The player outcry resulting from the planned overhaul for Apex Legends' battle pass has forced developer Respawn Entertainment to scrap them altogether.
The latest development comes as the developer announced the planned changes to Apex Legends' battle pass, which includes a price increase. The studio would also no longer allow players to buy the battle pass with in-game currency.
Apex Legends Battle Pass Changes
Players then went on a weeks-long backlash that resulted in more than 70,000 negative reviews on Steam.
Following this, Respawn Entertainment revealed that it would no longer be pursuing its original plans to remove the option of buying the battle pass with Apex Coins.
In a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, Respawn Entertainment said, "You've spoken, and we've listened."
It added that with the release of Apex Legends' Season 22, the option to get the premium battle pass for 950 Apex Coins will be restored, according to Kotaku.
The studio said that it recognized that it could have handled the battle pass changes a lot better than how it actually did. However, Respawn Entertainment will still be splitting battle passes from one 100-rank one per season for $10 to two 60-rank ones for $10 each.
The first split of the next season is expected to come on Aug. 6, 2024, and players will then be able to unlock the first premium battle pass for free. This can be done by completing a simple set of in-game challenges in Apex Legends.
On Sept. 17, 2024, the new system will officially kick off but Respawn Entertainment stressed that the higher battle pass prices will come alongside "better rewards" and "re-tuned battle pass challenges."
Walking Back on Its Plans
The developer also said that moving forward, it needs to be more timely, transparent, and consistent in its communications with its players. It added that the fans' priorities should be the studio's priorities, said GamesIndustry.
Apex Legends game director Steven Ferreira also sat down in an interview to talk about the changes to the game's battle pass. He also discussed how such decisions come about internally and what the developer's plans for the community are moving forward.
Ferreira said that the game's battle pass has remained the same for quite some time now, noting that the studio has monitored data on how many players are engaging with it.
This was one factor that they wanted to address when designing a new battle pass for Apex Legends, according to IGN.
