Apex Legends takes on Fortnite for battle royale crown, adding new twists to genre’s gameplay
- From out of nowhere, Apex Legends, the new battle royale game by Respawn Entertainment, racked up 10 million players in three days
- With intuitive twists like keeping killed players in the game, it could pose a credible threat to industry-leader Fortnite
Before last week, barely anyone had heard of Apex Legends. It was a project kept so tightly under wraps that when it suddenly launched on February 4, it took video gamers completely by surprise – a difficult thing to do in an industry known for its flashy hype and zealous marketing efforts.
But the stealth approach appears to be working: the game that’s trying to beat industry leader Fortnite at its own formula has grown even faster in its opening days than Fortnite itself.
In its first three days alone, Apex Legends racked up 10 million new players, according to its developer. It took two weeks for Fortnite’s battle royale game to hit the same mark.
Like Fortnite, Apex Legends is a free-to-play competitive shooter that forces players closer and closer together over the course of a match. It also features vibrantly animated characters that are each unique and have special abilities.
But Apex Legends also adds a twist on the battle royale game mode – it allows characters to redeploy if they’re killed, so that players who are killed can stay engaged the whole time. Together with slick movement mechanics and intuitive teamplay, Apex Legends is proving to be an instant hit.
“We knew it would be risky to take the franchise in this direction, to go free to play, and do a surprise launch. But we fell in love with Apex Legends and wanted, needed, other people to play it too,” wrote Vince Zampella, chief executive of developer Respawn Entertainment, in a blog post announcing the 10-million-player milestone.