Apex Legends is a game that falls under the popular battle royale genre developed by Respawn Entertainment. The game was released in 2019 and is now one of the most-played battle royale games in the world, making it a fierce competitor to other battle royale games such as PUBG.
During its release, PUBG was quickly the most famous battle royale game, but the hype slowed down when Apex Legends appeared and essentially “killed” PUBG. With engaging and exciting gameplay, Apex Legends has been constantly stealing PUBG’s player base and claiming them to be their own. This article will cover five facts that make Apex Legends such a great game compared to PUBG.
You Can Crossplay From Different Platforms
One reason why Apex Legends has such a massive player base is that the game is accessible through multiple different platforms. Apex Legends is available on PC, Playstation, Xbox, and the Nintendo Switch.
Being able to run the game on so many devices has allowed players from different age groups and gaming backgrounds to play with and against each other on different platforms. Children who may not have access to good computers can play Apex Legends on more accessible devices such as the Playstation, Xbox, or Nintendo Switch.
By having more platforms to play on, the queue times of Apex Legends matches drastically decreased, as players from different platforms can end up playing in the same match. These lowered queue times have made Apex Legends much more enjoyable to play as there is less downtime, and players can fit in as many matches in a session.
Apex Legends Has Incredible Tournaments
One of the most exciting things about Apex Legends is watching the best players competing against each other in massive Apex Legends tournaments. Watching and learning from professionals has become increasingly popular, as many players also partake in Apex Legends betting. Fans can bet on Apex Legends matches being played in million-dollar tournaments, making the spectating experience more thrilling. The community vibe is also strengthened as fans who enjoy Apex Legends betting can discuss matches and players with each other, creating conversational topics for everyone to join.
The Apex Legends esports scene continues to grow, as in 2022, the Apex Legends Global Series managed to gather a prize pool of $2,000,000, where teams from all around the world met up to compete. Millions of fans watched the tournament live, and the 2023 iteration of the Apex Legends Global Series is expected to be a massive success.
You Can Choose From Different Characters
Though PUBG and Apex Legends are both battle royale games, one massive difference between these two games is that Apex Legends has multiple playable characters that have unique abilities and skill sets, while in PUBG, players don’t have any specific abilities or characters to select from.
Currently, in Apex Legends, there are 23 playable characters called “Legends.” All these Legends have different looks and abilities that make them unique. Having Legends creates another layer of gameplay mechanics that can be very fun for Apex Legends players to learn.
Though the learning curve may be steeper with this mechanic, playing different Legends is much more enjoyable rather than being stuck to a default character with no unique abilities like in PUBG.
New accounts will only start with six Legends, which include Wraith, Pathfinder, Bloodhound, Gibraltar, Bangalore, and Lifeline. The remaining 18 Legends can be unlocked by playing the game more.
Teams Consist Of Three Players Instead Of Four
Another difference between PUBG and Apex Legends is that Apex Legends teams consist of three players instead of the four in PUBG. The difference in party sizes can be significant for Apex Legends, as in teams of three, all three players will have significant and designated roles in a team’s tactical approach. Each player is much more critical now that a team only consists of three players, while players have more flexible roles in PUBG’s teams of four.
An Apex Legends match will have 20 teams of three, meaning there will be a total of 60 players, while PUBG matches tend to have 100 players in a single match. Having a smaller pool of players in a match can mean that Apex Legends provides fast-paced gameplay, as team encounters can happen more frequently. This allows Apex Legends matches to last shorter durations making them less boring.
Since Apex Legends teams require one less person per team, this can significantly help with the matchmaking in Apex Legends. Requiring fewer players will mean that friends can queue up quickly without looking for a fourth player. As mentioned earlier, shorter queue times can enhance the gaming experience, as players won’t have too much downtime queuing and finding a match.
Apex Legends Has More Players Than PUBG In 2023 On Steam
Steam is arguably the most prominent platform on which players can play video games. In 2023, according to Steam Charts, Apex Legends has already overtaken PUBG in current players, peak players, and hours played in May. Apex Legends is currently the third most-played game on the Steam platform, while PUBG sits behind them in fourth place.
It is still important to note that Apex Legends has multiple platforms to play on, so these figures on Steam only cover part of the Apex Legends player base. Meanwhile, games such as Dota 2 and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive can only be played on Steam, meaning that the figures cover the entire player base of both games.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Apex Legends is one of the most popular battle royale games today. The popularity Apex Legends gained has allowed it to surpass the previous most-played battle royale game, PUBG. This happened because Apex Legends is highly accessible, has many large-scale tournaments, selectable characters, and is more engaging and fast-paced.
