Summary
Electronic Arts (EA) recently revealed that its free-to-play battle royale title,Apex Legends, has earned the company $3.4 billion to date. This figure not only provesApex Legends' status as a major player in the free-to-play space, but also positions it among the most successful video games of all time.
Apex Legendsfirst entered the live-service scene in 2019 from Titanfall developer Respawn Entertainment. Although it launched with minimal fanfare, the game quickly caught on thanks to its free-to-play accessibility, fast-paced gameplay, tactical depth, and a cast of memorable characters. Maintaining a live-service game via content updates is the other side of the success equation, and Respawn has mostly delivered there as well.Apex Legendsis currently in Season 21, and the studio has shown no signs of letting up thus far.
During EA’s Q4 and 2024 fiscal year earnings call, it was disclosed thatApex Legendshas amassed $3.4 billion in net bookings since its release in February 2019. This figure was discovered in thefull documentoutlining the contents of the earnings call, with a quote from EA CEO Andrew Wilson stating, “Since its surprise, smash-hit release in 2019, the HD title ofApex Legendshas surpassed $3.4 billion in lifetime net bookings.” The CEO also made the controversial statement aboutEA potentially implementing in-game ads for AAA titlesduring this earnings call.
EA’s CEO Confirms Continued Investment into Apex Legends
The usage of the “net bookings” metric is interesting, as it’s different from outright revenue. Net bookings account for deductions and fees from the revenue, so it’s likely that the latter is even higher than $3.4 billion. Considering the game only monetizes cosmetics,Apex Legendshas accrued a staggering amount of money for EA, and Wilson remains committed to continue investing in “broadening the audience by building upon the epic characters of this world that go beyond the current Battle Royale.” With Season 21 ofApex Legendsbringing new cosmetics, artifacts, and more, the game’s popularity is unlikely to wane.
Despite facing some slowdown earlier in the year,Apex Legends' high-ranking position in the free-to-play space seems fairly solid. With over 300,000 concurrent players daily, it’s undoubtedly one of EA’s most important IPs. Respawn is also keen on incorporating player feedback, as the game’s latest Upheaval season will feature the return of aLimited Time Mode forApex Legendsthat was heavily requested by fans, as well as Solos, which will replace Duos until June 24. In the past year, Respawn has also madeApex Legendsmore palatable for newcomers with the Three Strikes and Straight Shot limited-time events.
