Apex Legends Season 9 Patch Notes Revealed

With Apex Legends Season 9 less than a week away, fans have been eagerly awaiting notes on the upcoming update. Now, EA has dropped the details on the next patch as they look to usher in major changes to Apex Legends.

The Legacy update will bring in at least three huge changes to Apex Legends, including a whole new game mode, a new champion in the form of Valkyrie, and a weapon called the Bocek. While a new character and weapon are certainly exciting, the biggest change by far is the 3v3 Arena mode, which steers Apex away from its traditional battle royale format.

The new 3v3 Arena will operate in a similar fashion to Counter-Strike or Valorant with players beginning each round in a buy-phase where they will customize their loadout, including having to purchase gear and abilities. In order to win, a team must have at least 3 points and be up by at least 2 points on the enemy team. For instance, a team can win by 3-1 or 4-2, but if the enemy team manages to push the score to 4-3, the game will continue.

The Legacy patch notes also unveiled the two custom Arena maps, Party Crasher and Phase Runner. The former takes place at the site of the crashed Mirage Voyage, and the latter being modeled after the phase portal area in Olympus. There will also be three areas taken from Kings Canyon, World's Edge, and Olympus that will be in the mix.

Obviously, many fans are more excited about the unveiling of the newest champion, Valkyrie. As the daughter of Titanfall 2's Viper, Valkyrie utilizes the flight core from his Northstar to get around the map. Her passive allows her to use her jetpack to fly, but players cannot use weapons during the flight. She can also fire a swarm of missiles with her tactical ability that briefly stuns and disorient the enemy. Finally, Valkyrie's ultimate redeploys herself—and squadmates too—after a brief charge period. While redeploying, Valkyrie scans the ground for enemies.

The other aspect of the Legacy update that has fans talking is the Bocek weapon. It's essentially a futuristic compound bow that functions differently when combined with the available Hop-Ups. The first of which, Shatter Caps, splits each projectile into multiple shots, essentially refashioning the Bocek into a sort of shotgun. The second, Deadeye's Tempo, allows a quicker draw if players can time it properly.

Hidden amid these massive changes are a myriad of small changes that could also dramatically alter the game. For instance, the "low-profile" modifier is being removed from the game meaning that Wraith, Lifeline, and Wattson will no longer take an additional 5% damage. Also, players will begin each round with "a Level 1 EVO Shield, Helmet, and Knockdown Shield, plus two Shield Cells and Syringes."

With the new hero coming to Apex Legends, fans are also getting hyped for a certain other franchise that Apex is based on. Obviously that's Titanfall, as the latest "Northstar" teaser for the upcoming Valkyrie legend is a clear reference to the Apex Predators from Titanfall 2. Valkyrie's design in Apex Legends will presumably be influenced by Titanfall-like abilities, something Respawn Entertainment has had plenty of experience with previously. Of course, while Apex Legends players are presumably excited to try out the new combatant, this reference has once again stirred up conversation regarding many fans' wishes for a new Titanfall entry in the future.