Respawn temporarily removes crafting across all Apex playlists to address server-crashing exploit

Respawn temporarily turned off replicators across all Apex Legends playlists today to curb a disruptive exploit. Players were able to use crafting stations to shut down an entire game session, so the developer completely removed replicators for the time being.

Developers will turn the mechanic back on “after [they’re] able to finish testing [their] planned fix” for the issue. In the meantime, replicators will be disabled both in casual and competitive game modes. The machines won’t spawn on the map or drop from the sky, and legends will also be unable to find crafting resources during matches.

The exploit allowed players to use crafting stations to crash a game session and send all players in the lobby to the title screen. Triggering it could prevent the loss of Ranked Points (RP), but it could also serve as a way to grief an entire lobby. Pro players and content creators shared their discontent at the bug, particularly after falling victim to it several times at the hands of stream snipers.

Respawn acknowledged the exploit yesterday and said the developers were investigating a possible solution. Although removing crafting altogether is a band-aid fix, it should stop players from exploiting the vulnerability and griefing their peers while the team concocts a definitive solution.

The crafting exploit is the latest (and most disruptive) in a series of bugs that have affected Apex recently, particularly after the Chaos Theory patch. Earlier this week, Respawn deployed a hotfix to patch out a deafening audio bug with the new game mode takeover, as well as inconsistencies with Loba’s tactical ability. Developers haven’t given an ETA for when crafting will return, but based on the official statement, the team will still have to test the planned fix before reinstating the feature.