30 y/o here, I'd say I play even better now than I did when I was younger, although I never really stopped gaming (a few hours a day). I don't have that "ego" I used to have where I needed to push and try to kill every team, and my aim is about as consistent as it used to. People fall out of practice because life gets in the way and then think they're bad; if you stopped doing ANYTHING for a year or two you'd be worse at it. Keep goin!
i play ranked because it's more fun, more teamplay, match more balanced, people don't leave as soon as they are down... i really don't care about my rank
I can honestly say people not leaving right away after getting downed and people are motivated to play as a team are some things that I do like about rank when I tried it last season.
If you don't practice, you're not going to stay good. Tracking is all about getting to understand the pace of the game, from player movespeed to projectile speed until it's second nature. But it's not like riding a bike. Especially if you're playing other games, your "muscle memory" will focus more towards that game.
It takes consistent practice and shaking the rust off will take a long period of dedicated work. Not sure why you're aiming at the head though while tracking. Wingman isn't a ground drop anymore.
I agree with everything except muscle memory. I left Apex for 6 months and came back and the only thing I had to get used to was the battle Royale aspect again. Aim is about hand/eye coordination, click timing, etc. Any falling back on muscle memory can work, but with how much that affects how your arm moves you won't be consistent. But then again you could mean anything by muscle memory and this is just how I interpreted it.
Muscle memory is having the games fundamentals in your brain where you do not have to think about tracking someone. When they jump slide, you already know the arc that person is going to take. Knowing how to spam a wingman at somebody crouch spamming so you’re hitting them in the head without barely needing to see the crosshairs or wait for the shooting animation to stop.
It’s not how to use a mouse. Everybody can do that. Or even necessarily a spray pattern, especially in a game like apex where a baby could learn every guns spray pattern.
In a game like rust, yes, where aiming is hard and TTK is low. in a game like OW or Apex, no. The important aspects of muscle memory change from game to game. Hence why if you play. CS or OW for even a month or a few months, when you come back to apex you’re probably going to feel shaky or weak or just struggling to track people
You just have to keep playing consistently. You'd find anyone irrespective of age would struggle if they didn't play regularly. In saying that I'm 41 this year and try and get on for at least an hour a night, starting with ten minutes in the firing range.
I’m 50. Been playing since release. Highest rank has been diamond a few times. I only solo q generally.
If I don’t play for a while I’m poor. Nice I’m back in the groove after a couple of days of regular play I’m fine.
Same with csgo etc. if I don’t play for a while I lose the “skills” and I need to play regularly to get the game sense and aim back.
Age is just an excuse tbh. :)
tarkov doesn't have octanes blasting amphetamines and supergliding over your head and tapstrafe dunking on you, and it doesn't have 80% of its playerbase frying you with overtuned aim assist. you have to approach the games completely differently to succeed. apex has one of the highest skill floors of any game i've played, part of why i enjoy it, its a challenge. keeps the hand eye coordination sharp for us old farts.
Similar age. I took almost a year off and came back recently. Went from a 3kd to losing a decent amount of 1 v 1s. Been playing a few hours a day for 2 weeks and I'm not back to normal but I'm back to winning my 1s at least. It's just practice and muscle memory. I'm sure age eventually becomes a barrier to entry but I think (hope) we're a couple of decades away.
I'm also trying raw accel for the first time. Helps with quick 180s but still gives me aim control. Bit tricky to master but if you feel sluggish in the game it might be worth trying.
Plug in a controller so you can get a soft aimbot like 90% of the player base. It's not that you can't aim. It's that your aim can't compete with the computer 0ms aimbot.
Mate, am nearly 50, play almost every day, have a win rate of 9% this season (my highest). Usually do a 1000 kills a season and my KDR is 1.2.
Some days I have bad days - can’t see enemies, get absolutely lasered. Some days have good days, multiple consecutive wins, kill leader, etc.
I play with friends, we all came over together when Fallout 76’s BR ended. Playing together is what makes it fun, not the results.
Oh and play MnK.
Never go for headshots, aim at the middle of the torso. Also stay up to date with the meta, guns regularly get recoil adjustments and will render them unusable for me because I simply can’t effectively handle the recoil to land my shots.
Ironically they did the opposite, they made it so all the thicc boys have the same arm sway as “medium” legends (in case you didn’t know all legends move at the same speed it’s just the height and arm sway that made the big guys feel slower) also I’d recommend warming up in the firing range before you play, I have a little aim training routine I do (you can find plenty on YT) and it’s made my shots immensely better since I implemented it
Unfortanely this is not the type of game you can just hop in from time to time and have a good time. From my own experience, If I take a break for a season, it's gonna take me atleast 2-3 weeks playing pretty much daily to get back to the level where I feel like I am able to compete. For me it's either play almost every day, or don't play at all, because it's not fun when everyone just one clips you. Also if you are PC player and you are stuggling with your aim, there is always that option embracing the dark side and swap to controller. Personally I am dogshit with controller as I am too old to learn a whole new muscle memory, but if you are atleast a bit fond of the layout and how to play it, it might be woth a shot given how you stuggle with aiming (I am asuming you are mnk player out of your post).
As others have said, it's probably just the mass amount of time you have *not* been playing the game. You're simply out of Practice and that comes with crappy aim, it's completely normal and expected. I recommend you warn up with Mixtape. It's good anyways, you can learn a lot of combat-stuff from there
No matter how much you want to try and enjoy, you just won't be able to. I had it happen to me in CS, Valorant, CoD. Unless you find joy in the game, subconciously, your body will reject it.
I'd say it could be an out of practice issue too.
My friends and I are 25, 32, 35, 38, 40 and we do alright.
And I personally turn to utter shit if I try play after a gap of a week or so.
