Apex Legends turns three and prepares to change everything with the launch of Defiance
In 2019, Respawn Entertainment surprised gamers by following up its Titanfall games with something slightly different, instead opting for a take on the (then) new and growing free-to-play battle royale genre with Apex Legends.
You know what happened next. After a healthy dose of promoted live streams, the game quickly carved out a unique space and grew rapidly in popularity, racking up 25 million registered players in one week and crossing the 100 million mark in time for its second birthday. Now, Apex Legends is turning three, and in a conversation with The Verge, game director Steven Ferreira said that this year, players should expect to see the title do things that are completely unlike what we’ve seen so far while still keeping the battle royale as the core of the game.
In terms of changes, I don’t think that any stick out as much as the coming addition of Control, a 9 vs. 9 team deathmatch where the two sides battle for the high score by taking over specific map locations. Instead of looting, players select an initial loadout, then get new items from airdrops or as killstreak-like upgrades to their current gear based on playing well.
It’s a far more traditional kind of shooter experience than standard Apex Legends, and the developers acknowledged that, calling it a good place to get in and learn, especially while everyone is going to have to adjust to a new mode.
I played a few rounds with other journalists, developers, and content creators and came away with mixed feelings — it’s so much fun to play the same game with more freedom to try things knowing you’ll get another life in a few seconds, but right now, it’s still not as polished as other games that have a more refined approach to this setup, like Call of
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