Apex Legends has just kicked off the start of Season 3, boasting a new battle pass, a new legend named Crypto, and a brand new map. We spoke to professional free agent Thomas "Inhuman" Hammond on how the new Season has been performing so far.

Do you mind telling us how you got into competitive gaming?

Inhuman: I first started competitive gaming after getting into Counter Strike: Global Offensive from watching FaceIt tournaments for it back in 2014. The crazy energy of the crowd and passion of the players instantly hooked me in, and I knew I wanted to be a competitive player from that point on. I would even be watching CS tournaments on my phone during class in high school, because I didn't want to miss a second of the live action. I then started playing CS:GO on a cheap laptop using a trackpad for a year or two as a casual fan, until Overwatch came out in 2016. I then built a PC to compete in Overwatch and started off my competitive career in it before moving over to Player Unknown's Battleground on its launch. I know a lot of Battle Royale players have come from H1Z1, but Player Unknown's Battleground is what gave me my passion for Battle Royale as a genre and competitive esport, and it's where I consider myself to have started really being a competitive player in esports.

Which character do you main, and what about that character has made you attached to it?

Inhuman: Currently, I'm a flex player, so I play pretty much anything other than Pathfinder. I would say my favorite character to play overall is Wraith, though. I think Wraith has the most strategic impact on a team more often than not, and I enjoy her high skillcap. Portal plays to get out of sticky situations, Q'ing in a situation to re-position yourself, and using portal in final circle to close out a match is very important utility for a team composition that no other character can really provide.

It’s only been a few weeks since the launch of Season 3, but how are you feeling about the start so far?

Inhuman: Season 3 has honestly been amazing so far. I think World's Edge is one of the most beautifully designed maps I've ever seen in a Battle Royale, and I can tell Respawn worked really hard on balancing the map and also making it look as gorgeous as they could. The map, along with the implementation of the Vaults and Cargo Bots were all very creative ideas for the game that made Season 3 overall really enjoyable. I'm excited to see how World's Edge plays out competitively, too!

Fans seem pretty keen on World’s Edge. Do you think King’s Canyon will ever return to the core game or do you prefer Apex just run with one map for the time being?

Inhuman: I would love to see King's Canyon make a permanent return to the game eventually. I think King's Canyon is a lot of fun to play in public games, and feels very natural to a lot of players after playing on it for 8 months. King's Canyon being the chosen map for the Halloween event also really reminded me how much I enjoy and miss the map for public matches. That being said, I think World's Edge is a lot more esports ready for Apex as a whole, so I would like to see both maps always be a choice to play on.

A pretty noticeable concern is the addition of the new Charge Rifle and how it’s popular in Ranked Series 2. How do you feel the weapon is performing, and do you agree with some of the criticism directed towards it?

Inhuman: I think that the current state of the Charge Rifle is one of the only things negatively effecting gameplay right now. I feel like the weapon is a little bit too strong with the game's gun mechanics, and it should probably be changed. A lot of players have agreed that the L-Star should maybe be vaulted, and the Charge Rifle made a care package weapon with 20-30 bullets to use, and I would have to agree with this. A hitscan weapon just doesn't really fit into a game that finds you poking players at range more often than not, and Season 3 would be nearly perfect without the Charge Rifle's current over-tuned state.

Along with the Charge Rifle, we have a new playable legend, Crypto. Contrary to what we thought, his abilities seem pretty balanced. How do you think he’s performing?

Inhuman: I think Crypto is a very interesting character, and the way they introduced him to the game was so hype! Introducing the next Legend to the game by him ruining the old map is such an epic introduction, and I hope more characters are introduced similarly in the future. As for his abilities, I think that his kit is really interesting, and has the potential to be very impactful during public games. The only thing I would change about Crypto right now is that his obvious counter is dropping your armor when he goes to pop EMP, so that your armor doesn't take damage and you only have the slow effect applied. I think that armor on the ground should take the damage as well to make him a more viable option competitively.

A new game starts on the 15th called Shadowfall. Players will participate in a night version of King’s Canyon in solos, and upon dying will return as a zombie version and hunt the remaining living players. Are you excited for the inclusion of this event?

Inhuman: Shadowfall is such a creative event for Halloween! I'm really enjoying the game mode right now, and I've even been using it as a warmup before playing Ranked. I'm also really curious to see if this game mode is a tease at the new leaked character for the game, Revenant, much like Crypto was teased early on in Season 2!

How do you feel Respawn handled the rewards for the conclusion of Ranked Series 1? Do you think they could’ve been better or did they do a good job with them?

Inhuman: I think that Respawn did a great job on the cosmetic rewards for Ranked Season 1. Dive trails and badges are really all you can ask for, but the addition of charms to your weapons along with the dive trail and badges was an amazing idea by Respawn. My only problem with the rewards is the fact I can't add my Apex Predator charm to multiple weapons at once, and I think that if this was changed in the future, it'd be a lot better for the cosmetics part of the game. I'm very excited to see what cosmetic rewards Ranked Season 2 brings to the game!

Ranked Series 2 brought the addition of the assist stat tracker and an overhaul of the scoring system. Do you think Respawn could change anything else in the mode or is it good as is?

Inhuman: The overhaul of the RP system was much needed, and I think the new system is a huge improvement from the old one. The addition of assists to the game makes Ranked a lot more enjoyable and reflective of your skill as a player, and I think competitively, having assists in the game makes things better for both players and viewers.

Anything you’d like to conclude this interview with?

Inhuman: I think Apex has the potential to be one of the greatest Battle Royale esports to date, all Respawn has to do is make some simple additions to the game like organization/content creator charms, and custom servers. With these additions to the game, the esports scene would flourish and viewership would be huge. Charms add a lot of personality to the game, and cosmetics that players can relate to a favorite streamer or organization is huge for a lot of fans. This would also add sustainability for a lot of organizations and content creators so that they can keep doing what they do best. The implementation of a creator program might be the best way of doing this, like the PUBG Partner program. I really appreciate the opportunity to be interviewed, and I had a lot of fun answering these questions. Thank you!

We'd like to thank Inhuman for participating in this interview, and we wish him the best going forward!

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