Don't beat yourself up and if you want an older friend, DM me and we can play.
I'm GMT on Xbox
Weapon stats are changed often so you'll find you are used to one clipping at a certain range then a new patch comes by and it's just not the same anymore so you'll need to go to the range and sort of memorize which range works for which guns
Out of practice. Especially after tarkov, cs and destiny. Tarkov and cs has little to no movement mid firefight and destiny has aim assist and bullet magnetism.
I've been playing destiny and apex for the last 5 years, but i put apex down for most of season 18 and the whole season 19.
It took me a good week full of potato aim to get used to apex again, but the upgraded firing range has some neat new things to help you get back into the game.
Age doesnt matter. Luckily, aim is probably the easiest aspect of the game to train. A bit of firing range and couple games of mixtape before BR can help alot.
Just out of practice, lots of people are playing pubs all day everyday. So you’re going up against players that are putting in 40hrs+ a week consistently
I felt this and I'm only 23 lol I got back into apex only a couple days ago after not playing for over 3 years. I suckkk but I'm slowly getting back into it. Just takes some time and practice. We got this!
I'm 40, almost 41. I've played literally since the day 1 surprise release. I'm waaaay better now than when I started. I play on Xbox and use 2 paddles as well. I had never used paddles before Apex so I just learned within the last couple of years. I don't think age is the problem, just more practice/time with the game.
I'm 36, and I have always maintained around a 1 K/D. Played since day 1. It's mainly about just playing. I take breaks and come back and get shit on for a day or so. I've just learned to accept my position, I still have fun even though sweaty 3 stacks roll me all the time.
I’m 37 and I feel like I wrote this post ha ha. Seriously bro for me it’s just not playing as often is the issue. Was a comfortable 2.5kd player playing regular but now I’m 1.5 with a family and a full time job and all that entails as well as owning a house.
Life gets in the way man, don’t beat yourself up over it.
Please tell me that you warm up in the firing range and then play mixtape a couple of matches BEFORE going straight into Trios or Duos. I’m 32 and I play once or twice a week (been playing since pre season 1) and no matter what, I first go into firing range and warmup with the flatline and the peacekeeper for at least 5 mins. Then I play mixtape and I always suck the first 10 mins but slowly muscle memory kicks in. By the time it’s been like 30 mins of loading up apex, I’m back to 85% of my skill and can win all the fights I know I’m supposed to win. Yes, there are multiple times I’m shooting a player and they start airstrafing like crazy and kill me but I just go to the next match cause I don’t expect to be better than a player that can do all of that none sense. There’s also times where I barely beat those players with the help of my team or just pure luck. I know the amount of time that I put into the game and I know that there’s many players that put in more than me so I don’t expect to win ever 1v1. There’s also things beyond my control so I just learned to just focus on what I can do (practice more or warmup for longer) and continue playing. There isn’t a game like apex out there and that’s why I’ve kept playing for so many years.
I am also 36 and have no problem holding my own. But things I noticed you mentioned:
Taking breaks: This is a game you have to constantly play to stay sharp. I took a break last year to play through all of the Halo campaigns... And omg how the aiming works and how slow Halo is really fucked up my apex skills when I came back lol.
Changing sensitivity: Honestly just pick one of the normal base settings that most of the pro players use and stick to it (if pros use base stuff it should be good enough for us). Allow your muscle memory to get used to that specific setting. Stop messing with it and ruining any muscle memory you created.
Next game: some games you are just going to be unlucky and off a bit. Forget that game and go to the next I feel like this is a game where you can get in your head if you take the losses too heavily. There are 20 teams in a game and only 1 can win.
As folks have said, it's competing priorities. And while you may not have a masters badge in Apex, going for that in life (work, children, friends) is probably the better option.
one advice that helped me a lot is, aim centering keep your crosshair around body level whenever you’re moving and hip fire before you ads, quicker speed and better for adjusting, unless you have a super high sens, hip fire more often and try to play a few hours per week to not get completely obliterated whenever you come back
I'm 43 and I'm here to tell you that you're probably just having a run of bad luck. Happens to everyone.
I downloaded this game the day it came, played half of season one and only returned to it last spring. I'm finally getting my footing back and theres still points where I won't get a win in a week's time. Other times I've gotten 3 wins in a row. It happens.
Play to have fun and play with people who support you in-game and can laugh off a loss. If you're not having fun, move on to something else.
the games you've mentioned are very different shooters compared to apex, both cs and tarkov allows you to end the fight extremely fast with 1 well placed shot, not so much apex. It takes practice not settings or equipment, also dont aim at their head that's such a bad idea since it rarely matters unless you are using single fire weapons. It's all about being able to place all your shots not getting a headshot or 2. Play for an hour or so everyday if possible and you'll get there.
Im 37 and i pretty much suck at this game But i love it and have played it for a few years. Whats the problem with that? If its fun its fun, right? Age got nothing to do with it
Nah, they just change recoil patterns every season along with stuff like bullet speed etc. If you are not one with your recoil you're fucked. Go into the firing range for 10 minutes before every game, pick up a flatline, and learn "recoil smoothing" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLEoQnlzANA. You will be getting accused of having cronus after 30 days I promise.
You’re definitely not too old to play other people just have more time than you so they’ll get better faster since they have more time to play / practice / learn
I don't get this logic. You are bad. your body isn't the problem. My right hand barely works and my left eye doesn't. If I can rank up fairly comfortably. You can most definitely play casually.
