apex Legends Ranked split lasts between 45 to 50 days but the current Season 15 Split 1 will conclude on January 17, after lasting a total of 76 days. As the Ranked map has been Broken Moon for so long, the community is desperately waiting for Split 2 to begin, where it’s expected that Olympus will become the new map on rotation. Pro Apex player Nelson ‘Xeratricky’ Medina took to Twitter on January 9 to say “props to anyone who’s still grinding apex ranked daily” as in his opinion the mode is “beyond boring”. For him, a 76-day split is far too long and leaves the ranked experience feeling stale, the pro even asked the devs directly to “never do another 75-day split or whatever this was”. Luckily, Senior Producer on Apex Josh Medina replied to the FURIA pro, revealing that “as of right now I don’t think we will in the future”. This is great news for anyone that enjoys playing Ranked and wants to see the designated map change more often. However, with so many complaints flooding in about different elements of Ranked every day, it’ll be interesting to see if Respawn decides to do another overhaul in the future.

Apex Legends dev responds to complaints about skins being too expensive Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends’ director of monetization has responded to fans’ questions about the in-game store, in a rare show of transparency, and responded directly to complaints about skins being too expensive. As a free-to-play game, Apex Legends monetizes its product through in-game cosmetic items. These range from small gun charms to character skins, and even the unlockable Legends themselves. Although a player could feasibly never spend a dime in-game and have just the same, fun gameplay experience as any other player, even the most frugal player might be tempted by a new skin every once in a while. The cost for a legendary skin in Apex Legends is typically 1,800 Apex Coins, equivalent to $18. This has, unsurprisingly, been a point of contention for players. Although collection events, and free packs simply from playing the game, give every player a chance at unlocking legendary items without spending any money, there’s still a question over the price of these items. During a developer AMA, Respawn’s head of monetization gave a response to this very question, passing their answer through the comms director. Their answer highlighted four key components that determine they consider: Gameplay first, costs, pricing, rewards. Here was the answer in full: Respawn is gameplay first – Because of that, the first goal we tried to adhere to is that gameplay isn’t locked in anyway around monetization and that it doesn’t feel pay-to-win. That’s why Legends are grindable and Legend Tokens are generally easier to get to unlock Legends (yes, we know that has led to other challenges we have to fix…math is harder than people think and when your assumptions are wrong, it’s hard to adjust). With that goal accomplished and the game not feeling pay-to-win, the other half of the equation we have to think about is how to keep the business healthy so we can keep making more Apex! – Content creation costs – As much as people think we can turn cosmetics out easily because our competition outputs content at a high rate, our team is much smaller and spends more time on our skins. The part of the equation people miss is the expense side of the people we have working on these things and the fact that we can’t work 24/7. It’s more expensive than people think in terms of number of people and hours because people don’t factor in tons of back and forth on concept, QA, ideation, creation, etc. – Pricing – As mentioned, we think about this constantly and it’s tough because we want Apex to be around for a loooooong time. Us being able to continue to make the game depends on operating a healthy business. We’re hoping players understand this is something we’re working hard to balance, but when you consider the full picture, it’s a tough challenge. There’s a lot players want from the Apex Universe, there’s a lot we want to give, but we can’t do that unless we’re a healthy business at the end of the day. New Game Modes, Maps, Features all come at a cost we’re trying to support. – Rewards – Knowing not everyone can pay these prices, that’s why the Prize track system was created so that we can give away pretty high value rewards for just playing and that’s why we have a free track in the Battle Pass as well. – Perhaps most important here is that in order for Apex Legends to be a game for the long term, it has to remain profitable, or, as they put it, “a healthy business.” It certainly has been so far. During EA’s Q4 earnings call at the start of May, they said that Apex Legends had far exceeded their expectations for revenue. The game reached $1 billion in life-to-date net bookings. Players saw a very real example of how much money the game can generate, when they introduced a crowdfunding push for the ALGS Championship. With $5 from every $20 bundle going to the prize pool, the amount reached over $1 million in only 4 days.

Apex Legends dev responds to complaints about “recycled” LTMs Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends developer has responded to players’ complaints about bringing back old LTMs (limited-time modes), rather than adding new ones. His candid response shed some light on why Respawn continues to “recycle” LTMs and the effort that goes into perfecting them. The debate surrounding Respawn’s continued use of recycled LTMs is not a new one. Certain members of the Apex community continue to voice their issue with the lack of all-new LTMs being added to the game. Although there are have been numerous different limited-time modes since Apex released in 2019, Respawn brings back fan-favorites such as Armed & Dangerous and Always be Closing on a regular basis. Although these modes are generally well-liked, some have assumed that they are recycled as a low effort means of adding ‘new’ content. However, senior game designer Daniel Klien has explained the team’s thinking. Apex dev responds to complaints of “recycled” LTMs Complaints surrounding LTMs on the Holo-Day Bash announcement thread led to a response from the dev. A number of players had expressed their disappointment that ‘Winter Express’ was just another “recycled” mode. But, the game designer outlined the amount of effort that had gone into perfecting and reworking the ‘Winter Express’ mode: “between the supply ships and the new stations and a LOT of behind the scenes changes to reduce downtime it feels so much better to me.” Despite the response, this only led to comments stating that ‘Winter Express’ was still a recycled LTM and that no new content had been added. This led to an extremely candid statement from the developer that revealed the exact reason Respawn choose to bring back fan-favorite LTMs: “Real talk… everyone ASKS for game modes but looking at our numbers, it doesn’t seem like people play them nearly enough for us to put in the amount of effort required to make a new mode.” This certainly offers some context to the debate surrounding “recycled” LTMs. If the player numbers don’t justify the resources needed to make a new LTM, then why would Respawn continue to produce them? It’s often difficult for developers to grasp what content a player base is looking for. Although social media can be a good indicator, it often only represents those who shout loudest, rather than the entire community. Respawn devs remain very active and engage with players about issues, so feedback should always be encouraged.

Apex Legends dev responds to calls to increase 60 player limit Respawn EntertainmentJason McCord, Respawn’s Design Director on Apex Legends, has suggested that larger lobbies in Apex Legends are still some way off, if they ever come at all, despite some calls from players for larger game modes. Since launch, Apex bucked a number of battle royale trends, one of which being setting the lobby size to 60, with 20 teams of three, rather than the more common 100 players. However, some have called on the game’s developers to release a greater variety of game modes and add more players, with even basic battle royale modes like Solos only making occasional appearances. Away from the size of teams, players have also called on Apex Legends to add game modes with more players. The standard lobby size is 60 players, and there have been no suggestions this will change, despite rival BRs like Warzone offering lobbies of 200 players in LTMs. On October 2, Respawn’s Design Director Jason McCord responded to a fan asking for larger lobbies, especially now that Apex Legends crossplay is releasing. “Now that cross-play is being implemented, which will bring in more players, will we ever see an increase in the lobby size?” the fan asked. However, those hoping for such a change may want to look away now, because Jason McCord suggested that such an addition is a long way off, if it is to happen at all. “Probably not any time soon,” he said. “We think the game is balanced for 60 players, and it’s optimized for 60 players. And our maps are made for 60 players. [There are] So many reasons”. Probably not any time soon. We think the game is balanced for 60 players, and it’s optimized for 60 players. And our maps are made for 60 players. So many reasons 🙂 — Jason McCord (@MonsterclipRSPN) October 3, 2020 It makes perfect sense that the developers prefer to stick to the numbers the game was designed for, but some fans will be undoubtedly disappointed with the news. Other BRs have introduced limited-time modes with extra players, creating a faster-paced, chaotic in-game environment. Respawn, though, seem reluctant to shake up the established formula of 60 person lobbies. We’ll just have to trust them for now. It’s got us this far.

Apex Legends dev responds to calls for increased level cap beyond 500 Respawn/EAApex Legends dev Jason McCord has explained why he’s against just lifting the level cap from 500 to a bigger number, but hinted at having some ideas for making a change. There are plenty of goals for any Apex Legends grinder to hit when they drop into Respawn Entertainment’s battle royale. You can go after the Apex Predator rank in Ranked mode, you can try and pick up every cosmetic, or you can go after the top player level of level 500. Previously, that top player level was limited to level 100, but after players kicked up a fuss about not having much else to do when they got their, Respawn lifted the cap all the way to level 500. And they added in a few goodies like weapon charms and Apex packs, too. However, many players have already gotten up to level 500 now, and want another target to aim for. Yet, it’s unlikely that the Respawn devs are going to budge anytime soon. Jason McCord, the Design Director at Respawn Entertainment, responded to a question about increasing the level cap on January 18. “Any chance we ever see lift on the level 500 cap?” asked one curious player. “Some day, maybe,” McCord responded a few hours later. “I’m not personally convinced that making that number bigger is the best way to feel progression in the game. We have some ideas.” Some day, maybe. I’m not personally convinced that making that number bigger is the best way to feel progression in the game. We have some ideas. — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) January 18, 2021 The note of “some ideas” might spark speculation about things like a prestige system, similar to the one that has been in Call of Duty for the longest time, coming to Apex Legends. That would give players something to strive towards, but, it can be argued that it is just similar to adding a bigger number. You’d still be grinding out ranks, but you could add even more unique badges to your player card so you stand out a bit more. Either way, we’ll just have to wait and see what Respawn decides to do, but at least it appears as if they’re aware of the calls that some fans have for a higher cap.

Apex Legends dev responds to calls for Horizon buffs Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has responded to players asking for a buff to Horizon’s Black Hole Ultimate after a lot of the community have complained that the ability is too easy to escape. In Season 12 of Apex Legends, there’s a select set of characters that are considered meta picks and these are currently Octane, Wraith, Bloodhound, and Valkyrie. While these are the top-tier Legends right now, that could all change in an instant if Respawn decides to implement a set of buffs and nerfs. A great example of this was the Horizon, a character who maintained a high pick rate since her release until the devs heavily nerfed her Tactical in Season 9. Although the Gravitational Manipulator is still strong in the right players’ hands, she’s no longer a priority pick and hasn’t been since. Now, hoping to aid her in the current meta, the community has been asking Respawn to buff her Ultimate as they think it’s too easy for enemies to escape. Luckily, a dev saw one of these requests on a Reddit thread and decided to respond. Apex dev responds to Horizon Ultimate buff requests On March 6, Apex Legends devs RV-GameplayChris commented on a thread discussing buff concepts for each of the characters in-game. After moving on to the topic of Horizon, a user decided to ask whether her Ultimate was ever going to receive a buff, as a lot of the community feel it’s too easy for enemies to escape the Black Hole. In response, RV-GameplayChris expressed that her Ultimate “rides a fine line” as any movement impairing ability can feel extremely frustrating for victims if it’s too strong. Although they don’t feel it’s “overpowered”, they did say that it can be “devastating” when used effectively. From this response, we can safely assume that Respawn has no plans to buff Horizon’s Ultimate anytime soon. It’s obvious they feel that if the Black Hole has too much pulling power, it will become overpowered and won’t be fun to play against. As the Gravitational Manipulator currently has a 4.3% pick rate, she’s sitting as a middle of the pack Legend in terms of popularity. This is another reason why Respawn will likely leave her abilities alone for the time being, as she’s still being picked by players that main her, but no one is selecting Horizon for her power in the meta.

Apex Legends dev responds to calls for built-in damage meter Respawn/EAApex Legends dev Jason McCord has confirmed that Respawn have plans for a built-in damage meter so players can track things like badges and challenges. The second anniversary of Apex Legends is only a few months away at this point, and while the first year has been a monumental success for the battle royale, players are always wanting more. Be it new legends, new maps, new weapons, or new cosmetics, there is a constant demand for new things in order to keep everything ticking over. On top of these major changes, there are also plenty of calls for quality of life changes. These can be little things like a new menu for a certain setting or tweaking colors so something is easier for everyone to see. And it appears as if Respawn might soon be able to deliver one of the most sought after quality of life changes. That’s right, throughout the first year of Apex Legends, fans have wanted to have the ability to track their damage in some sort of live way. This would mean that they don’t just end up unexpectedly securing a badge or completing a challenge for a certain damage threshold and can actively see how far away they are from a certain number. One fan mentioned it to Jason McCord, Design Director on Apex Legends, on Twitter on October 1, and the dev didn’t miss a beat in responding. “It’s on a list!” he replied, offering no further details. Given that McCord didn’t expand on his first tweet, its hard to say just when we might be able to see a damage meter in-game – it could come in the Season 7 update or it could come in three seasons time. Acknowledging that there are plans for it, though, will no doubt delight many fans who have been calling for its inclusion. We’ll just have to wait and see when that is, however.

Apex Legends dev responds to calls for another G7 Scout nerf Respawn EntertainmentWhile the System Override Collection event offers an interesting and exciting time for Apex Legends players, some have been calling for a nerf to the G7 Scout – and a developer has come out and explained why this didn’t happen. The semi-auto assault rifle was nerfed in the Season 4 update after calls from the community, having been a sniper rifle previously, including a reduced fire rate from 4.5 to 4.0. It seems the nerf isn’t enough for some, though, as many of the best players are reaching out to Apex Legends developers to nerf it further. Now, one has responded and explained why it’s not been nerfed again for System Override. When pro player Jordan ‘HusKers’ Thomas tweeted about his disappointment in the lack of a Scout nerf, Senior Systems Designer Eric Hewitt tagged another dev, David Bocek, to say that he is still aware of its strength – and Bocek explained their thought process. “We’re definitely still looking at the G7,” he said, before explaining that the prior rate of fire nerf actually appears to have hit the gun pretty hard. He also adds that they want to “give it a little time to settle” before making a final decision on what to do with the assault rifle – but HusKers wasn’t overly impressed with this response. We’re definitely still looking at the G7! The data shows that the 4.0 RoF nerf actually hit the G7 pretty hard, but it’s still been moving a bit. I want to give it a little time to settle. — David Bocek (@AmusedApricot) March 2, 2020 The Rogue player said that the data they’re using to make these decisions is “skewed” because it’s based on the general public. He added that it’s “still too strong” for people with decent aim, and a majority of the competitive community would disagree. In response, Bocek said that they have “tools to filter out different skill levels of players” to help them figure these issues out. We have tools with the data to filter out different skill levels of players. It’s not perfect which is why im still looking closely at it, but we’ve also had times in the past where people initially thought a nerf wasn’t enough but it ended up being effective after some time. — David Bocek (@AmusedApricot) March 2, 2020 HusKers’ argument definitely makes sense, but it will be interesting to see how the rate of fire nerf impacts the game over time – of course, as HusKers says, it’s still widely believed to be overpowered by the competitive community’s standards, but this could become less of an issue as time goes by. Of course, there isn’t a definitive answer here, and although they don’t seem to be interested in nerfing the gun too soon, it’s clearly something they’re constantly looking at. So, if you are a player with good aim, you might want to make use of the G7 Scout while you can – because we may see yet another nerf sometime soon.

Apex Legends dev responds to bug with kill stats being wrong in Season 10 Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has responded to the out-of-sync stat bug affecting players in Season 10, revealing that after numerous attempts to fix the issue, they can’t seem to find the answer. Season 10 of Apex Legends has certainly shaken up the game’s meta and given players a lot of new content to get stuck into. Whether it’s the lethal Rampage LMG or the brand new Legend Seer, Respawn definitely didn’t hold back with Emergence. Despite its positive reception, the major update didn’t arrive without a few hiccups, and while most of them have been resolved, others just won’t seem to go away. One of which is an out-of-sync stat bug that shows the wrong amount of kills on player’s in-game banners. As a lot of Apex players take their personal stats extremely seriously, the issue has started to bother them. Now, a dev has taken to Reddit to respond to the glitch, but it’s not exactly the response players were hoping for. Apex Legends devs reveal they’re struggling to fix stat bug After encountering the out-of-sync stat glitch in Apex Legends that showed the incorrect amount of kills on their banner, Reddit user CrispyCoachPotato1 decided to make a thread to see if anyone could help. Luckily, it wasn’t long before a dev replied and shed some light on the problems Respawn was having finding and fixing the issue. According to the dev, this glitch seems to pop up for some players at the start of each season, and the development team has had trouble reproducing it internally. Despite trying every theoretical combination they could think of, the bug never seems to pop up. “This is a consistent issue at the start of each season for some players but it’s not one that we’ve ever been able to successfully reproduce internally,” they wrote. “We’ve tried every theoretical combination around leaving matches, downed enemies, downed self, disconnects, etc. And they never get out of sync”. As the Technical Game Designer says, it’s difficult to fix an issue when you can’t seem to diagnose why it’s happening. This will certainly be disappointing news for Apex players, but it doesn’t look like the kills are out of sync by much in most cases. Although this isn’t the answer everyone in the thread was looking for, it’s understandable that not every issue will be able to be fixed immediately. This is probably a bug that Respawn will find the solution for over a long period of time, but for now, at least it’s not an issue that’s affecting the gameplay experience as a whole.

Apex Legends dev responds to bug making Gibraltar’s weapons fail Respawn EntertainmentGibraltar may be one of the best characters to use in Apex Legends Season 4, but a major bug is leaving him completely useless in certain situations. Thankfully, the developers have given a response and a fix should be forthcoming. Starting out life in Apex as a rather underused legend, a series of buffs over the seasons have made Gibraltar one of the most useful choices in any team of three. Some have even suggested he is now overbalanced, making him too powerful – streamer Michael ‘shroud‘ Grzesiek even suggested that Gibraltar was now “broken.” Unfortunately, an unintended bug could play spoiler to Gibby’s newfound success. Shared by competitive player EDIMKA, the video appears to show Gibraltar unable to damage an opponent after the first shot, due to a glitch with his shield. According to the player, if a shot is fired at the same time that Gibraltar’s shield is activated, the bullets simply disappear into thin air. It shouldn’t affect you if you’re shooting just before or after the shield is up, but at the crucial moment, the weapon appears to fire blanks. https://twitter.com/EDIMKAfps/status/1225057254224945153 The shield is one of Gibraltar’s most powerful assets, allowing him to protect his large frame from incoming fire while returning fire behind improvised cover. For more casual players, this bug might not be too intrusive, but in a ranked or professional match, it could be the difference between survival, particularly when used with weapons like those in the video: Peacekeeper and Wingman. Respawn is on the case The bug has been plaguing Gibby for over a week at the time of writing, as there was a delay in action being taken. Thankfully, Respawn dev Eric Hewitt has confirmed that it will be passed on to the appropriate team. ah, yeah, the character designer that I originally showed this to was too busy with other work to get on this. I have to speak with a different one this week about it. Definitely haven’t forgotten! — Eric Hewitt / Ghost (@GH057ayame) February 12, 2020 When this fix will be sorted and delivered though, is another question. We’re expecting the next update for Apex Legends soon, but there’s no set date currently. As with any new update, there’s always bound to be new errors in the code which can cause new issues. The Season 4 patch made sweeping changes to Apex Legends, as well as adding new content. All of these changes can create new vulnerabilities in the code which the developers will need to address. A hotfix may be all that’s required, although developers will often pack lots of small fixes into one larger update.

