It was a bright new era for Apex Legends in 2019. The still-new game was just coming up on its second-ever season, and a limited-time mode hit Kings Canyon that players assumed had to come back soon: Solos. It took almost five years, but the Solos LTM is finally returning in season 21.
While it might surprise you that it took so long for one of the most-requested LTMs ever in Apex took that long to resurface, for many, it’s a shock to see it at all. Respawn Entertainment has spent the last year or so talking about there were no plans for Solos to return, despite player wishes to the contrary. That’s all changing in season 21 with a new, juiced-up version of the Solos LTM that takes cues from other modes like Control and Three Strikes.
“With growing demand from players and a desire on the team to explore the concept again, with everything we’ve learned since the last appearance in 2019,” Mike Button, the Apex events lead, said speaking to media ahead of season 21. Button went on to give the timeline for the LTM, which will stretch the first six weeks of the next season and function as a takeover of the normal battle royale Duos queue.
But this isn’t the same old Solos mode you might have played back in 2019. The first major change to this solo mode is respawn tokens, which feel like a nod to the Three Strikes LTM. Each person in the 50-player lobby will receive one respawn token they can use within the first four rounds of a Solos match to respawn, functionally giving themselves another life. If players don’t use them by the end of round four, that token is consumed and converted into Evo level. Players who take out an enemy will also receive an auto-heal to keep the action fast-paced, but without punishing players for fighting too much.
Finally, there’s a new “battle sense” mechanic in the new Solos that will give players a HUD notification anytime an enemy is within 50 meters. Button explained how this feature specifically led to some “pretty fun interactions” in play testing, and it should enable players to get a little hint of the recon character life no matter who they’re running.
It should be an instant crowd-pleaser when it launches, but it’s also an important time to gather information. Button noted Respawn would be closely looking at player feedback with the event, and also shouted out Respawn’s penchant for taking new mechanics in LTMs and eventually turning them into new legend abilities.
But for those people worried that Apex is shifting to a solo-focused playstyle, Button doesn’t think they have anything to worry about.
“We still feel strongly that the core Apex experience revolves around team play and specifically trios, and this remains the lens the team designs Apex through,” Button said. “The return of Solos doesn’t signify a departure from that core belief. But we wanted to acknowledge the growing interest in Solos from our players, and the fact that many are looking for additional ways to play.”
Watch your own back when Solos drops into season 21 with the beginning of Upheaval on May 7. After all—you won’t have any teammates to do it for you.