It isn’t age I can assure you that because I’m 16 and I play almost every single day sense pre season all the way till now in season 20 about to be season 21; a pro tip that every content creator gives you and pro players tell you is before starting to play a pubs match or ranked or whatever you’re gonna want to take around 15 to 20 minutes to practice in the firing range ik a lot of people find it tedious to do this but it helps a lot I do it every single day in there you’re gonna wanna practice with the weapons you are comfortable with so for me I like to pick up a flatline and a volt and I shoot the decoys and the shooting board I practice up close hipfire I practice my mid range cover shooting and my long range recoil control now that’s the most important one recoil control at long range if you can master your recoil control at long range you’re gonna have a field day at mid range and close range but you also have to think I’m not always gonna find this weapons so you’re gonna switch now and pick up two guns you’re usually never gonna use I like to pick up the devotion and mastiff the devotion I practice with it at long mid close just to get the hang of a gun I hate completely and with the mastiff I’ll practice my peak shots because I hate shotguns to begin with I don’t like using them and I’m horrible at them and I do these every single day with every day I switch my weapons up so I can get used to all the different types of recoils in this game and I do these without attachments on my weapons only exceptions are scopes and that’s for your long range shots only it’s a tedious process but it helps a lot after the firing range I play a match of mixtape to get used to the chaos of a lot of people shooting at me recoil smoothing and all of that
Age definitely won't help.
I'm 37.
Fact is trying to learn new grips on controller will e difficult.
I still remember all the mortal kombat /killer instinct special moves. But half the time now i forget how I go about changing my grenades on apex.
I didn't play any computer game for 10 years until I drunkenly bought a ps5. Ive played since s12. Regularly hit plat/ diamond( lower level) compared to playing medal of honour and CS source and original x box halo back in the day. I am way behind my reflexes.
Fact is yourncofnitive ability to think about the button hit slows, somdoes your reaction time.
The biggest problem I've found is a lack of strategy/ big egos in gold/ platinum
The pros agree here too when they do their rookie to masters challenges.
They come unstuck a little with egotistical players who want to challenge every team even in a bad position. Or they don't know when to disengage.
I think sadly from cough *cough* our day when people woildmplay mmr, fps, rts. And have a mix of macro and micro. So many don't have that macro sense on apex
Sadly I think too many younger players are happy to go fight to fight killing 4 assisting 2 and dying in 14th than maybe playing 15 mins. Getting 1 squad wipe and waiting for end game.
That's my personal experience of this game.
I'm 49 (and actually am *better* than when I started back almost exactly three years ago); age definitely isn't your issue, but you *do* have to adapt over time (say, replacing lack of reflexes with better positional awareness and more "defensive" gameplay).
It's like anything else in life my dude. If you stop playing guitar for a few years you are going to have to relearn, you wont be able to play like you used to when you were practicing every day. Or lifting weights or remembering cooking measurements. You get out what you put in and if you're not putting in the effort to stay at a certain level it will naturally deteriorate.
33 about 1.5 kd diamond player but I play a good couple hours every night. If I take even a day break I can't keep up. The game is fast if your head isn't in it like a sport things are going to be a blur and you're going to feel like a blob that can't move. When I start my play session off I go into firing range, crank all bot movement up and practice tracking, practice recoil patterns and practice my movement. I do it for like 5 mins and keep adding 5 mins until I feel like Im In the right head space. Some days I can't get in the groove and move on to a different game. Like athletes you just have an off day sometimes. Now that we are coming to a season end you're playing against all good players. Casuals tend to not play anymore until a new season starts. The skill ceiling is so high in this game which is why I can't stop playing this game.
I'm almost 40 and I'll agree with the others here to keep at it. Don't be discouraged by the bad games. I tend to stick to mixtape unless I have friends on then I'll do BR. But I had one gun run match where I only got 2 kills, and then the very next match I got 13.
I also agree with going back to old games and still being decent. I played Team Fortress 2 for years and even though I play maybe twice a year now I can still land crit flare shots from across the map, yet I can't hit charged sentinel shots worth a damn lol.
If you're talking about your own personal aim being bad, just aim train or at least practice spray patterns inside the firing range. Eventually you'll improve and do better.
If you're talking about how everyone is exceptionally good with their movement, aim and game sense etc. then It's the fact that the only people who play apex are these days are hardcore and been here for a while. Back when you played, you had new players coming in and the main player base was nowhere near as refined as they are now.
However, I use Overwolf for a little extra info on people and I noticed A LOT of people who wreck my shit tend to be under level 150, and often in the 80s. I find it strange that, that many people are smurfing coincidentally. So I'm not sure why I keep running past this situation. No way that every player I run into that is levels above me happen to be new.. Any idea guys?
Do you practice in the firings range for at least 15 mins before starting pubs/ranked?
I’ve noticed this one technique has made me overall much better and consistent in the game.
I'm a tween and I can't hit shit in Apex. Meanwhile Overwatch and Valorant are fine. Apex in itself is just too different with the bigger maps, movement mechanics and projectile speeds. Like others have said, probably just need to practice more and get used to Apex.
I don't think it's an age thing. The game is just vastly different from the days when you grinded it out. Think about the differences alone in how the game has changed
New legends added/changed
Maps have been added and changed.
Guns have been added and nerfed and buffed.
Mechanics have changed.
Honestly, the biggest thing is probably just the adjustment and tweeking of hitboxes (look at pathfinders hitbox in season one if ya haven't seen it) Players have learned to use and abuse the movement techniques of the game. You said it yourself you dropped off after season 6, basically. Were all the way to seasom 19 now. The game just changed is all
that invisible force you feel where you are trying to catch up to your target with your aim could mean your sensitivity is a bit slow. Try increasing sensitivity a tad bit and play on the range with dummies with random strafe. After the firing range, play loads of TDM and Gun Run and I guarantee you will improve and be better for ranked or pubs.