Apex Legends dev responds to “broken” Ranked matchmaking issues Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has addressed the issues players are having in Ranked when it comes to consistently finding balanced matches. While a lot of the community enjoy playing Apex Legends casually and stick to normal matches, others prefer to head into the Ranked mode for a more competitive experience. Depending on their overall performance in a game, competitors will either lose or gain points, moving them up and down the various Ranked tiers on the ladder. Although this system in theory should place players of a similar skill level in the same matches, a lot of the higher tiers have significantly fewer players, meaning they’re often placed in lower-tier matches to fill spots. This has led to a lot of criticism from players towards Respawn about the Ranked matchmaking system and luckily, a dev has finally addressed the issue. Apex dev explains why Ranked matches are hard to balance Despite changes coming to Ranked in Season 11 update, a lot of the community are frustrated with the teammates they’re being matched with in their Ranked games. According to them, they’re either being placed with top-tier players way above their skill level or squadmates that are inexperienced and clearly new to the game. In response, a dev took to Twitter to explain that MMR and a player’s rank are completely separate, with MMR being hidden in the background and difficult for players to track. This means that although an opponent may be Ranked higher, their MMR may have dropped after playing poorly for a long period of time. Not only that, they outlined that matching top-tier players with each other is incredibly difficult, as there just aren’t enough competitors at those ranks to consistently fill matches. So, that’s where the MMR system comes into play, delegating high-rank players with a low MMR into lower-tier games. This response was posted to the Apex Legends subreddit, with some users suggesting that a solo and premade queue should be added to help balance matches: “Good reason to have a separate rank and lobbies for solo and premade.” While this suggestion received a lot of upvotes, some players were concerned that separating the community even further may make matchmaking even worse, particularly at higher ranks. Either way, the fact that a Respawn dev responded to the problem shows they’re aware that Ranked matchmaking may need tweaking, but as showcased by the response, it’s not going to be easy to find a solution.

Apex Legends dev responds to bizarre matchmaking inconsistency Respawn EntertainmentA strange matchmaking occurrence in Apex Legends allowed a team of random players to drop into a game together, but stopped them from queuing up for another match – and Respawn have given explanation as to why. People dropping into Apex’s Ranked playlist have been matched with other players of wildly different skill levels in the past. The ranked system has been called “flawed” by some players in the past because of these mismatched teams, among other issues. But the system worked against a team of three randoms in an unexpected way after they wanted to run it back together, but were barred from doing so because of their ranks. “Hey Respawn, if I’m playing Ranked with randoms and we team up after our game, this is not OK,” user ‘JohnJimMilton’ said, perplexed after not being able to queue up with the players they had just come out of a game with. Milton explained that after their game, the three players found they couldn’t get in another match since one person was only a Silver while another was in Platinum. On paper, the situation looked like some sort of glitch that must have occurred in the lobby that paired them in the first place or with the game’s online service not letting them queue. Yet, the reason for that was much clearer, and possibly had to do something with the way Ranked matches up people for a game. Giving more insight into the issue, Senior Designer at Respawn Entertainment Chin ‘tangentiallogic’ Xiang Chong offered an explanation of how the system could have formed Milton’s team. Tangentiallogic explained: “I’m not saying this is what happened, but here is a legitimate case of why this could be happening: Players A and B are gold and silver respectively, they are friends and party up into Ranked. They get matchmade as gold. Player C matchmakes into their party, and is Plat. Plat players can and do play with Golds. After the match if Player C tries to join a party with Players A and B, we do not allow that because Plat can only play with 1 Tier difference away.” The dev went on to say that the one-tier difference max policy is implemented in an attempt to stop people from boosting lower ranked players. That could explain why the team was formed in the first place, though it didn’t offer much consolation for the group of Apex Legends players who wanted to queue up again.

Apex Legends dev responds to bizarre Bloodhound Ultimate bug EAA Respawn developer has responded to the peculiar glitch where Bloodhound’s ‘Beast of the Hunt’ Ultimate cancels while shooting at a Mirage decoy – and a fix appears imminent! Bloodhound’s Town Takeover brought with it a plethora of changes to Apex Legends, including bringing Kings Canyon back into rotation alongside permanently adding a ‘Duos’ mode. However, the Old Ways event update also brought a series of issues to the battle royale — including a glitch which cancels Bloodhound’s Ultimate when shooting at a Mirage decoy. While the premise of the Beast of the Hunt is to track down your enemies, shooting at a decoy is a waste of the precious 35 seconds in which your senses are enhanced. Nonetheless, Respawn has recognized the severity of the bug (especially since the event revolves around Bloodhound) and a developer has responded to a complaint on the Apex Legends subreddit, acknowledging that a fix is inbound for their Ultimate. “That does look annoying. Right when it gets canceled you can see a red icon pop up on the upper right corner, near your kill feed. That’s likely either the packet loss or prediction error icon,” the dev revealed. It appears that after digging a little deeper, the cause of the issue was the latter (prediction error) which, according to the dev is essentially “a game logic error causing a misprediction.” Per their comment, the team is aware of the issue and a “fix is forthcoming in the next server update.” Whether or not Respawn will be looking to address the numerous other issues, such as the Devotion’s new ‘back-breaking’ recoil pattern and Lifeline’s pointless ‘buff’ remains to be seen. Of course, Mirage’s game-breaking self-revive bug will likely be at the top of Respawn snag list before the aforementioned ‘minor’ bugs receive a hotfix. Bloodhound mains will be happy to hear that their Legend’s Ult will be as good as new when the patch is released (although there is no precise ETA on when that will be).

Apex Legends dev responds to annoying Treasure Pack glitch Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends players shouldn’t have to wait much longer for the frustrating problems involving Treasure Packs to be sorted in-game, as a fix has been confirmed to be coming soon. Members of the community have been flagging this as an issue since the quests began at the beginning of Season 5, where a pop-up message keeps telling them the same thing over and over again. That, and an annoying coin noise that comes with it. If you were one of those wondering when this would be resolved, fear not, as one of the dev team have finally responded to a fan and given them the answer we’ve all been waiting for. On June 2, Twitter user RasBruh pinged a screenshot of the Treasure Pack problem over to designer Jason McCord, along with a tongue in cheek question. They said: “Hey Jason, how many heirloom shards will it cost to stop this popping up post-game?” Soon enough, the Design Director hit them up with a reply, claiming that it should be put to bed some time in the near future – or more specifically, in the next patch. Lol. I know, it’s annoying. It only lasts one day per Hunt though, and we’ll have a fix in our next patch. Sorry about it!— Jason McCord (@MonsterclipRSPN) June 2, 2020 Unfortunately there was no timeframe put on that next patch, and it’s yet to be flagged on the game’s official Trello board, which features others like like buzzing audio sounds and reconnect issues some players have been experiencing. After getting an answer for free, however, the original poster added a cheeky Caustic reference: “No worries JJ, I’ll preserve my heirloom shards for the next Caustic item in the heirloom shop, I see everything.” Once this has been fixed in-game, we’ll be sure to hit you up with the patch notes and all of the details.

Apex Legends dev responds to annoying bug deleting Wraith’s portals Respawn EntertainmentRespawn developers have responded to a strange Apex Legends bug that is completely deleting Wraith’s Dimensional Rift portals from the map. Wraith still remains to be one of the most popular characters in Apex Legends for her unique abilities and evasive playstyle, which can lead to plenty of outplays. The fan-favorite Legend is best known for creating portals to get her and her teammates out of dodge, but there have been problems with her abilities in the past, such as one bug which would turn her portal into a death trap. There now seems to be a new issue with Wraith’s “Dimensional Rift” ultimate ability, which is apparently deleting the Legend’s portal before she has a chance to use them. A clip of this bug was shared by Apex pro ZachMazer, who showed off a lowlight of himself running towards opponents with the ability activated, so that he could safely bring his teammates into the fight. However, after attempting to place the portal for his teammates to join the fight, it was seemingly removed from the area, leaving him stranded alone with the opposing team. The Apex pro was immediately killed by the surrounding players, later calling for Respawn developers to fix this bizarre bug. Apex Legends dev Josh Medina responded to this unusual glitch, revealing that he had already passed the clip on to the QA team to try and find a fix. I sent the clip to our qa to see wtf.. we’ve seen reports of wraith portal being eaten similar to your clip so it’s something folks are trying to repro consistently — Josh Medina (@lowkeydbjosh) August 26, 2020 “I sent the clip to our QA to see,” he explained, “we’ve seen reports of Wraith portals being eaten similar to your clip so it’s something folks are trying to [reproduce] consistently.” Although Respawn devs are working on ways to fix this annoying bug, as of now, it is still unclear when exactly this issue will be patched in Apex Legends.

Apex Legends dev responds to surprising discovery made about Peacekeeper A surprising discovery has been made about the Peacekeeper shotgun in Apex Legends, and it was enough to draw a response from one of the developers at Respawn Entertainment. The Peacekeeper is widely considered to be one the stronger weapons in Apex Legends, as many players love to pair it up with a longer range weapon to balance out their loadout. One interesting aspect about the weapon that not many player seem to be aware of is that aiming down sights while firing has no effect on the bullet spread. This characteristic was discovered by Reddit user ‘TheRealYagot,’ who loaded into the practice arena to give his Peacekeeper theory a tryout. He fired the shotgun at two targets next to each other, one while aiming down sights and the other from the hip. The nearly identical bullet markings on the targets pretty much confirmed that his notion about the Peackeeper had been correct. The video above got the attention of a lot of users on Reddit, including a Respawn developer with the username ‘RespawnSean.’ Interestingly enough, in his response to the Reddit post, Sean chose to not address the point proven in the video, and instead brought up the Precision Choke hop-up attachment for the Peacekeeper. He mentioned how the Precision Choke allows for players to charge up the weapon before firing and further concentrate the bullet spread, a process which can only be done while ADS. While his point is certainly valid and does present a scenario where aiming down sights with the Peacekeeper is beneficial, the nature of his response pretty much confirmed that ADS does not improve the bullet spread of the base version of the weapon. This latest development with the Peacekeeper should help out a lot of players when using the weapon as it’s now essentially been proven to be useless to aim down its sights when firing. Furthermore, that fact that this aspect of the Peacekeeper was not designated as a glitch or issue by the developer strongly suggests that it was intentionally put in place and will likely not be changed in the near future.

Apex Legends dev responds to “secret” new Gibraltar ability in v1.1.1 update Respawn EntertainmentFollowing the latest major update going live Apex Legends on April 16, some players believed that Gibraltar had been given a secret buff, to the point where a developer from Respawn Entertainment had to respond. The v1.1.1 update was one of the biggest Apex Legends has had to date, and it included a lot of major changes to some of the core aspects of the game. One area that these changes targeted was Legends, more specifically Caustic and Gibraltar, both of whom received considerable buffs. However, players began to notice that the Gibraltar had received an additional buff that hadn’t been listed or specified in the official patch notes – one that allowed the Legend to cast aside Arc Stars thrown onto him. The video below, courtesy of Reddit user ‘VonArne‘ shows an Arc Star being thrown and successfully sticking to the Gibraltar’s Gun Shield, but when the shield is lowered, the explosive does not detonate and is nowhere to be found. Respawn dev responds to Reddit post Predictably, the post began to pick up traction on Reddit, despite the fact that some in the comments section were claiming that this feature was, in fact, a Gibraltar glitch that had been in the game since its release back in early February. Whether that is the case or not, it was to this post that a developer named ‘Jayfresh_Respawn’ decided to comment on Reddit, saying “Thanks guys. Noted and looking into it.” Judging from the developer’s response, it’s clear that this Gibraltar ability was never supposed to have been in the game, and with Respawn looking into it, it’ll probably be eradicated before too long. Gibraltar and Caustic receive buffs on April 16 As mentioned above, both Gibraltar and Caustic received serious buffs in the v1.1.1 update on April 16. The Gibraltar’s Gun Shield’s health was increased from 50 to 75, and he was given a new Passive Perk called Fortified, which reduces damage taken by 10%. As for the Caustic, he too received the same exact Fortified Passive Perk, in addition to the Gas Damage per tick increased from one to four, and the Ultimate Throw distance increased from 28 meters to 33.

Apex Legends dev responds to possible teaser found for unreleased Nomad Legend MagnumPDie – Reddit / Respawn EntertainmentA potential teaser for a new yet-to-be-announced Legend has been discovered in Apex Legends, and it’s caught the eye of a developer from Respawn Entertainment. Reddit user FrozenFroh, who has established himself as an expert of sorts when it comes to Apex Legends, believes that he may have stumbled across a major clue in the shape of the Wraith’s Night Terror cosmetic skin. Night Terror Wraith was available in the game for a short period of time, during The Legendary Hunt limited-time event, and could only be unlocked by those who owned the Season 1 Battle Pass and had it leveled up to 15 before the end of the event. FrozenFroh believes that the skin itself is a teaser for the Nomad Legend, with one major reason being that the markings on the Wraith’s face are actually Nomadic, and have their own meanings. Furthermore, the body of the skin features a small yellow tag that reads “Nomad Tech,” which is either a weird coincidence or an incredibly clever combination of clues. While the information presented in this post does provoke some thought and consideration, what really brought this potential teaser to everyone’s attention was the fact that a developer from Respawn, named RSPN_Jeremy, commented on it. “The tinfoil saga continues!” he wrote on Reddit. “I love these posts so much; it’s awesome to see someone so interested in the lore that they would go the effort to make this. Keep it up!” Obviously, just because a developer responded to the post doesn’t mean that he confirmed it to be true, but it does leave a lot of room for thought, especially since he didn’t reject the idea either. Another thing to consider is that Respawn did something similar prior to releasing Wattson in Season 2. Well before she had even been confirmed as the next Legend, her name was seen clear as day on several weapon skins that were added to the game. If that was done intentionally, which seems to have been the case, then Respawn could very well be following the same strategy when it comes to Nomad. This isn’t the first time that Nomad’s name has been seen or heard in Apex either, as his name, face, and potential abilities were found in game files that were data-mined and leaked back in March. In fact, many of those files were purged at the end of Season 1, but according to prominent data-miner The1MiningGuy, the files pertaining to Nomad, and his “Loot Compass,” were one of the few that were kept. At the end of the day, all of this remains as nothing more than speculation, at least until Respawn officially announce or confirm something that gives these supposed teasers a degree of legitimacy. Even if Nomad is one of the Legends that the developers plan on releasing, it likely won’t be the next one, since there’s a lot more intel out there about Crypto, including what many believe was even an appearance in the launch trailer for Season 2. With Crypto more than likely to be the next Legend released, it may be a while before we see anything concrete on Nomad or any other Legends.

Apex Legends dev responds to Mirage’s decoys blocking bullets, melees, and explosives Respawn EntertainmentWith Apex Legends players discovering that the Mirage’s Decoys have the ability to block certain damages, a developer from Respawn Entertainment has issued a response. Mirage is one of the more polarizing characters in Apex Legends, as some enjoy using him in-game while others content that his abilities simply don’t stand up well to that of the other Legends. However, Mirage, much like some of the other Legends, has some secret properties that may not have been explicitly stated in official game guides, which could make him much more viable than many believe. Mirage’s Decoys block damage On May 2, a Reddit user named ‘SaberTheNoob’ posted a video in which he demonstrated that the Mirage’s Decoy was able to block the effects of a nearby Arc Star from hitting the actual Legend. According to the post, the player has tested this out with bullets, melees, and other kinds of explosives, and has achieved the same result each time. Respawn developer responds With the post gaining a lot of traction on Reddit, it inevitably caught the eyes of Respawn, and developer ‘glutinousriceball’ posted a comment underneath. “Thanks for letting us know! I’ve made a report,” they said. “It’s just a report for now. It’ll get prioritized against everything else. Judging from that response, it would seem that this effect of the Mirage’s Decoys was not intended to exist in the game. This means that it will likely get patched up eventually, although as the comment seems to suggest, it could be a while before that happens. For example, both the Caustic’s Nox Gas Trap and Lifeline’s D.O.C Heal Drone have the ability to deflect certain kinds of damages, even if that’s not a part of their actual function. Read More: Apex Legends player comes across mindblowing bug that causes teammates to insta-die for no reason – That considered, maybe the Mirage’s Decoys should be kept as is and not patched, as it keeps him even with the other Legends in that aspect. However, it would appear, at least for now, that Respawn will eventually patch the Decoys, so you should use them as shields while you still can.

Apex Legends dev responds to fears that new Legend Seer will be overpowered Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends Emergence is nearly upon us, but fans are concerned that new Season 10 Legend, Seer, will be overpowered. Thankfully, one dev has assured us otherwise. As Apex Legends’ ninth season, Legacy, comes to a close, Emergence has everyone on the edge of their seats. From the changes to iconic map World’s Edge to a brand-new weapon in the form of the Rampage LMG, this season is set to seriously shake up the Apex Games. At the forefront of the new update is Seer, the mysterious new Legend whose tragic tale and stunning new abilities have players excited to get their hands on the title’s latest addition. With every new character, though, comes a degree of skepticism over their balancing, but thankfully Lead Game Designer Daniel Klein has put fans concerns to bed. Apex Legends Seer abilities under fire Seer’s collection of abilities are certainly a very cool new look for Apex, but some fans have concerns over the power of his Tactical. Entitled “Focus of Attention,” on the surface it appears to be an empowered version of Bloodhound’s “Eye of the Allfather.” Described as “Seer releases several minidrones and after a delay they mark all enemies in front of him, interrupting their use of healing items/revives and revealing their locations and health to Seer and his allies for eight seconds,” the interruption of restorative items is what fans are most concerned about. Thankfully, Klein is on the case. “One important detail that I think we don’t talk about enough yet is that Seer’s tactical is super high precision,” he writes. “Bloodhound’s scan blankets an entire POI; Seer is much more like a sniper rifle (it’s a tunnel about big enough for one legend.) “So actually hitting the thing is really hard and there’s play for the enemy to dodge (you get plenty of warning). If you DO get hit though, you’re revealed for a real long time.” So actually hitting the thing is really hard and there’s play for the enemy to dodge (you get plenty of warning). If you DO get hit though, you’re revealed for a real long time. — danielzklein@bsky.social (@danielzklein) July 27, 2021 He also addresses concerns over Seer’s silencing abilities, something that anyone who has ever gone up against a Revenant knows can be a gamechanger. “The silence lasts about a second or so. It’s meant to be an interrupt, not like a forever silence like Revenant,” he notes. Plus I’ve seen people worried about silence. The silence lasts about a second or so. It’s meant to be an interrupt, not like a forever silence like Revenant — Daniel Zenon Klein (@danielzklein) July 27, 2021 To quell any further concerns, Respawn’s John ‘JayBiebs’ Larson also addressed the situation on Reddit. “That’s what I’m here for. If Rampage or Seer are busted out the gate, we adjust quickly with a hotfix,” he assures fans. Comment byu/RenegadeMountie from discussion inCompetitiveApex With Seer set to make his debut on August 3, players will be desperate to get their hands on this elusive new Legend.

Apex Legends dev responds to discovery of insane Mastiff rapid fire bug Respawn EntertainmentA game-breaking bug has been found in Apex Legends that allows the Mastiff shotgun to be fired rapidly, and now a developer from Respawn Entertainment has responded to the discovery. It’s no secret that one of the biggest issues in Apex Legends has been the large number of bugs, glitches, and hacks that have plagued the game since its release. While most of the bugs are minor and not overly consequential, there are some that are of game-breaking severity, have the potential to ruin players’ gaming experiences. The most recent example of this is a glitch that is causing the Legendary Mastiff shotgun to be fired at an abnormally high rate. This bug can be seen in action in the video below, posted by Reddit user ‘Gevorian’ on June 11. Click HERE to view the video on Streamable. The Mastiff is one of two Legendary weapons in the game, and its devastating damage profile makes it a very powerful choice for players who are able to master its usage. It’s already extremely dominant on its own, and having a bug that allows it to be rapidly fired just turns the user into a virtually unstoppable force. Luckily, thanks to the Reddit post, the issue has been brought to the attention of developers Respawn, who are looking for a fix. “Appreciate you folks capturing this and calling it out,” they replied on Reddit. “We’re aware and looking into it. Season 2 in Apex Legends The developers will hope to find a fix for that Mastiff rapid fire bug as soon as possible, at least prior to the release of the highly anticipated second season of Apex Legends. Season 2 is set to introduce the brand new Legend Wattson, a new weapon called the L-STAR, and possibly even dragon-like creatures that players can use to move around. Season 2 will be called Battle Charge and is scheduled to go live on July 2, 2019.

