Respawn is packing Season 27 with some oddball weapon toys, and the headline act is a care package CAR that does more than swap ammo. Weapons designer Casey O’Brien told PCGamesN that the CAR will replace the Triple Take in care packages and let players toggle between Disruptor rounds and Hammer Points, giving the gun two very different attack profiles in the same chassis.
The care package CAR will keep the Alternator-style dual-ammo gimmick, but in the package, it becomes a true mode switcher. That means one loadout can punch through shields with Disruptor rounds, while the other fires Hammer Points for raw damage. It should make late-game care packages feel properly consequential. The Alternator also gets a big change in Season 27. The Double Tap hop-up is returning and will work on the Alternator, but on this SMG it makes both barrels fire a bullet at the same time instead of firing alternately. That effectively multiplies the weapon’s per-shot punch and will push the Alternator deeper into close-range contention. The devs say they expect high power, but also that Double Tap introduces built-in trade-offs that prevent it from being simply overbearing.
Season 27 kicks off on Tuesday, November 4, and Respawn says more legend balancing and ranked changes are coming in the full patch notes. If you want a quick refresher of how Respawn has changed things over recent seasons, see our Apex Legends seasons timeline and what’s new in Season 25.
There are obvious questions about balance. A care package gun that can flip between a Disruptor-style utility and Hammer Points’ damage profile could alter how late-game rotations play out. Meanwhile, an Alternator that effectively doubles up its barrels will force players to rethink point-blank engagements. The devs say they don’t want raw-disruptor-style dominance, and that Double Tap will have nuances that matter for skilled players.
There will be a short developer deep-dive coming with the full launch notes, and more context from the team on how they plan to keep these additions from tipping the meta into a one-size-fits-all set of weapons. Until then, expect a lot of lab time in firing range and private matches.
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