Respawn Entertainment will remove tap-strafing in Apex Legends Patch 10.1. The news is sure to frustrate plenty of PC players who feel controllers have an advantage with aim assist. Mouse and keyboard users have always enjoyed better freedom of movement and control which is the exact reason why tap-strafing exists. Players found a way to dance around while firing a weapon in Apex, making it increasingly difficult to be hit.
PC players will argue that this is the only counter to aim assist. And that doesn't even touch on the subject of other controller mods. Respawn has recently made news by targeting strike pack users in their competitive tournaments, showing the company is capable of banning these types of users.
The question remains on whether they'll start banning players that use controller mods in ranked or normal play.
After much consideration and debate, we've decided to remove tap-strafing from @playapex in patch 10.1.
Our reasoning: It's inaccessible, lacks readability/counterplay, and is exacerbated by movement abilities.
The next patch notes will include a more detailed note about this.
— Respawn (@Respawn) August 31, 2021
Respawn to Remove Tap-Strafing From Apex Legends in Patch 10.1
A competitive tournament with money on the line is completely different than normal matchmaking. It wouldn't be surprising if Respawn started hammering controller mods hard after a big nerf to mouse and keyboard players. This might level the playing field even more.
The release date is unknown for 10.1, but the new season did launch on Aug. 3. Launching a new patch in the next week or so is completely reasonable based on the length of the opening patch.