I got an 33 year old on my friends list & no one I know can beat him in the range 1v1s other than me & he tells me all the time that “you can’t bring no one in here that’s better than me” 🤣it’s hilarious when he beats my Friends & I tell em his age
Hop into firing range then play some mix tape before playing any real games. Watch some videos with tips and tricks for aiming (check out aim smoothing)
34 year old here with a kid. Time is limited but I was still able to get to diamond solo queue this season.
The skill ceiling has gotten a lot higher since you last played and the recoil for guns, aim assist, and other thing are vastly different now than they were in the beginning. I had to mess around with ALC settings to find a controller sense that works really well for me. It’s definitely slower than what most play but hey if I hit my shots we call that a win.
I had the same feelings as you after coming back after a long hiatus. I had to spend a lot of time in the firing range just working on aim and then spending time in the mixtape game types or even now three strikes to get mass amounts of gun fights.
It does suck that the aim is such a massive skill right now but to me that’s what separates it from the other games even the ones you listed.
If you want my ALC’s I can send them your way! Just let me know!
Im in my early 30s and I think my reactions are fine. Muscle memory is a thing too, even 60 year olds who have guitar practice are still very competent at what they do. I would say its harder to start something later in life but if its already a habit you should be okay.
You are probably getting killed by cheaters or sweaty 3-stackers with at least one cheater in the squad a significant percentage of the time. And they probably have twice the health of you and your squad as they are using Revenent/Conduit. They like the trifecta.
Damn and I thought I was pushing it some of yall are older than me....yo answer your question now you're not too old...just like anything in life sports/riding a bike etc if you're not doing it everyday consistently and you take weeks off whenever you come back everything's gonna be out of wack...I suggest you hit the firing range everyday for 20-30 min before you start playing pubs/ranked...I haven't played this game since conduit dropped....didn't like what the last couple of seasons had to offer...I'm coming back when alter comes out...least we got a new legend finally shit was getting stale...I know I'll be rusty...but don't think about it too much...as long as you still can you use your hands and fingers you'll be alright.
I didn't need glasses last time I played this game. Now adays I do and I gotta say, that camera bob is HORRIFIC. Why they didn't think to give people an option to fully disable it is beyond me I mean my God even with the game set to minimal camera bob my head is friggin' killing me right now. I don't think I can play simply because of that. I don't think my glasses and current state of my eyes will let me.
As a fellow 36yr old best way to stay sharp is play consistently. I know if I'm even off for a few days I have to shake a little rust off. Even if it's just an hour in the range to keep muscle memory for movement and aim helps a lot. Just keeping with it is really the only way to stay consistent. Having a stack to goof around with is the best way to keep up. Dad of 2 get a couple hours in couple nights a week after the kids go down just chill with my buds in pubs sometimes we play ranked only ever made it to plat 4 but again we're all older and play much less than many of our opponents.
Apex is a sport, if you stop you have to train to get back at your level..
i don't get the point on your age, I'm 43 and I see my age as an avantage for taking good decisions.
Im in my early 30s, played apex since s2 and it was my first competitive shooter since bad company 2 and CS 1.6. The last few seasons my KD is between 1.5 and 1.7, which isn't good but also not bad. Im having fun.
It sadly really just is a gitgud situation. Practice in mixtape to get the grip on things and a feel for combat, practice in firing range, and watch some guides on common mistakes that are made. Recoil in this game isnt really hard and is mostly "push down". Aimsmoothing and jitteraiming to the mix and recoil is almost irrelevant.
The TTK can be unforgiving to new players as it's fairly long and thus opens up for more mistakes to be made. You won't necessarily win a fight just by shooting first, like in many shooters. You say you aim is the issue, but maybe theres more to it?
Apex is a VERY intensive game when it comes to mechanics. There are so many little movement, gunplay, and combat techniques to master that it literally takes a lot of extra curricular time to get down. As an older player myself, I am particularly lucky to be able to have enough free time to spend grinding and learning the game, probably more than the average person our age. I've played in pred lobbies, killed famous Apex players 1v1, played in comp, etc. I dont really think age is a factor other than older people like us generally have more responsibilities that don't give us the same amount of time to waste on this game.
Spoiler:you're actually wasting your life wage slaving to help buy a CEO his third mansion while his elite buddies help scheme to starve and ruin the average citizen. Enjoy.
34 here. I would say part of the thing at least for me is changing priorities. I’m not much further along in my career(partner at law firm). Have a kid on the way etc. so the time I can dedicate to playing apex is way less than before. This is likely the case for most people 30 plus. When I was early 20’s I spent way more time playing video games. It’s tough to keep up with the youngins now
High ttk games just require better mouse control and apex is busted so you use recoil smoothing instead of recoil control. U on m&k?? If so do voltaic fundamentals when you watch tv
I wouldn’t say it’s age but you’re probably out of practice.
Age is just a number. I don't have the reflex speed like I did when I was younger, but typically I just play smarter at the age of 48.
This ranked or pubs included?
30 y/o here, I'd say I play even better now than I did when I was younger, although I never really stopped gaming (a few hours a day). I don't have that "ego" I used to have where I needed to push and try to kill every team, and my aim is about as consistent as it used to. People fall out of practice because life gets in the way and then think they're bad; if you stopped doing ANYTHING for a year or two you'd be worse at it. Keep goin!
I mainly play pubs. There's really no real reason or motivation to play ranked games honestly. I just play for fun.
i play ranked because it's more fun, more teamplay, match more balanced, people don't leave as soon as they are down... i really don't care about my rank
I can honestly say people not leaving right away after getting downed and people are motivated to play as a team are some things that I do like about rank when I tried it last season.
If you don't practice, you're not going to stay good. Tracking is all about getting to understand the pace of the game, from player movespeed to projectile speed until it's second nature. But it's not like riding a bike. Especially if you're playing other games, your "muscle memory" will focus more towards that game. It takes consistent practice and shaking the rust off will take a long period of dedicated work. Not sure why you're aiming at the head though while tracking. Wingman isn't a ground drop anymore.
