What you need to know
- Apex Legends Season 21, Upheaval, is slated to begin on May 7, 2024.
- This season introduces Alter, the latest playable Legend and a strange dimension walker with a multiple-choice past.
- Alter can use portals to quickly navigate around enemies, while her ultimate ability enables her entire team to make a quick getaway.
- Upheaval also brings back Solos mode, which is replacing Duos for the season.
Sometimes you can’t make up your mind. What to eat for dinner, where to go on a date night, exactly what trauma you suffered in another dimension…
That’s the gist for Alter, the latest character coming to Respawn Entertainment and Electronic Arts’ Apex Legends with Season 21, Upheaval. Alter is a dimensional hopper, someone whose origin lies in another reality as she crosses over space and time to make her way into the games.
Aside from that core fact, she’s not particularly trustworthy, with narrative lead Jaclyn Seto noting that “Her past is what she needs it to be,” and that while she’s clearly had a number of wild adventures, there’s a lot she’ll say that isn’t true. One of the few things that is steadfast is part of her culture, as she sometimes speaks Cantonese.
Alter uses her dimensional rifts to easily navigate the battlefield, zipping around obstacles and enemies while aiding her teammates. Here’s Alter’s abilities:
- Passive: Gift from the Rift – Alter loots an item from a distant deathbox
- Tactical: Void Passage – Alter creates a portal on a surface that can be used to escape or lead enemies to the respawn chamber.
- Ultimate: Void Nexus – Alter places a device for her whole team, allowing them to use a one-way portal.
What else is coming with Apex Legends: Upheaval?
Alongside Alter, Upheaval is bring Solos mode back to Apex Legends. Solos is replacing Duos, and it comes with a few changes since the last time it was around. In Solos, combat is sped up as every weapon players find is fully kitted out, meaning you aren’t waiting around shuffling attachments. Meanwhile, auto-heal and second chance mechanics mean that being knocked isn’t necessarily the end of your time in a round.
The Broken Moon map is also getting some changes this season with the introduction of a new central point of interest: Quarantine Zone. This spot is meant to make combat a bit less chaotic early on, with lead level designer Steve Young noting that “There’s no distinct power positions.”
Analysis: Some fun shake-ups
Apex Legends has continued to evolve with steady updates, additions, and improvements for years now, including recently adding 120 FPS support on the latest consoles. Not every change has been perfect, but the developers have clearly shown a willingness to react and evaluate player feedback that is helping to keep the experience fresh.
I’m really liking what I’ve seen of Alter so far, and I’m definitely looking forward to trying her out when the season arrives.
Apex Legends is currently available on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch.
