Ranked Arenas are finally making their way to Apex Legends in Season 10's Emergence update and we can't wait to jump into this new competitive experience. We might not be able to play Ranked Arenas just yet, but we know quite a bit about when they're going to arrive and how they're going to operate. Here's the latest...
LATEST - Season 10 update release time
Unusually, Respawn Entertainment has opted to avoid offering preloading options for the next Apex Legends title update and that means we're expecting the sizable download at the same time as the time the content is due to go live in-game.
Ranked Arenas are due to be added to Apex Legends at 10:00 PST / 13:00 EST / 18:00 BST on August 3rd. We don't know how big the update will be but it could stretch up to 35GB and beyond on consoles. The Season 9 update saw Xbox players need a 53GB download, after all.
When Do Ranked Arenas Arrive In Apex Legends?
As far as we're aware, Apex Legends' Ranked Arenas mode is coming alongside the new content in the Season 10 - Emergence - title update. This means you should be able to jump into a more competitive experience from August 3rd.
Ranked Arenas isn't going to feature a split in the same way as Ranked BR, though. This means that, for at least this first season, it's going to continue uninterrupted until the Season 11 update.
Ranked BR is going to split on September 21st, though. This will swap out World's Edge for Kings Canyon for the remainder of the season.
Ranked Arenas Has A Separate MMR & Rank System
In an effort to keep Ranked Arenas a fair playing field, Apex Legends has opted to keep the system separate from the Ranked BR ranking system. There's going to be two measures of your skill in Ranked Arenas, which Respawn Entertainment has laid out below:
" Your rank, which is your visible skill rating (e.g. Bronze, Silver, Gold, all the way up to Predator, just like the BR ranking system)."
And...
" An underlying MMR (matchmaking rating) score, a number which is invisible to everyone, including you. This is the number we use to determine who you should be matched against in Ranked Arenas."
This is similar to how Ranked BR works (and also most other Ranked modes in competitive gaming), so you should find it easy to pick up.
There's going to be 10 Placement Matches to play at the start of a season for Ranked Arenas and these might be a "stomp-or-be-stomped" situation until you find your MMR and Rank. As a team-based game, Arena Points are all about getting the win. It's cut-and-dry compared to Ranked BR and should result in a clearer system going forwards.
It's also worth noting that Ranked Arenas does not have demotion protection in the same way that Ranked BR has. You'll still get the rewards for your highest Rank at the end of the season, though.
This Season's Map Rotation Has Been Confirmed
There are going to be six locations included in the Season 10 Ranked Arenas map rotation; Three of these will be original locations and three of these will be from established BR maps.
" Ranked Arenas will share the same overall map schedule as unranked Arenas."
The maps you will be playing on are as follows:
- Party Crasher;
- Phase Runner;
- Overflow;
- Hillside - Kings Canyon
- Dome - World's Edge
- Oasis - Olympus
Maps in Ranked Arenas will change every hour, whereas unranked Arenas will rotate every 15 minutes as before.