‘Apex Legends’ First Thoughts

I just downloaded Apex Legends yesterday, and if I had only one thing to say about it so far, it would have to be I have no idea what I’m doing. The concept is interesting, with squads of three with each character having their own “Legend” character with a particular class/skill. This game could be extremely popular, but I don’t know if it will take over Fortnite like they hope.

Although there is a tutorial upon starting the game, I found myself struggling during actual gameplay. The tutorial just runs you through the basics, and there’s no way of finding out what each individual Legend is capable of. I have no earthly idea what their unique abilities and skills are aside from the general description of what they do (although it looks like their website tells you). So for now I just pick out which character looks coolest to me. It’s a solid strategy for sure.

I wish there was a solo mode that would at least give you a feel of the game at first. You can only play in teams of three, and I had trouble finding where the weapons and loot boxes even were. The pressure of being on a team when you have no experience is immense at first, and doesn’t allow you the chance to feel free to mess around and work things out like you could in a solo match. You wouldn’t put someone at quarterback if they never played football before, so why would you instantly throw someone out there in a squad with life or death on the line? Just my thought.

I have only played a few matches so far, but there seems to be a pretty big learning curve. The map is brand new to me, and I have no idea what any of the weapons are and which ones are good and which ones are lame. As I stated earlier, I also have no idea what these specific characters play like, so I have no clue what style I like best. I wish there were a way to toy around with each Legend and see how they move and what their abilities are like outside of normal gameplay. As of right now, I am just winging it, but it would be helpful if I could figure out what all they can do and how they can be useful to the team. It seems like there’s a lot of stuff thrown at the player at once without much explanation at all.

I will say that the intro scene that pulls up when you first play the game is pretty epic, and the game looks pretty cool. In one of my first games, I got assassinated out of nowhere, and I couldn’t help but think how dope it looked even though I became eliminated. All of the characters have unique looks as well, and there seems to be a vast customization system that could be fun to use as you level up throughout the game.

I will give this game a chance, but so far I am a little disappointed in what I have seen so far. I want this game to be good because I’m a big fan of Respawn Entertainment founders Jason West and Vince Zampella (also the founders of Infinity Ward). It’s obviously still early, but from what I’ve played so far, I don’t think I can get into this game for the long-run. I’m honestly not even that big of a fan of Fortnite, but based upon my first impression, Apex Legends still has a ways to go.