Apex Legends pros voiced their frustrations on social media this afternoon after being informed that the high-end PCs intended for use at this weekend’s $1 million Stockholm LAN won’t arrive in time for the tournament.
After complaining about the mediocre specifications of the PCs originally intended for the competition, the tournament organizers made an effort to secure faster setups commensurate with the high-stakes event. On April 21, Shahin Kanafchian, an EA employee, confirmed on Twitter that the new computers would feature RTX 3080 graphics cards and 11th generation Intel i7 processors. The change was widely praised by the pro community, who saw the switch as a sign that their concerns had been heard.
But players were informed this afternoon that the upgraded PCs won’t arrive in time for the tournament. Instead, pros will have to make do with the original computers, which use RTX 2070s. Many see them as outdated setups that will struggle to run the game on the settings players are accustomed to.
In many cases, the reversion to the less powerful PCs means that players are practicing on gaming rigs in Stockholm that will outperform the hardware at the event this weekend.
Given the wide variety of processing-heavy visual effects in the crowded late-game circles of professional Apex, it’s entirely likely that the tournament PCs will experience lag and stuttering during these crucial moments. Even if the computers run smoothly, Pontus Bengtsson, who manages the EMEA team Alliance, said that the inferior setups could limit the skill on display at the LAN.
The Stockholm LAN begins with the group stage this Friday, April 29, at 3am CT. The finals will be broadcast starting at 9am CT on May 1.
