Octane buff in Apex Legends has unintended side-effect for healing
Respawn Entertainment[jwplayer cgdaanpd]The Lost Treasures Collection Event patch gave Octane a healthy speed boost in Apex Legends, but players are finding that it can negate the slow-effect of heals – something that might not be an intended feature of his Stim ability.
After the June 23 update, the Adrenaline Junkie’s Tactical ability now lets him remove movement impairing effects. Respawn Entertainment dev Daniel Klein further clarified these changes, saying that it was “more of a one-time cleanse when you pop the stim.”
Although, some are confused as to what the Stim protects against and Klein made clear that Octane could get slowed again even if his Tactical was activated. This threw off players after a video surfaced showing the Legend being able to heal without any impairments to his speed.
After playing around with the ability, one player found that Octane can negate the natural slows while using a heal, even after applying the syringe: “Octane’s slow removal works for heals! All aboard the Octrain!”
An interaction like this would be extremely beneficial for Octane players, seeing how the Legend would be able to run laps around the Arena while popping Phoenix Kits and Shield Batteries.
The language used in the patch notes and Klien’s explanation for the Stim’s limitations make it clear that this isn’t an intended result from using his ability, but rather an unintended side-effect.
In fact, another developer put Octane players on notice, saying that this interaction was indeed a glitch in the Apex system and to get the most use out of it while it’s in the game.
It's a bug. Enjoy it while you can!
— Carlos Pineda 🇵🇭 (@pinedsman) June 23, 2020
Lead Game Designer at Respawn Entertainment Carlos ‘Pinedsman’ Pineda responded to a question involving the strange instance, and confirmed that “it’s a bug, enjoy it while you can!”
This presumably means the next patch will have a fix preventing Octanes from sneaking past the slows that come with the heals and shields around the Games.
Respawn have been making a concerted push in Season 5 to balance every character in Apex Legends, so don’t expect to see this unintended buff last much longer.