Apex Legends' game map also includes an emphasis on verticality. There are zip lines in and around the map and its hot spots, and there are balloon launching points that players can zip up to and jet away to other parts of the map. One of the playable characters can even deploy their own zip lines for the squad. These systems work well with the nicely flowing control scheme and animations of Apex Legends where players can slide down hills or mantle up to high ledges. If you see something, there's usually a way to get there, except for some of the cliff and mountain tops which are out of bounds. Did we mention that top player Legends will be displayed in-game on banners and there's bonus XP for taking out kill lead

Slide (A Lot!) - One of the best ways to quickly traverse an area is to slide (using crouch) down hills - as sliding on a descent is limitless... and super fast - or across an area. It can be key to winning a firefight and the match its

Caustic's gas traps are one of the most frustrating things to encounter in the game. Finding yourself in the middle of a gas maze almost always results in elimination, and the traps can seem way too OP as a result. Luckily, there IS a way to counter the traps (aside from utilizing tactical abilities). Simply shoot the red portion of the trap (located near the bottom) in order to disable it, allowing safe passage for you and your team. Easy pe

The Hot Zone is the initial area on the map with incredible loot. Naturally, teams flock to it in the hopes of obtaining high tier armor and weapons. And there's nothing worse than a new player going to it and getting downed in the first thirty seconds while their teammates are on the other side of the map. We understand that dropping there makes for a good learning experience, but if you want to train, play with friends and not with rand

No Traffic Zones - Competitive fans may be agitated to hear this, but sometimes securing victory is as easy as hiding until the very end. Pay very close attention to the location that each enemy team is dropping. If the frequently loot-heavy areas are all claimed, players should head as far away from everyone else as humanly possible. There will still be loot to find once they land and from that point it's just a matter of waiting out the clock and grinding for

This is all thanks to its setting within the Titanfall series, diverse and unique characters/classes, and unique three-member teams. Admittedly, there's a lot to learn here, but gamers eager to master the Apex can take a few tips into battle with t

That situation is likely salvageable due to the otherwise full-priced game's instant addition to the subscription-based Xbox Game Pass service, but missteps taken by Metro Exodus publisher Deep Silver have all but overshadowed the launch of the fantastic post-apocalyptic experience when they made the boldly abrupt decision to snub Steam and limit the SLG game Maps's PC release to the Epic Games Store . It's unknown how deeply this last-minute choice made from the top-down has affected Metro Exodus ' sales, but it generated enough online backlash among outraged PC players to drown out any positive news about the g

Move over Fortnite , there's a new king in town. OK, maybe it's too early to be saying stuff like that, but there's no denying the impact that Apex Legends has had on the gaming community. According to the latest report, the game has amassed 25 million players, but that number has likely expanded. It's also the top individual game on Twitch, and it has bumped Fortnite to third place (behind League of Legend

Firstly, you can bash down doors. Since players often use them as cover or as crude "alarm" systems when camping, there are obvious applications here. Next, it's a great way to get past knockdown shields, saving you valuable ammunition. It's also worth noting that you can perform flying kicks while airborne, and uppercuts while sliding. Though being honest, both are pretty impracti

New players may feel the need to pick up everything - after all, you never know when a Skullpiercer will come in handy! The only thing is that certain items are only applicable with certain weapons, and that Skullpiercer is useless if you're using a Devotion and Peacekeeper. Picking up random items is a good way to needlessly clog your backpack, and worse, you could be inhibiting your teammate who DOES have a gun compatible with the Skullpiercer. Pay attention to what does w

Learning some tricks of the trade are essential if you're planning to be part of the last team standing in Apex Legends . As much as previous games within the battle royale genre may have trained players previously, this isn't a single-player game. In order to win, teams are going to have to stick together, but even that isn't enough for Legends to secure a victory every t

Of course, that's impossible to truly ascertain from our experience so far with Anthem 's early hours , meaning players will have to wait and see if they will be undergoing the gauntlet of tedium that constitutes for the genre's standard end-game. However, it will undoubtedly be nigh impossible for Anthem to be able to suitably compete with a free-to-play battle royale like Apex Legends when it comes to keeping players interested with a steady flow of content. For those in the industry seeking to recreate Apex Legends ' sleeper success, or at least successfully leech away some of its massive player base, there are a couple of lessons to be learned from this week's cramped mix of launches. First, consider the option that prolonged marketing and over-exposure might actually serve to hurt games; while not all games can capture the attention of millions overnight, producer's should at the very least take steps to avoid Crackdown 3 's five-year gap between announcement and release. Second, and most importantly, developers should innovate where others have not within their genre, even if it doesn't amount to reinventing the wh