Apex Legends players asked, and after a few years, Respawn Entertainment listened. Season 16 marks the official addition of the long-requested Team Deathmatch mode, entering the playlist as a limited-time mode.
Team Deathmatch pits two squads of three players in six-vs-six combat. Matches are divided into 30-point rounds, and the first team to win two rounds takes the match. Like in Control, players can’t enter the mode with squads larger than three players, at least during its inaugural stint.
The more contained team size of Team Deathmatch means the mode is too small for stages such as Hammond Labs, Barometer, and Lava Siphon, which play host to Control. Instead, Team Deathmatch games take place on maps made especially for the now-defunct Arenas mode, with Habitat-4, Skull Town, and Party Crasher in rotation for season 16.
Although Team Deathmatch enters Apex as a limited-time mode, it won’t be a rare sight like Gun Run or Control. Players can dive into it through a special, permanent playlist, which will also be born in season 16.
Will Team Deathmatch be permanent in Apex Legends?
Team Deathmatch will experience a three-week exclusivity window with the release of season 16. Starting on March 7, though, players can dive into Team Deathmatch through the permanent Mixtape playlist, which hosts popular limited-time modes such as Team Deathmatch, Control, and Gun Run. It’s unclear how the Mixtape playlist lets players choose between these modes, however.
The goal of the Mixtape playlist is to provide players with a lower-pressure environment to practice, and it also serves as an alternative to the high-stakes, 60-man skirmish that is the battle royale mode. In the Mixtape playlist, dying is far less punishing than in battle royale (even in Team Deathmatch), and there’s a smaller focus on scavenging gear.
While Respawn intends for the Mixtape playlist to be a sort of training ground, it also serves as a welcome change of pace for players who have been suffering from battle royale fatigue or who aren’t that fond of the battle royale mode to begin with.
