And besides, respawning is one of the features that makes Apex Legends different from other battle royale games, so other battle royale games copying it was kind of inevitable because innovation and iteration are more or less exactly the same thing.
Responding to a fan’s question in a recent Reddit AMA, Fortnite producer RZELive confirms that the studio is busy working out the pros and cons of a respawn feature for the game.
“We’ve been considering this mechanic for a while and have been exploring it. Want to make sure we give it the time it needs and fully understand its impact on the game as a whole. Look for further updates during Season 8.”
It seems counter-intuitive for a genre in which the permanent elimination of other players is its core premise to include respawning, but as Apex Legends proves, this can also introduce a unpredictable reversal to the game’s otherwise predictable loop. Whether or not that’s something Fortnite players want, though, is probably going to be controversial because those are the rules.