Apex Legends is currently a well-loved battle royale title, but it seems the devs are hoping to keep that popularity going for a long, long time. In a recent interview, the design director of Apex Legends discussed the game's future, and has hopes that it can survive for twenty years, like the iconic Counter-Strike.
While some fans may still be mourning the loss of Apex Legends Mobile, which is due to shut down in May, the core game is still going strong. Apex Legends' Season 16 just launched, and players are eagerly diving into the game to check out everything new, including Team Deathmatch mode.
Apex Legends design director Evan Nikolich sat down for an interview with IGN, where he expressed his feelings about the game and what he hopes for it to achieve. Making it to twenty years doesn't necessarily mean that Respawn itself will still be supporting the game with new updates and content twenty years after its release. While that would likely please the dev team, the ultimate goal is that the base game has solid enough foundations and continues to be fun to play, potentially even opening the door to fan-made content:
"Where we want to get to is that Apex is going to last for 20 years like Counter-Strike... It has to be able to be self-sufficient and stand on its own. The systems have to be strong and interesting and good for players to play season over season, even if we're not adding new bespoke content. But there'll always be some attending there in terms of creating interesting choice, creating interesting challenge and shifting the rule set that builds the healthiest game."
Nikolich went on to compare Apex Legends to basketball's early days as a sport, indicating that many changes and additions to the game are still yet to come. Although Apex Legends has already been out for five years, it receives regular seasonal updates and fresh content for players to enjoy. Season 16 of Apex Legends lacks a new legend to try out, instead focusing on balancing the playable characters already on the roster. Judging from Nikolich's comments, though, Apex Legends has a lot of content that's still in the development or planning stages.
The notion of Apex Legends still being a fan favorite in twenty years is likely a bittersweet one for fans of the franchise. Apex Legends has experienced significant success since its launch, even though the Titanfall games it spun off of have struggled to find a foothold. Titanfall: Assault has been shut down for years, and other Titanfall spin-off projects were canceled while still in the works. Many players have continued to hold onto hope that the games that started it all will get some kind of continuation, though.
While it may not be the game that every player wanted, Apex Legends has carved out a place for itself among battle royale games. If the devs get their wish, the future will be very bright for Apex Legends fans. And many would likely agree that Apex Legends keeping the Titanfall universe alive is a good thing, even if another Titanfall game never comes out.
Apex Legends is available now for Mobile, PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Source: IGN