Gold knockdown shields are too commonly available since the Season 13 Storm Point rework, which is causing chaos in the last circles of ranked matches. So, many pro players, including Imperialhal and Albralelie, addressed Respawn to remove Gold Knockdown shields from Ranked matches.
Note: Respawn didn’t remove the Golden Knockdown Shield from the game. However, in Season 14, Respawn removed the self-revive feature from the gear and replaced it with the Guardian Angel perk.
Gears are the essential items to look for in Apex Legends matches. There are four types of standard gear in the game, including Helmet, Backpack, Armor, and Knockdown Shield. A different kind of gear called Survival was added much later to the game.
Having the right gear can, most of the time, decide whether you’ll be victorious or not. So, each player looks for these items right after dropping off the ship. Every gear has its own benefits and perks. But the ones that make the most difference are the gold gears, as they have special perks tied to them.
One of those special gold gears is the Level 4 Knockdown Shield, commonly known as the Gold Knockdown Shield. These specific gears allow players to revive themselves without any assistance from teammates, which can decide a squad’s fate in the last circles of a ranked match.
Consequently, many pro players like TSM FTX Imperialhal, TSM FTX Albralelie, and Alliance Hakis have addressed Respawn to remove Gold Knockdown Shields from Ranked matches as it ruins the proper competitive experience.
Remove Gold Knockdown Shields
Gold Knockdown Shields are considered overpowered, especially in the last circles of tight-rank matches, where every move and every kill matter. Sometimes, players lose the match and don’t get kill points because they don’t have Gold Knockdown Shields.
In the clip, you can see that almost everyone in the last circle has a knockdown shield trying to self-revive. Even though the player was down, they won the match because of the Gold Knockdown shield.
Gold items are supposed to be the rarest items to get in Apex Legends. However, since the addition of Armories, the drop rate of these golden items has increased by a significant margin. Now that there’s a change in the Ranked Mode, people have been playing the ranked matches like they would in regular tournament matches.
As a result, more people are alive in the last circles of any ranked match. But, with so many Gold Knockdowns in a ranked game, the endgame becomes very chaotic, and most of the time, the winner gets decided based on luck and RNG factors.
So, many pro players, including TSM FTX Imperialhal and TSM FTX Albralelie, voiced concerns about removing Gold Knockdown Shields from ranked matches.
Read More: Imperialhal Defends the New Ranked System, Says Players Should Not Solo Queue in Ranked
