Apex Legends is a hugely successful IP published by EA and developed by Respawn Entertainment. Ever since its surprise launch in February 2019, the game has garnered millions of players with its fast-paced gameplay and unique world and characters. With each new year and season, Apex Legends has grown to become one of the biggest live service games on the market.
Despite these changes, Apex Legends isn't perfect. As in-game seasons come and go, the flaws in the game become more and more apparent. Hit registration issues, broken legend abilities, and lack of audio cues are just a few problems that have plagued the game since launch. Not only that, but content for the Apex Legends has also become more sparse - with Respawn Entertainment reusing limited time modes like Control so frequently that they might as well be a permanent part of the game. To this end, some fans are planning "No Apex August" - a boycott event that hopes to capture both EA's and Respawn Entertainment's attention so that the publisher and developer can fix the beloved battle royale game.
Where Did No Apex August Start?
The exact origin of the planned Apex Legends boycott seems to come from a Reddit post by user Laughing Prince dating back to June 26. While the post's initial intent was to get people to stop playing Apex Legends for a single day in July to get the attention of the developers and publishers, it has since blown up into a planned one-month boycott. Comments under the Reddit post show players who are tired of Apex Legends; possibly logging in only to complete their battle pass challenges before playing something else. As of writing, the post has 4.9k upvotes.
What Are The Problems With Apex Legends?
The idea of No Apex August seems to stem from two primary sources: the game's persistent issues and the lack of new, compelling content. The amount of issues Apex Legends has are too numerous to count, but some of them have been in the game since its 2019 launch. These include audio bugs and bad servers that result in lag and horrible hit registration. Compounding these older issues are new ones, such as the legend Wraith becoming invincible when she uses her abilities and interactions with Replicators taking control away from the players.
While some of the new issues have been recently patched, the time it takes Respawn Entertainment to fix them is far too long. Considering Apex Legends is a competitive first-person battle royale game, patches addressing gameplay bugs should be released more frequently. Compare this to how quickly the developers patch issues regarding cosmetics, and it isn't hard to see why players are more than a little annoyed with how Apex Legends handles patches.
The second issue is content. Apex Legends is currently on its thirteenth season, but the content introduced to the game is lacking. When the season launched, players got a new point of interest on Storm Point by way of the Downed Beast. They also got four small IMC armories dotted around the map. Two new map additions are pretty lackluster for Apex Legends, seeing as past seasons gave players new maps and more gameplay variety. Even the mid-season update only saw one new addition, that being Lifeline's Clinic on Olympus. Considering how much content was brought out in Apex Legends' earlier seasons, it's no wonder why players feel like Respawn Entertainment isn't giving it their all anymore.
Can The Event Change Anything?
While the idea of No Apex August has spread throughout the community, 4,900 upvotes represent a tiny fraction of Apex Legends' total player base. Because of this, fans are skeptical about the boycott's success. Getting a few thousand players to stop playing Apex Legends might put a dent in the game's player count for a short while, but it seems minuscule compared to the total number of players who log into the game and spend money on it.
Some comments on the Reddit post suggest that instead of not playing the game, Apex Legends players should forgo purchasing cosmetics for the entire month of August. This would hit the developer and publisher where it really hurts. Since Apex Legends is a free-to-play game, most of its income comes from cosmetics and the seasonal battle pass. Disrupting the flow of money for a good month, especially one where a new Apex Legends season is supposed to drop, could get EA's and Respawn Entertainment's attention and force them to take action.
Currently, there is about half a month left before August starts. During this time, the number of upvotes on the No Apex August Reddit post may rise, and the movement might catch the attention of more players. This would lead to a much more successful event that can either decrease Apex Legends' player count or reduce the number of people who purchase skins and the battle pass. Only time will tell if No Apex August will be successful or not but either way, both EA and Respawn Entertainment have to take this event as a sign that a good portion of the Apex Legends community is unhappy with the game.
Apex Legends is currently available on Mobile, PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Source: Reddit