Apex Legends on Switch: 30 FPS and SCARY resolution, WTF?

officially launched today for the Nintendo Switch. And while many of us were initially excited, we’re concerned about the framerate and quality.

Were you initially excited about the release of Apex Legends on the Nintendo Switch, but now find the quality to be rather…. poor? Well, there’s something we have to tell you.

What FPS does Apex run at on the Nintendo Switch?
Apex Legends runs at 30FPS on the Nintendo Switch. The framerate isn’t really the problem here, look at Breath of the Wild for example. That game also runs at 30FPS and we all love it, don’t we?

The problem comes with the quality.

What is the resolution of Apex Legends on the Switch?
Unfortunately, Apex Legends only runs at a resolution of 576p in handheld mode and 720p in docked mode. To use Breath of the Wild as a comparison again: Breath of the Wild runs at 720p in handheld mode and 900p resolution in docked mode.

So, to put it another way: Would you ever watch a 480p YouTube video on your phone? I’m guessing no. You’d rather wait for the 720p version to load, even if it takes a little longer.

Now remember: In handheld mode, Apex Legends runs at 576p on the Switch. You get what we mean, right?

So let’s hope fans won’t be too disappointed when they find out about the quality… or experience it firsthand. If you’d like to read EA’s full press statement on the release of Apex Legends on the Switch, you can do so here!

What is actually… “Apex Legends?

Within 24 hours, “Apex Legends” became the most-watched game on Twitch – after one week, over 25 million people were already playing it. What is the battle royale shooter about?

What is “Apex Legends” about?

Scenario: In a distant future, bandits, adventurers, and outlaws settle their disputes in a sporting contest to the death. The setting is a fertile, industrially developed valley on the edge of the galaxy.

  • Genre: Battle Royale shooter
  • Game modes: survival battle between a maximum of 20 teams of three.

At its core, “Apex Legends” is a classic battle-royale shooter: up to 60 players land simultaneously in teams of three on the game map called “Kings Canyon” – a densely built-up, fertile valley with many accessible houses, bunkers and towers. Once on the ground, unarmed players must search their surroundings for equipment and ammunition. The goal of the game is to stay alive until the end.

To prevent players from hiding all over the map and waiting to automatically be the last one left, the game area shrinks every few minutes. The longer a round lasts, the smaller the area where survivors can move and hide.

Apex Legends refreshes this now classic game formula with some ideas that are unique to the genre: For example, before starting a round, players select one of eight heroes, each of which has two special abilities and facilitates certain play styles.

Bangalore, for example, is the classic soldier who can conceal her position with smoke grenades and call in an artillery strike in an emergency. The heroine Lifeline, on the other hand, can summon a drone to heal teammates – or directly order the delivery of high-value weapons and equipment via aerial drone. This way, all players can find the right hero for their preferred course of .

How can I play Apex Legends?

Platform: “Apex Legends” is available for PC, Xbox One and Playstation 4.

Price: The battle royale shooter is a “Free to Play” title and can basically be played for free on all platforms.

In-game purchases: “Apex Legends” allows the purchase of cosmetic items and new heroes either by means of in-game currency, which can be earned for free in every round, or with real money. The real-money currency “Apex Coins” can be purchased in five different amounts: The smallest possible amount is 1000 Apex Points for around 9.99 euros, while the largest pack with 10,000 Apex Points content costs 99.99 euros.

The developer emphasizes that it is not possible to buy game advantages with the help of real money: You can only use it to customize the appearance of the heroes, it says, or purchase new heroes.

Age rating: “Apex Legends” does not have a youth rating (USK 18).

Which technical terms should you know?

Respawn Beacon: If a player is shot down, the team members who are still alive have the opportunity to bring the fallen comrade back into the game: Each eliminated player leaves behind a so-called Respawn Banner, which can be collected by the players of the own team and handed in at one of 28 Respawn Beacons, certain on the map. If this succeeds, the fallen player returns to the game.

Jumpmaster: At the beginning of the game, one of the maximum three players of a team always takes on the role of the jumpmaster. He decides when and where his team enters the game area.

Ping: Using the middle mouse button, players can alert their teammates to interesting locations in the game world or enemies. These pings are a valuable tool for communicating quickly and efficiently within the team.

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