Ranked Apex Legends will have a full plate when its next season, Showdown, kicks off next week. Its competitive mode is taking a page out of ALGS' book and adding dedicated drop zones to each squad—and those who survive can show off with a new cosmetic type called aura.
"Drop zones are designed to bring a little more structure to the beginning moments of a match," helping improve "competitive integrity and fairness" while separating ranked from the more casual modes, principal designer Bilal Arshad said at an event for press and content creators.
Each squad will see their designated drop zone when loading into the map, before picking their legends. You can contest enemies in the vicinity, but "the fastest path to loot will always be to claim your drop zone," according to the developer. Maps in ranked will maintain the same amount of loot, but Respawn Entertainment is taking a pass to make the quality of the loot more consistent between POIs.
Venture into this new competitive season to earn auras, a striking category of cosmetics that show off your current rank. Auras hover behind your character and above their shoulders, visibly showcasing your progress to anyone who catches a glimpse of them. A basic version is available to all players who gain or have access to ranked, but you must fight to earn and maintain your new colors.
Auras are extremely flashy, but they won't necessarily give away your position during a match. They're visible to all players when skydiving, and you can see them during a third-person emote. In-game, though, they only appear during a revive or a finisher, and only between the two people involved in the animation.
In addition to drop zones, the game's competitive will see the usual start-of-season tuning to its formulas. Gold and Silver players will see a slight increase in RP entry costs, and partaking in Bronze matches will now cost RP to reinforce the "careful, deliberate play" necessary to advance, according to Arshad.
To round out the changes to ranked, Respawn is toning down the RP gained from kills and assists with the new season, focusing on survival instead. The challenger bonus, awarded when facing enemies at a higher rank than you, is getting a bump.
The reduction of points for kills and assists may incite apprehension about ratting, when teams aim for a better placement by outlasting the competition instead of fighting. However, the studio is paying "careful attention" to player feedback and internal data, and the team will keep fingers on the dial to ensure the ranked mode is both fun and fair, according to Arshad.
Apex's 26th season, Showdown, releases on Aug. 5, alongside the new Wild Card permanent game mode, an overhauled RE-45, and more.
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