Hot Drop is GameSpot’s weekly Apex Legends column, in which Jordan Ramée takes a closer look at Respawn’s battle royale to provide additional insight into the game’s evolution, as well as dive deeper into its episodic storytelling and characters.
The launch trailer for Apex Legends Season 13: Saviors hides quite a few references and Easter eggs. It also introduces us to the season’s new playable character–it’s Newcastle, Bangalore’s brother. Below, we breakdown 13 hidden shoutouts secreted away in the Saviors launch trailer.
If you like what you read, I’d appreciate it if you checked out some of my other Apex Legends articles, like my theory about how Apex Legends is heading towards all-out war. I also think that Respawn tends to focus a bit too much on developing Apex Legends’ storyline through the legends, and should change the narrative so that the battle royale no longer focuses on its heroes. There was also that giant Apex Legends leak from a while back–though I’m sure it’s mostly accurate, I’m not convinced we can trust any of the nine leaked legends beyond Newcastle and Vantage.
And Revenant
At 0:05, you can see Pathfinder putting up a sign in the back of the party that says, “And Revenant,” marking the event as a send-off for both Bangalore and Revenant. You could see Pathfinder making this sign in an earlier Season 13 teaser, where Wraith, Rampart, and Pathfinder are putting together party decorations.
Even if everyone else hates Revenant, it’s charming to see Pathfinder’s ever-present good nature pushes him to continue to try to connect with the murder robot “brother” that wants nothing to do with him.
Wattson’s punny dance moves
It appears that Wattson can’t stop herself from committing to a good pun, even when she’s dancing. At 0:05, the static defender can be seen doing the electric slide at the party, likely in reference to her electric-based abilities.
Nessie beer
Also at 0:10, you can see that there’s a Nessie on the label of the beer that Bangalore is drinking (you can see it again and more clearly at 0:21). Respawn hides Nessies in almost every Apex Legends trailer and promotion, and they’re typically found in secret locations on the in-game maps as well.
“40 tries to get in the Games”
In response to being called a young buck that needs to be kept safe, Mirage retorts that Newcastle is clearly an inexperienced fighter as it took him like “40 tries to get in the Games.” It has taken Newcastle a long time to get into the Apex Games–we first heard about his efforts to join the bloodsport ahead of Season 4. He came in second place in the qualifiers behind Forge. When Forge was killed, Newcastle should have been next in line to compete but the Syndicate placed Revenant in the Games instead. It stands to reason that Newcastle has continued to try to get into the Apex Games in the eight seasons since then and has repeatedly failed.
The security protocol
At 1:15, the approaching sea creature activates a security protocol, raising a structure from beneath the sand. On the side of the building, it reads “IMC Armory,” meaning the security protocol dates back to the day of the IMC. The IMC departed the Outlands between 2713-2719, and Apex Legends’ story begins in 2733, so it’s been a while since this armory has seen the light of day.
“Nothing good can come from this place”
At 1:16, Newcastle gives his first impression of Storm Point, saying, “Nothing good can come from this place.” That is–word-for-word–what Bangalore says to Mirage when first reaching Storm Point in the Season 11 launch trailer. This likely explains why Mirage looks at Bangalore in confusion–he’s wondering how Newcastle and Bangalore would have reacted to seeing Storm Point in the same way.
Newcastle’s abilities
It looks like that giant Apex Legends leak was right about Newcastle because we see him use the exact abilities in this trailer that were revealed in said leak.
At 1:24, we get our first look at what’s likely Newcastle’s tactical ability. He deploys a shield in front of him to block incoming fire.
At 2:27, we see what’s likely to be Newcastle’s passive ability. When Pathfinder goes down, Newcastle drags him to safety while also shielding Pathfinder from any attack.
And at 2:40, we get our first look at what’s likely Newcastle’s ultimate ability. Leaping into the air, Newcastle slams his shield into the ground, which expands into a protective wall to save Bangalore from the monstrous crustacean’s laser beam attack.
Equipment upgrade
Upon Bangalore entering the IMC Armory, you can view a computer screen on the far wall at 1:33. The screen says, “Engage console for equipment upgrade,” which possibly hints that this armory is more than just a place to house weapons. It’s possible that the armory can upgrade a legend’s equipment as well–that would be a compelling addition to the battle royale.
Yup, that’s a Spitfire
At 1:34, Bangalore walks past a Spitfire to take a Havoc. Ignoring her terrible logic for just a moment, the existence of the Spitfire on the wall rack may be a hint that the devastating LMG is rotating out of Care Packages in Season 13 and rejoining the ground loot.
Also seen in the IMC Armory: Hemlok, Flatline, Rampage, Mastiff, Peacekeeper, R-99, Longbow, L-Star, R-301, and CAR. Pretty much every type of gun, save for pistols.
As a side note, it’s weird that there’s a Rampage in there, right? Like, Rampart made that gun–how is it possible that Newcastle and Bangalore could find one in an IMC Armory that’s presumably been underground for longer than Rampart has been alive?
Williams takedown
At 1:50, we’re given another clue that Newcastle is really Jackson. Having run out of ammo, Newcastle tackles the remaining Spectre and Bangalore finishes it off by stabbing it in the chest with her heirloom knife. The move is the exact same one that the duo took down an enemy Pilot with during the Stories from the Outlands: Gridiron trailer.
“Checkmate”
At 3:08, we get another clue that Newcastle is really Jackson Williams. Upon defeating the creature, Newcastle plants his shield in the ground and says, “Checkmate.” This is what someone says when they’ve moved into a winning position in chess.
Newcastle’s name could be a play on a “rook,” a chess piece that looks like the rampart of a castle. In Stories from the Outlands: Gridiron, when Bangalore angrily confronts her brother for lying to her, Jackson has just lost a match of chess. The only opposing piece he managed to capture is sitting right in front of him, and it’s a rook.
Valkyrie’s greatest fear
At 3:16, Valkyrie looks up at Loba, who is longingly looking at Bangalore and not Valkyrie, her actual girlfriend. Though Valkyrie doesn’t say anything, the look does give off an air of worry–like she’s realized that Loba is still in love with Bangalore. This ties into Valkyrie’s greatest fear.
Every Halloween, the legends celebrate by traveling to another universe–one where Revenant killed everyone and rules the Outlands as a shadowy god. This past Halloween, we learned that this Revenant can glean a person’s greatest fears if they fall in battle and are reborn as one of his shadows, and he uses this knowledge to mock those who enter his domain.
When she becomes one of his shadows, this Revenant tells Valkyrie, “Daddy’s little girl? Until his boss has a job for him. Loba’s second chance? At least, until her first love comes crawling back. Face it Kairi, this new look is perfect. After all, you spent your whole life in someone else’s shadow.”
Bottlecaps
At 3:21, Newcastle hides away a bracelet of bottle caps–the final and most damning clue that he’s really Jackson Williams. In Pathfinder’s Quest, we learned that the Williams family has a tradition. Before being deployed into military service, a family member is celebrated. When the party dies down, the immediate family for the person getting deployed gather together for one last beer. The bottlecaps from those last moments are put onto a leather string and then given to the person being deployed.
“We make a leather bracelet and put it on the wrist of the person leaving,” Bangalore tells Pathfinder in the book. “The bottle cap from the last beer you had with your family. A piece of us is with them, wherever they go in the galaxy.”
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