Apex Legends players have discovered a novel new method of artificially inflating their stats in ranked and fans have had enough.
Explaining their experience in a recent Diamond lobby over on Reddit, user MohSSEEZZ recalls how, just moments into a match, they and their fellow teammates engage an enemy squad. Rather than do what any normal-minded competitor would and help their comrade out in the ensuing firefight, however, MohSEEZZ’s two ‘allies’ can be seen purposefully not engaging, preferring instead to stay on the sidelines and watch.
Upon being downed, both friendlies and opponents rush to huddle around their unfortunate victim, with the former standing idly by as their supposed crew member is eliminated for good. This process is repeated three times before MohSSEEZZ relents and quits, incurring a penalty through no fault of their own. The footage in question can be seen over on Reddit.
Responding to the thread, other commenters recall having endured similar experiences, with many ultimately proceeding to call out Respawn for not introducing countermeasures.
For folks unaware of the reasons behind such disruptive behavior, Apex Legends‘ competitive playlist progression functions on a points-based system. Wins, kills, revives and other modifiers all contribute to an end-of-match score which is subsequently added to a total. Rather than legitimately reach the pinnacle rank of Apex Predator, then, some players have resorted to ‘boosting’ as they’re unable to make the climb through genuine skill.
As for whether the loophole will be fixed (or, for that matter, if repeat offenders will be punished to any meaningful degree) remains to be seen, but Respawn has traditionally taken a hard stance against this type of activity, so stay tuned for an official statement.
