An accident experiment and an unexpected success — what we know about Apex Legends and what is going on in the battle royale by Respawn

In 2017, the gaming industry was conquered by PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS – the game that has raised the battle royale genre. Brendan Greene’s creature faced overwhelming success: PUBG sold 13 million copies in the first 7 months after its release on Steam. 2 million users were playing PUBG on Steam at its peak, which beat the results of such mastodons as CSGO and Dota 2 easily. Such an extraordinary event could not leave unnoticed and it didn’t. PUBG created a new genre, which predetermined the fashion followed by FPS shooters in the upcoming years. Many companies tried to make their own PUBG but very few managed to make it right. Respawn with Apex Legends was among them. We will tell you about not the most popular one but the battle royale game, which densely occupied its niche.

The game was supposed to be the Titanfall spinoff but it appeared to be way more successful than its predecessor

Respawn Entertainment is mostly famous for its Titanfall dilogy. It is a multiplayer first-person shooter in the sci-fi setting. The main feature of Titanfall is an opportunity to control mechs and make tricks like in the movie «District 13». The game had success: it was praised by critics, it received lots of rewards, and players were excited. And all of that happened in the year when Battlefield 4 and Call of Duty: Ghosts were released.

The sequel was released in 2016 – Titanfall 2, which received cold reactions on its release but it is still warmly loved by many. This time, the well-written lore and memorable charismatic heroes stood behind wall jumps and seven-meter Titans. The story campaign appeared in the second part of Titanfall and the concept of the fully multiplayer shooter was refused.

The success of both Titanfall parts made the game publisher in the face of EA act drastically: Respawn Entertainment became a part of Electronic Arts in 2017. The sum of the deal amounted to $151 million in cash and $164 million of equity capital. After that, Respawn «hibernated», working mainly on EA’s side projects but hoping to revive the Titanfall series. They received such an opportunity due to the success of the above-mentioned PUBG. Fans met Apex Legends two years later – the game in the Titanfall universe, which is connected with the original series indirectly.

Of course, many fans of the original dilogy were upset but many people decided to try the game. Despite Apex Legends having no giant Titans and the parkour system being minimized, it does not stop the game from finding its audience.

What is Apex and what should you do in it?

Apex Legends is a first-person shooter in the battle royale genre. Players are offered to try their power in the battles between the squads, consisting of 2 or 3 persons.

The actions of the battle royale happen 17 years after the events of Titanfall 2. The war in Frontier is over and citizens of the devastated planets in the system have to leave their houses. They go to the Outlands, which survived after the crushing war.

At the moment of writing the material, there are 3 maps in Apex: Kings Canyon, World’s Edge, and Olympus. Apex Games are hosted there, in which Legends from all systems participate.

Legends of Apex - the main feature and leverage of Apex Legends

The Titanfall developers wanted to make not just the clone of the popular PUBG but to bring something new into the genre. As a result, they created Apex Legends – the ideological successor of Titanfall, which has its own identity. The legacy of Titanfall helped them a lot. The focus in Apex Legends, unlike PUBG, is made not on the serious realism but the exact opposite thing. It is the sci-fi setting after all, which is mixed with futurism and detailed lore.

In Apex Legends, users play as full well-considered heroes called Legends in the Apex world. There are 17 heroes at the moment of writing:

• Professional Soldier Bangalore;
• Technological Tracker Bloodhound;
• Winged Avenger Valkyrie;
• Static Defender Wattson;
• Shielded Fortress Gibraltar;
• Toxic Trapper Caustic;
• Surveillance Expert Crypto;
• Combat Medic Lifeline;
• Translocating Thief Loba;
• Holographic Trickster Mirage;
• High-speed Daredevil Octane;
• Forward Scout Pathfinder;
• Amped Modder Rampart;
• Synthetic Nightmare Revenant;
• Interdimensional Skirmisher Wraith;
• Bombastic Explosives Expert Fuse;
• Gravitational Manipulator Horizon.

Every character has unique abilities and skills. Also, there is the class system in Apex Legends: offensive, defensive, recon, and support. However, the direct class distribution was refused after 9 seasons: players are not limited, you can play every hero however you want. In addition to the topic of the Apex heroes, we can't help but notice the storytelling by Respawn. The game world is expanded regularly and the main driving force is «Stories from the Outlands» - a series of videos dedicated to different characters and the history of the Apex world.

The multifunctionality of the characters in Apex is due to the features of the battle royale gameplay. It is another Respawn’s ace in the hole.

High speeds, moves, or the gameplay of Apex Legends

Respawn did not make the full sequel of Titanfall but no one stopped them from using ideas from their series. The dynamics of Titanfall successfully moved to Apex Legends. Although you can’t control giant robots in Apex now, you can have fun at the Arenas in a different way.

Respawn’s battle royale is probably the most spectacular one among all the battle royales. It is mainly due to its vertical gameplay. In Apex Legends, you can climb on the rocks, houses, use hooks, tackles, and other acrobatic movements almost everywhere where it is possible. Besides, among the 17 above-mentioned Legends, some of them can easily maneuver in zero gravity, attacking enemies.

The full and well-considered characters combined with the pretty unusual battle royale gameplay stand out Apex among its competitors. Also, we can talk about the advantages of Apex Legends in terms of the gaming mechanics but it will be more interesting to take a look at the esports part of the game. In any case, big projects must always have the potential to develop the competitive scene.

Esports in Apex Legends

The unexpected success of Apex Legends made EA think about the support of the game. And we know well that it is not enough just to promote it through adding cosmetic characters and seasonal events. It is important to support the competitive scene of the game, provide impetus to the players to become the best, and improve their skills in the game.

Just because Apex Legends is a young discipline, its esports branch is developed respectively.

The first large Apex Legends championship was the tournament Apex Legends Preseason Invitational, which took place in Krakow in September 2019. 80 invited teams were competing for $500,000 at the tournament. The victory was achieved in Krakow by Team SoloMid, which overcame Natus Vincere.

The game went on a hunger strike after Apex Legends Preseason Invitational: the tournament of this level stopped being scheduled and esports organizations began leaving the discipline. The COVID-19 pandemic made not the smallest impact on the regression of the competitive scene. However, professional players were not left without their work. Esports in AL moved to the format of the league called Apex Legends Global Series. It is pretty simple: play online championships, earn ALGS points, receive a slot in the Major tournament.

The main feature of the ALGS system is transparency. Every PC player can participate in online championships. You just have to fill the registration form.

The first ALGS season was successfully over and the second season was officially presented. 5 million dollars will be up for grabs in ALGS in the new competitive year and the main thing is that EA and Respawn promise to host the LAN event, which was not organized due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Summing up

Having developed as the Titanfall spinoff, Apex Legends is feeling full and fresh. Yes, the game has problems with cheaters, the radical monetization system through the in-game shop, and the uneven development of esports in regions. But who has no sins? What is more, the majority of issues can be explained with its age – Apex Legends is a very young game after all but it is pretty mature for the battle royale.

Let’s see what fate the different battle royale game will have and if it faces the fate of PUBG and the rest of its failed clones.

Thanks for reading and see you soon on EGamersWorld.