Apex Legends dev responds to concerns over broken hit-boxes With eight unique ‘Legends’ currently on offer, all of different shapes and sizes, inconsistency in ‘hit-boxes’ can be potential issue in Apex Legends, but Respawn are working on it. ‘Hit-boxes’ refers to the areas of a character which will register a ‘hit’ when shot at, and in competitive shooters, having every player’s hit-box the exact same is obviously desirable, for consistency and so that no player has an advantage. One of the issues raised by players is specific to Pathfinder, the robotic Legend. A video showcasing differing hit-boxes between characters, appeared to show that hit-boxes on Pathfinder weren’t entirely accurate to the robot’s frame. Respawn Community Manager Jay Frechette has confirmed the team are discussing this issue, in response to a question about pathfinder specifically. Frechette says the team are “aware of it”, but doesn’t go as far to suggest that there is a problem that actually needs solved. It could be argued that players using Bangalore will have an advantage over players using Gibraltar, due to her slimmer profile, but it’s part of the game’s design. The Legends are designed to promote a certain play-style. Gibraltar has a small shield in front of him when aiming and firing, and can plant a large dome shield around him when needed. Bangalore has no such shields, but instead gets a 25% speed boost when shot at. In this way, Gibraltar is meant to be played as a slower, more tank-like character, while Bangalore is intended to be more nimble and aggressive. But, players still have concerns over the differences in hit-boxes. How Respawn is considering addressing these issues is unclear, and with more Legends set to be added, it will be imperative that no one feels at a major disadvantage when choosing one Legend over another.

Apex Legends dev responds to complaints about lack of updates, teases upcoming content Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends players have been starved for updates to the popular battle royale, and a Respawn dev has responded to critiques for the immense lack of fixes and content. While millions of players quickly flocked to the battle royale soon after its February 4 release, many in the growing community have since felt that the developers were being a bit lackadaisical with patching their game or adding worthwhile content. After emerging meme account ‘KFC Gaming’ fried Apex Legends for its apparent inactivity, a Respawn Entertainment developer responded in kind with some insight as to why players haven’t seen any changes. Apex developer Rayme Vinson said that the company actually has “tons” of additions to the game coming in due time, but that Respawn can’t churn out the updates as fast as the Colonel does with his chicken. “Dearest brand,” Vinson said. “We’ve got tons of stuff coming, but it takes a little time. We can’t hyper-fry or flash-flambe or crunch-inject or whatever it is you do to your tasty fried birdflesh. This gameplay is hand-crafted using old-world techniques. Eat some chicken, we’ll see you soon.” Dearest brand. We’ve got tons of stuff coming, but it takes a little time. We can’t hyper-fry or flash-flambe or crunch-inject or whatever it is you do to your tasty fried birdflesh. This gameplay is hand-crafted using old-world techniques. Eat some chicken, we’ll see you soon.:yes: https://t.co/PEzUcWCRzA — Rayme Vinson (@RaymeCVinson) May 14, 2019 Twitter audiences were loving the developer’s classy retort to the meme, and were similarly comforted that a member of Respawn was willing to speak on the delays to bug patches and content issues. To be fair; I don’t think most players really get how the games are put together. Ours came out of nowhere and people are (thankfully!) hungry for more – so I can’t be *too* salty when I’m the same guy who’ll whine about the next book/comic/episode in a series not being out yet! — Rayme Vinson (@RaymeCVinson) May 14, 2019 Why isn’t Apex Legends getting updated? Vinson recognized why players might think Respawn hadn’t update their game, as one fan hinted it’s because of the upcoming Star Wars title the company is also working on. But the developer was quick to reassure Apex players that this wasn’t the case, instead saying the “same team that built Apex is still building it [now] – we’ve been *growing* since launch. But I get that people will be giving us side-eye until they see some of the stuff we’re doing” Nope. Same team that built Apex is still building it – we’ve been *growing* since launch. But I get that people will be giving us side-eye until they see some of the stuff we’re doing. — Rayme Vinson (@RaymeCVinson) May 15, 2019 He later added that it’ll be “easier” to see why the updates have been taking so long once “more of [their] output is out the door. By the sound of it Respawn Entertainment have been hard at work cooking up something massive for the eventual updates coming to Apex Legends. Fans will just have to be patient for a while longer but it looks like the wait will be well worth it.

Apex Legends dev responds to ‘broken’ Caustic and Gibraltar bug in v1.1.1 update The headline buffs in the v1.1.1 Apex Legends update were to make Gibraltar and Caustic more viable, by giving them 10% extra damage reduction to counteract their larger size, but it turns out the buff isn’t actually working. Gibraltar and Caustic are the two largest legends in terms of physical size, which in turn makes their ‘hit-box’ larger and therefore players using the character are an easier target. This became a real issue shortly after the game launched, and resulted in many players turning away from using the legends, instead favoring smaller, more nimble characters like Wraith or Bangalore. Gibraltar is significantly larger than other legends. The new ‘fortified’ perk aimed to help make these legends more viable picks, with a health 10% damage reduction across the board. However, the new passive perk was found to be bugged shortly after the v1.1.1 update, as players started going back to Caustic and Gibraltar. Due to the bug, players health would begin to drop if they took damage, even if they had a shield equipped, whereas the shield should of course deal with all damage until it is depleted. Thankfully, Respawn’s community manager Jay Frechette has confirmed that the team is aware of the issue, and working on a fix. In response to a post detailing exactly what was bugged about the Caustic and Gibraltar after the v1.1.1 update, Frechette explained the fix was currently being ‘tested’. Unfortunately, Frechette doesn’t give an ‘ETA’ for the fix, so Caustic and Gibraltar players will have to wait a little longer until their big legends become more viable.

Apex Legends dev responds as players want Ash nerfed already in Season 11 Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends Season 11 is only just out of the gate, but Apex players of all levels are already calling for a nerf to new Legend Ash — and the devs have already addressed it. With each new season comes a new Legend to the Apex Games, and Ash has already become a formidable foe on the battlefield in Season 11. The Incisive Instigator is a popular pick with players in the early days of Season 11, with her Phase Breach ultimate and Arc Snare tactical abilities causing headaches for enemies. Her passive ability, however — Marked For Death — is already being looked at by players and targeted for nerf requests. Apex Legends players demand Ash nerfs Within hours of the season going live, some top names in Apex were already frustrated by Ash’s passive. Nokokopuffs was one of the pros to address the potential issue with Ash. While he said he was loving the new season and the new Storm Point map, he noted that “Ash passive seeing fights all around the map is way too much info.” Genuinely loving this new season so far. The map is fucking amazing, the loot is top tier, always leaving POI’s with meds and good shields. Weapon meta is yet to be seen but LStar still broken. 1 Problem, Ash passive seeing fights all around the map is WAYYY TO MUCH INFO. — Noko (@Nokokopuffs) November 2, 2021 100 Thieves’ NiceWigg agreed with this sentiment, suggesting that Ash will “ruin this ranked split with this passive,” while Nokokopuffs responded saying that it “completely defeats the purpose of a ‘bigger map.’” Agreed, its literally just her passive. I think if her passive didnt exist this wouldnt be happening. It literally is a Map Room on Steroids. Timers with exactly how many people are dying with their exact location. Completely defeats the purpose of a “”Bigger Map”” — Noko (@Nokokopuffs) November 2, 2021 Twitch streamer iamBush also asked for an Ash passive nerf, saying it’s “like wallhacks and invites third parties in ranked,” while C9’s PVPX said that the passive needs a nerf despite Ash’s ult and tactical both being balanced. Such a great launch and very smooth. I just have small request and that’s a Ash passive (its like wallhacks and invites third parties in ranked) nerf and a TT nerf > — Liquid Ambush (@AmbushAB) November 3, 2021 ASH MAP ROOM PASSIVE NEEDS NERF TACTICAL BALANCED ULTIMATE BALANCED (FOR NOW)— FURIA Jxmo (@Jxmo_1) November 2, 2021 Apex Legends dev responds to Ash nerf calls Respawn producer Josh Medina responded to one player, mentioning the Ash nerf calls and insisting on a little more patience. He said: “Obvi [sic] its been 8 hours so let’s take it EZ on what needs to change asap (looking at you ash passive).” Ya you got my direct line for any major issues or thoughts.. Obvi its been 8 hours so lets take it EZ on what needs to change asap (looking at you ash passive) lol — Josh Medina (@lowkeydbjosh) November 3, 2021 So, the devs are clearly aware about the complaints regarding Ash’s passive ability, though they don’t seem to be in a major rush to change things straight away. That said, they’ll no doubt assess the situation and decide whether Ash’s passive really needs a nerf before long.

Apex Legends dev responds after fans find potential Season 5 Loba teaser Respawn Entertainment / iLootGamesApex Legends players have found what they believe could be a new teaser for Season 5 and the next expected Legend Loba, and now a developer from Respawn Entertainment has further added fuel to that fire. With Season 5 already on the horizon in Apex Legends, the likelihood of new teasers popping up for it increases by the day. Well, Respawn Entertainment seem to have taken things to the next level by dropping what appears to be a teaser for a teaser in the shape of an unannounced map change. On April 10, players reported that some doors had been added to the lower warehouse section of Hydro Dam on the Kings Canyon map, ones that had never been seen before. When asked about the meaning behind this undisclosed map change, Design Director at Respawn Entertainment, Jason McCord, responded with the most cryptic of tweets – a GIF of Dwight Schrute from The Office doing a mischievous-looking shush sign. Needless to say, this is basically a confirmation that something is brewing on the Kings Canyon map, and with Season 5 less than a month away, one can’t help but think that the two are related in some way. But wait, there’s more! Shortly after this interaction took place on Twitter, prominent Apex Legends dataminer iLootGames took things a step further by adding his own input about this apparent teaser. According to the leaker, not only are these doors related to Season 5, but they’re directly linked to Loba, the unreleased character everyone expects to be the next Legend added to the game. In a cryptic tweet of his own, iLootGames claimed that this map change strongly suggests that we could see a teaser for Loba take place at that very location in the near future, based on some “warehouse sounds” that had been added to the character’s coding in the backend files. Well I think we know where the next teaser will be located… This location matches up with the warehouse sounds that seem to be tied to this teaser. As you can see the teaser sounds relate to Loba’s bracelet, hologram and ability to teleport. 🙂 pic.twitter.com/ELwkPck54s — iLootGames – ApexRanked.com (@iLootGames) April 10, 2020 As for Loba, there seems to be little doubt in anyone’s mind that she will be the next new character in Apex Legends. Not only have her in-game visuals and animations been found, but, more recently, her abilities were leaked as well, along with the warehouse sounds shown in iLoot’s tweet above. However, fans shouldn’t rush to conclude that she will be the next Legend, since Respawn have already proven they’re willing to go the extra mile to trick the community. They recently confirmed that Forge, the Legend that was initially announced for Season 4 before being killed off, was actually a ploy to throw off leakers and their followers from Revenant, who they planned on adding all along. However, with Loba already having a firm place in Apex lore, it seems that Season 5 would be the perfect moment to add her into the game. But, for now, we can only wait and see.

Apex Legends dev respond to calls for Peacekeeper return to floor loot EAA Respawn developer has given hope to Apex Legends players that the beloved Peacekeeper will be added back into the regular loot pool once again. Apex Legends’ fifth season brought a plethora of changes. While Kings Canyon’s destruction and Loba’s grand entrance perhaps stole the show, there were plenty of changes that altered the Apex Games’ meta. Alongside a host of Legend tweaks, there were some significant changes to the weapons offered in-game. Perhaps the most notable was the Mastiff being swapped into the regular loot rotation, in place of the Peacekeeper. The Peacekeeper was generally considered to be the best of the three shotguns on offer, standing head and shoulders above the EVA-8 and Mozambique, respectively. Given its proficiency in close-quarters combat, it was often a staple part of most players’ run-and-gun loadouts. While the nerfed variant of the Mastiff is a solid replacement, there’s nothing quite like the feeling you get after taking down a whole squad with a Peacekeeper. And those who miss having the dependable Peacekeeper in their arsenal have been given a glimmer of hope, after Respawn Design Director, Jason McCord, responded to a fan’s request for the weapon’s return on social media. “Good chance it will come back someday. No crate weapons have been exclusive yet,” McCord asserted. Good chance it will come back someday. No crate weapons have been exclusive yet, except the Kraber… which might just stay that way? — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) July 4, 2020 The Apex Legend developer added that the only weapon to be exclusively a Care Package weapon is the Kraber — which is widely considered to be the most lethal weapon in the game. While McCord didn’t allude to a specific timeline for when the Peacekeeper might be added back into the regular rotation, players will be happy to know that Respawn intend on keeping the weapon pool dynamic. This, of course, naturally lends itself into Apex Legends’ ever-changing meta, which is supplemented by the constant addition of fresh faces and map changes.

Apex Legends dev provides update on Ranked Arenas in Season 9 Respawn EntertainmentRespawn’s Director of Communications Ryan Rigney has provided fans with an update on Ranked Arenas in Season 9, stating that Apex Legends’ devs need slightly longer with it before it’s ready to launch in-game. Apex Legends’ Arenas mode dropped with Season 9: Legacy, constituting the biggest shake-up of the new content. A smaller 3v3 mode, Arenas allows teams to practice against one another in a closed environment without the worry of a third party messing things up. While the mode launched back on May 4, Respawn confirmed that a Ranked version will be coming to the battle royale in the near future, presumably with tighter SBMM and rewards in the vein of those we’ve seen in Apex’s Ranked Leagues. Some players had been expecting Apex’s Ranked Arenas to drop during Season 9, but that is looking increasingly unlikely as we head closer to Season 10. It has now been confirmed that Ranked Arenas will not be coming with Patch 9.1 – expected later in June of 2021. On June 12, Director of Communications Ryan Rigney tweeted: “Ranked Arenas not planned for 9.1 patch. Needs more time in the oven.” Some fans were frustrated by the news, but understood that, in order to make the Ranked mode as strong as possible, Respawn will need more time to refine it. https://twitter.com/RKRigney/status/1403533042593980417?s=20 Rigney has previously explained that June will be a ‘dry’ month for Apex Legends, but that it will pick up at the end of June when 9.1 drops. While a concrete release date has not yet been established, either June 21 or June 28 seem likely. https://twitter.com/RKRigney/status/1397378283218550784?s=20 Patch 9.1 will, like all updates that follow new seasons, likely fix a number of bugs and glitches that have surfaced. In terms of new content, it’s not entirely clear what Respawn are planning, but we can expect “good stuff to chew on”. In the meantime, drop in and enjoy Valkyrie and some casual Arenas.

Apex Legends dev promises Ranked changes after ‘unrewarding’ Season 17 Respawn EntertainmentA member of the Apex Legends dev team has assured fans they can expect changes to Ranked in Season 18 after some players claimed Season 17’s experience was unrewarding. As with most competitive shooters, Apex Legends has three main modes in which to experience the battle royale: Ranked and Unraked Trios & Duos. While both modes essentially play the same, Ranked modes grades one’s performance and players can climb through the ranks or fall below based on how well they do in matches. Unfortunately, some players have found the Season 17 Ranked experience to be a bit lacking. In response to some community feedback, one of the members of the Apex Legends dev team confirmed there will be changes coming to Ranked in Season 17. Apex Legends dev assures Ranked changes next season The confirmation came from one of Apex Legends Ranked Designers, Aaron ‘Exgeniar’ L on the Apex Legends subreddit. Exgeniar replied to a thread titled “Wish this moment felt more rewarding,” where one fan showed a screenshot of them reaching Master Rank in Season 17. The Ranked Designer assured the fan that they should be proud of their achievement, noting that it looked as though they “beat a bunch of players whose MMR is higher” than their own and that they essentially beat the odds. However, some fans took the opportunity to ask Exgeniar questions while he was around, as one player asked, “So you guys think the current system is fine? Are there any changes we can expect next season?” The Apex Legends gave a short, yet definitive response to the question: “You can definitely expect [Ranked] changes next season.” Unfortunately, those were all the details Exgeniar was willing to give at the moment. With Season 18 still a ways off, Respawn probably has a bit more planning to do before the team is ready to reveal how it plans to shake up Ranked in the next season. Still, considering many Apex players have voiced concern with Season 17’s Ranked system, this likely comes as welcome news to the community.

Apex Legends dev promises longer wait for Season 16 will be worth it Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends Season 15 is set to be the game’s second-longest season, but a developer promised the wait for Season 16 would be worth it. Apex Legends Season 15 is finally here, introducing a new legend, map, and gifting feature. Community members got into a heated debate about the game’s future. ImperialHal has his doubts about Season 15, arguing, “Apex is f*cking dying right now. If they don’t have a good season, next season is gonna tank.” NICKMERCS responded, “I think that Apex has consistently shown that they’re constantly trying to go in a good direction.” Doubts continued to mount as Season 15 is scheduled to last a whopping 105 days. Respawn Entertainment Senior Producer Josh Medina quelled any worries, promising the wait for Season 16 will be worth it. Apex Legends developer makes bold promise Apex Legends News reported Season 15 runs until February 14, 2023, making it the second-longest season in the game’s history. Medina responded, “It’ll be worth it at the end of the rainbow, I promise.” Ironically, Apex Legends players recently called for splits to be removed from Ranked mode or extended. Season 14’s Ranked split lasted 49 days, while Season 15’s split is slated for 76 days. An extended season gives players that don’t have as much free time enough days to earn an accurate rank. Some community members will embrace the extra breathing room between ranked splits. Others hope that Medina is possibly hinting at the long-awaited introduction of cross-progression. One user responded, “hopefully, that means a cross-progression pot of gold.” A second player added, “cross-progression is all I need.” For now, we will have to wait and see what Season 15 has in store for us before we start thinking about what’s at the end of the rainbow.

Apex Legends dev promises fix to frustrating Gold Armor swaps in next patch Respawn EntertainmentAfter numerous calls from players to fix the annoying Gold Armor swaps in Apex Legends, one of the Respawn devs have confirmed that a change is coming to make things much easier. For a while now, players have grown increasingly frustrated with Gold Armor swaps, which forces you to hold to swap from Red Armor to Gold. This is in contrast to regular armor swaps, where you only have to tap the swap input to swiftly upgrade. While this was likely included as a precautionary measure to deter people from accidentally swapping away from Red Armor, the strongest available in the game, it’s actually caused more issues than the devs would have expected. Many players have complained about the armor swap situation causing them untold issues, saying that it “seems unnecessary” to have this mechanic in the game. In a September 3 tweet, Respawn comms director Ryan Rigney responded to a player complaining about the issue, confirming that changes were coming. Simply saying that the team would be “fixing this next patch,” Rigney answered the prayers of many dedicated Apex fans, and it’s coming as soon as possible. Rigney provided the specific patch notes line, which details that “Swapping from Red to a Gold Shield with more health no longer requires a long press.” https://twitter.com/RKRigney/status/1433826122534371334 The next update is expected to arrive roughly in mid-September, though no date is set in stone at the time of writing. This change to armor swaps might take a bit of getting used to at first, but over time, this looks like a huge quality of life change that players will be delighted to see come into the game. In another huge change, Respawn have removed tap strafing in Apex Legends, and added that they’re now looking to change controller aim assist down the line. Needless to say, the next update could be a big one.

