After waiting all of Season 5 for a new gun, Apex Legends players finally have something cool to look forward to, although it's not exactly New. Season 6 will add the Volt, a round energy weapon and the first new SMG since Apex Legends' launch.
Volt in Apex Legends
In Titanfall 2, the name of the game for the Volt was reliable. The gun had low recoil, perfect hip firing accuracy, and could cause sustained damage at close to medium range. However, that was on the low end in terms of damage, and Sommet already has a hyper-precise, low-damage SMG in the alternator. This means that we cannot yet predict exactly whether the Volt will play the same way it did in Titanfall 2 when it makes the jump to Summit. Add to that Apex Legends' tendency to hilariously ship over - or under-tuned, and we can really only hold our breath and hope the Volt doesn't break the game too much.
One thing we know with almost complete certainty is that the Volt will be a map spawn. With the L-Star, Respawn learned that Apex Legends players don't appreciate the new tools if they only use them once every 10 matches. We can expect another weapon on the current roster to make room for the Volt by becoming a dropped car (hopefully a sniper rifle).
Volt SMG in Titanfall Assault. Image via Respawn Entertainment.What the Volt could mean for season 6
The arrival of this new old weapon for Apex Legends could mean more than a few things for the game's meta in Season 6. For starters, the addition of a third energy weapon to the game could be a good reason to reintroduce the Extended energy mag attachment that was vaulted in Season 3. This would involve rebalancing the base Havoc and L-Star mag sizes, which could be a good opportunity to squeeze some power out of the Havoc.
It would also be interesting to see if the Volt arrives alongside new weapon mechanics or hop-ups. Anti-shield damage has been a big thing for Respawn, either adding it to new weapons like the Sentinel or adding it as an option and then quickly removing it from others like the Alternator and the RE- 45. If the Volt deals additional anti-shield damage, that would be enough to distinguish it from the alternator. The same is true if the Disruptor Round hop-up returns.
On a final note, adding a new SMG could mean Respawn is thinking about a close-range meta for Apex Legends Season 6, much like the Anvil Receiver hop-up, Charge Rifle, and Sentinel. have enabled the long-range meta prevalent in recent seasons.
