Apex Legends’ launch is an overwhelming success

Respawn Entertainment’s surprise Battle Royale game has launched as a massive success. The game was revealed and then released in a matter of hours to PC, Xbox One and PS4. Despite having a complete absence of pre-release hype, Apex Legends amassed over 1 million unique players in just 8 hours.

Respawn Entertainment founder Vince Zampella announced the amazing news via Tweet, an accomplishment that he describes as overwhelming.

I’m so overwhelmed right now, @PlayApex broke a million unique players in under 8 hours. ❤️❤️❤️

Thank you so much for showing up and being part of this with @Respawn you are amazing!! pic.twitter.com/lvNgfwwKhl

— Vince Zampella (@VinceZampella) February 5, 2019

Battle Royale games have been a huge trend for the last couple of years, and things certainly aren’t slowing down. With the likes of Fortnite and Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds already breaking sales figures and player counts, many predicted there wasn’t enough room left in the market for another competitor. This theory was then reinforced by a series of failed games such as Radical Heights, The Culling 2, and to a lesser extent Realm Royale.

Apex Legends and its phenomenal opening days proves that there certainly is room for another Battle Royale game. The game is free to play (with microtransactions) and has a stronger focus on teamwork. After playing some matches myself I can see where the popularity is coming from. Apex Legends feels amazing to play in both shooting and movement.

This game is from Respawn, the developers of the critically acclaimed Titanfall series, so I guess that comes as no shock. With different classes offering different abilities, a gorgeous environment, and a looting system that feels incredibly intuitive, I can see Apex Legends remaining as a favourite for Battle Royale fans. Congratulations to the team at Respawn for their tremendous success.