I agree with everything except muscle memory. I left Apex for 6 months and came back and the only thing I had to get used to was the battle Royale aspect again. Aim is about hand/eye coordination, click timing, etc. Any falling back on muscle memory can work, but with how much that affects how your arm moves you won't be consistent. But then again you could mean anything by muscle memory and this is just how I interpreted it.
Muscle memory is having the games fundamentals in your brain where you do not have to think about tracking someone. When they jump slide, you already know the arc that person is going to take. Knowing how to spam a wingman at somebody crouch spamming so you’re hitting them in the head without barely needing to see the crosshairs or wait for the shooting animation to stop. It’s not how to use a mouse. Everybody can do that. Or even necessarily a spray pattern, especially in a game like apex where a baby could learn every guns spray pattern. In a game like rust, yes, where aiming is hard and TTK is low. in a game like OW or Apex, no. The important aspects of muscle memory change from game to game. Hence why if you play. CS or OW for even a month or a few months, when you come back to apex you’re probably going to feel shaky or weak or just struggling to track people
It also doesn't help that the gun kicks, fire rates, and spreads have all changed dramatically since those seasons.
48, over 1 k/d, this season has been the best for me. Likely due to constantly playing 20+ hours a week
Same here, 48, \~0.9-1.3K/D , playing average 6 hours a week or so. Find people you enjoy playing with, and don't sweat it, you'll find your groove :)
You just have to keep playing consistently. You'd find anyone irrespective of age would struggle if they didn't play regularly. In saying that I'm 41 this year and try and get on for at least an hour a night, starting with ten minutes in the firing range.
I’m 50. Been playing since release. Highest rank has been diamond a few times. I only solo q generally. If I don’t play for a while I’m poor. Nice I’m back in the groove after a couple of days of regular play I’m fine. Same with csgo etc. if I don’t play for a while I lose the “skills” and I need to play regularly to get the game sense and aim back. Age is just an excuse tbh. :)
tarkov doesn't have octanes blasting amphetamines and supergliding over your head and tapstrafe dunking on you, and it doesn't have 80% of its playerbase frying you with overtuned aim assist. you have to approach the games completely differently to succeed. apex has one of the highest skill floors of any game i've played, part of why i enjoy it, its a challenge. keeps the hand eye coordination sharp for us old farts.
Similar age. I took almost a year off and came back recently. Went from a 3kd to losing a decent amount of 1 v 1s. Been playing a few hours a day for 2 weeks and I'm not back to normal but I'm back to winning my 1s at least. It's just practice and muscle memory. I'm sure age eventually becomes a barrier to entry but I think (hope) we're a couple of decades away. I'm also trying raw accel for the first time. Helps with quick 180s but still gives me aim control. Bit tricky to master but if you feel sluggish in the game it might be worth trying.
Plug in a controller so you can get a soft aimbot like 90% of the player base. It's not that you can't aim. It's that your aim can't compete with the computer 0ms aimbot.
I’m 45 and a day 1 player. Age is just a number. Just play more ☺️
Mate, am nearly 50, play almost every day, have a win rate of 9% this season (my highest). Usually do a 1000 kills a season and my KDR is 1.2. Some days I have bad days - can’t see enemies, get absolutely lasered. Some days have good days, multiple consecutive wins, kill leader, etc. I play with friends, we all came over together when Fallout 76’s BR ended. Playing together is what makes it fun, not the results. Oh and play MnK.
Never go for headshots, aim at the middle of the torso. Also stay up to date with the meta, guns regularly get recoil adjustments and will render them unusable for me because I simply can’t effectively handle the recoil to land my shots.
no dont say that
Did the fat characters get slower since I last played? Caustic feels like he's just walking everywhere.
Ironically they did the opposite, they made it so all the thicc boys have the same arm sway as “medium” legends (in case you didn’t know all legends move at the same speed it’s just the height and arm sway that made the big guys feel slower) also I’d recommend warming up in the firing range before you play, I have a little aim training routine I do (you can find plenty on YT) and it’s made my shots immensely better since I implemented it
Unfortanely this is not the type of game you can just hop in from time to time and have a good time. From my own experience, If I take a break for a season, it's gonna take me atleast 2-3 weeks playing pretty much daily to get back to the level where I feel like I am able to compete. For me it's either play almost every day, or don't play at all, because it's not fun when everyone just one clips you. Also if you are PC player and you are stuggling with your aim, there is always that option embracing the dark side and swap to controller. Personally I am dogshit with controller as I am too old to learn a whole new muscle memory, but if you are atleast a bit fond of the layout and how to play it, it might be woth a shot given how you stuggle with aiming (I am asuming you are mnk player out of your post).
As others have said, it's probably just the mass amount of time you have *not* been playing the game. You're simply out of Practice and that comes with crappy aim, it's completely normal and expected. I recommend you warn up with Mixtape. It's good anyways, you can learn a lot of combat-stuff from there
No matter how much you want to try and enjoy, you just won't be able to. I had it happen to me in CS, Valorant, CoD. Unless you find joy in the game, subconciously, your body will reject it.
I'd say it could be an out of practice issue too. My friends and I are 25, 32, 35, 38, 40 and we do alright. And I personally turn to utter shit if I try play after a gap of a week or so. Don't beat yourself up and if you want an older friend, DM me and we can play. I'm GMT on Xbox
Weapon stats are changed often so you'll find you are used to one clipping at a certain range then a new patch comes by and it's just not the same anymore so you'll need to go to the range and sort of memorize which range works for which guns
Out of practice. Especially after tarkov, cs and destiny. Tarkov and cs has little to no movement mid firefight and destiny has aim assist and bullet magnetism. I've been playing destiny and apex for the last 5 years, but i put apex down for most of season 18 and the whole season 19. It took me a good week full of potato aim to get used to apex again, but the upgraded firing range has some neat new things to help you get back into the game.
