With the launch of Assimilation, the 4th Season of Apex Legends, Respawn has introduced a variety of changes to the core gameplay beyond the more obvious map reworks and new content. Perhaps the most significant change is an overhaul of how Apex Legends sniper ammo works; giving sniper rifles their own distinct ammunition category alongside the addition of the Sentinel.
How Apex Legends Sniper Ammo Works in Season 4
According to Respawn, the studio is trying to create a; “deeper, more balanced long range meta,” in Season 4. Because sniper rifles had previously shared ammunition with both SMGs and LMGs, the studio found that they weren’t able to make sniper ammo less common in order to balance the weapons. With the addition of a fourth sniper rifle, the Sentinel, Respawn is also adding Apex Legends Sniper Ammo.
This new ammunition type is exclusively used by the Sentinel, TripleTake, Longbow DMR, and Charge Rifle. The latter also now uses 1 ammo per shot with a 4-shot magazine. Alongside this new ammunition category, Respawn has also added an Extended Magazine for Sniper Ammo as a new attachment. These aren’t the only changes in Season 4 when it comes to ammo and attachments, however. Energy Ammo, for example, has had its capacity increased by 150%. It now contains 30 ammo per pickup rather than 20. “Now that there are only 2 energy ammo weapons in Apex,” explains Respawn; “we needed to up the ammo per brick to keep energy ammo from being too scarce.”
Finally, Respawn has also removed several pieces of loot from the game entirely. The Turbocharger hop-up is no more, along with extended magazines for Energy Ammo. (The latter change actually occurred before the start of Season 4 but was apparently meant to be part of the Season 4 update.) With the rebalancing of the Apex Legends meta due to the additions of the Sentinel and Sniper Ammo, it’s possible that Respawn may look to add another energy weapon in Season 5. After all, only two weapons actually use Energy Ammo now. However, the next season is still months away, and the meta may yet change in unexpected ways between now and then.