Apex Legends dev promises fix for damage issue affecting colorblind players Respawn EntertainmentThe devs at Respawn Entertainment have promised a fix is coming soon for an issue that can make Apex Legends “significantly harder” to play, particularly for colorblind players. Respawn have done a pretty good job at making Apex Legends accessible for colorblind players, and have consistently responded to feedback from the community, but every now and then something slips through the cracks. In a Reddit post titled, “Please help this get noticed,” user TheScrollFeeder shared details of an issue they are facing in the game: They currently cannot distinguish between gold shield damage and non-shield damage thanks to a recent color change. “I am colorblind and so is my brother,” they wrote. “Since no one else has complained about this we assumed it was a distinct different color to gold like green. We cannot see the difference in these colors or find it super hard to distinguish. “If it was possible to change this to the original color it would make it 110% easier to see the difference. I understand this isn’t a major issue but it does make playing the game significantly harder for me when I come against someone with a gold shield.” Fortunately, it didn’t take long for Respawn to respond to the problem. One of the Apex Legends devs, who goes by the username exgeniar, took to the comments section to reveal that a fix is already on the way. “I’ll just keep this short and sweet. First of all, thank you for bringing this to our attention. Detailed bug and constructive bug reports are super helpful,” they wrote. “I personally think this is a major issue, and I think it is safe to say a number of us at Respawn also feel [this way]. So as the messenger, I have good news.” It turns out Respawn already has a fix for the issue, and it was meant to be released by now. Unfortunately, delays happened, and it’s now expected that the problem will be hotfixed in Apex Legends within the next week. “We wanted to get this hotfix out earlier, but sadly, things were a bit hectic last week and we had to delay a whole bunch of stuff, and this fix was part of the postponed,” the dev explained. “Since it’s a client ‘hotfix’ testing is way more rigorous and will take a few days. Assuming nothing goes wrong, you should see an update within one calendar week. Sit tight, a fix is coming.” As TheScrollFeeder explained in their post, this is a small change but one that could really help improve the Apex Legends experience for colorblind players, so it’s great that Respawn are already on the case.

Apex Legends dev praises “great idea” from player to instantly improve gameplay RespawnA Respawn developer instantly praised an idea proposed by one Apex Legends player, designed to improve the experience of solo players in the battle royale. The Apex Legends community is one of the most active and vibrant in the video game world. Fans can regularly be found sharing their epic cosplays and coming up with constructive content ideas to improve the game. While Respawn will (obviously) not implement any random idea, they have pledged time and time again to listen to and incorporate community feedback. Apex Legends teammate health bar gets dev seal of approval In a recent Reddit post, one player proposed a great way of improving the HUD to let them know more about their teammates’ activity. Specifically, the player proposed a system whereby solo queuing players are informed of their squadron’s healing by a progress bar. This would display in the bottom left by the player’s name and give a visible, moving indication of a squad mate’s healing. The idea itself was lauded by many players, who pointed out how useful it would be for those solo queuing and unable to communicate with teammates who might be in parties. It also piqued the interest of a developer. Respawn Engineer Chris Winder responded, describing it as a “great idea” and thanking the OP for the suggestion. It’s certainly a long way off implementation, but it’s fair to assume that we could see something similar given how well-received the idea was. Season 16 is already promising big things when it drops in mid-February, including a major overhaul to Legend classes and abilities. With a little bit of good fortune, we could see the Redditor’s idea in-game soon after.

Apex Legends dev offers cryptic reply to demands for objective game modes Respawn/EAAn Apex Legends dev has offered a cryptic response to players demanding the introduction of more objective-based game modes following leaks. When Respawn Entertainment launched Apex Legends, it had just one mode – it’s signature battle royale. Over time, though, the developers have brought in different modes through limited-time modes and have also added Arenas as another permanent way to play. While Arenas got a bit of love when it first launched, it has fallen out of favor with some players due to matchmaking issues, as well as some unusual bugs and glitches. That has led to calls for its replacement, be it through a constant rotation of LTMs, or the addition of unique modes like the ones we’ve seen leaked previously. Well, it seems as if Respawn are wise to the requests after Josh Medina – one of the producers on Apex Legends – dropped a bit of a cryptic tweet on the subject. The producer had been replying to SoaR Gaming’s Hollow, who put out a call for more objective-based game modes like we see in Call of Duty and Halo, be it Capture the Flag, King of the Hill, or Team Deathmatch. “Arenas should have been used to fill this gap but we just got a 3v3 budget battle royale with a buy menu instead. Hopefully, we see an implementation of new, different ways to play Apex in season 12,” Hollow said, with Medina replying with a gif indicating that he was taking notes on the calls. As noted, a handful of game modes that would fit the bill of what players are after have surfaced previously in leaks – some being well over six months old. Given Medina responded to Hollow’s tweet talking about Season 12, we could finally see those modes introduced at that point, but we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.

Apex Legends dev mocks players “triggered” by Loba’s age Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends developer Moy Parra has mocked players of Respawn’s battle royale who are “triggered” by Loba’s age – as Legend ages come into focus ahead of Season 16. Apex Legends Season 16, formally known as ‘Revelry’, is set to constitute a major shake up to the Titanfall-inspired battle royale. Among other things, it will reclassify every Legend in the game into five classes, each of which will bring a brand new Perk. It will also bring the brand new burst-fire Nemesis assault rifle and a series of Legend balancing changes. One of the smaller changes has been to the ages of all Legends – with each getting roughly a year or two older with Season 16. One of the Legends to be aged was Loba, who is now 36 years old. Rather bizarrely, that fact seems to have upset some of the player base, with Respawn dev Moy Parra responding to mock their “disappointment” on February 10. The Lead Animator said: “People are expressing their 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 to find out that Loba is 36… what a 𝘄𝗲𝗶𝗿𝗱 thing to get triggered by.” In short, a number of players expressed their disappointment at how old the Translocating Thief has turned out to be. It’s a strange thing to get upset by but, with Apex Legends devs recently saying they want the game to last two decades, we could yet be treated to a Loba in her 50s further down the line. Barring any delays, Season 16 of Apex Legends will drop on February 14.

Apex Legends dev reveals biggest fear about Vantage’s gameplay in Season 14 Respawn EntertainmentVantage, a young sniper from the planet Pagos, is Apex Legends’ first attempt at a truly long-range character. While she fills a unique space on the roster, the devs also believe her kit comes with some interesting design concerns. For game designers, there is so much to be worried about with the implementation of each new character, particularly in a battle royale that is now a few years old in Apex Legends’ case. From the addition of new movement mechanics like Valkyrie’s jetpack to the ability to get a second chance at life with Revenant’s ultimate, there’s not a single thing that gets added without careful consideration. In an interview with Dexerto, Lead Legend Designer Chris Winder said that Respawn’s worry ahead of Season 14 was largely focused on the long-range kit of Vantage and how to make it satisfying and accessible to players in a game where loot is both crucial and completely random. Apex Legends Lead talks about Vantage’s biggest potential problem When discussing what the design team learned from the addition of characters like Rampart and Mad Maggie, who are largely designed around their affinity for LMGs and shotguns respectively, Winder spoke a bit about how not using the appropriate weapon class on a character like Vantage could potentially be unsatisfying. “Sometimes it can make a player feel like they’re not playing the character right if they don’t find a shotgun or an LMG,” he said. “For Vantage, we were thinking about some things like that…and that problem compounded a little bit because to really play long-range as a sniper in Apex you need a sniper rifle and an optic, so you really need to roll the dice twice.” That’s part of why Vantage, like Rampart before her, was given a custom weapon as her ultimate ability. It was an easy way to help alleviate the fear of players spending an entire match looking for attachments in order to feel like they were getting the most out of her kit. “We were worried about that. That was something we were sort of thinking about the whole time. I think having the ultimate as your sniper rifle with an optic on it definitely alleviates those fears, or potential fears, you might have and lets you sort of play into whatever loot game you feel like that game.” Players will get a chance to find determine for themselves if the risk of adding a long-distance Legend to the game paid off or not when Vantage hits the ground at the start of S14 on August 9.

Apex Legends dev impressed with fast-drop trick found on Olympus Respawn EntertainmentThe new map in Apex Legends has a unique design decision with the Turbines that players are using to get fast-drops on Olympus, and at least one Respawn developer was pleasantly surprised by the discovery. [jwplayer A8oCoIXs] Season 7 Ascension has been giving players a swarm of new content to dive through. As they tinker with new elements in the game they’re finding all sorts of results from making deadly Wraith portals, to encountering bugs with the Trident. Adding another item on the list will be the center POI of Olympus called Turbine, where people can find the towering slopes angled toward each cardinal direction that can give speed boosts in the early portion of a match. “Turbine’s curved towers have some pretty quick routes,” user ‘Lord_Spinkingham’ said, showing how “this was actually quicker [than just landing at the POI]. A team went for the chimney and I beat them to the middle.” Of course, depending on the dropship’s trajectory, this might not be a worthwhile trick to use in your game. But if you have multiple pathing routes to score high-tier loot, this can easily be used to get on the ground quicker. In fact, Senior Level Designer Dave ‘StryderPilot’ Ose was a bit coy about the trick, seeing as it might not have been something he was completely aware of. “As designed. This was totally on purpose…” he joked in response to the trick that instantly gained popularity among Apex’s players. He later described player discoveries about the game’s design as “Scary. Fun. Exciting. In that order.” While this might not have been a use for the Turbines that StryderPilot and his team planned for, the Apex community are happy to take the discovery and run with it to use in their games. This isn’t something we haven’t seen before, either. Early in the game’s life on Kings Canyon, players found that you could clip a high wall to achieve a similar effect. The only difference here is there are now four major map elements on Olympus that now lets Apex Legends players get huge boosts to drop onto the map even faster.

Apex Legends dev impressed by incredible Wattson artwork EAApex Legends boasts an interactive community that has welcomed Wattson ever since her addition electrifying entrance back in Season 2, and this fanart proves why she is still a fan-favorite. Now coming to the back of its third season, Apex Legends has matured into a true contender for best battle royale. After its surprise launch back in February 2019, tens of millions of players have flooded Respawn’s servers. Given the developer’s continuous effort to expand the Apex Games (while staying true to its Titanfall roots), fans have lapped up their Legend additions since release. Wattson’s addition was welcomed by fans everywhere. The Static Defender brought a much-needed change to the Apex Games’ meta (specifically during endgame situations). Alongside her in-game abilities, her ties into Apex Legends’ lore provided fans with a solid reason to main a new character — and she soon became one of the most used legends in the game. Given Wattson’s increased popularity, it’s no surprise that an incredible render went viral on the Apex Legends subreddit (having gained just over 13k upvotes in 24 hours). Hi there and sorry for the long absence! I’ve been playing Apex Legends in my free time and I love Wattson design, so here she is 🙂 pic.twitter.com/OMVyDsAn7h— Wiki JuicyKiwi – ✨COMMISSIONS OPEN✨ 🥝 (@JuicyKiwi__) January 13, 2020 Reddit user ‘-JuicyKiwi’ received a ton of praise from the community, as their artwork was lapped up by fans in their droves. JuicyKiwi’s handiwork even caught the eye of a Respawn developer, who commented to show their support: “Yes, yes and definitely yes, doin’ our girl proud!” While this Wattson render shows her in the original attire, it’s the play on the Static Defender’s knack with electricity which sells the piece. Just like Wattson’s Season 2 entrance into Kings Canyon, it’s fair to say that fans were left by JuicyKiwi’s fanart.

Apex Legends dev hints at third-person mode return with future changes Respawn EntertainmentThird-person mode has come and gone in Apex Legends, as the Grand Soirée Arcade keeps moving. But, there’s a chance it could come back, and Respawn has explained some tweaks they will make if so. Limited-time modes (LTMs) have been rotated for two-day slots throughout the event. Among them are Kings Canyon Night, Gold Rush duos and some kind of mode involving dummies (we’re not quite sure how this one will work yet). The most anticipated though was probably the Third-Person Mode, which put a completely new spin on the otherwise always first-person battle royale. In fact, it was new territory for Respawn generally, whose other shooter games, Titanfall and Titanfall 2, have also been exclusively first-person. Much of the team also previously developed Call of Duty games, another first-person shooter. With Apex Legends though, there is some more creative freedom with the LTMs, and the developers have been making the most of it. Third-person was a hit with fans, who have already been calling for it to be made a permanent option. Changes coming to 3rd person in Apex Legends However, it’s not without its issues. Because Apex was only designed with first-person in mind, there are some instances where the mechanics don’t quite work. One example, given by Reddit user u/XtraDmg, is when Pathfinder is crouched, the crosshair for aiming is obstructed by its arm. Acknowledging the problem, and others which have been raised by players, Respawn developer Rayme Vinson gave some insight. “Yeah, totally fair. If we ever bring [third-person mode] back it’ll have a lot of this jank cleared out first,” he responded on Reddit. Players were overjoyed to know this popular LTM could potentially come back at all, with some immediately asking for it to be a mainstay. “Please make it a permanent feature, where players can choose their favorite playstyle,” another fan requested. This isn’t the only issue that Respawn plan to fix if they bring third-person back though. Another fairly major bug would completely ruin players’ aim, if shooting near Caustic’s gas. Rayme also confirmed that this too would be fixed, if third-person “comes around again.” Unfortunately, there’s no indication of when that could be, but there’s every chance it makes a comeback in Season 4. The new season is only a matter of weeks away, set to start on February 4, Apex Legends’ one-year anniversary.

Apex Legends dev hints at more vehicles on other maps in the future Respawn/EAApex Legends developers Respawn Entertainment have considered the possibility of vehicles coming to other maps aside from Olympus in the future, and it might not just be the Trident. [jwplayer VEi3mnK7] Different battle royales have experimented with the addition of vehicles in the past – going from the realistic cars of PUBG, to the wild and wacky shopping carts in Fortnite. With the launch of the new Olympus map in Apex Legends Season 7, Respawn joined in the vehicular fun by adding the Tridents hovercars. They haven’t quite shifted the meta and become a key part in winning in the Apex Games, but they’re fun nonetheless. As a result, players have speculated that we might see new vehicles moving forward – including introducing them to Kings Canyon and World’s Edge. That won’t be the case in Season 8: Mayhem, but it might be in the future. Ahead of the launch of Apex’s eighth season, Jason McCord, the design director at Respawn, spoke to RockPaperShotgun about the possibility of adding more vehicles as well as tweaking the existing Tridents. “The vehicles were tuned very specifically to Olympus, but we did test it on other maps just for fun to see what they were like,” McCord noted. “If we were to try and bring the Trident over we’d have to make a lot of adjustments to the other maps.” Though, the change wouldn’t be coming anytime soon. “It’d be way in the future, but we’re all excited about the idea,” the Respawn design director added. Both World’s Edge and Kings Canyon have gone through significant changes in the past, with the pair having parts where vehicles just wouldn’t be useful. Read More: What’s in Apex Legends Season 8 Battle Pass? – Kings Canyon has been totally remodeled in Season 8, with a new section added to the map, and some existing POIs wiped out. The two maps would both need a bit of a facelift to make vehicles worthwhile, but there’s always the possibility of a fourth map in the distant future. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens.

Apex Legends dev hints at more Kings Canyon changes in Season 5 Respawn EntertainmentThe Season 5 launch trailer for Apex Legends appeared to show the hot-drop location, Skull town, being totally wiped out from the Kings Canyon map. Now, a writer for the game has hinted that there is more than meets the eye with upcoming changes. Season 5 is just around the corner, starting on May 12, with the main attraction being Loba. Putting her revenge mission against Revenant to one side for now, she’ll be the newest legend in the Apex Games. But, the trailer showed Skull Town being swallowed up too, something that has split the community, as players are sad to see an iconic location meet its demise. No more wildlife on Kings Canyon? There could be more map changes coming too though, as writer Tom Casiello has explained how the island has been “stabilized” for the legends to return. In response to a fan asking “is there an explanation why the legends returned to KC?”, Casiello gave an interesting response, which could have ramifications for other aspects of the map. “We already returned to Kings Canyon in Season 4,” he started, “so one could assume the reconstruction needed to stabilize the land after the fall of the repulsor tower was completed, and the arena was cleared for combat again.” We already returned to Kings Canyon in Season 4, so one could assume the reconstruction needed to stabilize the land after the fall of the repulsor tower was completed, and the arena was cleared for combat again. https://t.co/GhYyir41EY — Tom Casiello (@tommiecas) May 7, 2020 If you’re not totally caught up on the lore, the repulsor tower is what Crypto destroyed at the start of Season 2, and allowed the Leviathans and Flyers to take over the map. This eventually pushed the legends away to World’s Edge, but it looks like Kings Canyon will be making an ‘official’ return for Season 5. It was already added back into rotation in Season 4 of course. With the repulsor tower now apparently back in action, it looks like Leviathans and Flyers should be pushed away again, possibly making room for more map changes to commence. One player noticed though, that Casiello didn’t specify that there was a new repulsor tower, meaning there might be a new system to repel the wildlife. “Maybe we will get smaller repulsors around the map and the leviathans move to a different spot so we can still see flyers in more “wild” areas,” the fan theorized. For a complete look at the map changes in Season 5, we’ll have to wait until May 12, when the update goes live.

Apex Legends dev hints at Mastiff changes coming in update 8.1 Respawn EntertainmentAs the Mastiff continues to cause trouble all across the Outlands, an Apex Legends dev has hinted that changes to the divisive shotgun are coming in the next update. With Season 8 now in full swing and Fuse a popular pick in the Legends rotation, the team at Respawn are now looking at how they can better balance the game as it stands right now. There are already suggestions that the Locked & Loaded loot changes could be made permanent after seeing a lot of enjoyment from fans. The issues players were facing with broken skin textures has also been fixed. Now, the team are looking at some of players’ biggest complaints, and the Mastiff could be about to meet its maker. The Mastiff is absolutely the best shotgun in the game, with decent range and some serious firepower behind it, making it seriously infuriating to play against. There have been calls across the Apex community to at least nerf the weapon, with some players even now calling the game “Mastiff Legends,” it finally looks like their prayers are being answered. After a fan pleaded for the upcoming 8.1 update patch notes to feature some kind of promise to fix the Mastiff issue, Respawn producer Josh Medina replied with a very telling emoji, as if to confirm our pleas were working. As suggested in the original tweet, with the Patch Notes document coming in at over 3000 words, we could be in for some major changes to the game altogether. That said, the Mastiff is one of the main features that most players want to see changed, and this could mean we’re getting it. Whether this means a nerf or it being put instead into care packages remains to be seen, but it looks pretty likely now that something is happening.

Apex Legends dev hints at highly requested change to gold weapons Respawn/EAA few changes could be set to Apex Legends pool of fully kitted gold weapons as players have been complaining about the sights that some of them are saddled with. Similarly to PUBG’s classic battle royale mode, Apex Legends lets players kit out their weapons on the fly with a handful of attachments and hop-ups. These attachments are in a tier system, with gold being the best, and common being the worst. For the most part, you’re able to just pick these up off the ground, but there are weapons that are fully kitted out already. These gold weapons change every season or so, and while they are incredibly powerful, some players have gripes. Many players, including Apex Legends professionals, would like to have the ability to change the sights on certain gold weapons, so that they aren’t using something that gives them a disadvantage. They’ve repeatedly called upon Respawn to make the change. “Petition to allow us to change Optics on Golden Guns”, tweeted Cloud9’s Jamison ‘PVPX’ Moore, promising Respawn’s Josh Medina a tier 3 sub on Twitch if they do so. Perhaps to PVPX’s surprise, Medina did respond. The Apex Legends dev dropped a simple “!remindme,” referencing Reddit’s reminder system for when something happens. Players certainly took it to mean that something is coming down the pipeline, though, celebrating in Medina’s replies. “ITS HAPPENING,” tweeted NRG’s Tanner ‘Rogue’ Trebb while another added: “Potential W incoming?” Of course, this is a change that Respawn can likely only make once they’ve taken balancing into consideration. As much as some players would want to throw a 3X on the R301, that might just make it a little too overpowered. It’s also a change that, if it happens, would likely come at the start of a new season, rather than just be dropped in an overnight patch. So, we’ll have to wait and see what happens.

