Apex developers reveal upcoming ranked changes

Apex Legends developers have revealed planned upcoming Apex ranked changes in a post on Reddit. This update is the latest in a series of discussions, AMA's and deep dives on the mode.

These changes will take effect in Apex Legends Season 19, which releases October 31.

The most notable Apex ranked changes will be:

The rule that you can only play with people one rank above or below you (after Gold) is one of the most consistent apex ranked rulesets. Historically, it has made sense. Ranked used to be the primary matchmaker, and it would be unfair to have players struggle in hard lobbies to play with friends.

A getaround was often smurfing, having a lower ranked account to play with friends you had surpassed. However, the Season 17 Apex ranked changes introduced a new hidden MMR. That meant that your rank was now essentially irrelevant to your true skill, and was instead a ladder to climb.

With matchmaking being driven by that MMR, the ranked restriction became a nuisance to many players. You're playing in lobbies of what the game thinks is your skill level, not what rank you are. That means a pro player in Platinum will still be facing their fellow pros in Masters or Predator, but cannot queue with them until Diamond.

Now, in Season 19, you'll be able to play with anyone regardless of ranked. However, developers warn that this could mean you face some difficult games if you're queued with people of a much higher skill than yourself.

"Players will now be able to play with friends no matter where they are on their climbs—with the caveat that your squad will face more difficult battles if there’s a bigger discrepancy between your skill."

This future Apex Ranked change has been very well received by the community. Although, some have noted that this might make it easier for cheaters to boost players to the top ranks. Apex has had cheating issues in previous ranked environments, so all eyes will be on seeing if this becomes a problem again.

Another of the most notable Apex Ranked Changes is to the way bonuses are awarded. This has been the most tweaked aspect of the ranked system since it was introduced.

Bonuses are currently awarded for both Eliminations, but also for "skill". Simply, if you engage with players who have a higher MMR than you and fare better than expected, you get a bonus for this.

Devs have admitted that they feel the stingy bonuses awarded this season are deflating ranks slightly.

Devs want the peak of the curve to be in Silver, not Bronze going forward. However, this is clearly much more healthy than previous iterations of the Apex Ranked system.

"We’ll be increasing the amount of Rating Bonus given to players’ ranking to help them catch up to their skill bracket more quickly.

"We also plan to reduce the bonus that is withheld when players are actively pushing against their skill ceiling. This is intended to combat the current season’s (Resurrection) settings of withholding bonuses and increasing matchmaking difficulty. As withheld bonuses are eased, some players will begin to see slightly more bonuses following Season 19’s launch."

In order to combat this deflation, there will also be an adjustment to how far down you drop provisionally at the start of a season. The target is a drop of 1.5 ranks (eg. Gold 1 to Silver 2). Currently, players drop much further.

Low bonuses and a steep drop has made the Ranked system a bit of a slog for some players. These Apex Ranked Changes are designed to help speed up how quickly you can reach your true rank.

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