Unleashing Apex Legends' Revenant: The Untold Story of a Missed Wall Running Ability
Unreleased iterations of Apex Legends' Revenant Reborn revealed the Simulacrum's abandoned wall running ability, as revealed in a recent interview with Game Rant
Apex Legends season 18 made a significant change by skipping the addition of a new character, opting instead to revamp Revenant. This update, called Revenant Reborn, involved removing his silence abilities and Totem and introducing a new leap and his Forged Shadows Ultimate ability. The changes not only affect gameplay but also advance Revenant's story and his rivalry with Loba, with the help of Eduardo Silva.
Recently, Game Rant attended a roundtable interview with writer Jaclyn Seto and designer Evan Funnell to learn more about Apex Legends' Revenant Reborn. However, these updates and story expansion were not developed overnight. According to Funnell, the planning and prototyping of Revenant's abilities began about a year ago, while Seto started working on the narrative about six or seven months ago, with plans already in motion before that. Although much of the narrative details couldn't be shared without spoiling what's to come, Funnell discussed some of the gameplay iterations for Revenant that didn't make it into Apex Legends season 18.
Game development is an iterative process, and this applies to Revenant Reborn as well. The main objective of the rework was to enhance his aggressiveness and portray him as a more direct, in-your-face assassin. This led to some significant changes in his abilities. Although the Death Totem was a beloved aspect of the character for many players, attempts to incorporate it into the current gameplay meta of Apex Legends proved ineffective in achieving the intended goal. Additionally, Funnell mentioned that an abandoned feature of his passive ability was the capability to wall run, similar to that of Titanfall.
"We experimented with various ideas, one of them being the inclusion of wall running to allow him to navigate the maps more efficiently. However, we discovered that it was only applicable in specific situations."
The reason why this ability didn't make it into the final product is due to its highly situational nature. Although many fans would have been thrilled to see it in action, Funnell explains that extensive gameplay tests revealed the limitations of such an ability. The maps in Apex Legends are not specifically designed for wall running, making it heavily reliant on the environment. Therefore, fans should manage their expectations accordingly. While the prospect may be exhilarating, there is no guarantee that this feature will ever be added to the game.
Revenant Reborn's Ultimate ability was intended to add an intriguing element by dragging an enemy into a shadow realm for a 1v1 duel. Conceptually fitting for Revenant's Assassin motif, however, there were gameplay concerns. The duel winner (either Revenant or the enemy) would regain health and shields, but there were worries about fair counterplay, ensuring balanced duels, and providing value for Revenant players. Moreover, returning from the shadow realm to the ongoing Apex Legends battlefield would cause disorientation and disrupt the firefight's flow.
Our objective was to enhance Revenant's ability to target and eliminate a specific enemy, devoting all of his attention to that singular opponent without any distractions. We devised a unique prototype where Revenant could select an enemy and transport them to an alternate realm for a one-on-one battle. The victor of this duel would then gain certain advantages, such as restored health and shield. While this concept was captivating, we faced concerns regarding how to balance it by incorporating counterplay for the enemy to avoid being trapped and ensuring a fair chance for them in the duel. Additionally, we aimed to ensure that Revenant felt satisfied with the benefits gained from using this ultimate ability.
As fans are already aware, we have implemented this gameplay iteration. Revenant now possesses the capability to detect when enemies have low health, effectively navigate obstacles like climbing and crouching, pursue targets with great agility, and summon protective shadows to aid him in isolating and eliminating his desired target. It will be fascinating to witness how Revenant Reborn influences the Apex Legends metagame once everything settles, but equally enthralling is the journey he undertook to reach this point.
Apex Legends is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
