Apex Legends Season 18 is upon us, and if there’s one thing to take away from all the hubbub, it’s that casual players are eating good right now. The reworked Revenant is ripe for newcomers to jump into fights with no regard for their teammates. The changes to SMGs make shotguns far better, and we all know that boomsticks are the crutch of noobs. The strong focus on story, with main characters set to be killed off by the cruel writers, is intended to draw new players in. Did you know that both Rs in George R. R. Martin stand for Respawn?
I’m exaggerating for comic effect, in case that wasn’t abundantly clear already. However, I’ve heard similar complaints over the past couple of days about the game’s casual appeal, and while most are ridiculous, there’s a kernel of truth at the centre of it all. Apex Legends is a game that caters to its casual players, and Season 18 doubles down on that in a few important ways.
The first of these changes is Revenant Reborn. While the old Legend gave you an extra life, the new version has a handful of buffs that make it far easier to learn. Forged Shadows, his new ultimate, gives him extra shields so those naive pushes aren’t punished, while Shadow Pounce lets him find fights at an alarming rate. While these abilities are much easier to learn than his previous silencing techniques, the real proof that Apex is catering predominately to casual players now is his passive, which highlights low-health opponents.
There was a time when the only Legend able to scan through walls – known as “wallhacking” thanks to it being only available through cheats in most competitive games – was Bloodhound. As they’re a tracker, this fits thematically with Bloodhound’s kit, and while they were a prominent Legend in the meta for a time, they never felt oppressive thanks to its implementation. More Legends were added that used similar wallhacks, from Valkyrie’s scans (that admittedly don’t see through walls, but still identify opposing teams’ positions for free rotations or third parties), to Seer’s entire ability kit. Vantage marks enemies for her team when she hits them with her sniper rifle. Mad Maggie’s drill highlights opponents through walls if it hits them, despite her being an offensive character and not recon-oriented in any way.
Then, Legends had wallhacks added in reworks. Fuse’s orbital bombardment highlights enemies caught in its flames, and now Revenant joins the party. Enemies on low health are highlighted for him, and if he does any damage to them, they’re highlighted for the whole team. Apex Legends is leaning so far into the wallhack meta that it’s becoming a game of wallhacks, and picking a squad without one highlighting character will soon be throwing away your chances of winning before you’ve even started. Instead of addressing the problem and rewarding good positioning and gunplay, Respawn is ensuring wallhacks are a fundamental part of Apex Legends going forward.
The next change is a subtle one, but meaningful. The ring now does more damage in the early stages of the game, and less in the later stages compared to previous seasons. This is going to encourage players to drop hot in the centre of the map and rotate early, increasing the pace of matches at a rapid level. This isn’t catering to new players per se, but it’s ignoring those at the highest level.
“ALGS could use a pace increase”, explains design director Evan Nikolich, laying out his reasoning for the changes and how they impact the game’s competitive scene. Many teams who play edge strategies will have to revise their tactics, and those that like to craft in zone before rotating late may have to change their system completely in order to compete. Nikolich stresses that quicker matches will be better for viewers, and I’m inclined to agree, but it shows where Respawn’s priorities lie. It wants a product that is good for those watching, not those playing.
A lot of these changes are just good business sense. At its heart, Apex is a live-service game that relies on new players to keep the servers running. Rather, it requires consistent players, and perhaps enticing new players is easier than encouraging old ones to stick around. Casual fans make up the vast majority of the playerbase, after all, they're just not as vocal in online spaces. A faster pace means more exciting and action-packed battle royale rounds, rather than the tactical edge that dropping cold and rotating quickly requires. However, it limits those who know the game inside and out, increasing RNG when more players land in the central areas to avoid the ring.
The same goes for scans. Good positioning and careful fighting is discouraged when you can see the precise location of every opponent in an enemy squad. Apex used to be a game that sold itself on its slick movement, but now its defining feature may be its wallhacks.
One change to help better players is the removal of dive trails as ranked rewards. Respawn saw this created toxic behaviour as low-rated players converged on those with Masters or Apex Predator trails to punch them out before they could even grab a gun, ruining their games before they’d even begun. With the number of new players w-keying with a souped-up Revenant in Season 18, that change might be the most necessary yet.