Apex Legends' latest update has done a lot to rejuvenate the game, but it seems that EA still wants more from the aging battle royale shooter. A much greater revamp is on the horizon, and it's important that this major Apex Legends update hits the right notes.
Respawn just released Season 24 of Apex Legends, and it's really changed up the game—tweaking some key elements to make fights faster and deadlier. However, prior to this season's release, EA CEO Andrew Wilson revealed during a financial call that Respawn is working on a '2.0' update to Apex Legends in response to falling revenues. Dwindling player counts and diminishing satisfaction have indeed been issues for Apex recently, especially after the string of controversies that hit the game in 2024. Stale gameplay, rampant hackers, long-standing bugs, and over-monetization have been where many have laid the blame, and a big update might just be the solution.
Apex Legends Releases New Update Following Season 24 Launch
The developer of the popular FPS battle royale title Apex Legends releases a new update following the recent launch of the game's Season 24.
What An Apex Legends 2.0 Update Should Look Like
Keep The Season 24 Gunplay, Move Away From Battle Royale
Apex Legends' Season 24 gameplay changes have been great, revitalizing a core gunplay system that's already fantastic. It also makes the game faster, which is something that recent updates have been going all in on. Prior updates have made it easier and faster to respawn, and allow players to keep their weapons and shield level when returning from death. Arsenals, a faster time-to-kill, faster crawling, and faster storm speed are all recent changes that emphasize a faster experience, improved all the more now that players can remain in the queue.
This all signals one thing in particular: that Apex Legends should phase out battle royale. It shouldn't ditch it entirely, but it shouldn't have as much emphasis. The battle royale craze has long passed by, and Fortnite has a stranglehold on the remaining market that Apex couldn't hope to thwart. Moreover, BR's prolonged form of gameplay has fallen out of favor, as evidenced by the changes that have made Apex based more on quick fights and less on trekking through a map gathering loot.
Again, Apex Legends shouldn't abandon its most popular mode, but it desperately needs more new modes for its Mixtape playlist. Respawn should consider changing how Mixtape works, adding more modes to it and allowing some modes to be accessible on their own. Modes like Apex's Gun Run are more popular than something like Control, and thus ought to be a constant option. In addition, these modes should see updates in the same way that Battle Royale does, even if to a lesser scale.
Apex 2.0 Needs A Proper Titanfall Mode
Titanfall 2's gameplay is still preferred by many franchise fans, but Apex shouldn't throw away its whole identity and just become Titanfall 3. However, bringing in a Titanfall mode, introducing Titan and Pilot gameplay with some Apex trappings, would help diversify the game's modes and win over many veteran fans. In fact, Apex might win even more goodwill by simply lifting Titanfall 2's most popular modes and adding in Apex-exclusive weapons and maps, as well as other remastered elements.
More Legends, Reworked Monetization
Apex is currently in a drought for new Legends, a trend that kicked off in Season 16. Not every update needs a new Legend necessarily, but every other season would be more reasonable. With the amount of characters being added to competitors like Marvel Rivals, Apex needs to up its game in this area.
Furthermore, Respawn should ditch lootboxes and certain milestone events, both of which have been steadily eroding goodwill towards Apex. Collection and milestone events have seen skyrocketing pricetags attached to completion, all while content output is on the decline. If these price-gouging elements were dropped, fans would be far happier to spend on the game.
Apex Legends
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 81 /100 Critics Rec: 74%
- Released
- February 4, 2019
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Blood, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Respawn Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
- Engine
- Source on console/PC, Unreal Engine 4 on mobile
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, PS4, Switch & Xbox One
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Battle Royale, First-Person Shooter
