Season 22 of Apex Legends, Shockwave, is nearly here. And with a new map to explore, new weapon combinations to test out, and some all new modes and features coming to the game, there’s plenty to keep track of in the patch notes already.
Apex Legends Shockwave: Season 22 patch notes so far
New battle royale map: E-District
E-District is the newest battle royale map in Apex, and unlike its predecessors, it’s a fully urbanized one. Described as dense and with a focus on verticality, E-District’s locales range from swanky plazas lined with cherry blossoms and lily pad ponds to old-town markets with food stands and even some industrial areas. One thing does stay constant though: This city is beautiful and full of lights to help guide your way through the dark. Get ready for a hot drop.
New weapon option: Akimbo
They’re not new weapons, per se, but new weapon options. Mozambiques and P2020s will get the option to go akimbo in season 22, with players able to wield two of the weapons at the same time (although you can’t mix and match one P2020 with one Mozambique). In Akimbo mode, the weapons will fire in full auto, attachments for the weapon you have will be mirrored on the second weapon you pick up, and there’s no true ADS mode. Pressing the aim button will simply tighten the hipfire spread.
Aim Assist nerf on PC
It’s actually happening: Controller players playing on PC will receive less aim assist starting in season 22. Reports indicate this is a 25 percent reduction in aim assist, going from a 0.4 value to 0.3.
This change will not affect console players—unless those players are using crossplay to play with their PC friends. Then the aim assist nerf will take affect on those players, as well.
New pubs takeover: Revival
It’s not quite a new mode, but it is a takeover that will put a twist on pubs for the foreseeable future. To begin season 22, Trios in non-ranked battle royale will get the Revival twist. Until the fourth ring, all teams will have players respawn automatically as long as they have at least one teammate alive by the end of their respawn timer. Every player will get a respawn timer when they die, and the timer gets longer the further into the game you get.
You hear that, Wraith mains? Don’t insta-leave our pub game if you run halfway across the map and die by yourself. You’ll be back soon enough.
New mode: Bot Royale
New player experience and Apex‘s steep learning curve this far into its existence have been a sticking point for players over the last couple years, and season 22 has another new mode to try to address that. Bot Royale feature AI lobbies where anyone can hone their skills and learn more about Apex in a pressure-free setting.
Other new changes in store
Thanks to different content creators revealing the results of their season 22 playtests, we also have a host of other changes we know will be coming to the next season of Apex.
- Enemy health bars: The Battle Sense feature expands with health bars. When dealing damage to enemies, you will see their health bar as long as you maintain line of sight.
- Enemy outlines: All enemies that are not obscured or behind cover within 20 feet of you will be outlined in red.
- Loot bin refreshes: Loot bins will refill at the halfway part of a match, introducing more loot for players. And more loot is always better.
- Aim Flinch: Aim flinching is being removed from the game, with the exception of it happening outside the Ring.
- Gun Shield Generator hop-up: Some LMGs will be able to accept the Gun Shield Generator, which will allow players to wield the LMG with a Gibraltar-esque shield attached to the weapon.
- Shotgun buffs: The Mastiff and Peacekeeper have reportedly had their damage buffed.
- HAVOC nerfs: The HAVOC’s hipfire spread has reportedly been nerfed.
- Matchmaking: Queue times are being increased to get group lobbies together more based on skill level, hopefully leading to more fair matches.
All of these changes and more are on the way in season 22, which releases on Aug. 6.
