As with allApex Legendsseasons before it, season 16: Revelry brings a number of changes to Respawn Entertainment’s 4-year-old battle royale title. From the addition of the new Nemesis assault rifle to the rebalancing of weapons and legend abilities (the latter of which the previous season failed to do), all the way to the inclusion of the new Team Deathmatch mode, there is a lot to learn and relearn for those eager to get into the game. It is such a shame then thatApex Legends' maps didn’t get the same treatment.
Apex Legends' maps have been hit or miss as of late. While the introduction ofa new map like Broken Moonis always appreciated, updates to existing maps are little to non-existent. Revelry may have gussied up the current map rotations, but the core changes are far too minimal to get fans excited about dropping in these locations.
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Decorations Don’t Make For Compelling Map Changes
For the first few weeks of Revelry’s launch, the current battle royale maps that players will be able to drop into are World’s Edge, Storm Point, and Broken Moon. World’s Edge is by farApex Legends' most popular map and served as a stand-in for Olumpus last season whenan in-game bug forced Respawn Entertainment to remove itfrom rotation. On the flip side, it is nice to see Storm Point again after its absence last season was required to make room for the newest map, Broken Moon. All of these maps have different layouts and Points of Interest (POIs) that make them unique from one another. Add that to the fact that Respawn Entertainment does its best to rework at least a single map every season, and each location has the potential of giving players something new to explore every 3 months or so.
Unfortunately, Revelry’s beginning has got to be one of the lowest points in the game’s lifespan in terms of map updates. While the maps have been outfitted with festive decorations and giant balloons of the legends (none of which can be interacted with), World’s Edge, Storm Point, and Broken Moon are, by and large, the same as they were a couple of seasons ago. World’s Edge hasn’t changed since Season 10: Emergence.Storm Point’s Downed Beast and IMC Armoriesare exactly where they were 3 seasons ago. Lastly, Broken Moon’s recent inclusion into the game in Season 15: Eclipse has given the developers little cause to add anything new to it.
An Old, Recurring Point Of Interest Gets Boring Real Fast
The only real map change among all 3 maps is the inclusion of the Mirage a Trois POI at different locations.The third incarnation of Mirage’s shipcan be found hovering in its old location on World’s Edge (near Lava Fissure and Staging). On Storm Point, the Mirage a Trois floats right beside Fish Farms on the Southeast side of the map. As if the POI wasn’t crowded enough, The Divide on Broken Moon is where players can find the ship hovering between the location’s 2 opposing edges.
Despite it going under a new name, the Mirage a Trois is exactly the same as the Mirage Voyage POI thatused to grace World’s Edge and King’s Canyonin previousApex Legendsseasons. The ship is filled with lots of Mirage decoys and can easily be located thanks to its boisterous appearance and abundance of flashing lights and loud music. While the abundance of good, condensed loot and the close-quarters nature make the Mirage a Trois the go-to place for many squads, its recycled nature can leave a bad taste in older players' mouths. Since the ship is so popular, many will already be familiar with its simple layout. After indulging themselves in some nostalgia aboard the Mirage a Trois, players will have nothing new to look forward to on the maps.
This disappointment has a high possibility of extending to King’s Canyon and Olympus once they are reintroduced into the game. Respawn Entertainment has mentioned it has plans to introduce the Mirage a Trois into everyApex Legendsmap - a move that might cause it to leave the other locations of the maps untouched. Those looking toward the new Team Deathmatch for map variety would find themselves disappointed as the maps are the same as they were inthe now-defunct Arenas mode,albeit with the same festive decorations and balloons found in the game’s battle royale modes.Apex Legendsmight be leaving its bigger map changes for the middle of the season, but as of now, players will have to contend with the giant balloons, streamers, and the persistence of the Mirage a Trois.
Apex Legendsis available now for Mobile, PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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