Today, Respawn has announced that it will be changing the way it shares the minimum drop rates of loot box (Apex Pack) items in Apex Legends in order to comply with new South Korean regulations.
In a blog post, Respawn explained that it will be releasing minimum drop rates for Apex Pack items up to three decimal places. Previously, the company already disclosed drop rates for different item rarities, but not to this level of detail. Respawn confirmed that no drop rates are changing at this time – it’s simply providing more detailed information about what the rates are. You can see the full breakdown of drop rates in the Apex Legends FAQ.
The change is specifically occurring in response to an amendment to the Korean Game Industry Promotion Act that took effect earlier this year, which mandates that companies disclose certain information about loot box odds. However, Respawn will also be publishing the rates globally.
The actual published rates, Respawn notes, come with an important asterisk. The developer is publishing the lowest minimum drop rates for each item, but due to duplicate protection, the actual drop rates for individual items will be higher depending on how many other items of the same type from loot boxes players have obtained. With each new item obtained, the odds of receiving others go up, because players can’t get duplicates.
Additionally, Respawn confirmed that Heirloom Shards will still be a guaranteed drop after 500 Apex Packs are opened, even though the listed drop rate is shown as .045% (previously listed as <1%).
The post itself goes into more detail, and you can read Respawn’s full explanation of drop rates in Apex Legends right here.
Loot boxes have long been the subject of concern in the games industry due to their similarities to gambling. Over the years, regulators around the globe have made efforts to curb exploitative practices, from banning them outright in countries such as Belgium to using age-rating systems to warn parents of their presence in countries like Australia and Germany.
While in this update, Respawn didn’t technically change any of its rewards systems, it did shuffle around some things earlier this year. Following the release of changes to Battle Pass that proved unpopular with the community, Respawn apologized and offered a new way to purchase one of the two Battle Passes with Apex Coins.
Apex Legends is currently gearing up for Season 23, which drops on October 29, but for now you can hop in yourself for the end of the very excellent Season 22.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.right here
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