Today, Apex Legends launched Aftermarket: a fortnight-long collection event that also sees the introduction of cross-platform play to the game. Though the feature is only in beta, PC players of Apex Legends will be able to start meeting their console-owning buddies in-game for the first time. Crossplay is always a popular request in online multiplayer games available on multiple platforms, but it's not the only thing that's new in Apex Legends.
Proving more divisive than the crossplay beta, the news that Wraith has been nerfed emerged as part of the Aftermarket patch notes. In the past, Wraith's distinctive running style—affectionately referred to as her 'Naruto run' by players—has given her an unexpected advantage: her hunched posture reduced her already small hitbox, making her an especially hard character to tackle as a moving target. The latest patch has drastically changed her run style to a more generic one that is, as the developers put it, "much more upright and expose[s] a larger area of her body to gunfire".
Not even going to lie... little bit sad about this change 😢 pic.twitter.com/NS3NyzW6FSOctober 5, 2020
The Apex Legends team admit that they are sorry to let Wraith's unique running animations go, but were concerned that they were running out of ways to balance the character: "we know her old sprint was iconic and we hate to see it go as well, but we believe this is the best way by far of bringing her in line without having to hit her abilities again." There is a potential silver lining on the horizon for Wraith mains, though: the devs are considering putting some power back into her previously nerfed abilities if her new running style proves balancing enough. No promises yet, though.
The team has also provided a small tease as to the contents of a future update. In response to a fan question on Twitter, design director Jason McCord confirmed that the introduction of real-time damage metres is "on a list".
It's on a list!October 2, 2020
The feature would allow players to track their progress towards damage badges and, while not a universally popular move, seems to be receiving a lot more support from the Apex Legends community than the latest changes to Wraith. Of course, with no time-scale given for implementation, the knowledge that real-time damage metres are on the way will have to satisfy players for now.
The Apex Legends Aftermarket event is running until October 20th, and includes a collection of 24 unique, limited-time cosmetics.
