NewsApex Legends
Apex Legends Will Test Cross-Play Matchmaking in US West
Apex Legends is launching an almost four-week cross-play matchmaking test in US West. Its stated aims are to reduce queue times and place players within tighter skill bands.
The regional test starts October 7
Apex Legends will test a matchmaking configuration with cross-play enabled by default for a limited period in US West. The trial is scheduled to begin at approximately 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time on October 7 and continue through November 3. That window of almost four weeks allows the configuration to operate across different days and levels of player activity rather than during one brief peak period.
The US West scope is an important boundary. This is a regional, time-limited trial rather than an announced permanent change for every Apex Legends region. Players outside the target area may not encounter the same conditions. Because the launch time is described as approximate, participants should also allow for the possibility that the change will not become visible at exactly 10:00 a.m.
Shorter queues and tighter skill bands are the goals
The test has two explicit intentions: shortening the time players spend waiting for a match and tightening the skill bands used to bring players together. In practical terms, the configuration aims to find matches more quickly while assembling lobbies from players whose skill levels sit closer together. Making cross-play the default provides the basis for evaluating both aims during the regional test window.
Those aims are not guaranteed outcomes for every participant. Queue times can vary with the hour and the number of active players, while the perceived balance of a single match is not a precise measurement of its skill range. Because the trial runs for nearly four weeks, one very quick queue or one unusually difficult match should not be treated as the final verdict on the configuration.
Console players can opt out in settings
Although cross-play is the default during the trial, console players retain a choice. Anyone on console who does not want to take part under this configuration can opt out by disabling cross-play in the game settings. The default setting therefore does not make cross-play mandatory on console; it can still be switched off manually through the existing control available to those players.
For US West participants who keep cross-play enabled, the clearest points to watch are the time spent in queues and how closely matched the skill levels in their games appear. Comparing several sessions across different dates and hours can provide a more useful impression than judging one result alone. Console users who disable cross-play should not assume their experience reflects the default test conditions.
Broken Moon and Gibraltar fixes arrive too
Two specific bug fixes accompany the matchmaking trial. At Terraformer on Broken Moon, missing floor geometry could allow players to clip into the ground. The corrected geometry means players should no longer be able to enter the ground at the affected location. This map fix is a separate in-game correction and does not alter the regional boundaries or goals of the cross-play test.
The other fix concerns the audio for Gibraltar’s skydive emote. Its sound could previously continue playing after Gibraltar had landed; following the fix, that audio will no longer persist once the landing is complete. Both corrections have an immediate effect on their respective map and Legend interactions, while the matchmaking experiment remains limited to US West from October 7 through November 3.
Source: Steam News