EA recently announced the Battle Pass overhaul in Apex Legends, which has turned out to be one of the most controversial changes in the history of the first-person shooter. While they say this will improve the value and reduce the grind to unlock rewards, the community believes the remodeling is outright greedy and unnecessary.
The moment Apex Legends shared the blog about the Battle Pass update which is to arrive with the Season 22 update, social media platforms were flooded with criticism from fans and community figures alike. When giving his take, popular content creator Noko didn't hold back, saying, "This some of the most EA s*** I've ever seen", which is hard to disagree with.
Until now, each seasonal update in Apex Legends came with a fresh Battle Pass with 110 levels of cosmetic rewards unlockable by playing the game. From Season 22 Shockwave onwards, the game will feature two Battle Passes for each season (i.e. one for each split). Each Battle Pass will now have 60 levels instead of 110 and an improved set of rewards as you can see in the image above.
Previously, the Battle Pass could be purchased by spending Apex Coins which you had collected over time (950 coins for Premium and 2800 coins for Premium+ Pass). With the new update, you will only be able to buy a Battle Pass by spending money ($10 for Premium and $20 for Premium+ Pass). This is one of the main reasons behind the united outcry by the player base.
Furthermore, given the two Battle Passes each season, if you want to collect all the cosmetic rewards you'll have to spend $20 in total for the Premium and $40 for the Premium+ Battle Pass. Based on all the reddit and Twitter discussions about this matter, it's clear many are reluctant to spend money twice every seasonal update.
More pressing matters
Apex Legends is a one-of-a-kind game that has been amongst the most played first person shooters for the past few years. However, this Battle Pass change adds to a pile of other issues that could contribute to its downfall.
The game has for a long time been in an unpleasant state thanks to the server connectivity issues, bugs, and rampant cheater problem as mentioned by Reddit user tobifrass. This update was announced when everyone was expecting Respawn to talk about what changes they've planned to fix the major problems that have been persisting in Apex Legends. Instead, they gave players a Battle Pass overhaul they didn't really want.
While saying this update was "the final nail in the coffin", user randomredditing also added that Respawn hasn't yet addressed the Cronus problem, which some controller players use to cheat by toning down weapon recoil and boost aim assist.
What caught my attention the most was a simple question by Spitfirekeen who asked how paying $20 for a game with no server in his entire continent is justifiable. Yes, indeed, Africa doesn't have any servers for Apex Legends. It can be said that the community isn't massive in that region, but if someone from South Africa is to play the game, the least ping they can expect is 180 ms, which is atrocious for a multiplayer first person shooter.
Battle Pass boycott incoming
Several players have expressed they've uninstalled Apex Legends and aren't going to play the game until the problems are resolved, while others are organizing a full-on protest.
To summarize, the proposed strategy involves avoiding playing or funding the game in any way or engaging with the community in any way apart from furthering the boycott.
Comments in response to the call for action are positive, echoing the sentiment players should stop funding the game to make their voice heard. "Don't pay. That's the way," writes Appropriate-Pride608 (a protest slogan if I ever heard one), while joeyb908 chimes in, "Don't pay, don't play." Elsewhere, Narukami_7 suggests a reboot of a previous protest ("No Apex August"), which would give fans plenty of time to organize, while having a catchy name to boot.
It's unclear how widespread this boycott will be and whether it will lead to a reversion of the changes or Respawn addressing the criticism (the previous No Apex August actually led to a surge in players), but for now, 1311 upvotes and 311 comments as of writing is an impressive start. Whatever the outcome, you have to admire such a spirited community coming together with a clear aim.
With any luck, Electronic Arts will listen and respond with at least a more reasonable Battle Pass (it wouldn't be the first time we've seen such a thing from a publisher), though a full-on reversion may be best.
For more on Apex Legends, check out How to get all free rewards in Apex Legends Double Take collection event on Pro Game Guides.
Praharsh Kashyap is a video gaming enthusiast from India currently working as a Contributing Writer at Pro Game Guides. He has been playing and covering first-person shooters such as Call of Duty, Battlefield, and Apex Legends for years now. Besides FPS games, he also likes to indulge in RPGs every now and then.