Ballistic,” Apex Legends’ Latest Character, Unveiled in “Stories from the Outlands: Encore

Respawn Entertainment, the developer behind Apex Legends, has released the latest episode in its Stories From The Outlands series, introducing the newest character to join the game’s roster for Season 17: Ballistic. The animated short, titled “Encore,” follows the story of August “Ballistic” Brinkman, a former champion of the Thunderdome, a bloodsport held on Kings Canyon before the Apex Games. In the Thunderdome, when a competitor died, they stayed dead, which ultimately led to August’s retirement after his love for attention and in-game “peacocking” caused the death of a squadmate.

“Encore” depicts August watching a news story about his failed career before discovering that his son, Nathaniel, has joined the Apex Games. August forces Syndicate leader and Silva Pharmaceuticals CEO Torres Silva to agree to kick Nathaniel out of the games in exchange for August joining the Apex Games himself. The episode also reveals the title of Season 17 as “Arsenal,” with the tagline “Show your caliber.”

Interestingly, the episode premiere countdown included a commercial for Legentifax, a fictional medication patented by Silva Pharmaceuticals that appears to be an anti-aging medication made of prowler blood. The episode also suggests that August is taking this medication while also mixing it with alcohol.

The launch trailer for “Arsenal” will debut on April 26 at 8 AM PT / 11 AM ET, and the season will launch on May 9. Before that, the new Veiled Collection Event will launch on April 25 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. Apex Legends is free to play on console and PC, while Apex Legends Mobile is available on Android and iOS until May 1.