Im 43 and still getting better at everything but gaming… 😂 cant put in the hours..
Age doesnt matter. Luckily, aim is probably the easiest aspect of the game to train. A bit of firing range and couple games of mixtape before BR can help alot.
Just out of practice, lots of people are playing pubs all day everyday. So you’re going up against players that are putting in 40hrs+ a week consistently
I felt this and I'm only 23 lol I got back into apex only a couple days ago after not playing for over 3 years. I suckkk but I'm slowly getting back into it. Just takes some time and practice. We got this!
I've met plenty 40+ guys in this have that's been excellent players. But it's a hard game, requires continuous practise.
I'm 40, almost 41. I've played literally since the day 1 surprise release. I'm waaaay better now than when I started. I play on Xbox and use 2 paddles as well. I had never used paddles before Apex so I just learned within the last couple of years. I don't think age is the problem, just more practice/time with the game.
I'm 36, and I have always maintained around a 1 K/D. Played since day 1. It's mainly about just playing. I take breaks and come back and get shit on for a day or so. I've just learned to accept my position, I still have fun even though sweaty 3 stacks roll me all the time.
I’m 37 and I feel like I wrote this post ha ha. Seriously bro for me it’s just not playing as often is the issue. Was a comfortable 2.5kd player playing regular but now I’m 1.5 with a family and a full time job and all that entails as well as owning a house. Life gets in the way man, don’t beat yourself up over it.
Please tell me that you warm up in the firing range and then play mixtape a couple of matches BEFORE going straight into Trios or Duos. I’m 32 and I play once or twice a week (been playing since pre season 1) and no matter what, I first go into firing range and warmup with the flatline and the peacekeeper for at least 5 mins. Then I play mixtape and I always suck the first 10 mins but slowly muscle memory kicks in. By the time it’s been like 30 mins of loading up apex, I’m back to 85% of my skill and can win all the fights I know I’m supposed to win. Yes, there are multiple times I’m shooting a player and they start airstrafing like crazy and kill me but I just go to the next match cause I don’t expect to be better than a player that can do all of that none sense. There’s also times where I barely beat those players with the help of my team or just pure luck. I know the amount of time that I put into the game and I know that there’s many players that put in more than me so I don’t expect to win ever 1v1. There’s also things beyond my control so I just learned to just focus on what I can do (practice more or warmup for longer) and continue playing. There isn’t a game like apex out there and that’s why I’ve kept playing for so many years.
I am also 36 and have no problem holding my own. But things I noticed you mentioned: Taking breaks: This is a game you have to constantly play to stay sharp. I took a break last year to play through all of the Halo campaigns... And omg how the aiming works and how slow Halo is really fucked up my apex skills when I came back lol. Changing sensitivity: Honestly just pick one of the normal base settings that most of the pro players use and stick to it (if pros use base stuff it should be good enough for us). Allow your muscle memory to get used to that specific setting. Stop messing with it and ruining any muscle memory you created. Next game: some games you are just going to be unlucky and off a bit. Forget that game and go to the next I feel like this is a game where you can get in your head if you take the losses too heavily. There are 20 teams in a game and only 1 can win.
As folks have said, it's competing priorities. And while you may not have a masters badge in Apex, going for that in life (work, children, friends) is probably the better option.
39 and still play, it's like anything...if you do it consistently you'll be good
one advice that helped me a lot is, aim centering keep your crosshair around body level whenever you’re moving and hip fire before you ads, quicker speed and better for adjusting, unless you have a super high sens, hip fire more often and try to play a few hours per week to not get completely obliterated whenever you come back
I'm 43 and I'm here to tell you that you're probably just having a run of bad luck. Happens to everyone. I downloaded this game the day it came, played half of season one and only returned to it last spring. I'm finally getting my footing back and theres still points where I won't get a win in a week's time. Other times I've gotten 3 wins in a row. It happens. Play to have fun and play with people who support you in-game and can laugh off a loss. If you're not having fun, move on to something else.
the games you've mentioned are very different shooters compared to apex, both cs and tarkov allows you to end the fight extremely fast with 1 well placed shot, not so much apex. It takes practice not settings or equipment, also dont aim at their head that's such a bad idea since it rarely matters unless you are using single fire weapons. It's all about being able to place all your shots not getting a headshot or 2. Play for an hour or so everyday if possible and you'll get there.
Im 37 and i pretty much suck at this game But i love it and have played it for a few years. Whats the problem with that? If its fun its fun, right? Age got nothing to do with it
Nah, they just change recoil patterns every season along with stuff like bullet speed etc. If you are not one with your recoil you're fucked. Go into the firing range for 10 minutes before every game, pick up a flatline, and learn "recoil smoothing" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLEoQnlzANA. You will be getting accused of having cronus after 30 days I promise.
You’re definitely not too old to play other people just have more time than you so they’ll get better faster since they have more time to play / practice / learn
hell nah bro. apex is ranged around 15-40 so you good
I don't get this logic. You are bad. your body isn't the problem. My right hand barely works and my left eye doesn't. If I can rank up fairly comfortably. You can most definitely play casually.