Apex Legends dev hints at Hemlok nerf after community backlash Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends developer has hinted at a major change coming to the game, with the Hemlok burst assault rifle possibly being nerfed in the near future. When Season 7 launched in November, there were a number of balancing and weapon tuning changes. The L-STAR and Havoc received buffs, while the Hemlok and Triple Take were nerfed — though there’s still a common belief that the Hemlok is a bit too powerful. While recoil was increased in the Season 7 update, and the headshot multiplier was reduced, players are still finding themselves obliterated by the AR, especially when it’s fully stacked out. After small YouTuber and Apex Legends content creator SoaR Kobi said that the Hemlok meta has “got to go,” one of the producers at developer Respawn gave a very clear hint at what was to come. This hemlok meta has GOT to go, getting mopped by 3 stacked hemlok gold 1s is not a vibe, peak for one second and get fried 😅 — Kobi 🖤 (@SadBoiKobi) December 23, 2020 While there has been plenty of discussion around the state of the Hemlok in recent months, and it has received nerfs in that time, there is still a lot of belief that it needs bringing down a peg or two to be in line with the other Apex Legends assault rifles. After another streamer tagged Respawn producer Josh Medina in Kobi’s tweet, asking if he “got us” with fixing the Hemlok meta, Medina’s response was short, but very clear. “Yessir,” he said to NoobKingSmith, indicating that yet another Hemlok nerf is on the way, and it might settle the issue once and for all. Of course, weapon balancing at this level must be very difficult, so hopefully we won’t see the Hemlok nerfed into the ground, but brought more in line with the rest of its class and we don’t fall at the hands of a Hemlok as much. It’s unclear when this nerf could potentially happen, though. The tweet suggests it’s in the works, so it could be coming soon, but the Season 8 update isn’t expected until early February. Whether the nerf comes before then is a mystery, but players will be hoping so.

Apex Legends dev hints at Gibraltar buff following Newcastle’s rise Respawn EntertainmentNewcastle’s arrival in Season 13 failed to shake up the meta in a significant. Now, more than a season later, the Apex Legends devs have detailed what they’ve learned about the change and how it may have caused Gibraltar’s fall from grace. Gibraltar was a staple of Apex Legends, particularly in the pro scene, prior to Newcastle’s release. The big man’s ability to provide cover was invaluable for any competitor and many teams composed the rest of the squad with that in mind. When Newcastle was buffed in Season 14 though, things started to shift away from the Shielded Fortress and towards the newcomer and his more mobile playstyle and the devs have now offered up some thoughts on what that means for the game. Apex Legends devs detail Newcastle’s effect on Gibraltar and the rest of the meta According to the devs, there are a few reasons that Newcastle has overtaken Gibby but his recent buffs pushed things over the line. “In Season 14, we made changes to Newcastle to improve his viability and provide an alternative option at the competitive level to Gibraltar and we’ve seen some positive traction pulling weight off Gibby as the must-pick anchor/support for the team,” Respawn’s Devan Mcguire said in a Reddit AMA thread. Gibraltar’s pickrate is also suffering because of Seer, who has also skyrocketed in popularity over the last season. His ability to pressure teams at the worst moments means there’s a lot less freedom even when protected by the dome shield. “Additionally, with the rise of Seer, Gibraltar’s revives are also not quite as free anymore and aggressive teams have more opportunities to push,” Devan noted. “Given the shake-up we’ve seen on the competitive scene recently, we’re currently evaluating the evolving meta to see if any actual adjustments are needed for Gibraltar at this time.” The dev wrapped up by reminding fans that the team is always looking for ways to improve on underwhelming Legends without changing their identity.

Apex Legends dev hints at CAR SMG nerf coming as it “overshadows” other SMGs Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has hinted that the CAR SMG may receive a nerf in a future update as it “overshadows” a lot of the other weapons in the Outlands. Picking a weapon to use in Apex Legends can be extremely difficult as there’s so much choice, making it tricky to know which guns are considered meta. While the Havoc and the Spitfire seem to be a lot of players’ go-to picks for medium to long-range gunfights in Season 13, it’s the CAR that’s dominating at close quarters. With the ability to use Light and Heavy ammo, it’s possible to one burst an opponent with the powerful SMG if you land your shots. Well, there’s a chance the CAR may be receiving a nerf in the near future, as a dev has acknowledged that it “overshadows” guns like the R99. CAR SMG could be hit with nerf in a future update During a weapon Wednesday on the Apex Legends subreddit, the CAR SMG was the topic of discussion, and a lot of the community were voicing their frustration that the gun is too powerful. In response, Live Balance Designer John ‘JayBiebs’ Larson shared his thoughts on the CAR, revealing that at release the devs were concerned that the weapon’s “mag versatility + strong hipfire + DPS make this thing a beast”. However, after the gun arrived in Season 11, he was surprised how little the SMG was being used but over time “good players show how the on-paper strength translates to in-game strength.” JayBiebs acknowledged that the CAR “overshadows” a lot of its competition in the current meta like the R99, and now the devs are aware of its strengths, they can “revisit its identity within the SMG class when the time comes.” Although he doesn’t confirm a specific date or patch where the CAR is going to receive changes, it seems likely, given that they’re aware of its power. Whether they decide to nerf the CAR or instead choose to buff some of the other SMGs on the arsenal, the changes are likely to help diversify the close-quarter meta and discourage players from always searching for the CAR.

Apex Legends dev hints at big change to gold shield in Season 5 Respawn EntertainmentThe new Battle Armor event is now live in Apex Legends, running all the way until the end of Season 4. When Season 5 arrives on the later date on May 12 though, a major change to shields could be included. The Battle Armor event is part LTM, part game testing, as the developers put some new ideas in place. Players now drop in with a P2020 pistol and a shield, and instead of finding new and better shield on the ground, simply have to refill their default shield when it is damaged. Each shield type will be rotated throughout the event, that is, all except gold shield. Previously the top tier (until Evo shield was added), gold shield was given a major buff in Season 4, changing its perk from refilling on executions to fast heal. Fast heal means you can refill it much, much faster, a perk that was previously given to the gold backpack, and to Lifeline specifically. With the notable absence of gold shield in the Battle Armor event, one player asked Josh Medina, producer on Apex Legends, if they were considering removing gold shield from the game totally, replacing it with Evo. “Fast heals has been broken and takes the skill out of the game,” the player said, prompting a response from Medina. “What if it didn’t have fast heals?” the developer simply responded. Clearly this is something that the team at Respawn has considered then, but whether they will make the change to remove fast healing from gold shields remains to be seen. Evo Shield might be set to become the new top dog, and with gold granting the same amount of protection as purple with the only benefit being the fast heal, it’s not unreasonable to suggest they could totally remove it. However, gold shield is somewhat iconic in Apex Legends, so it’s much more likely that Respawn tries to balance it out again rather than totally scrapping it. The next major update is expected to be the Season 5 update itself, on May 12, so we’ll have to wait and see what Respawn has in store.

Apex Legends dev hints at Gold Knockdown nerf after Ranked concerns Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends Game Designer John ‘JayBiebs’ Larson has hinted that Gold Knockdown shields could be getting some sort of nerf in Ranked, following community feedback. The Apex Legends community has been split on the inclusion of Gold Knockdown shields in Ranked since Season 13 began. Even pro players like TSM’s Mac ‘Albralelie’ Beckwith have called for the removal of Gold Knockdowns in Ranked after much discussion around the issue. Now it seems that the developers have listened to the feedback as Game Designer John “JayBiebs” Larson has tweeted out hinting that Gold Knockdowns may be getting an adjustment sometime soon. Apex Legends dev responds to Gold Knockdown shield concerns Larson first tweeted that he had been “grinding ranked this week” to gather experience about the current state of Ranked Reloaded in Season 13. After confirming he’d been watching streams and browsing social media to assure fans the team is listening, Larson tweeted “Self-rez feedback heard loud and clear.” While Larson simply acknowledged that the team had heard the feedback, the wording “loud and clear” makes it sound as if the team is going to make some major adjustments coinciding with the community’s discontent with Gold Knockdown shields. Whether this means an overhaul, some kind of nerf for Ranked, or outright removal from the game is yet to be confirmed. Still, some players seem unsure of how best to deal with Gold Knockdowns with the current state of Apex Legends. TSM’s Phillip “ImperialHal” Dosen responded to the tweet saying that some only think it’s become an issue due to “the influx of gold items from armories” suggesting the development team may simply want to adjust that instead. Others, however, are more on the fence about a potential change with Twitter user @mjbnow saying that it’s simply “the loud minority complaining about it.” Regardless, it appears the Apex Legends’ development team is fully aware of the unrest surrounding Golden Knockdown shields and will likely address it sometime around the next Ranked split.

Apex Legends dev gives update on private matches for everyone Respawn/EARespawn’s Chad Grenier has given Apex Legends fans an update on the possibility of having private matches in-game and available for everyone rather than just for tournaments and events. Apex Legends has cemented itself as one of the biggest games around, but fans of Respawn Entertainment’s battle royale still have a huge wishlist of things that they want to be added. Some of these are small, quality of life suggestions, but some of them are much bigger – including the ability to have cross-progression on accounts on different platforms. Another big request has been around private matches. These have been available in-game for esports tournaments and different events, but they aren’t available to everyone just yet. Well, fans have once again been asking about when they can expect to see them in-game, seeing as we aren’t too far away from the start of Season 10. One lucky player got a response from Respawn’s Chad Grenier, the game director behind Apex Legends, but it wasn’t the detailed answer that they may have been looking for. “Still in development,” Grenier confirmed on Twitter. “No ETA yet but will have a better idea of which season soon.” Still in development, no ETA yet but will have a better idea of which season soon. — Chad Grenier (@ChadGrenier) July 13, 2021 It’s possible that the ability to start private matches was planned for an upcoming update, but as Grenier has said previously, the development of some features has taken a hit as they’ve had to switch focus because of recent in-game hacks. It remains to be seen as to when exactly we’ll be able to create private games, but at least it doesn’t seem to be years away.

Apex Legends dev gives promising update on potential crossplay plans Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends devs have responded to calls from fans of their popular battle royale title, hinting that crossplay is something we may see in the game in the future. Over the past few years, crossplay has become an integral part of multiplayer gaming, allowing players to enjoy games with friends who don’t own the same system as they do, or compete against players from a multitude of platforms to really test their skills and see how they stack up with the rest of the world. Games like Fortnite and Call of Duty have embraced crossplay, but the system is noticeably missing from Respawn Entertainment’s Apex Legends, with fans of the game constantly expressing their hope that it will be added. While the developers have remained quiet on the subject in the past, the team have now confirmed that it’s something they are interested in adding. In an interview in a Game Informer magazine, the idea of cross-platform play was mentioned to Respawn, with the developers admitting that it has become the norm across the games industry, and that it’s something they would like to add to their game. “I think on crossplay we see it’s something that is kind of expected in the industry, and is important to a game like ours,” Respawn told Game Informer’s magazine. “[We] are obviously big fans of playing our game — at work and in our free time — and we go home on a Friday or weekend and want to play with each other and we’re on different systems.” “On a personal level, yes, we’d love to do that and party up on the weekends. I think it’s an important thing to get to.” With games like Fortnite and Warzone already utilizing cross-platform play, it seems inevitable that Apex Legends will follow the same path and let their fans hunt for wins no matter what platform they play on, although this can lead to problems of its own, such as complaints for the community about things like aim assist for controllers, which has proven to be a contentious issue on Fortnite. For fans hoping this is coming in the near future there is some bad news though, as Respawn refrained from providing any sort of timeline to when we can expect to see crossplay introduced to the game, or whether we will ever see it at all.

Apex Legends dev gives cryptic response as Season 14 storm changes frustrate players Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends Senior Producer Josh Medina has offered a cryptic response after Season 14 storm changes prompted a frustrated response from the battle royale’s player base. Apex Legends Season 14 dropped on August 9, bringing the typical meta shakeup and, as has become customary with new seasons, a fresh legend in the form of Vantage. Alongside the new content and weapon adjustments were a host of alterations to the game’s storm. The devs increased the first ring damage from 2 to 3 HP per tick and reduced the pre-shrink time from 3 minutes to 1 minute. In short, the ring now does more damage and closes in faster. In response, players have been frustrated by the two-pronged changes, claiming that they are forced to ‘fight’ the storm more than actual opponents and the adjustments have gone overboard. Respawn dev responds amid Season 14 storm changes backlash It has actually gone under the radar to this point but, shortly after Season 14 went live in-game, Respawn’s Josh Medina did offer a somewhat cryptic response to the complaints. Apex Legends’ Senior Producer asked players for their early impressions, to which one player pinpointed the storm changes as an issue. They said: “Either make it hit harder or make it go faster but I don’t see the need for both… I understand its to keep people from camping and crafting but it’s too much”. Replying, the dev simply said: “Interesting take on circle change.” It’s a fairly vague response but one that shows the dev team is well aware of player feedback, and could therefore hint at changes in the near future. Respawn have regularly emphasized that decisions are taken based on a number of factors, of which player feedback is one. However, any changes will surely come following data tests and internal feedback, rather than plowing ahead with reversions based on immediate fan-base frustrations. It’s bound to be interesting to see how the situation develops but, for now, familiarise yourself with all the Season 14 changes and drop in as Vantage.

Apex Legends dev gives cryptic hint on future changes after private match update Respawn/EAAn Apex Legends dev has offered a bit of a cryptic tease for future updates following the announcement that private matches are being made available to all players. Apex Legends is quickly approaching its fourth anniversary, but there are plenty of features that Respawn Entertainment have promised to add that haven’t made it into the game just yet. That includes the likes of cross-progression between accounts on different platforms, which Respawn has offered a few updates on. While that has yet to arrive, the devs have ticked one long-awaited feature off the wishlist by finally confirming that private matches will be available to all players – not just those competing in the ALGS. Though, it looks like the devs have a few more things up their sleeve. Apex Legends dev teases more features after private match update Following the announcement about the Spellbound Collection Event on January 4, Respawn Josh Medina dropped a bit of a cryptic hint about more updates being in the pipeline. “Shoutout my @mike_durn, @JustinMasse, @Hellhavens, and all the other awesome folks who contributed to make Private Matches for all a reality,” the senior producer on Apex Legends said. “This is a good starter dish for 2023, excited for y’all to see what’s coming next.” Some fans were quick to ask if Medina was teasing the likes of cross-progression and 120 FPS for consoles as future updates, but naturally, the Apex dev didn’t reply or offer any hints. Respawn have said that the current season of Apex – Season 15 – will be the longest yet, but that Season 16 will ultimately be “worth the wait.” So, they’re clearly hyped about their plans. We’ll just have to wait and see if they deliver.

Apex Legends dev footage may have leaked new Pathfinder Passive Respawn EntertainmentDuring an Apex Legends dev live stream, Respawn may have leaked a new Pathfinder Passive or Ultimate buff coming in Season 16. With a 9.7% pick rate in Apex Legends Season 15, Pathfinder is one of the most popular characters in the Outlands. Despite this, since the introduction of Recon legends and their ability to scan beacons, the Forward Scout has been left with a Passive. This has led to countless requests from the community over the years for Pathfinder to finally get a new Passive, but Respawn has remained reluctant to do so. Well, that may no longer be the case, as a dev stream ahead of Season 15 may have leaked a new ability for Pathfinder that involves his zip lines. New Pathfinder Passive potentially leaked by devs As showcased by popular Apex Legends YouTuber Bobz, Respawn may have leaked Pathfinder’s new Passive. While teasing the Broken Moon map, one of the devs was using Pathfinder and players noticed that inside the test build, the Forward Scout was traveling significantly faster on his ziplines. It’s possible this enhanced zipline speed is an Ultimate buff, or even a Passive that allows all of Path’s allies to travel quicker on his zip lines. This would make sense as the devs have made very clear in the past that they don’t want to give Path too much more power, as he’s already extremely popular. It’s worth noting that it’s possible that this ability never makes it into the game. However, as it’s part of the dev’s test build, it’s given the community some hope that it’s on its way. Without a doubt, a new Passive for Pathfinder is one of the most requested features in Apex. A lot of Forward Scout mains feel his kit is unfinished, so a little extra speed on ziplines could be the perfect solution and finally put this long-standing problem to rest.

Apex Legends dev finally reveals why Caustic’s gas doesn’t hurt him Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment’s Apex Legends writer Tommy Casiello has finally revealed why Caustic is not affected by his own gas traps, after months of fan debate. Despite his appearance in every single season, Apex Legends’ Caustic has struggled to find the popularity of a Wraith or Pathfinder. This is potentially because he is locked in the base version of the game, but also slower, more defensive legends are bound to be slightly less popular than those encouraging faster, aggressive play styles. One area of debate that has always surrounded Caustic is the fact his highly toxic gas traps don’t affect him, despite their ability to kill Pathfinder – a robotic life form. On April 23, Tommy Casiello, an award-winning writer who has recently joined Respawn Entertainment, finally explained why this is the case, after constant speculation from players. He was asked by an Apex Legends fan: “What out of interest is your logic that Pathfinder, Revenant and Bloodhound can be affected by Caustic’s Nox gas?” “You mean his corrosive gas that eats through clothes, skin and metal unless countered by a chemical compound only he possesses so it doesn’t affect him?” Casiello responded. “That Nox gas?” You mean his corrosive gas that eats through clothes, skin and metal, unless countered by a chemical compound only he possesses so it doesn’t affect him? That Nox gas? — Tom Casiello (@tommiecas) April 23, 2020 In short, Caustic is privy to a specific chemical compound that enables him to remain immune to the harmful effects of his own gas traps. Shortly after disclosing this information, Casiello even teased that more information about Caustic will be coming to Apex Legends, potentially in Season 5. He was asked why, if Caustic’s immunity comes from a secret chemical compound, he bothers to wear goggles and a gas mask. “He does wear them all the time,” Casiello said. “I’ll bet you he has a reason for that. I wonder when we’ll find out what it is?” He does wear them all the time. I’ll bet you he has a reason for that. I wonder when we’ll find out what it is? — Tom Casiello (@tommiecas) April 23, 2020 As one of Apex’s senior writers, Casiello is responsible for the overarching narratives that surround the game, including the lore and backgrounds of every legend. While not necessarily expected in a battle royale, the lore surrounding legends has helped to boost Apex Legends’ popularity, as well as adding some humility and personality to each of the game’s unique characters.

Apex Legends dev faces backlash following update to Iron Crown monetization EAFans on the Apex Legends subreddit are extremely unhappy about the responses one Respawn developer, in particular, has been giving following the microtransaction changes for the Iron Crown event. Respawn took a lot of negative feedback following the start of the Iron Crown event, with most of that criticism aimed at the price of microtransactions. For example, Bloodhound’s Heirloom Axe required players to get all the cosmetics from the event, and then pay an extra fee on top of it. Respawn defended their position by saying a mistake was made, but many fans aren’t buying that and are answering back with inflammatory responses. This is nothing new, but the developers are holding their ground, and some fans have argued a line has been crossed. A comment by Respawn developer Drew McCoy says most of the players are “freeloaders” and that hasn’t sat well with the fans. “There is a wealth of data available on how monetization works in free-to-play games, and we ourselves have run tests by putting skins on sale in the store,” the developer wrote. “The amount of people who spend is crazy low, most of ya’ll are freeloaders (and we love that!) and a change in price doesn’t move the needle. The comment has received 282 downvotes at the time of writing with many fans saying this is a result of microtransaction costs being too high, but the developer says that’s the reality of things. “Don’t know what to tell you dude – the data is very clear,” he wrote in a comment with 49 downvotes. “We would make substantially less money, to the point where the game might not be viable.” Respawn spent a lot of time responding to fans on Reddit following the backlash, but it just so happens they don’t like what they are hearing. Numerous threads have popped up on the Apex subreddit criticizing the response and one even asking if it’s okay to talk about the “rudeness” and “toxicity” of McCoy. It’s clear the botched launch of the Iron Crown event has created a rift between the developers and fanbase and it could take a while to heal. A post with over 2,000 upvotes criticizes Respawn’s apology, and there are many smaller posts echoing the same thing. EA went through this with the launch of Star Wars Battlefront 2 and their “sense of pride and accomplishment” comment which became the most downvoted response in the history of Reddit. Since then, Battlefront 2 has rebounded and completely retooled itself, even winning back many fans on Reddit. Time will tell if the same thing will happen with Apex Legends.

