Innovation in industry is often dictated by trends, videos games are no exception. From the modern military shooters of the mid to late 2000s, to the current fad of Battle Royale games, most large companies see something succeed and want a piece of that action. Often times these companies miss the mark, see Medal of Honor compared to Call of Duty and NBA Live compared to the NBA 2K series. What do those two “copycat” game series have in common other than being discontinued aside from the occasional come back attempt? They’re both published by EA. Yes, the company many consider the worst in America. It should be clarified that it wasn’t voted worst gaming company, but instead worst company full stop. It may come as a surprise to you that this company currently has the hottest game in the world, despite it being another entry that could easily be hand waved away as a copycat. But how did Apex Legends do the seemingly impossible and supplant Fortnite, at least for the time being, as the Battle Royale king? Let’s find out.
In 2017 things looked bleak for Respawn entertainment. A company started by former Infinity Ward developers Vince Zampella and Jason West, also creators of such classics as Call of Duty Modern Warfare and its sequel, Modern Warfare 2. Their follow up to the studios first game Titanfall, Titanfall 2 was sandwiched between Call Of Duty Infinite Warfare, the most appropriately named sequel yet, and EA’s own Battlefield 1. Despite Titanfall 2 receiving critical praise, it ultimately sold poorly due in no small part to the absurd release window. Rumors ran rampant regarding Titanfall 3, and it was announced the studio would be working on a Star Wars game to be released in the coming years. That was all the information fans of the series had until Monday February 4th.
On the Monday in question, Apex Legends was announced via a live stream. We’ve seen albums drop with no warning, it is even a bit of a trend itself. However, very rarely do we see a game come out without the typical media push. Rarer still is this method used by triple A studios such as Respawn. It was a risk, an astutely calculated one of course, but a risk all the same. Even riskier was the price, the game is available on PC, Xbox and PS4 for free. The risks paid off though, as of Tuesday February 12th, a little over a week post launched, Zampella tweeted out that the player base had surpassed 25 million players. What aside from the price point could lead to such success?
The short answer is the game itself is damn good, borrowing from other games not only in the Battle Royale genre but beyond with the decision to add a hero shooter element, Apex Legends has created a fun and addictive shooter. The aforementioned hero roster is diverse and inclusive creating an accessible atmosphere for new players. The skill distribution is equally enticing as it’s easy to be decent but offers plenty of room to grow for players who want a deeper Battle Royale experience.
As Samuel Adams, host and creator of the Samuel Adams channel on Youtube, which focuses on video game news put it;
“It has the feel of an old-school FPS but incorporates some of the team-based elements of stuff like Overwatch.
But solid gameplay isn’t a guarantee of success in today’s influencer driven games landscape. Fortnite had been the go to game for streamers on Twitch for the past year and a half. Creators, such as the massively popular Ninja, have created careers out of capturing Victory Royales. Apex Legends has even managed to usurp many of Fortnite’s streamers and in turn their audience. The highest number of viewers I’ve seen watching at one time is 500,000 concurrent, easily claiming the top spot.
At this point it seems as if Respawn can do no wrong, and it will be interesting to see if they can hold onto the gaming public’s good will. Conversely, can EA stay out of their own way with this one and let Apex Legends carry on without garnering bad press. The two paths seem equally possible which makes a prediction on my part feckless at best. The coming months will write the story for Apex Legends, until then pick a hero, jump out of the drop ship with your friends and see if you can be the last ones standing.
BUT that's not overbearing either. It's just team-based enough to satisfy squads, but there is still a high value for being a good player in general.” -@PrettyChillGuy
But solid gameplay isn’t a guarantee of success in today’s influencer driven games landscape. Fortnite had been the go to game for streamers on Twitch for the past year and a half. Creators, such as the massively popular Ninja, have created careers out of capturing Victory Royales. Apex Legends has even managed to usurp many of Fortnite’s streamers and in turn their audience. The highest number of viewers I’ve seen watching at one time is 500,000 concurrent, easily claiming the top spot.
At this point it seems as if Respawn can do no wrong, and it will be interesting to see if they can hold onto the gaming public’s good will. Conversely, can EA stay out of their own way with this one and let Apex Legends carry on without garnering bad press. The two paths seem equally possible which makes a prediction on my part feckless at best. The coming months will write the story for Apex Legends, until then pick a hero, jump out of the drop ship with your friends and see if you can be the last ones standing.
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