Apex Legends Season 4 Introduces New Sentinel Bolt-Action Sniper Rifle

Respawn Entertainment has finally pulled back the curtain on Apex Legends Season 4.

As part of a livestream earlier today, the developer revealed a number of new details for the battle royale’s fourth tri-monthly refresh, including an official name: Assimilation. It’s with this update that a previously leaked hero will join the existing roster and, as always, they’ll be joined with a brand new addition to Apex’s armory.

Feast your eyes on the Sentinel bolt-action sniper rifle via the gallery below:

This fearsome new weapon, says executive producer Drew McCoy, not only “feels really powerful,” but boasts a slick unique animation whenever the user drops the mag for a fresh reload. “It’s a little different than our other sniper rifles,” McCoy continues, revealing that the new firearm has a special charge mechanic. While no further specifics beyond that tease were shared, we can sort of guess how the feature will work thanks to the Havoc Rifle. Introduced with Apex‘s inaugural season, the Havoc encourages players to charge the weapon for a period of time before letting go of the trigger. This not only boosts the resulting shot’s power but its range, too.

Considering sniper rifles are traditionally a long-ranged weapon, though, we imagine well-timed charging of the Sentinel will bestow a range of different benefits. We’ll ultimately just have to wait and see what direction Respawn is planning to take this latest addition to the sandbox in,, but in the meantime, there’s plenty of new Season 4 news to keep your eyes occupied. In fact, why not head over here for your first official look at the handsome Forge?

Apex Legends Season 4 begins February 4th for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC. Expect the inevitable launch trailer to drop next week.