Apex Legends dev explains why Valkyrie doesn’t need changes in Season 10 Respawn/EAApex Legends dev Daniel Klein has explained why there are no plans to change Valkyrie just yet, even though a whole host of legends are being tweaked in Season 10. After plenty of weird rumors about her abilities and name, Valkyrie was finally added to the Apex Legends roster at the start of Season 9: Legacy, getting a lot of love from fans right away. Just like a handful of other legends, her abilities are all about movement, and while there have been some issues with her kit, the newest legend remains a popular choice. Heading into Season 10: Emergence, some fans, of course, want change. They want their favorite legend to be as strong as possible. However, there are no plans to buff her just yet. Answering a few questions about the stats behind Valkyrie, Respawn’s Daniel Klein said that recon legend is “solidly middle of the pack” and in a decent spot when it comes to her win rate across different skill levels. “Looking at her stats right now, she’s solidly in the middle of the pack (except her pick rate is high; which is fine, she’s new and she’s a mobility legend; those just get picked more),” Klein commented. “I foresee no need for any changes in the near future.” Some fans suggested that she is too strong and needs a nerf, not a buff, which Klein also disagreed with. “I’m sure it feels that way, but our numbers don’t agree with you. She has roughly the same relative win rate (as in, compared to all other legends at that skill bucket) across all skill brackets,” he added. The dev noted that her high mobility ultimately seems to “self-regulate” as players make mistakes. Comment byu/Zaymonay800 from discussion inValkyrieMains Of course, once Season 10 arrives and the meta starts to see some changes, Respawn might have to make some changes if Valkyrie slips down the usage and power charts. We won’t know where she lands until the planned buffs and nerfs for the new season start to shake out, so it’s a case of wait and see what happens.

Apex Legends dev explains why they’re struggling to buff Revenant Respawn EntertainmentOne of Respawn’s lead designers working on Apex Legends has explained the difficulties they have buffing Revenant, as mains of the Season 4 Legend continue to call for improvements. Revenant, like a few other late additions to Apex Legends, has fallen some way down the pecking order. Alongside Rampart and Crypto, the Synthetic Nightmare has struggled to make a long-term impact to the battle royale’s meta, finding himself among the lowest pick rates going into Season 8. The response from Revenant players has, quite understandably, been to call on Respawn to provide a buff to the deadly assassin. His current abilities, detailed below, are generally considered to be too weak in the game’s evolved meta. However, Daniel Klein, Respawn’s lead game designer on Apex, has explained just why he’s so difficult to strengthen. One Redditor, during Respawn’s recent AMA, suggested that one thing they’ve noticed more than ever in this season is the relative weakness of Revenant’s tactical. However, Klein explained that they don’t want the abilities of legends to become their primary way to deal damage. “We do wanna be very careful not to position abilities as primary damage dealers,” Klein said. “Revenant’s tac is pretty reliably hittable, so probably not a great candidate for more damage.” In short, simply enabling Revenant’s tactical to do more damage is pretty far down the list on potential buffs he will receive. Another player echoed Klein’s comments, saying that Revenant’s tactical is already very strong, and shouldn’t receive a buff. They finished: “Don’t get me wrong, Revenant needs some help, but his tactical is not the area to buff.” Replying to this comment, Klein explained that this is Respawn’s struggle: “That’s what makes buffing him so hard; it’s clear he needs buffs, but it’s also equally clear that [his] tac and ult shouldn’t be straight up buffed.” One potential avenue for a buff would be his Passive, but the impact of a faster crouch-walk would be pretty negligible in the grand scheme of things. Perhaps another idea would be to make his climbing abilities even stronger, allowing him to reach hard to reach spots quickly. Back in Season 7, Respawn said they were looking into some tweaks to his hitbox too, which could make him a harder target. The admission that Revenant needs a buff will be music to the ears of his mains, but it remains to be seen exactly what form a buff would take.

Apex Legends dev explains why they’re not planning more Rampage nerfs for Season 12 Respawn EntertainmentJohn Larson, Live Balance Designer at Respawn Entertainment, has explained why the Rampage LMG is not set to receive any more changes for Season 12, despite many still claiming it is too powerful. The Rampage has been an exceptionally hot topic in the Apex Legends community of late. Problems surrounding its charge – and an exploit that meant it was never uncharged – saw it temporarily removed from the battle royale. While Respawn always emphasized that its removal was temporary, some players actually stated that they preferred the game minus the hefty LMG. Regardless, it has since been thrown back into Storm Point, albeit with the charge exploit patched and its overall damage very slightly reduced. Since its reintroduction, some players have maintained that it is far too strong and even overpowered. However, Respawn have no further plans to adjust it, at least according to Live Balance Designer John Larson. In an interview with Apex YouTuber KijannaPlays, Larson said that it’s too soon for any new changes, in spite of some feedback. “I think we gotta see,” he said. “With any sort of balance patch or any sort of new release, we really gotta wait and see how it settles. We have to look at the data… we like to see how the meta shifts organically to better inform future decisions. The Rampage is strong and that was sort of raised by the exploit that was in the game for a while.” Timestamp: 2:08 He continued: “The exploit sort of raised awareness to the point where now everyone’s running it and picking it up… Just the popularity of the gun can make people see that power when they otherwise may have not… Exploit aside, the data definitely backed up the decision to bring up the nerf we had planned for Season 12 a little early. And I think it’s too early to be awfully confident one way or another on any sort of follow-up patch.” In short, time and data will inform Respawn’s future treatment of the Rampage, with player feedback perhaps distorted by the gun’s popularity. Disclaimer: Kijanna is an employee at Dexerto. His YouTube channel is unrelated to his work for the company.

Apex Legends dev explains why they’re not nerfing Gibraltar EAA developer at Respawn Entertainment has delved into the reasons why Apex Legends’ Gibraltar won’t be getting a nerf anytime soon. Following the plethora of announcements from the EA Play event (including the long-awaited introduction of crossplay), Apex Legends players have plenty to look forward to as a series of upcoming features were teased during the event. While Mobile Respawn Beacons look set to really shake up the meta (should they make into the regular rotation), it’s Legend nerfs/buffs that really caught the attention of fans. Both Lifeline and Octane are set to receive a rework. The Combat Medic will be “sidegraded” through tweaking her Passive, which will allow her to heal her allies with a ‘hands-free’ version of the D.O.C drone. Meanwhile, Apex’s Adrenaline Junkie Octane is primed to receive a buff which will aid his squad in endgame scenarios — given how little of an impact his abilities actually have towards the latter portions of a match. So with all these buffs in the pipeline, players have been left wondering what nerfs could be in the works — specifically with Gibraltar, whose recent run of buffs have placed him as one of the most well-rounded Legends in the game. Addressing a question on when Respawn might nerf Gibby, Daniel Klein responded: “Third lowest encounter win rate, second lowest pick rate… I hear your frustration, but the data [doesn’t] support a nerf at the moment.” Comment byu/SDCored from discussion inapexlegends While these stats might seem surprising to many on the surface, Klein did add that the Shielded Fortress has one of the highest squad win rates in the game. “To be clear he has a super high game win rate; his team utility is through the roof.” After the buff that Revenant received to his Silence Tactical, the simulacrum can now act as a hard-counter to Gibraltar — disabling their Gun Shield and making them a more viable target at long-range. When players argued that Gibraltar is too much of a ‘tank’ in 1v1 situations, the dev again explained that the data doesn’t support this. “Gibraltar performs very poorly in terms of encounter win rate,” Klein explained, giving three main reasons: The Respawn dev also added some context to the stats, stating that his large hitbox “probably explains 90% of his low encounter win rate.” So it looks like Gibraltar will be remaining untouched so long as the data supports it. If you find yourself constantly being overrun by a Gibby, it might be worth giving the Synthetic Nightmare a try…

Apex Legends dev explains why they’re not adding permanent solos Respawn/EAAn Apex Legends developer has explained why they won’t be adding permanent solos to the battle royale anytime soon, despite numerous calls from players. As Apex Legends has evolved since its initial launch, players have been able to stretch their wings past the traditional trios mode and try limited-time variants. These have come in the form of both solos and duos. On April 2, Respawn Entertainment confirmed that, alongside adding Kings Canyon back as a permanent fixture in the map pool, duos would be making its way back into the game as a permanent mode. Since then, players have called for the addition of both solos and even squads, though, it doesn’t appear as if they’ll be getting their wish anytime soon. Apex Legends developer Josh Medina responded to a few of those calls after pros Carlo ‘Dcop’ Delsol and Jamison ‘PVPX’ Moore tweeted about the lack of permanent solos. “We’ve said it before but solos isn’t healthy for the game..” replied Medina, suggesting that their addition isn’t going to be on the horizon anytime soon. We’ve said it before but solos isn’t healthy for the game.. — Josh Medina (@lowkeydbjosh) April 3, 2020 Though, after PVPx put forward a case for including solos – noting that many wannabe solo players are already queuing up into trios by themselves and it’s a requested – Medina explained the data doesn’t line up. “The data we gather is key and you can’t only rely on Reddit and Twitter as the conclusive data points,” the Apex producer responded, seemingly landing the killer blow for any hopes of having solos in-game anytime soon. The data we gather is key and you can’t only rely on reddit and twitter as the conclusive data points lol — Josh Medina (@lowkeydbjosh) April 3, 2020 Now, of course, while the developers might not be considering solos as a permanent addition, that doesn’t mean that they won’t appear down the line. Respawn could very well have another limited-time mode up their sleeve for the future. However, if whatever data they collect starts to line up with what appears to be an overwhelming demand from the community, then Respawn might have to rethink their stance on the possibility of permanent solos.

Apex Legends dev explains why they’re not adding Quads RespawnApex started with trios, and has since added duos. Respawn are hesitant on adding solos permanently, and players have been asking for a quads queue as well. However, the four-man squads won’t be making an appearance, with the devs shutting down the idea. [jwplayer OXyCJ7sp] Apex Legends has evolved from being trios-only on release to adding variable squad sizes. Now, duos is a permanent queue, while solos make an appearance in various limited-time variants. Respawn are yet to touch quads though. With 60 players dropping in, there’s potential to have 15 squads of four. For players coming from other battle royales like Warzone or Fortnite, having the extra person could mean keeping the squad together between games. However, the Apex Legends developers have shut the idea down for now. According to design director ‘Monsterclip’, it’s just not feasible as the game becomes “chaotic in a negative way.” “When you play Quads, which we tested early on, the combat becomes nearly untrackable. It’s chaotic in a negative way,” they told players on Reddit. Monsterclip explained that for Respawn, “trios is the magic number.” It’s how the game was meant to be balanced, and where “the legend composition really shines and the X-Men vs Avengers fantasy starts to shine though.” With that being said, Respawn have vowed they’d never add a permanent solos queue in the past. That hasn’t stopped them from incorporating it into a LTM though. However, it’d be much harder to go up from trios than go down. “This wouldn’t be a total deterrent for a limited time mode if the rest of the game wasn’t designed around Trios. Our lobby, for example, is designed for three people. Our loot distribution is designed for three people per squad. Even something like the banners placed around the map don’t have room for a fourth. “These are all technically solvable problems with enough effort, but because we feel that Trios is the sweet spot we aren’t pursuing Quads currently.” There’s still hope that potentially in the future quads could make its appearance in an LTM, and maybe get enough traction for Respawn to take notice and add it permanently. However, don’t get your hopes up on either of those fronts.

Apex Legends dev explains why they won’t add killcams or final kill replays Respawn/EAApex Legends devs have responded to calls for them to add a kill cam to the battle royale, and also explained why it probably won’t happen. Many multiplayer games use a kill cam so that players can see exactly how their death looked from the point of view of their opponent. Apex Legends, while having a death recap screen that shows how much damage you took and who dealt the final blow, doesn’t have a kill cam system, but it is something players have been calling for. They even got a hint it could happen after a bug gave some players a replay option for kills. Well, Respawn have given an answer on why they probably won’t add kill cams for each individual elimination, but a final overall killcam is something they’ve considered. Jason McCord, Design Director at Respawn, responded to a fan who asked if it would ever be possible to add the killcam system. “Well, we won’t show you how you died until your whole squad is dead (otherwise you’ll have cheaty info), at which point it’s often not useful anymore,” McCord replied, asking where else would the cam be useful. After clarifying, the fan asked for a final killcam, so that the winning team could get a quick playback on the moment that sealed their win. “Ah yeah, it’s been talked about for final kill,” the dev added. “It’s just one of those things that costs memory on the server so we need to make sure it’s worth it.” Well, we won’t show you how you died until your whole squad is dead (otherwise you’ll have cheaty info), at which point it’s often not useful anymore. In what case would you find it useful? — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) May 24, 2021 Ah yeah, it’s been talked about for final kill. It’s just one of those things that costs memory on the server so we need to make sure it’s worth it. I think it’s rare enough that you win + need a killcam to know what happened that it hasn’t been a priority. — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) May 24, 2021 McCord noted that he believes that it hasn’t been a priority of Respawn, given that it’s “rare” that players took home the victory and also need a replay of their kill. Given that it seemingly has been considered by Respawn, it could happen in the future, but we’ll have to wait and see.

Apex Legends dev explains why they removed Skulltown in Season 5 Respawn EntertainmentRespawn game director Chad Greiner has revealed why they removed Skulltown from Apex Legends, and even hinted at more iconic areas facing the chop in future seasons. The arrival of Apex Legends’ fifth season saw some major changes made to Kings Canyon, including the infamous point of interest, Skulltown, which is now completely underwater following the end-of-season update. As the removal of the popular location came as a shock to many fans, Respawn devs have now revealed why they chose to destroy such an iconic location and their thought process behind making other major map changes. Greiner revealed that he was completely on board when the idea was first mentioned and explained why he was eager to get rid of one of the arena’s hot spots, during an interview with Gamespot. “I just love the idea of shaking the game up and making meaningful changes,” he said, “we’ve been playing Kings Canyon for a while – players have had thousands of matches on it – so a significant change like that gets me excited.” While many Apex Legends players used to prioritize Skulltown as their favorite place to land, Greiner continued on explaining why such major changes like this are necessary to keep the game more exciting for its fans. “I don’t worry too much about the players who love Skulltown,” he added, “I was one of them, I think what’s best for the game is to keep it fresh.” More ‘iconic’ map changes coming? Greiner revealed that surprising fans with such changes holds as much value to the dev team, as does getting positive feedback over new features in the battle royale “We find the value in changing things up and surprising people more than saying, ‘Oh we made a town that people really like.’” The Respawn director later explained that any of the future POI’s that become popular in Apex Legends might also be a target for major changes, “I like to think [Skulltown] is iconic to early Apex, and if something becomes too iconic, it probably has our scopes zoomed in on it.” While we don’t what major changes Respawn has planned for Kings Canyon past Season 5, recent events have proven that even the most popular spots on the map are not safe from the drop. Caustic mains will be hoping Bunker doesn’t face a similar fate.

Apex Legends dev explains why they often launch new guns & Legends overpowered Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has revealed why Respawn prefers to launch new guns and Legends in a “strong” state, rather than having to buff them shortly after they’ve arrived in the Outlands. Whether it was Seer, Horizon, the CAR SMG, or even the Season 13 IMC Armories, one of the biggest criticisms towards Respawn is their tendency to release new content that’s too strong or powerful. As a result, many of these features have to be dialed back or nerfed later to ensure matches are balanced and fair. While a lot of the community assumes Respawn implements new features in an overpowered state by accident, it turns out this isn’t the case. A dev recently addressed the topic and revealed that it’s better to release new content on the “stronger side” as in the long run, it aids overall game balance. Apex dev reveals why new guns & Legends are often too strong On June 1, Live Balance Designer John ‘JayBiebs’ Larson responded to a Weapon Wednesday thread on the Apex Legends subreddit to discuss the state of the CAR SMG. While his insight on the gun was interesting, it was his comments on balancing that garnered the most attention as he revealed that Respawn often releases new features on the “strong side” deliberately. This ensures that the gun, Legend, or new piece of content gets a lot of “reps” from the community, giving the balance team a better understanding of what changes need to be made. By placing the new addition in the “spotlight by millions of players” Respawn can quickly diagnose which aspects of the feature are fun, frustrating, or require balance changes. From the perspective of the developers, the priority will always be making the new content fun and ensuring it fills a gap in the gameplay experience. Therefore, to make sure it is tested and enjoyed by Apex players, they’d “rather release strong and nerf, than release weak and buff” when the hype has disappeared. It’s not very often that the community gets an insight into the balancing of Respawn’s battle royale and hearing from the devs directly gives us a better understanding of their methods. So, while it may be frustrating at first when a new piece of content feels overpowered or broken, in the long run, the devs usually have a plan to bring these issues back in line.

Apex Legends dev explains why they haven’t added more Kraber-like weapons – yet Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment have explained why Apex Legends is yet to receive more Care Package exclusive weapons like the Kraber sniper rifle. However, they refused to rule out more coming in a future season. The Kraber .50-Cal sniper has long been a discussion point in the Apex Legends community, mainly because it is the only weapon in the battle royale to have never been removed from the Care Package-only loot pool. In short, players cannot – and have never been able to – acquire it via any other means than the high-risk (but high-reward) Care Packages. In Season 14, it is joined in the category of Supply Drop weapons by the Mastiff Shotgun, Rampage LMG, and Bocek Bow. Apex Legends dev refuses to rule out further Care Package-only weapons While those may yet be changed back to regular ground loot, Respawn have refused to rule out the possibility of further Care Package-only weapons in a recent Reddit AMA. Although new ones in the immediate future sound unlikely, it’s something the dev team refuses to take “off the table”. Asked by one player whether weapons will ever be specifically designed as Care Package exclusives, Senior Game Designer Eric Canavese said it’s been “prototyped” but that it feels “underwhelming” to limit a new gun to Supply Drops. He responded: “It’s not completely off the table, and we’ve definitely prototyped some care package only weapons- but ultimately with the amount of work it takes to build new and exciting weapons, limiting them to the care package feels underwhelming.” The weapon suggested by the Redditor was the EPG-1 from Titanfall, an energy-propelled grenade launcher. “I’m not saying we won’t ever do it,” Canavese continued, “but when evaluating how we want to spend our dev time, weapons that can be cycled onto the floor are valued much higher because they can impact the meta in a more meaningful way as we continue to refine and balance the game.” In short, Respawn are not ruling it out but, in terms of time, Care Package-only weapons are not the most efficient way of managing their title.

