Unsurprisingly, Apex Legends has become something of a honeypot for cheaters and unsavoury players alike. For some, the temptation to gain an advantage over other players by any means necessary inevitably results in using illegal means to do so, a sad reality that’s especially true in the sphere of competitive gaming. If there’s glory, fame or monetary rewards on the line, you can bet your bottom dollar that cheaters will emerge from the woodwork in an attempt to ruin the legitimate efforts of honest folk, and in Apex Legends‘ case, it’s bore the brunt of that plague since launch back in February.
Respawn, however, has had enough. Announced today via a blog post, executive producer Drew McCoy confirmed that the total of number players banned from the shores of Kings Canyon now stands at an eye-watering 770,000. For obvious reasons, he’s reluctant to share specific details regarding the studio’s new and improved anti-cheat software, but there’s still plenty to digest, regardless.
Most notably, the recent ban wave is the result of a collaborative effort, says McCoy, who heaps praise on EA, DICE, Capital Games and several others for helping it tackle the ongoing problem. As has become evident in the past, however, banning cheaters doesn’t take care of the root cause. Individuals responsible for the cheats themselves often escape unpunished, sometimes generating profit in the thousands from selling malicious software. This time around, however, they’re not so lucky.
Check out some new statistics below:
- The recently added in-game reporting tool has had a big impact on discovering new cheats, including previously undetectable cheats that are now being found automatically via EAC
- Total bans are now at 770K players
- We have blocked over 300K account creations
- We have banned over 4,000 cheat seller accounts (spammers) in the last 20 days
- Total matches on PC impacted by cheaters or spammers has been reduced by over half in the last month due to recent efforts.
The war is far from over, but it’s nonetheless promising to see Respawn make such strides in supporting its youngest. Addressing cheaters was one of the big sticking points outlined in the developers’ candid address to fans last week, and McCoy signs off today’s update by promising further news on another key issue to come.
In the meantime, let us know in the usual place below if you’ve noticed an improved play experience following Apex Legends‘ most recent purge.
