Apex Legends has never been short on bold personalities, but fans haven’t seen a character quite like Alter in some time. Released on May 7, 2024, as part of Season 21: Upheaval, she might’ve been just the character that the game needed.
Brought to life by Respawn’s team of developers, Alter is Apex’s first fully villainous character in years. As Apex’s first true “bad b*tch” in years, she breaks away from the misunderstood anti-heroes that previously took up the role of antagonists. The game may have issues in the gameplay department but Alter definitely brought her A game to the narrative.
Apex Legends Has a Straight Up Villain Now
Apex Legends has a diverse roster of Legends. | Credit: Respawn Entertainment
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Apex Legends fans are not happy with developer working on a new game.
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Apex Legends are losing heirlooms and badges with the ongoing update issue.
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As Apex Legends Narrative Lead Ashley Reed explained during an interview with GameRant, developing Alter was all about finally introducing an unapologetically evil character into the game.
After several Legends with more nuanced or misunderstood personas, Respawn Entertainment made a character who thrives on deception and destruction.
The release of Alter also coincided with Apex Legends’ fifth anniversary. The devs used the milestone to reflect on the direction of the game and where they wanted to take it in the future.
Alter represents Apex Legends’ first true villain in several years, a decision the game’s developers consciously made to fill the gap. Reed explained the creative decisions that went into the development of the character in the interview.
But from my perspective, it was very interesting because we, as a group, knew that we wanted to do a villain, like we hadn’t had a true villain in a long time. We had misunderstood characters, characters who maybe have issues, but we hadn’t had a bad b*tch.
Unlike characters who are simply misunderstood or act out of personal struggles, Alter represents a darker force, embodying chaos and deception in a way that Apex Legends hadn’t explored since Ash’s release.
Inspired by classic trickster archetypes, Alter stands out for embracing pure chaos, manipulating both allies and enemies with her instability. The team wanted to make someone who wasn’t simply misunderstood or conflicted but intentionally disruptive, unapologetically manipulative, and chaotic. And they did.
You Might Not Have Known, But Apex Has a Ton of Lore
Alter’s background development was handled with care, particularly through the cultural lens provided by her lead writer, Jaclyn Seto. As a Chinese-Canadian, Seto drew upon her own experiences to shape Alter as a character who represents her heritage.
Alter’s backstory is also an enigma by design. Similar to the Joker in Batman lore, Alter changes her origin story each time she tells it. Every time she tells it, she only reveals details she wants the audience to know at that moment. At least this aspect of Apex is absolute cinema, can’t speak for the gameplay though.
I think that this came primarily from Jaclyn—that this character is never going to be honest about what is actually going on in her life. he’s just like, ‘I just want to mess with everybody.’ She would not just tell you what her backstory is.
The developers enabled players to embrace Alter’s mystery, leaving her true motives open to interpretation. It’s a design choice that aligns with her unpredictable, volatile personality. And it does a good job of setting her apart from the rest of the Legends.
Unlike other Legends with redeeming qualities and motivations, Alter just wants to spread disorder. This makes her an outlier in Apex Legends, where most characters, even the morally ambiguous ones, operate with some degree of morality.
What do you think of Alter in Apex Legends? Let us know in the comments!
