Apex Legends will finally receive a frequently requested feature next week. Due to arrive on August 13th, fans of the battle royale will have access to a new solo queue mode as part of a brand new event. This is undoubtedly the occasion first teased by EA boss Andrew Wilson in an earlier earnings call and is scheduled to run for a two-week duration. For lone wolves, in particular, the news couldn’t have come sooner, but even team players will no doubt welcome the addition of new ways to play.
The caveat to this announcement, of course, is that Apex‘s long-awaited solo mode isn’t intended to be a permanent fixture, at least not yet. Come the conclusion of Respawn’s so-called Iron Crown Collection event, everything included with it will be bid a fond farewell, with only cosmetic skins and the like sticking around, should you unlock them. A somewhat disappointing decision, then, but according to one popular streamer, many players will be glad to see the back of solos later this month.
Why? We’ll let Michael “Shroud” Grzesiak speak for himself in the clip below.
Final judgement should be reserved until fans have had ample time to sample Apex Legends‘ take on solos, but Shroud certainly makes a good point. Respawn designed its shooter with only team-based play in mind. Because of that, support heroes such as Lifeline and Wattson lose much, if not all, of their utility in a solo setting. After all, what use are team-wide buffs if there are no teammates present to receive their benefits?
A workaround to this, of course, is to simply pick a more self-serving character like Octane or Wraith, but it’s hardly an ideal end result. Ultimately, Respawn has made the wise decision to introduce a solo mode on limited-time terms. This way, it’s able to test the waters without committing to a permanent addition right off the bat.
If only for variety’s sake, let’s hope Shroud’s prediction misses its mark.