Xiomara Contreras, also known as “Vantage”, is the newest playable intelligence legend of Apex Legends. Raised on the wild planet Pagos by her mother, Vantage found her way to civilization after an accident on an abandoned prison ship, as a result of which she was seriously injured. Leaving no choice, Mother Vantage activated the ship’s S.O.S. lighthouse system, allowing herself to be captured and her daughter rescued. Now recovered and motherless, Vantage participates in Apex Games, trying to draw attention to her mother’s case and earn her freedom.
In terms of gameplay, Vantage didn’t get off to a very good start. Although most of her abilities are similar to those of other legends, they don’t quite match up with them. It’s actually quite difficult to understand how she fits into the Apex Legends meta as an intelligence legend. But although Vantage may not have wall-breaking abilities like other legends in her class, she still provides some important information through her passive abilities.
This visor is not just for show
The spotter’s lens is a passive Vantage ability. With it, she can raise the bullet drop indicator to see where her shots will hit, aiming without a weapon or from a weapon with a medium and long range sight. The passive ability is useful for small arms and sniper rifles, such as the 30-30 Repeater and Longbow DMR, whose bullet drop range is much shorter compared to other weapons of this class. Although the spotter lens makes sense when used in combination with medium and long-range sights, its functionality is not so obvious when the Vantage is unarmed, although it provides a basic 3x magnification when aiming.
This is because the spotter lens has a hidden unexplained feature. Aiming at an enemy or looking in his direction will display a lot of information on the Vantage visor. This includes the legend the enemy is playing for, their distance from Vantage, and what armor they and their squad are wearing. While these nuggets of information may not seem as important as knowing the current location of enemies (information provided by legends such as Bloodhound, Seer, and Crypto), they can ultimately influence many of the decisions that the Vantage squad makes.
There is More Scouting Work Than Wallhacks
Analysis of fragments of information provided by Spotter’s Lens is necessary to understand its usefulness as an intelligence capability. First, the ability to identify enemy legends allows Vantage to know what abilities a particular squad has, which allows her and her squad to adapt accordingly. For example, recognizing Crypto at a distance will allow Vantage to transmit information to its team and allow them to monitor the Crypto surveillance drone and its maximum Drone EMP capability.
Measuring the enemy’s distance from Vantage is also important, as it allows players to know what battles to expect. Vantage’s abilities and big hitbox make her more of a sniper who kills enemies from a distance, so it’s important for her squadmates to give her the opportunity to tune in before the fight. This is due to another piece of information that Spotter’s Lens provides, which shows the armor levels of the entire enemy squad. In addition to accuracy, strengthening your own defenses is an essential part of survival in Apex Legends. To ensure that Vantage is not knocked down by an enemy sniper, she can check what type of armor they are wearing and compare it with her own. Enemies with a higher armor level than Vantage should be treated with caution, while enemies with a lower armor level are the main targets for Vantage’s weapon and its Sniper’s Mark ultimate ability.
With the exception of the distance to enemy targets, all information provided by Spotter’s Lens can be transmitted to Vantage allies via the intuitive Apex Legends ping system and voice lines. This saves Vantage players from having to communicate with their team via voice or text chat, as not everyone speaks openly when it comes to online multiplayer games. Vantage’s abilities require a lot of work, but her passive “Spotter Lens” ability is a step in the right direction if Apex Legends wants to avoid the game being dominated by Wallhack characters.
Apex Legends is already available on mobile devices, PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