Apex Legends dev explains why they had to remove Duos to add Solos mode Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends Season 21 marked the return of the Solos mode, but it has replaced Duos temporarily. Several questions were asked on why Respawn took this decision, so a dev has answered. Solo Takeover is one of the main highlights of Apex Legends Season 21, as it’s the first time the mode has been added since Season 2, in August 2019. It was a surprising change from Respawn as they had previously shut down requests for a solo mode completely. However, now that Solos is back, it has replaced Duos for the first half of Season 21. The community at large thinks it was “an excellent decision” to add Solos again – “but not at the cost of Duos.” They raised multiple questions on a Reddit thread about why Respawn took this route instead of having all three game modes at once. To this, an Apex Legends dev has answered: “Queue times can be a factor, but bringing it back in this way also allows for monitoring and data collection on this new variant and Solos as a whole,” said community manager Amy Thiessen. Having three game modes at once means finding matches will take longer as the player base will be divided. Solos has been added after a long time and naturally, it will attract players more, perhaps leaving Duos in the lurch. Two modes at once also give devs enough data and time to monitor players’ preferences and make decisions accordingly. “We see the comments and appreciate all of the feedback, and it does get shared with the team at large,” the dev continued. Many players on social media have expressed that they are going to miss playing Duos, as some of them “don’t want a random third,” and think six weeks of Solos “is way too long.”

Apex Legends dev explains why they buffed the Spitfire for Season 6 Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends developer has explained the reasoning behind the buff of the Spitfire LMG that came in Season 6. The buff has been relatively well-received by Apex players with the improved handling making the Spitfire an easier weapon to use, alongside a number of other changes that came with the new season including the new Legend, Rampart. Though the patch notes were vague, a number of players noticed that the weapon felt different, and now one of the developers of the game have cleared the air on what they changed and why they did it. David Bocek, otherwise known as AmusedApricot, is a Game Designer at Apex developer Respawn Entertainment, and took to the game’s subreddit to answer some questions about the new changes. While fans sought to decipher the “vague” patch notes that pertained to the Spitfire change, with some saying that it felt different but they weren’t sure what had changed, Bocek decided to clue them in. He said: “It was just a reduction in the multipliers for the vertical and horizontal kick, but not an adjustment to the pattern itself. The horizontal recoil was buffed a little more than the vertical.” The reason for this decision was a simple one, saying that “the high mag size with worse TTK is a combo that is better for non-high skill players,” and that as horizontal recoil is hard to control, it “made sense to improve on that axis.” If you haven’t yet run around with the Spitfire for a bit in Apex Legends since the buff, you’re missing out. The easier handling has made it more fun to use, especially if you sometimes struggle to hit your shots over medium to long ranges. It’s good to see Respawn continuing to be open and transparent with their core player base, and now we can put a bit more context behind the Spitfire buff after finding out why the change was made.

Apex Legends dev explains why Seer won’t ruin Bloodhound in Season 10 Respawn/EAAn Apex Legends developer has clarified the differences between Seer and Bloodhound amid fears from some players that the Season 10 legend could make the classic character a bit “obsolete.” After plenty of rumors and much speculation, Respawn confirmed that Seer would be the new legend coming to Apex Legends in the Season 10: Emergence update. Naturally, the battle royale developers have started to confirm details about the new legend, including his abilities – which have got plenty of players making comparisons between himself and Bloodhound. Bloodhound has, for the longest time, been one of the key legends to the Apex Legends meta, and some fans fear that the devs are simply tossing them aside to make way for Seer, given their abilities are slightly similar. Though, that’s not the case. After being asked if Respawn were making Bloodhound “obsolete” by introducing Seer with similar abilities, Jason McCord Design Director on Apex Legends moved to clarify the differences between them. “BH (Bloodhound) is about wide knowledge – run up to a PoI and scan the whole PoI, see all teams inside. Seer needs to know exactly where the enemy is and the range is much shorter than BHs,” McCord answered. Seer also has the added bonus of being able to interrupt an enemy’s heal for split second, something that Bloodhound can’t do. So, there are certainly plenty of differences between them. BH is about wide knowledge – run up to a PoI and scan the whole PoI, see all teams inside. Seer needs to know exactly where the enemy is and the range is much shorter than BHs. — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) July 29, 2021 While some fans might still think that Seer is a replacement for Bloodhound, there will be plenty who are excited by the prospect of pairing them together, as they could be a deadly recon duo. We’ll have to wait and see how the meta shakes out once the new season gets underway, and if players are right about Seer being an all-powerful legend.

Apex Legends dev explains why Season 5 Quests don’t have cutscenes Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Developer Moy Parra has revealed why the new PvE Quests in Apex Legends Season 5 do not have their own animated cutscenes in-game. The launch of Apex Legends Season 5 brought about many new changes to the arena, with a new character Loba, major map changes and the introduction of Quests to the popular battle royale title. Quests offer players the chance to complete PvE tasks in Apex Legends, requiring them to search for missing artifacts as part of the ‘Broken Ghost’ storyline in Season 5. The new feature has been well received so far, however, some players questioned why Respawn had chosen not to add animated cutscenes for the new quests. While the legends do communicate with each other during their search for the missing artifacts, it is done through messages instead of being voiced out or animated in a cutscene. Apex Legends animator Moy Parra was asked about the lack of cutscenes on May 28 and explained that the animations would take too much time to be ready for the launch of the new season. I would love to see fully animated cutscenes but indeed they take many many months of work…and that’s after the voice over is final, which means the writing would have to be final even before that… Making “stuff” takes time. A lot of time ? — Moy Parra (@_moyparra) May 28, 2020 “I would love to see fully animated cutscenes but indeed they take many many months of work,” the Respawn dev revealed. Parra also highlighted that they would need to wait on Apex Legends writers and voice actors to finish before they could get a proper start on the animation. “That’s after the voice over is final, which means the writing would have to be final even before that,” he added, pointing some of the work required, “making “stuff” takes time. A lot of time.” Although fans will have to do without cutscenes, for the time being, many are still finding the new PvE quests to be a nice change of pace from the classic BR mode as they uncover more about the mysterious artifacts.

Apex Legends dev explains why Revenant won’t be buffed in Season 8 Respawn/EAApex Legends dev Daniel Klein has explained why Revenant won’t be receiving a buff in Season 8, even though players had been hoping the Synthetic Nightmare would be boosted. As the Apex Legends seasons have unfolded, and Respawn have added new characters to their popular battle royale, the developers have had to walk a tight line on who receives a change and why that is. A newer legend who isn’t performing to their potential – like Loba or Rampart – can be changed just as soon as an original character who has fallen behind in terms of strength versus their previous state. In the case of Revenant, who was added back in Season 4, players have been asking for more and more buffs to make him a stronger legend in-game. However, those changes aren’t coming in Season 8, and the devs have explained why that is the case. Daniel Klein, a senior game designer at Respawn, answered a number of questions from fans about changes coming to Apex – confirming that the next patch is coming in January. As a result, the attention switched to legend changes, to which someone asked about Revenant. “No plans for next season,” Klein said in response to a question about the Synthetic Nightmare before following it up with a further explanation a few days later. “Yeah! His playstyle is what we call sharp: as in, success and failure are keenly felt, and when his tactical and ultimate work, they work so well they make the enemy MORE frustrated than they make Rev & his team happy,” Klein added. “That’s a dangerous pattern. He absolutely should be getting buffs, but we didn’t have the time to find the right buffs.” Comment byu/paradoxally from discussion inapexlegends Obviously, this will come as an annoyance to players who still use Revenant, and would like to see him up there with some of the game’s strongest legends. Seeing as Klein noted that he should be receiving buffs, there’s no doubt that Revenant will be changed at some point, but it’s going to be a while before we get to that point.

Apex Legends dev explains why ‘Operation Health’ season wouldn’t work Respawn EntertainmentRespawn’s Director of Communications, Ryan Rigney, has poured more cold water on the prospects of an ‘Operation Health’ season in Apex Legends, explaining why it wouldn’t work for the Titanfall BR. Apex’s recent issues have been incredibly frustrating for both Respawn and the player base. Server issues – which it was hoped would be solved by September 22 – have dragged on and players on all platforms are still finding disconnects all too common. The enduring problems have pushed a number of Apex Legends players to call for a season with no new content, purely focussing on solving the game’s bugs. It is most comparable to Rainbow Six Siege’s Operation Health, which occurred back in the tactical FPS’ Year Two. While Respawn devs have expressed doubts in the past, Director of Communications Ryan Rigney seemed to confirm that it won’t be happening, explaining exactly why on September 23. The conversation was sparked by Apex streamer BRose511, who said: “I think I can speak for a majority if not all of the apex community with this: We will take a season of 0 new content for the game to be properly balanced, servers fixed, and audio issues resolved.” However, Rigney responded: “Game dev simply doesn’t work this way. Devs aren’t villagers from Age of Empires that can all just be moved from “content creation” to “bug fixing.” IDK how else to explain this.” https://twitter.com/RKRigney/status/1440858143773257730?s=20 He finished: “The Rainbow Six Siege example was a great marketing stunt tho. So was “Fix PUBG,” which I worked on.” Despite the popularity, the suggestions have been met with, it seems that Respawn is not really exploring them as a genuine option. As Rigney explained, only a select few on development teams focus on bug fixing, and transferring everyone to focus on one task is not only unrealistic but probably futile. Regardless of what comes in Apex Legends Season 11 and beyond, we hope to see the game’s general health looking brighter.

Apex Legends dev explains why Octane skins may never unmask him Respawn EntertainmentA Respawn developer has explained why Apex Legends players may never see Octane without his mask in the battle royale. However, there could be a way to make up for it for those desperate. Ever since Respawn Entertainment included a mugshot of Octavio Silva in Pathfinder’s Quest Book, fans have been waiting to see if the studio would ever include his face in the game via a new cosmetic. Unfortunately, that may never happen after the devs admitted they never had to make his face, thanks to the mask & goggles, so the technical hurdles to incorporate it at this point would be tremendous. Respawn Entertainment lead animator Moy Para broke the news to Octane fans holding out on seeing the Adrenaline Junkie’s face in the Apex Games. ✅ It’s much more feasible to put a mask or a helmet on a character that already has a face than the other way around. Think of Wraith’s Voidwalker – she was able to have both as she already had a facial setup to begin with. Bloodhound or Octane would be VERY challenging 😬 pic.twitter.com/D93AgUfRm3 — Moy Parra 🎮 (@_moyparra) March 17, 2022 The dev laid down the honest truth about the limitations preventing Octane’s face from being show. And even if it were possible, it wouldn’t be what fans expect. “I get asked all the time ‘when can we have an unmasked skin for Octane?’” he said. “The real challenge is that we never made any facial animation for him as the rig did not need a facial component. So he would have a blank expression for everything!” As disappointing as that may be, Apex-loremaster-turned-Respawn-narrative-historian ‘frozenfroh’ suggested there could be some way to make his face appear, despite its limited appearance. “Sometimes I wonder if this would be feasible if he only showed his face for a bit during a special Legend select animation in a way that he puts his mask/goggles by the end of it,” they said in response. Indeed this could be a way to add a face to Octane without having to add an insane amount of animation work everywhere else for a single skin. From the community, I can see positives and negatives with this approach 😅 — Moy Parra 🎮 (@_moyparra) March 17, 2022 Respawn, at least Parra, were tempted by the idea. “Indeed this could be a way to add a face to Octane without having to add an insane amount of animation work everywhere else for a single skin,” the dev said. “From the community, I can see positives and negatives with this approach.” So for now it seems like Octane’s face won’t be in Apex Legends. But if the community gave Respawn enough reason to at least get his mug in the moments leading up to a match, then there’s a chance Octavio’s face could make an appearance to some degree.

Apex Legends dev explains why Octane is getting “tiny buff” in Season 7 Respawn EntertainmentRespawn game designer Daniel Klein has revealed why Octane will be receiving a small buff in the seventh season of Apex Legends, addressing some concerns around the fan-favorite character. There are now 14 unique characters in Apex Legends and with another Legend, who was teased to be Horizon, on the way in Season 7, many players are hoping for their favorite characters to receive buffs in the coming updates. Plenty of Apex fans have been calling for the Adrenaline Junkie, Octane, to get buffed in recent patches. Despite being one of the most popular characters he does not have a strong win rate in Season 6. As it is unclear what could be done to boost the character’s performance, with some Octane fans even asking for full rework, many players have called on Respawn devs to help improve his chances at winning. Following the release of the latest patch, one Apex player Iraakeane asked Apex devs when Octane would be getting buffed or reworked, and Respawn Game designer Daniel Klein finally responded to fans’ concerns. The Apex dev revealed that Octane would be getting a “tiny buff” in the next season, although he did not share what exactly will change about the high-flying daredevil in-game. Comment byu/airicjordan1 from discussion inapexlegends “Octane’s got a very high pick rate (a lot of people play him) and also a very high encounter win rate (he wins individual engagements a lot),” Klein added, before revealing why the popular character needed a small buff. “It’s just his trios win rate that’s low,” he shared, suggesting that they were happy with his current state, “that’s kind of okay: he’s a selfish, charge-in-guns-blazing character who’s a ton of fun to play but also eventually gets himself killed.” As of now, it is unclear just what kind of buff Octane will receive, but fans will likely have to wait until the season’s end on November 4 to find out for sure. There have been a few other buffs revealed by Respawn for Season 7, as characters like Mirage are set to receive some “scary” changes in the next few weeks.

Apex Legends dev explains why Octane hasn’t received movement buff Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends developer has explained why Octane hasn’t yet received a movement buff despite plenty of requests from players. Octane was added to Apex Legends in Season 1, and with the launch of Season 5 he is falling towards being one of the lowest-picked Legends in the game, and many fans believe a movement buff could be a fix to this. Octane is a high-speed character, as his name would suggest, and his Launch Pad allows him to fly into the thick of things, or get away when the going gets tough – but some believe he needs to be more mobile. Of course, when a character is called Octane and marketed as a high-speed Legend, you expect gameplay to be as frenetic as it can get, but that simply isn’t the case, instead basically matching the speed of other Legends. While this isn’t necessarily an issue, some players have become aggravated with how his movement really isn’t as manic as they might have expected. This, clearly, is something the developers are aware of, as one has responded to a fan asking whether a buff is likely. “Would you agree that Octane’s movement needs a buff?” one player asked Jason McCord, Respawn Entertainment’s design director. “I always thought he should have movement capabilities not unsimilar to a pilot.” Jason responded honestly, saying that they “struggle with making Legends too fast,” adding that it “really destroys understandable combat when someone can flank and reposition too fast.” We struggle with making Legends too fast. It really destroys understandable combat when someone can flank and reposition too fast. But we know Octane is “”speed guy”” so it’s tough. — Jason McCord (@Monsterclip_JM) June 11, 2020 McCord adds that they know Octane is the “speed guy” so it’s tough to make the right decision when it comes to his movement. While this may seem bleak for Octane mains, it at least shows that his movement has been a discussion among the Apex devs and the rumored reworks for himself and Lifeline might not be too far away.

Apex Legends dev explains why movement legend updates are so difficult Respawn/EARespawn Entertainment have explained why they don’t just focus on adding movement legends to Apex Legends as characters like Octane and Wraith continue to dominate. One of the biggest things that helps Apex Legends stand out amongst its battle royale rivals is the fact that characters have their own unique set of abilities and ways to play. As Respawn have continued to update their game, they’ve added legends whose biggest strength is not an airstrike or a bunch of decoys, but rather their power lays in their movement. Characters like Octane and Wraith can traverse the map in quick fashion which allows for more aggressive play. While some players love dashing around the map, it’s not to everyone’s liking and Respawn doesn’t just want to add movement legends to counter them. Dishing out a lengthy explanation about the removal of tap-strafing, Respawn’s John ‘JayBiebs’ Larsen touched on the importance of movement legends to Apex, and how each new addition affects the balance of movement. “Mobility creep is something to be very mindful of in this game. While many love the freedom that Apex’s movement system affords, constraints are just as important. It’s not surprising that mobility legends are highly popular,” he stated. “Why don’t we just do more of that? Well, over time (and I’d say we are already seeing it) mobility creep opens a Pandora’s box. How is third party rate affected by mobility? Within a fight, how are frontlines defined? How quickly can I close the gap on an enemy? The game is designed to work well with a finite number of movement possibilities.” Each movement legend has their own unique style – Pathfinder can use a grapple, Octane has a speed boost and jump pad, while Valkyrie can fly with her jets – and there probably aren’t too many more angles to explores. When you factor in balancing, as Larsen mentions, it becomes an even more trick task and so while the appetite for more is there from some players, who knows when we might see another added.

Apex Legends dev explains why Loba can’t receive a massive buff Respawn/EAAn Apex Legends dev has explained why they can’t buff Loba too far and put her up with some of the game’s best characters despite continued requests for her to receive a boost. [jwplayer KEHOOBWR] Loba was added to Apex Legends’ roster of characters back at the start of Season 5, with her thieving abilities shaking up how the game is played by some fans. However, as Season 5 turned into Season 6, Loba mains repeatedly requested that the character be buffed in some way in order to prevent her from quickly fading away from games and not being used at all. While other legends have become stronger, Loba has pretty much stayed the same, and while some fans still want her to be as strong as Wraith or Pathfinder, Respawn aren’t looking to do that. Respawn developer Daniel Klein explained that while Loba’s looting power could be in line for a buff, there isn’t too much wriggle room for her outside of being guaranteed a gold weapon. The dev added that they “can do serious damage to the fun of a game by making changes that individually don’t seem broken,” and pushing everyone up to the top level in terms of power makes it a character-based game like Overwatch rather than a gun vs gun experience. “Say we give Loba the ability to teleport quickly and silently and suddenly you’re losing fights not because the other team planned an ambush or executed better, but because they saw you and reacted to you by putting one of their members behind you. And of course, you’ll say cool we can counter that with OTHER abilities, but now we’re talking about a game of ability vs ability rather than gun vs gun,” Klein explained, reinforcing that Apex should be a gun vs gun game. Comment byu/FrozenFroh from discussion inapexlegends In terms of Loba being given a buff, sure, there will be ways that Respawn can do so, but she might never be the top class legend that some were expecting when she first arrived on the scene. Yet, everyone plays a role and if that means she’s outside the meta but still fun enough for her fans to use her, well, that’s not the worst spot at the end of the day.

Apex Legends dev explains why Lifeline doesn’t need a buff in Season 5 Respawn EntertainmentRespawn developer Carlos Pineda has explained why Lifeline doesn’t need a buff in Apex Legends Season 5, revealing the “complicated spot” the in-game medic continues to occupy. Despite being one of Apex Legends most popular characters since launch, many fans feel Lifeline’s viability has been dwindling in an ever-changing meta. She recently received a buff, giving her access to a number of blue supply bins around the map, but statistics behind the change indicate that it is severely limited in the benefits it provides. With Season 5’s launch on May 12, some fans of the Combat Medic were hoping for a minor buff, but a Respawn developer has now poured cold water on the idea of a Lifeline buff coming anytime soon. Carlos Pineda, lead game designer at Respawn Entertainment, dove into the topic of Lifeline in a series of tweets on May 14. He explained the “complicated spot” Lifeline is in and that, while she has certainly “lost some of her shine”, they are wary of the fact she remains immensely popular. “Lifeline is in a complicated spot,” he said. “Despite the claims that she “is in dire need of a buff,” the data says she remains top tier across different categories, e.g. pick rate, win rate, KDR. So in that sense, she does not need a buff at all. But I get it – everyone wants her to be unique and I agree she’s lost some of her shine due to the other legend buffs.” So in that sense, she does not need a buff at all. But I get it – everyone wants her to be unique and I agree she’s lost some of her shine due to the other legend buffs. But we can’t straight up add power to her – that would drive her even higher in those metrics. — Carlos Pineda (@pinedsman) May 15, 2020 While Respawn do want to see Lifeline stand out to a greater extent, they are wary of making her more powerful, as this would improve her pick rate, win rate, and kill-death ratio. Hence, Respawn are looking at changing her abilities, without massively improving her. This will enable her to become more unique, while also being balanced. “What we’re really looking for is a Sidegrade,” Pineda finished. “We want her to be different from other Legends without necessarily adding power. That kind of design is much harder than just cranking numbers or even just adding a new thing she can do.” So be patient! We’re working on it, but it is a difficult problem. In the meantime, you can feel better about picking Lifeline, knowing you’re still in good hands! — Carlos Pineda (@pinedsman) May 15, 2020 He finished by asking Apex Legends fans for patience but reiterated that Respawn are working on Lifeline, so changes may come soon, albeit not in the form of a major buff. While Pineda’s comments may be disappointing to Lifeline mains who want to see a swift buff, it reinforces Respawn’s commitment to a balanced battle royale, as well as maintaining open lines of communication with players.

