Apex Legends Season 8 is finally here, but Respawn's work on the battle royale shooter is never done.
Caustic was buffed as part of Season 7, and the community is wondering whether the Toxic Trapper should have been nerfed with the arrival of the new season after it became obvious that his abilities are too powerful.
Apex Legends: Caustic Nerf Coming Soon According To Respawn
In an AMA over on Reddit, the team were asked why Caustic wasn't nerfed, with the character's abilities feeling almost as lethal as the game's arsenal of weapons.
“Good question. I think ever since the change to gas allowed teammates to play in gas with relatively no repercussions, there was a lot of unrealized potential that was quickly tapped into within the past couple months," John Larson, Associate Live Balance Designer responded.
"Caustic is undeniably strong and has the highest win rate in matches that last longer than 20 minutes. Caustic plays a unique role as a defensive legend that can act offensively in certain scenarios, and we have to make sure we tweak him in a way that removes frustration without hurting how it feels to play as Caustic."
"Long story short, we hear the community feedback, as a player, I feel it’s valid, the data backs up that he’s strong, and he’ll be getting some attention in the near future," Larson revealed.
"In regards to Apex becoming “Ability Legends,” as new characters are introduced, it’s important they take up unique design space. This opens the door to potentially devastating synergies between legend abilities. I’ve seen (and experienced myself) the clips of chaotic ability driven end games, and that’s something we’re actively working on resolving.”
What that "attention" entails is anyone's guess, but it could be that the power of Caustic's gas traps is minimised, or the spread of the gas itself.
For more on Apex Legends, be sure to check out our guide to Gold Magazines – a new pickup in Season 8.