Respawn are working hard to tackle cheaters in Apex Legends.
Respawn have revealed that over 6 million Apex Legends accounts have been banned since the game first released. This surprising statistic was shared as part of an update on the games Anti Cheat, following a rise in the number of complaints about cheaters in the game.
During the back end of Season 21, the top level of ranked was almost unplayable, with cheaters rife in every single lobby. Respawn committed to more open dialogue about the issue, sharing a detailed update on X, formerly known as Twitter.
There are more than 100,000 Apex bans on average each month
While it can feel frustrating when you encounter a cheater in Apex, the information shared today shows that action is being taken on a regular basis to fight cheaters. The number shared today also includes bans for reasons other than cheating, including hateful behavior.
With more than 6 million accounts being banned since launch, that works out at more than 100,000 accounts being banned each month on average. Now of course, Apex is a free to play game. Persistent cheaters can just create new accounts. This goes some of the way to explain why the number is eye-catchingly high.
In June and July 2024, over 200k accounts were banned. The vast majority of these were permanent, and for cheating.
Related articles
Asia-Pacific region gets particular attention
Respawn also shared some further details on their work to ban cheaters Apex accounts. They say that they have expanded their anti-cheat team across the globe, with a particular focus on the Asia-Pacific region. That region has been the most impacted by cheating, with servers unplayable at times.
Apex uses Easy Anti-Cheat to help identify cheating activity and issue automatic ban. Respawn have outlined some of the improvements made to this software. However, they are limited in what they can share.
The battle between game developers and cheaters is a never ending slog. As Anti-Cheats develop, so do cheats. The "fog of war" as it is known is an important aspect of this battle. As a result, this can sometimes make it seem like developers aren't taking action, when they are.
Respawn said today:
"We can’t share specifics on these tools, but they have improved our match review capabilities, and allow us to evaluate flagged instances faster and more effectively. We’re staffed and dedicated to deploying new tools and updates more quickly to help build strength and speed in the fight against cheating.
"We share your concerns about cheating in Apex, and it remains a top priority that we’re attacking every day. As we continue to make things better, we’ll be updating you regularly on this battle across our regular social platforms (including the new Game Status section on Trello). It’s worth reiterating that this is at its heart a security issue, so details may occasionally be limited."
This statement marks a new era of transparency about cheating in Apex Legends. It is undeniable that Apex has had several issues with cheating over the years. Naturally, this has drawn criticism. However, Respawn seem to be taking this issue as seriously as ever. Hopefully this brings noticeable improvements, especially in high level ranked.
Stay tuned to esports.gg for more Apex Legends news and updates.
