Apex Legends Update Nerfs One Of The Game’s Most Powerful Weapons

Respawn has just rolled out a new update for Apex Legends in its never-ending struggle to achieve perfect balance in the metagame.

The Peacekeeper shotgun, long considered to be one of the battle royale’s most fearsome weapons, has had its overall power level adjusted as part of the patch, which should have already gone live across all platforms. As to what the changes entail, they’re not too heavy-handed and certainly won’t outright kill the weapon’s popularity. Rather, the tweaks are clearly meant to bring the firearm in-line with others in its close-ranged archetype.

The adjustments are as follows.

• Increased rechamber time: 1.1. to 1.2.
• Decreased headshot multiplier: 1.5 to 1.25

Incremental changes, then, and while those are certainly preferable over, say, completely nerfing the Peacekeeper into oblivion, some fans have taken issue with the perceived ‘soft’ approach. Competitive and professional players, in particular, believe Respawn hasn’t gone far enough, with Twitch streamer Rogue stating that issues with the Peacekeeper were never about inflated damage numbers, but the “pellet size” because “at any point even someone who kinda sucks can still hit you.”

It wasn't about the damage numbers, it was about the pellet size because at any point even someone who kinda sucks can still hit you. If you lower that down some, or back to where it was and return the headshot and the rechamber – the PC is back to normal.

— Liquid | Rogue (@TTrebb) November 22, 2019

Fortunately, the developer isn’t averse to making repeated visits to a problem weapon should players still request as such, so there’s still every chance of the Peacekeeper’s strengths being reined in further. For now, though, the studio will likely be gathering feedback on this most recent update and respond accordingly, should it feel it necessary to do so.

As for the wider world of Apex Legends, events have returned to normal, following the recent conclusion of the title’s long-awaited Duos mode. With the year’s biggest holiday season but a few weeks away, we expect Respawn to have a suitably-themed festive affair planned for the near future. Watch this space.