Season 9 of Apex Legends launched on May 4. While this season adds a huge amount of new content to the game, the launch hasn’t been perfect. Respawn has released an update to fix bugs impacting the new season. The Bocek Bow and Spitfire receive nerfs to damage output as well.
We're shipping two separate updates to @playapex today to address bugs and balance some weapons.
Later today these changes will be added to the Legacy update patch notes at this link: https://t.co/X7ihMfTuHF
See the full list of changes early in the image below: pic.twitter.com/681FJLyB1o
— Respawn (@Respawn) May 11, 2021
According to the patch notes, the Spitfire’s purple/gold magazine capacity has been reduced from 55 to 50. In addition, the developers have slightly dialed back its damage, changing it from 19 to 18 damage per bullet. This could also mean that Rampart indirectly receives a slight nerf. With the decrease in mag size for this LMG, her Passive, Modded Loader will not be able to carry as much extra LMG ammo per mag as it previously had.
The Bocek Bow also received a nerf to damage. Fully charged body shots now do 60 damage instead of 70. Slight nerfs to the speed of the bow can be shot have been applied as well. Stacks of ammo have decreased in size from 16 to 14, and inventory slot count has changed from 48 to 28.
In addition to a number of quality-of-life fixes, Arenas matches now end when all players on the enemy team leave a game. This was a desperately needed feature. Before this update, players were forced to wait in an Arenas match until it finished, even when there were no opponents left in the game.
This patch shows that the developers listen to the feedback of the community. Even though lots of players have enjoyed many of the changes made in Season 9, one common concern regarded the Bocek Bow. Many fans, including pro players, have called the bow OP. They have criticized the fast rate of fire along with the high amount of damage inflicted per shot. It will be interesting to see if the nerfs to the bow and the Spitfire balance the meta or if Respawn will have to implement more changes in the near future.
Apex Legends has been on a hot streak. Recently, the game has broken records for concurrent players on Steam. Additionally, viewership on Twitch has increased with more streamers trying out the game’s latest content. The game is free-to-play on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam and Origin.