Apex Legends Season 26 patch notes are here, and the latest update is a breath of fresh air. EA and Respawn Entertainment have kept a keen ear tuned to the community's needs, providing some major quality-of-life updates, alongside a few weapon balance changes, and a Ranked overhaul.In this article, we will explore all the changes and additions that have been made with the Apex Legends Season 26 patch notes. Read below to know more.All additions made with the Apex Legends Season 26 patch notesAccoladesAccolades highlight actions that often go unnoticed, uncelebrated, and untracked. They’re designed to celebrate varying playstyles and skill, and can be earned in Unranked, Ranked, Wildcard, and Mixtape with each tracking separately.Each Accolade has up to four tiers for players to achieve as they progress. They’ll award XP as well. Post-match, the summary will show players their earned Accolades and their Gladiator Card, provided they secure the top three spots. Players can earn and record multiple Accolades each day, but there’s a cap of 2200XP for these per day.Check out: All Legend changes in Apex Legends S26Challenge updateEA and Respawn Entertainment have updated their challenge system to try and help players progress more consistently, no matter which mode they choose. Most challenges that used to require specific modes or dual targets now count across all modes, making it easier for users to play what they want and still finish their Battle Pass.To keep time-to-completion balanced, some challenge targets have increased, and the developers have added progression boosts to some modes. For example, “Deal 10K damage as a Skirmisher or Assault Legend” gets a 2x progress modifier in BR to match it to Mixtape’s completion time.This is part of the devs' long-term goal to create challenges that support a wider range of playstyles.Also read: Apex Legends Season 26: Elite Weapons and Locked Hop-UpsNew Reward FlowBased on community feedback regarding reward confusion, Respawn Entertainment and EA have created a new summary to showcase players' hard work and rewards without the plethora of pop-ups.Gamers will now be able to see each reward, including those occasionally granted silently, how it was earned, and additional details, all at once.Gameplay updatesAmpsPurple tier loot itemsEarly game: Fairly uncommon with a higher chance to spawn in high tier loot locations such as Care Packages, Vaults, and the Hot ZoneAfter Bins Reset: All bins have a higher chance to spawn an AmpMythic, Legendary, Extended, and Weapon supply bins guarantee oneFive Amp types:Infinite Ammo Amp: Gain infinite ammo for non-care package weapons. Temporarily locks two inventory slots. These slots can hold ammo, but players cannot drop their contents.Bottomless Batteries Amp: Batteries are not consumed upon useMust have at least 2 Batteries in players' inventory to activateOver Armor Amp: Gain an additional 25 shield capacityStacks with Ring Expert, but cannot exceed 125 total shieldsHeal Overflow Amp: After using a cell or syringe, the corresponding health bar will fully heal over timeTaking damage stops the regenerationPower Booster Amp: Reduces cooldown for Tac and UltRefresh a Tactical charge when knocking an enemyYou might be interested in: All weapon buffs and nerfs in Apex Legends Season 25MapsNew: E-District DaytimeLighting overhaul: Now takes place during the dayLotus: New rotation addedAdded adjacent doorways to many shops for additional flowRemoved some buildings and clutter to improve readabilityMap RotationsUnranked & RankedBroken MoonE-DistrictStorm PointMixtape (August 5-September 15, 2025)TDM: Thunderdome, Fragment, Skull TownControl: Lava Siphon, Barometer, Production YardGun Run: Skull Town, Thunderdome, Zeus StationModesUnrankedTrios & Duos (August 5-September 15, 2025)Wildcard (August 5-18, 2025)Second Chance RevivalsLegend stacking possibleSelf Revive Drop KitSimplified Loot & InventoryAuto LootingEVO Orbs: Level up weaponsReduce respawn timersGrant a percentage of shield & Ult chargeKickstart health regenWildcard (September 9-15, 2025)Return to core Wildcard experienceRankedDrop Zones DetailsMatch start: Squads are randomly assigned a POIPre-Legend Select: Players are presented with a map preview of the Drop ZoneAfter Legend Select: Players deploy via squad Dropship to the assigned zone with nearby enemy POIs marked for imminent threatDuring landing: Added a warning for incoming threats if an enemy squad invades Drop ZoneHeat ShieldsHeat Shields are disabled in RankedAlso read: Ranked changes in Apex Legends S26: New Drop Zones, KP adjustment, Entry Point changes, and moreQuality of lifeBots: Improvements to behaviorLifeline: Updated Halo’s enemy coloring to help differentiate against the ringNewcastle: Ult can now be targeted and placed over Alter’s Tac portalsReplicator: Updated color and associated assets to blue (was purple)Vantage: Scanning an enemy will no longer show shield information if the enemy’s eliminated. Previously, dead enemies would show if the banner was active. (Previous Hotfix)Wattson: Electrified doors no longer end if the fence placer dies or disconnectsUpdates and tuning to some VFX, primarily on 1P Impact FX revolving around Armor and Flesh ImpactsArmor: 90% less smoke, 40% less debrisAudioReduced occlusion of roof footsteps for clarity and consistencySkydiving audio will be quieter in intended in certain situationsMic monitor in audio settings now displays for solo players in lobbyGraphicsNew tonemapping for a more natural appearance of highlights with very bright colorsVFX: More consistent brightness regardless of in-game auto exposure, preventing extreme brightness in dark areasThat's everything that you need to know about the Apex Legends Season 26 patch notes.If this article was to your liking, you can also check out:Apex Legends Season 26 Split 1 Battle Pass: All rewards, price, and is it worth buyingApex Legends Season 26: 5 best weapons for WildcardLegend Amps in Apex Legends Season 26: All types, where to find, and how to use