Apex Legends Review
Posted: 5 months ago, last updated 5 weeks ago.
Author: Andy Robertson.
Overview
Like Fortnite, the play area shrinks over time, forcing players to keep moving or else find themselves outside the play area which can be fatal. Players communicate via game chat or with text indicators to team mates.
The game focuses on a wide variety of characters, each with a special ability. Like Overwatch, this means it’s often described as a character-based-shooting-game. Learning how to use the different abilities is a bit part of getting better at the game. Players also need to work well in a team, reviving each other when they die, and providing tactical information to each other by the ping system.
The ping system means that you can play the game without having the voice or text chat enables. Also, many younger players choose to turn off voice chat apart from their friends so they can play and communicate only with people they know.
Details
Rating: PEGI 16+, ESRB TEEN
Release Date: 04/02/2019
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One
Genres: Action, Open World and Shooting
Developer: @Respawn
Tips
View our choice of games like Apex Legends. This game is good if you want to:
Commitment
Players: You can play this with 60 players online. Cross Platform: Can play across PlayStation, Xbox, Switch and PC.
Costs
Apex Legends is free to download and start playing, meaning that no purchase password is required from parents. As signified in the ratings the game includes purchases that range from £7.99/$9.99 to £79.99/$99.99. While this money will only unlock cosmetic improvements, it is also a way to gain access to all the playable characters in the game more quickly.
Apex Packs that can be earned in the game or purchased with money, offer a “loot box” style chance to win items of varying rarity. This is not classed as gambling by the Gambling Commission in the UK as these items don’t have any monetary value outside the game.
There are special editions of the game that come with special skins and currency:
- Lifeline Edition
- Octane Edition
- Pathfinder Edition
- Bloodhound Edition
You will need Xbox Live Gold (must be 18 to create, then configure family accounts for younger players) to play online with Xbox One. You will need Nintendo Online (must be 18 to purchase, but can be any age to use) to play online with Nintendo Switch. You will need PlayStation Plus (must be 18 to create, then create sub-accounts for younger players who need be set as 13 or older) to play online with PlayStation 4.
Age Ratings
Rated PEGI 16 because it features sustained depictions of violence towards human characters and moderate violence. Players can use a range of modern military weapons such as pistols, sniper rifles, automatic guns, frag grenades and knives. Successful hits from a firearm will degrade the health a character over time and is indicated by some splattering of blood and a reduction in the characters health gauge. Once this reaches a critical point, they will become immobile and eventually die and respawn or are revived by a team mate. Finisher cut scenes provide the best examples of realistic looking violence, although powerful looking the effects are not classed as very strong violence.
ESRB TEEN with blood and violence.
Users Interact: The game enables players to interact and communicate with each other, so may expose players to language usually associated with older rated games.
Accessibility
Difficulty
How you can adjust the challenge of play, and assistance the game offers when you fail or get stuck.
Competitive Difficulty: Difficulty not adjustable, because you compete against other players.
Tutorials: There are helpful tutorials, instructions and tips.
Reading
How much reading or listening comprehension is required, and how accessible this is.
Simple Minimal Reading: Minimal reading is required.
Subtitles
Large Clear Subtitles: Subtitles are large and clear, or can be adjusted to be.
Any spoken content has subtitles: All spoken content has subtitles, or there is no speech in the game.
Controls
How you control the game, different options for alternative inputs and whether you can remap these settings to suit your needs.
Multiple Buttons & Two Sticks: Can play with multiple buttons and two sticks.
Mouse and Keys: Can play with mouse and multiple keys.
Remap Controls
You can customise the controls for the game as follows:
Select Preset Controller Mappings: Select preset button layouts.
Remap Buttons: Re-map all buttons/keys.
Invert X/Y Axis: You can invert the direction required to control looking and aiming.
Holding Down Buttons Optional: Holding down buttons not required or can be turned off or switched to toggling the action on and off.
Rapid Pressing Optional: Quick, repeated button pressing not required or can be skipped or disabled.
Vibration Optional: Controller vibration not used in the game or you can disable it.
Adjust Mouse/Stick Sensitivity, Deadzones and Thresholds: Adjust how sensitive mouse/stick controls are and the related deadzones and thresholds.
Image
How you can adjust the visuals to suit your needs, and offer additional information if you can't hear the game.
High Contrast Mode: You can adjust the contrast of the game to be high-contrast.
No Screen Shake: No screen shake effect or this can be disabled.
Motion sickness friendly: Option to reduce motion sickness (motion blur, depth of field, field of vision).
Colour Options
Colourblind friendly: Game doesn’t rely on colour or can switch to colourblind friendly mode.
Colour adjustments: Adjust colours of characters or game elements for greater visibility
Audio
How you can adjust the audio of the game and whether audio cues compensate for aspects of the game that are hard to see.
Balance Audio Levels: Set music and game sound effects separately.
Audio Events
Visual Cues for Audio Events: Text or other visual indicators of audio events.
Visual Depiction of Directional Audio: Indication on screen with arrows, icons, located colour splashes and the like, to show where directional audio for damage, footsteps, environmental or way-finding sounds are coming from.
Communication
How you can communicate with other players in the game and what options are available to customise and control this interaction.
Player-to-Player Communication
Text Chat: Chat to other players by typing text.
Voice Chat: Chat to other players by speaking with headset.
Text to Voice: Sent text messages as voice to other players.
Voice to Text: Convert voice from other players to text messages.
Ping Communication: Send quick preset messages to teammates as safer alternative to open communication.
System Settings
Nintendo Switch has some built-in features, including a lockable zoom, that can be used on all games. Windows has extensive accessibility features. Some, like colour correction, work with games. Lots of accessibility software can be used with PC games, from voice recognition to input device emulators. PlayStation 4 has a range of accessibility settings. Some are system only, some work in games (invert colours and button mapping). Xbox One has a system features, the excellent co-pilot share controls mode and adaptive controller support for all games... read more about system accessibility settings.
Supported by PlayabilityInitiative and accessibility contributors: Andy Robertson
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