Okay, so I’ve been digging into this “Apex Legends pick rates” thing for a while now, and let me tell you, it’s been a journey. I wanted to see which Legends were getting the most love from players and, more importantly, why.
First off, I started by scraping some websites that claim they track this stuff. I tried using different web scraping tools, but many failed because those websites kept blocking me or something. Finally, I found one that worked, so I grabbed a bunch of data on Legend pick rates over the past few months. It was a mess of numbers and names, but hey, that’s what I signed up for, right?
Next, I had to clean up this data. You wouldn’t believe how many inconsistencies there were. Different sites used different names for the same Legend, some had missing data, it was a real headache. I spent hours just standardizing names and filling in the blanks. I used some simple Python scripts and a lot of manual checking to get it into a usable format.
Once the data was clean, I threw it into some spreadsheets. I made some pivot tables, experimented with different chart types, trying to figure out the best way to visualize the data. I wanted to see trends over time, compare Legends, and see if there were any major shifts in popularity.
After playing around with the charts, I started seeing some interesting patterns. Some Legends, like Wraith and Octane, were consistently at the top. I noticed that these guys had movement abilities, making them popular for more aggressive playstyles. Others, like Bloodhound and Seer, saw spikes in popularity after they got buffed in the game. It became pretty clear that game balance changes directly impacted these pick rates.
- Wraith: Always a top pick, probably because of her portal and small hitbox.
- Octane: His speed boost is just too tempting for a lot of players.
- Bloodhound: Their scan ability is super useful, especially after recent buffs.
Then I thought, “Why stop at just numbers?” I jumped into some Apex forums and Reddit threads to see what the community was saying. I read through countless posts, polls, and comments to get a sense of player sentiment. It was cool to see how people’s opinions matched up with the data I had collected. There were some heated debates about which Legend was “OP” and which needed a buff, but overall, it gave me a better understanding of the human element behind the numbers.
Finally, I put it all together. I wrote a program to visualize the pick rates over time, combining the data with some insights from the community discussions. I realized that pick rates aren’t just about which Legend is the “best” statistically. There’s a lot of personal preference involved, playstyle choices, and even the “meta” trends that shift over time.
So, what did I learn from all this? Well, first off, data analysis can be messy, but it’s also super rewarding. Secondly, player communities are a goldmine of information if you’re willing to dig through them. And finally, the world of Apex Legends is constantly evolving, and these pick rates are just a snapshot of a much larger, dynamic picture.
It was a wild ride, but I’m glad I did it. Now, I have a much better understanding of how the game works, what the players think, and how those things interact with each other. And hey, maybe I’ll use this knowledge to finally climb out of Silver rank. Maybe.