Apex Legends dev explains why Legends will never have wall-run abilities Respawn EntertainmentOne Respawn dev explained why players shouldn’t get too excited about the Shadow abilities featured in Apex Legend’s new Halloween LTM, since there are no plans to put them in the game proper. Apex’s popular Fight or Fright event is back, and there’s a brand new mode called Shadow Royale that brings players back from the dead as in the Shadowfall mode from 2019, except in your regular BR format. Teammates return as shades after dying as long as one member of their squad is still alive. Shadows only have 30 health and can’t use weapons, but move 30 percent faster and respawn after being killed. They can also wall-run and double jump, but after one user on Reddit suggested these last two would be cool to see on a future Legend, Respawn dev Daniel Klein revealed “it’s very unlikely” we’ll ever see that happen. “I’d say it’s very unlikely we’d ever put wall running and double jumping on a full Legend,” Klein wrote. “We had a lot more leeway with Shadows because they don’t have guns and it’s not important to chase them down (because they respawn when you kill them anyway).” The dev referred to these as “sugar high” abilities, which can be very fun, but can decrease replayability when they’re used as permanent features. Ironically, he used Titanfall – which did have a wall-run mechanic – as an example. “Anecdotally, people absolutely loved the constant sugar high of Titanfall multiplayer, but then also very quickly burned out on it,” the dev noted. “Sure, some players stuck with it for a very long time, but on average it’s the kind of game you play and absolutely love for a few weeks and then you’re kind of done.” Comment byu/airicjordan1 from discussion inapexlegends “TLDR: Wallrunning and double jumping are sugar rush mechanics that are good in small doses, in LTMs, and in asymmetric combat situations,” Klein wrote, wrapping things up. “It’s very unlikely they’ll come to Apex proper. If you read through the entire argument, he does make a solid case for why wall-running and double jumping won’t be coming to an actual Legend, since those kinds of abilities don’t really fit with the game’s core. If you do want to roll around the map like something straight out of Overwatch as a Shadow, be sure to check out the new LTM during the 2020 Fight or Fright event happening October 22 through November 3.

Apex Legends dev explains why Legend buffs & nerfs don’t happen more regularly Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has revealed why Legend buffs & nerfs are so infrequent despite the community’s constant calls for rebalancing. As of Apex Legends Season 14, there are 22 separate characters total that make up the game’s roster in the Outlands. Each of these Legends has a unique kit and serves a different purpose to their squad, which makes balancing them extremely difficult for Respawn. While the devs do roll out reworks, buffs, & nerfs during seasonal updates and Collection Events, they’re incredibly infrequent. This can frustrate players who believe specific characters need tuning immediately. Well, one dev has addressed the question head-on in a Reddit AMA and revealed why buffs & nerfs take so long to roll out. Why is Legend rebalancing so infrequent in Apex Legends? During a recent Reddit AMA on Legends & weapons in Apex Legends, user TheBriskets took the time to ask why Legend rebalancing happens so infrequently. In response, Lead Game Designer Devan McGuire revealed as Apex is a live service game, “developers have to prioritize their work efforts between feature development… and balance changes to the existing game”. Reworks and major kit changes can require “rewriting abilities or pulling in new animations, visual effects or audio” which all must be completed alongside upcoming seasonal content. Finally, McGuire explained that before any balance changes are rolled out, they have to be tested for “bugs and to validate that the impact of that change actually works to solve the problem, and doesn’t create new ones.” It’s clear that Respawn treats buffs & nerfs extremely seriously and avoids rushing out changes before they’ve evaluated the potential consequences. While this answer will likely frustrate those who want to see more buffs & nerfs to Legends, it does give the community an insight into the problems developers face, and the deadlines they need to hit. Fingers crossed we see more of these AMAs in the future, as they give players a chance to learn about the future of Apex and the thought process of a dev.

Apex Legends dev explains why it’s so hard to catch cheaters Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has explained why it’s so difficult to ban certain hackers and how advanced cheats avoid getting detected. The competitive nature of Apex Legends means that a lot of players are desperate to win every game they queue up for. To maximize their chances of success, a lot of the community spend hours in the Firing Range refining their skills, but others prefer to take shortcuts and use third-party software. These cheats give hackers access to aimbots that make it easy to rack up kills and wipe out entire squads. While the automated system detects a lot of these cheaters, some of them go under the radar and somehow avoid punishment. Well, an Apex Legends dev has taken the time to explain why certain hackers are so hard to catch. Apex Legends dev reveals how advanced cheats avoid bans Taking to Twitter on February 21, Security Analyst at Respawn Conor ‘Hideouts’ Ford responded to a player asking about Apex’s anti-cheat system and why certain hackers can continue playing for long periods of time without being detected. The dev revealed that “aimbots can adjust to only hit a handful [of shots] then miss… or only hit body shots”, making them appear like a normal competitor and therefore, dodging the automated anti-cheat. Interestingly, Hideouts shares that “wallhacks and UAV” cheats are often more difficult to detect than aimbots, this is likely because these cheaters receive fewer reports as it’s less obvious to see from a spectate screen. Overall, this means Respawn’s war against cheaters is an “ongoing battle”, with both sides looking to stay one step ahead. While the community has been extremely critical of Apex’s automated detection, Hideouts shared that “tens of thousands of bad actors” are banned weekly. So, it’s clear the anti-cheat is dealing with the majority of hackers, it’s just the incredibly advanced software that can bypass the current system.

Apex Legends dev explains why game-breaking Level 500 bug isn’t fixed yet Respawn EntertainmentRespawn Entertainment have explained why the frustrating Level 500 glitch in Apex Legends has yet to be fixed, after originally stating that the problem had been addressed. Many Apex Legends fans were ecstatic when the developers announced they had increased the level cap in the game, meaning players had a new goal to grind towards if they wanted to sit at the top of the popular battle royale game’s mountain. Unfortunately, the increased level cap appears to have had the opposite reaction, with players who manage to hit the rank unable to play the game anymore, with the game telling them there has been an “Internal server error,” and keeping them stuck on the game’s main screen. Respawn thought they had finally sorted the problem on January 11, but were forced to delay the update after performing some tests. Unsurprisingly, this made players even more upset, and 10 days on it seems that there is no fix on the horizon, prompting many to voice their frustrations on social media and Reddit. Responding to a post on the game’s subreddit from a disgruntled fan, Developer Rayme Vinson admitted that he understood the annoyance that players were feeling, but explained that patching the game isn’t as easy as many would assume, and can often cause more issues than it fixes. “I absolutely get your frustration, but it’s been a priority,” he wrote. “This kind of stuff is complicated and really easy to make worse. So there’s a lot of triple-checking going on. Hopefully good news soon, and you’re right, it’s picking on some of the most involved players! That just ain’t right.” Unfortunately for fans though, there is still no specified date for the patch to be rolled out, and Vinson didn’t go as far as confirming that they had found whatever problem stopped them from releasing the fix they originally had on January 11. It’s possible that Respawn may push it out as a hotfix as soon as it’s ready, or with the Season 4 update which is expected on February 4.

Apex Legends dev explains why fully-kitted weapon drops won’t be permanent Respawn EntertainmentApex Legends’ supply drops offer players a chance to get their hands on some incredibly powerful weapons and gear. However, a few fans are worried that the new Airdrop Escalation LTM may influence the way care packages are handled in normal playlists. With the Season 7 Collection Event well underway, players have been busy duking it out in the new mode Airdrop Escalation. However, instead of launching as its own playlist, the current LTM has replaced the normal Apex Legends game mode. Unlike the game’s standard care package system, the Airdrop Escalation LTM increases the number of supply drops. Every supply drop contains a fully-kitted weapon of different tiers, depending on the round they are dropped into. As a result, late-game fights often reward squads with some truly devastating gear. While this game mode shouldn’t be taken too seriously, some Apex Legends fans are concerned that Respawn may add this new supply drop system to the game permanently. Airdrop Escalation frustration While the LTM’s increased supply drops offer little advantage in the early rounds, the mid-to-late game victors are often determined by who has access to red Evo Shields and maxed out guns. In fact, late-game supply drops are always guaranteed to drop incredibly powerful gear that will always give squads a huge advantage. Read More: Apex Legends leak reveals TDM-style mode – “We really don’t wanna mess with the loot game of the base BR to this degree permanently,” says Lead Game Designer Daniel Klein. “There are issues that we’re seeing now already around high saturation of red guns deciding late-game fights.” Respawn may use LTMs to test various mechanics and future additions, but it certainly seems the devs have no plans to shake up the supply drop meta. “The loot game is the beating heart of a BR,” says Daniel. “You better have a really good reason to make a change of this magnitude, and I don’t see one.” Make sure you follow @TitanfallBlog for all the latest Apex Legends news and updates.

Apex Legends dev explains why Caustic’s gas hasn’t been changed Respawn EntertainmentRespawn lead designer Brent ‘Scriptacus’ McLeod revealed why they have been slow to change Caustic’s unique ability kit despite backlash from Apex Legends fans. Apex Legends now has up to 12 different playable characters each with their own unique abilities and playstyles. Caustic, The Toxic Trapper, is one of the Legends that has been picked less frequently by players as of late, as his kit can interfere with teammates and their gameplay. Many players have complained about the fact that Caustic’s ‘Nox Gas’ abilities temporarily slow and blind anyone, including teammates, who find themselves trapped among them. Despite the backlash from many of the popular battle royale’s fans, Respawn has not yet made changes to his kit and revealed why they have such a hard time balancing his abilities. Respawn developer Scriptacus explained that making changes to the Nox Gas would have a knock-on effect on the way matches and even other characters are played. Comment byu/kaylee2028 from discussion inapexlegends “It’s not the difficulty of the individual change, it’s that plus everything else,” he shared, “changing Caustic Gas has knock-on effects that we’re dealing with even now.” Scriptacus explained that they had considered multiple options to balance Caustic’s abilities such as implementing “team colored gas,” which had been previously suggested by u/BananaSalvaje, before explaining that even that solution could be exploited. “I personally dislike that idea because it makes it easy for a squad to abuse their immunity to their own squad’s gas,” he added, revealing just how complicated it could be to balance major issues. Although Scriptacus was hesitant about implementing some of their solutions, it was revealed that Respawn would likely attempt some of their fixes in the near future despite having to correct some other elements of the game that might be affected.

Apex Legends dev explains why Caustic’s gas buff doesn’t affect downed players Respawn/EADespite being given a bit of a buff in Season 10, Caustic gas only damages downed players at 5hp/s rather than benefitting from the boost. Now, an Apex Legends dev has explained why that is so. Caustic has been one of Apex Legends’ go-to characters ever since the battle royale first released over two years ago. The mad scientist may have slipped out of the top-tier slots in recent seasons, but he’s still pretty strong and at the start of Season 10: Emergence, received a bit of a buff. His toxic gas traps now deal 5 HP of damage to start but will increase by one with each new tick. While some players have taken the buff pretty well, it doesn’t quite work on downed players, and no, it’s not a bug. After knocking an enemy down, some Caustic players will immediately toss a gas trap in their direction, and many have noticed that it just stays at 5 HP/s, instead of increasing by each tick. As noted by Respawn’s Associate Live Balance Designer John ‘JayBiebs’ Larson, this intended change was left out of the patch notes but it has a purpose. “Short answer: guns should kill people. Abilities should help facilitate that. Thirsts especially should not be driven by abilities, unless it’s a heavy-hitting ult with a big cost,” he said after a fan quizzed as to why downed players don’t suffer the additional damage. “Gas is good for a lot of things outside of sheer damage; players at the top end have shown us that.” Short answer: guns should kill people. Abilities should help facilitate that. Thirsts especially should not be driven by abilities, unless it’s a heavy hitting ult with a big cost. Gas is good for a lot of things outside of sheer damage; players at the top end have shown us that — JayBiebs (@RSPN_JayBiebs) August 4, 2021 Some fans, naturally, disagreed with the developer’s take on things but at least any confused Caustic mains have got their answer. Of course, things could change in the future, but it seems unlikely that any change is forthcoming anytime soon.

Apex Legends dev explains why broken banner bug still hasn’t been fixed Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has finally responded to the animated banner crashing bug stopping players from getting into matches, explaining why it’s taking so long to fix the issue. As with any multiplayer title, Apex Legends suffers from a variety of glitches that affect the gameplay. While the majority of these issues are minor, and on occasion can even be positive, a few continue to cause serious problems for Respawn. One of which is the animated banner crashing bug that arose all the way back in September. This issue was discovered by the devs after players continued to complain about pre-game crashes whenever they had an Epic rarity banner equipped. As these cosmetics are animated, they seem to prevent players from getting into matches, leading the game to crash. Despite multiple attempts to fix the issue, the bug is still affecting players today and with Season 11 on the horizon, the community wants to know when a solution is going to be found. Luckily, a dev has finally addressed the bug and revealed why it’s taking so long to find a fix. Has the Apex Legends banner crashing bug been fixed? During a communication strategy thread on Twitter, the Community Director at Respawn responded to a comment asking about the banner crashing bug still causing issues in Apex Legends. Describing it as the “most frustrating thing about Apex right now”, the player asked whether the dev team was still working on a fix and if they were any closer to solving the issue. Does this mean you’re still working on the banner crashing issue? Because it’s still really prevalent and honestly the most frustrating thing about Apex right now. Even just a “it’s complicated but we know we haven’t gotten it totally fixed yet” acknowledgement would be nice. — E-Tik (@dj_etik) October 13, 2021 In response, the dev outlined that the bug was “10x” harder to fix than they first anticipated, and the team is still working on finding a fix. While this isn’t the news a lot of Apex players will want to hear, even the acknowledgment that the glitch is incredibly hard to fix will be enough for a lot of the community to sympathize. Yeah it sucks, team’s on it. Just one of those things that’s 10X more complicated that you’d expect — Ryan K. Rigney (@RKRigney) October 13, 2021 Although it’s likely going to be a while longer before players can re-equip their Epic banners, it’s great to know Respawn are still doing their best to solve the issue. In the meantime, make sure you jump into all of the new content added with the Halloween patch, including the new ‘Encore’ map, exclusive cosmetics, and of course, the upcoming Shadow Royale.

Apex Legends dev explains why “anti-scan” Legend wouldn’t work despite requests Respawn EntertainmentAn Apex Legends dev has explained why they do not want to add an “anti-scan” Legend to the roster, despite receiving countless requests. Over the past few seasons, characters with scan abilities that can detect the position of their opponents have become extremely popular in PUBS, Ranked, and competitive play. This is because, in conjunction with other Legends, they can be incredibly powerful when it comes to positioning, dealing damage, and isolating enemies. As a result, a lot of the community has been calling on Respawn to introduce a new Legend that counters these scans and can move around undetected. Well, Respawn has finally responded to these suggestions and revealed that they’re “not thrilled” with the idea of adding a new anti-scan or cold-blooded character to the Outlands. Respawn does not want to add “anti-scan” Legend to Apex During a Twitter discussion on July 9, an Apex Legends player asked Live Balance Designer John ‘JayBiebs’ Larson whether a cold-blooded character would ever be added to the game. This certainly isn’t a new request, and with the upcoming mobile Legend Rhapsody having an anti-scan Ultimate, a lot of fans want a similar ability on console and PC. Unfortunately, JayBiebs explained that the devs are “not thrilled” with the idea of an “anti-scan” Legend as they feel it would become a must-pick character who would “limit options” in the future. While a cold-blooded Legend might be off the cards, Respawn is aware of the power scans bring to a squad and is exploring more “Legend agnostic options” when it comes to balancing them. “Scans” can mean a lot of things in Apex as we’re seeing with the Seer meta. Much different feel. Legend agnostic options are more intriguing to me, personally. — JayBiebs (@RSPN_JayBiebs) July 9, 2022 However, for the time being, the devs have not confirmed when any of these “anti-scan” balance changes are going to arrive in-game. For the time being, it’ll just be a case of waiting for Season 14, which is scheduled to arrive in early to mid-August and will hopefully help to address the long-standing scan meta.

Apex Legends dev explains why “useless” Wattson won’t get more buffs Respawn EntertainmentBad news Wattson fans… Respawn has no plans to buff the Apex Legends engineer again in Season 7, despite the fact much of the battle royale’s player base believes the Static Defender is “useless” in her current state. [jwplayer GCL7xjyu] Wattson who has been part of the ever-growing Apex Legends roster since mid-2019, was recently handed a buff in Season 7’s ‘Ascension’ patch; her signature ability, “Perimeter Security,” had its damage topped up slightly. According to the Apex Legends community, however, the French defender is still relatively “useless” in the Season 7 meta. In fact, the view is so widespread that a Reddit thread simply titled “Buff Wattson please” racked up 15.1k upvotes, and more than 125 awards. In the thread, ‘BaguettePaquette’ declared: “It’s time to radically remake Wattson. Not just +5 to fences, but the whole concept of a ‘defending legend’.” Unfortunately, when an Apex Legends dev did finally arrive in the thread, it was to deliver bad news: there are no plans to give Wattson more buffs in Season 7, despite the defender’s low pick rate in public playlists and ranked lobbies. Wattson isn’t “useless,” says Apex dev The reason, game designer Daniel Z. Klein explained, is twofold. The first is that Wattson is “all over the place” in pro play. According to the dev, who “rewound the final game,” four of the final six squads in ALGS finals included a Wattson. The second was a rebuttal to the Reddit thread’s suggestion Wattson is “useless,” both on new map Olympus, and in all Apex Legends lobbies. “I’m going to respectfully disagree… on Olympus, or elsewhere. You’re confusing two things; pick rate and effectiveness,” Klein said. “Yes, she’s lowest pick rate, but her win rate is very good. She’s is top 4 across most power metrics.” The “fun” problem: why no one plays Wattson The problem, he continued, is that Wattson “isn’t super fun for most people.” Her abilities are based around holding choke points, which Apex Legends players often shy away from. “[That] means we can’t just put power into her until she’s more widely played, because she’s already very near the top of our power charts; on the other hand, it means that putting power into her won’t address the problem either,” he said. “It’s not that people pick her and fail to be effective. Clearly the people who do run her have more success than on most other characters. There’s something about the FEELING of playing her that isn’t attractive, and power doesn’t fix that.” Rework may be one possible solution So, no more Wattson buffs in Season 7, especially as she continues to hit top scores on many of Respawn’s hidden metrics. A rework though? That’s another story. “Your suggestion for a rework is most promising,” Klein admitted, but said there are two issues there; the cost — “reworks are incredibly expensive” — and two, she already fills an area “very needed” in competitive play: defensive strengths. “I don’t think she should be 100% or near 100% pick rate in competitive… ideally we find a rework that makes at least part of her kit exciting in the moment, while not losing her identity as a structure giver,” the Apex developer concluded. There was a glimmer of hope for fans of the French defender, however. Klein admitted he “could be convinced to buff her” in an effort to “throw a bone to Wattson mains,” but promised that “wouldn’t change the problems.” For now, Wattson mains should hold tight. There’s a rework in the pipes that may eventually land, and more buffs are possible; it may just take a bit of begging!