Oh, look. ANOTHER THREAD. God, do I ever stop talking?! (Not really. But this one's big, so humor me.)

So by now, you've read @alex_frostwolf's post about Legacy Antigen. Twenty chapters (and a prologue!) of Legend goodness to keep you laughing, crying and in suspense...

/1

I started writing this back in September, right around the time "Family Portrait" began in Season 7, and I made the decision to put EVERYTHING I had into this story.

ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING.

For starters...

/2

...it's a return to the storytelling our team loves: the umbrella story. Where all are involved. Everyone has a role to play. We can't do this every season, of course. With in-game comics limited to 7 panels a week, giving 20 characters their own spotlight is impossible.

/3

It's explained in the Quest lobby, but here's how this works...

Every Tuesday, 7 new panels in the quest for the cure.

Every Thursday (or Friday), check @PlayApex to find out what's happening with the other Legends.

Ten weeks.

Twenty chapters.

Just to be clear...

/4

...you CAN read the in-game comic without the Community Comics, and understand that part of the story. Likewise, you CAN read the Community Comics and NOT the In-Game Comics, and understand that part of the story.

But you won't get the WHOLE story if you don't read BOTH.

/5

And trust me when I say a LOT is going down in the Community comics. You don't want to miss these. This community continues to astonish and astound me with their talent. They went above and beyond this season. As did we all...

/6

Technically this is the 10th season (Remember Season 0?), so Legacy Antigen also gave us a chance to take care of some dangling plot threads. Put some things to bed. Start some new stories. We wanted you to meet characters we've been talking about for years.

/7

I needed this story to feel EPIC. I wanted to soar to the other end of the Outlands, and make sure when the story was over, nothing was the same. It had to be perfect. It had to be the best it could be.

Why...?

Because The Legacy Antigen is also my swan song.

/8

When I was first hired at Respawn, seven months before Apex's launch, I didn't think I'd last a week. Almost three years later, I work with people I consider family, for a game played by over a hundred million. We published a book. We're releasing a monthly Dark Horse comic.

/9

I love this job more than anything, and it's made all the dreams I've had since I was a kid come true. I'd see colleagues come and go, and think "How could they leave? I'd NEVER leave."

Tip of the Day: when you use the word "never", the universe considers that a challenge.

/10

An opportunity came along I couldn't ignore... and ultimately, I couldn't say no to. A chance where... if I didn't do it... I'd always wonder "what if...?" A once-in-a-lifetime decision. All I had to do was leave the characters and coworkers I love like family behind.

/11

So, with tears in my eyes (many, MANY tears), I made the difficult decision to leave Respawn. They moved heaven and earth to keep me, but in the end, that "what if...?" won out.

But if I was going out, I was going out with a BANG.

/12

The Legacy Antigen is my love letter to Apex Legends.

Imagine you help create a universe, and you have all these plans... but then your time is cut short. What about everything you wanted to accomplish? Every journey you wanted them to go on?

/13

This was my one chance to make all things that were my head-canon, actual canon.

To squeeze in every revelation, every long-kept secret, every skeleton in the closet exposed.

I wanted it to be funny. And tragic. And heartwarming. And wholesome. And spine-tingling.

/14

It had to be the biggest Apex story I ever told. Because I knew it was my last Apex story. My final moments with these characters I helped give birth to. They had to count.

I do have some good news, or bad news (depending on your opinion of me)...

/15

...while it is the final season arc I've written, due to how far ahead the team works, you'll be hearing and reading a lot of my words in dialogue and a few odds and ends from now until the beginning of 2022. (There's a few things this fall I'm particularly proud of.)

/16

But in terms of BIG QUEST STORIES... this is it, folks. My big finish.

If you made it this far, I salute you. Twitter threads are never the best way to do these things, but it just seemed fitting. So one last time, with feeling...

/17

Being a part of Apex Legends has been the SINGLE GREATEST EXPERIENCE of my career, and I do not say that lightly. I helped make a game, and connected with a community, that changed my entire life. Altered my way of thinking. Opened my eyes to other perspectives.

/18

I'm a different human than I was in 2018. Each and every one of you... even the haters... ignited a spark and passion in me I thought was dead.

It has been a *privilege* to write this lore, and I'll always look back at Apex as the greatest gift the universe ever gave me.

/19

So what happens now? I promise you, the game is in good hands. The lore will go on (albeit not in ways I thought it would). What I know of the rest of the year is gangbusters good, and I can't wait to watch it play out as "just a player".

/20

Amanda, Josh, Kevin and Sam will take these characters to places I never even considered. I can't wait to see what they come up with. And of course, I can't wrap this up without saying thank you to a few people...

/21

Ashley, the best partner-in-crime a guy could ask for. You'll run the show one day, Ash. And it'll be spectacular.

Mo, who took a chance on a guy who never made a game, and taught me more than I dreamed possible...

And my scarecrow, my brother-in-arms, Manny.

/22

I don't know where Manny Hagopian came from, but his generosity, his talent and his enormous heart continue to inspire me and push me towards the light every day. This isn't the last time we write together, my friend. Not even close.

And lastly, to you... the community...

/23

We've laughed. We've cried. We've argued. I wouldn't trade a single second of it. I do not take the honor of being allowed to write story for all of you for granted. It's been a joy to be your storyteller.

THANK YOU for loving me, hating me, challenging me and humbling me.

/24

Miracles happen.

Dreams come true.

Magic is real.

I know this is true, because I've experienced it, over and OVER again, at Apex.

It isn't goodbye. I'll be back. You know I can't keep quiet for long.

Good luck.

Have fun.

Don't die.

All my love,
Tom

/End