It isn’t age I can assure you that because I’m 16 and I play almost every single day sense pre season all the way till now in season 20 about to be season 21; a pro tip that every content creator gives you and pro players tell you is before starting to play a pubs match or ranked or whatever you’re gonna want to take around 15 to 20 minutes to practice in the firing range ik a lot of people find it tedious to do this but it helps a lot I do it every single day in there you’re gonna wanna practice with the weapons you are comfortable with so for me I like to pick up a flatline and a volt and I shoot the decoys and the shooting board I practice up close hipfire I practice my mid range cover shooting and my long range recoil control now that’s the most important one recoil control at long range if you can master your recoil control at long range you’re gonna have a field day at mid range and close range but you also have to think I’m not always gonna find this weapons so you’re gonna switch now and pick up two guns you’re usually never gonna use I like to pick up the devotion and mastiff the devotion I practice with it at long mid close just to get the hang of a gun I hate completely and with the mastiff I’ll practice my peak shots because I hate shotguns to begin with I don’t like using them and I’m horrible at them and I do these every single day with every day I switch my weapons up so I can get used to all the different types of recoils in this game and I do these without attachments on my weapons only exceptions are scopes and that’s for your long range shots only it’s a tedious process but it helps a lot after the firing range I play a match of mixtape to get used to the chaos of a lot of people shooting at me recoil smoothing and all of that
There's grampa gaming out here sniping dudes out there in 2042 lol
Age definitely won't help. I'm 37. Fact is trying to learn new grips on controller will e difficult. I still remember all the mortal kombat /killer instinct special moves. But half the time now i forget how I go about changing my grenades on apex. I didn't play any computer game for 10 years until I drunkenly bought a ps5. Ive played since s12. Regularly hit plat/ diamond( lower level) compared to playing medal of honour and CS source and original x box halo back in the day. I am way behind my reflexes. Fact is yourncofnitive ability to think about the button hit slows, somdoes your reaction time. The biggest problem I've found is a lack of strategy/ big egos in gold/ platinum The pros agree here too when they do their rookie to masters challenges. They come unstuck a little with egotistical players who want to challenge every team even in a bad position. Or they don't know when to disengage. I think sadly from cough *cough* our day when people woildmplay mmr, fps, rts. And have a mix of macro and micro. So many don't have that macro sense on apex Sadly I think too many younger players are happy to go fight to fight killing 4 assisting 2 and dying in 14th than maybe playing 15 mins. Getting 1 squad wipe and waiting for end game. That's my personal experience of this game.
This is ridiculous. I'm 48 and I play and keep up with everyone else just fine.
I’m 34 and hit masters both splits
yaayy, lots of oldies in the comment just like me, lol! were old but we can still play some apex just need to play more if we have the time,
I'm 49 (and actually am *better* than when I started back almost exactly three years ago); age definitely isn't your issue, but you *do* have to adapt over time (say, replacing lack of reflexes with better positional awareness and more "defensive" gameplay).
It's like anything else in life my dude. If you stop playing guitar for a few years you are going to have to relearn, you wont be able to play like you used to when you were practicing every day. Or lifting weights or remembering cooking measurements. You get out what you put in and if you're not putting in the effort to stay at a certain level it will naturally deteriorate.
33 about 1.5 kd diamond player but I play a good couple hours every night. If I take even a day break I can't keep up. The game is fast if your head isn't in it like a sport things are going to be a blur and you're going to feel like a blob that can't move. When I start my play session off I go into firing range, crank all bot movement up and practice tracking, practice recoil patterns and practice my movement. I do it for like 5 mins and keep adding 5 mins until I feel like Im In the right head space. Some days I can't get in the groove and move on to a different game. Like athletes you just have an off day sometimes. Now that we are coming to a season end you're playing against all good players. Casuals tend to not play anymore until a new season starts. The skill ceiling is so high in this game which is why I can't stop playing this game.
I'm almost 40 and I'll agree with the others here to keep at it. Don't be discouraged by the bad games. I tend to stick to mixtape unless I have friends on then I'll do BR. But I had one gun run match where I only got 2 kills, and then the very next match I got 13. I also agree with going back to old games and still being decent. I played Team Fortress 2 for years and even though I play maybe twice a year now I can still land crit flare shots from across the map, yet I can't hit charged sentinel shots worth a damn lol.
40 here. I play mnk. 1.7kd this season. Never too old! Sometimes get stuck in a rut though
36 here and just got my first 4k so quit making excuses and get back in the game! 😆
If you're talking about your own personal aim being bad, just aim train or at least practice spray patterns inside the firing range. Eventually you'll improve and do better. If you're talking about how everyone is exceptionally good with their movement, aim and game sense etc. then It's the fact that the only people who play apex are these days are hardcore and been here for a while. Back when you played, you had new players coming in and the main player base was nowhere near as refined as they are now. However, I use Overwolf for a little extra info on people and I noticed A LOT of people who wreck my shit tend to be under level 150, and often in the 80s. I find it strange that, that many people are smurfing coincidentally. So I'm not sure why I keep running past this situation. No way that every player I run into that is levels above me happen to be new.. Any idea guys?
Do you practice in the firings range for at least 15 mins before starting pubs/ranked? I’ve noticed this one technique has made me overall much better and consistent in the game.
I'm a tween and I can't hit shit in Apex. Meanwhile Overwatch and Valorant are fine. Apex in itself is just too different with the bigger maps, movement mechanics and projectile speeds. Like others have said, probably just need to practice more and get used to Apex.
I don't think it's an age thing. The game is just vastly different from the days when you grinded it out. Think about the differences alone in how the game has changed New legends added/changed Maps have been added and changed. Guns have been added and nerfed and buffed. Mechanics have changed. Honestly, the biggest thing is probably just the adjustment and tweeking of hitboxes (look at pathfinders hitbox in season one if ya haven't seen it) Players have learned to use and abuse the movement techniques of the game. You said it yourself you dropped off after season 6, basically. Were all the way to seasom 19 now. The game just changed is all
that invisible force you feel where you are trying to catch up to your target with your aim could mean your sensitivity is a bit slow. Try increasing sensitivity a tad bit and play on the range with dummies with random strafe. After the firing range, play loads of TDM and Gun Run and I guarantee you will improve and be better for ranked or pubs.
