When Will 'Apex Legends' Mobile Version Regional Test Begin?

A closed regional beta test for the mobile version of “Apex Legends” is slated to run before the end of April, with only a few thousand participants able to join in on the fun for now.

The aptly-dubbed “Apex Legends Mobile” is a new version of the game that’s designed to be played on the smartphone, but game director Chad Grenier says in a dev blog post that it will remain “true to the original.”

“Apex Legends Mobile” aims to bring “the most advanced battle royale combat available on a phone” with an intuitive and easy-to-use control scheme as well as thoughtful optimizations to provide the best possible performance on mobile devices.

The regional beta will target India and the Philippines first, and only a few thousand players will be able to play the beta test upon release. However, the developers mentioned that they will be expanding their testing capabilities to include more players and more regions in the future. “Apex Legends Mobile” will be launched similarly to how “League Of Legends Wild Rift” did, with small regional tests that will slowly culminate into a global release.

Only Android devices will be supported for the initial beta tests, but the developers are planning on implementing iOS support after the initial wave of testing, which begins in Spring 2021.

Much like its PC and console counterparts, “Apex Legends Mobile” will be free-to-play and it will have its own battle pass and collectibles that are unique to the mobile version. However, since the mobile version is different from the original version, crossplay between mobile players and PC or console users will not be possible.

The original “Apex Legends” revolutionized the battle royale genre with its emphasis on squad-play, skill-based movement, intuitive contextual ping system and relatively well-balanced gameplay despite having hero characters with unique abilities.

Combat in the game is also very fast-paced, leading to quicker games and more intense close-quarters firefights. It’s hard to say whether or not the mobile version will be able to capture the same pace that the original game has due to the naturally-clunky nature of FPS games on mobile phones, but Respawn Entertainment has promised to keep “Apex Legends Mobile” as close to the original as possible.