Yes
I got an 33 year old on my friends list & no one I know can beat him in the range 1v1s other than me & he tells me all the time that “you can’t bring no one in here that’s better than me” 🤣it’s hilarious when he beats my Friends & I tell em his age
Hop into firing range then play some mix tape before playing any real games. Watch some videos with tips and tricks for aiming (check out aim smoothing)
34 year old here with a kid. Time is limited but I was still able to get to diamond solo queue this season. The skill ceiling has gotten a lot higher since you last played and the recoil for guns, aim assist, and other thing are vastly different now than they were in the beginning. I had to mess around with ALC settings to find a controller sense that works really well for me. It’s definitely slower than what most play but hey if I hit my shots we call that a win. I had the same feelings as you after coming back after a long hiatus. I had to spend a lot of time in the firing range just working on aim and then spending time in the mixtape game types or even now three strikes to get mass amounts of gun fights. It does suck that the aim is such a massive skill right now but to me that’s what separates it from the other games even the ones you listed. If you want my ALC’s I can send them your way! Just let me know!
Man you dont need stress in your life switch to helldivers
You are the target audience for controllers
Im in my early 30s and I think my reactions are fine. Muscle memory is a thing too, even 60 year olds who have guitar practice are still very competent at what they do. I would say its harder to start something later in life but if its already a habit you should be okay.
You are probably getting killed by cheaters or sweaty 3-stackers with at least one cheater in the squad a significant percentage of the time. And they probably have twice the health of you and your squad as they are using Revenent/Conduit. They like the trifecta.
Yep too old. Those finger joints cant take that mouse clicking resistance anymore. Time to retire
Damn and I thought I was pushing it some of yall are older than me....yo answer your question now you're not too old...just like anything in life sports/riding a bike etc if you're not doing it everyday consistently and you take weeks off whenever you come back everything's gonna be out of wack...I suggest you hit the firing range everyday for 20-30 min before you start playing pubs/ranked...I haven't played this game since conduit dropped....didn't like what the last couple of seasons had to offer...I'm coming back when alter comes out...least we got a new legend finally shit was getting stale...I know I'll be rusty...but don't think about it too much...as long as you still can you use your hands and fingers you'll be alright.
I didn't need glasses last time I played this game. Now adays I do and I gotta say, that camera bob is HORRIFIC. Why they didn't think to give people an option to fully disable it is beyond me I mean my God even with the game set to minimal camera bob my head is friggin' killing me right now. I don't think I can play simply because of that. I don't think my glasses and current state of my eyes will let me.
No im 32 and I run circles around most players. I’m a master level player and see zero change in anything like reaction time
Hisandherslive - bot league
Also v sync is a killer that finds its way of turning itself back on. Check it and turn it off
As a fellow 36yr old best way to stay sharp is play consistently. I know if I'm even off for a few days I have to shake a little rust off. Even if it's just an hour in the range to keep muscle memory for movement and aim helps a lot. Just keeping with it is really the only way to stay consistent. Having a stack to goof around with is the best way to keep up. Dad of 2 get a couple hours in couple nights a week after the kids go down just chill with my buds in pubs sometimes we play ranked only ever made it to plat 4 but again we're all older and play much less than many of our opponents.
Apex is a sport, if you stop you have to train to get back at your level.. i don't get the point on your age, I'm 43 and I see my age as an avantage for taking good decisions.
Damn right good mindset is invaluable
Im in my early 30s, played apex since s2 and it was my first competitive shooter since bad company 2 and CS 1.6. The last few seasons my KD is between 1.5 and 1.7, which isn't good but also not bad. Im having fun. It sadly really just is a gitgud situation. Practice in mixtape to get the grip on things and a feel for combat, practice in firing range, and watch some guides on common mistakes that are made. Recoil in this game isnt really hard and is mostly "push down". Aimsmoothing and jitteraiming to the mix and recoil is almost irrelevant. The TTK can be unforgiving to new players as it's fairly long and thus opens up for more mistakes to be made. You won't necessarily win a fight just by shooting first, like in many shooters. You say you aim is the issue, but maybe theres more to it?
Apex is a VERY intensive game when it comes to mechanics. There are so many little movement, gunplay, and combat techniques to master that it literally takes a lot of extra curricular time to get down. As an older player myself, I am particularly lucky to be able to have enough free time to spend grinding and learning the game, probably more than the average person our age. I've played in pred lobbies, killed famous Apex players 1v1, played in comp, etc. I dont really think age is a factor other than older people like us generally have more responsibilities that don't give us the same amount of time to waste on this game.
Spoiler:you're actually wasting your life wage slaving to help buy a CEO his third mansion while his elite buddies help scheme to starve and ruin the average citizen. Enjoy.
Turn off your phone sweetie, that's enough Reddit for you today
its more aim at the body...dont rely on headshots aiming
I’m 36 years old and I have a 4.5 k/d. Age is just a number.
34 here. I would say part of the thing at least for me is changing priorities. I’m not much further along in my career(partner at law firm). Have a kid on the way etc. so the time I can dedicate to playing apex is way less than before. This is likely the case for most people 30 plus. When I was early 20’s I spent way more time playing video games. It’s tough to keep up with the youngins now
Had a homie around your age who I played with consistently for 2 years, he had a kid and never got back on the game. Sad:(
Shout out to you for still trying. This game has its ups and downs forsure. The ups keep me playing.
If you have ever had a 4k or 20b you should never see anyone who has never gotten a 2k badge.
Also stop the cheaters.
High ttk games just require better mouse control and apex is busted so you use recoil smoothing instead of recoil control. U on m&k?? If so do voltaic fundamentals when you watch tv