Apex Legends pro ShivFPS demands Respawn remove Gold Knockdown Shield in ranked

Alan Bernal
Shiv looking sad at Bloodhound using Gold Knockdown Shield self revive in Apex Legends

Luminosity pro Shivam ‘ShivFPS’ Patel wants the Gold Knockdown Shield removed from Apex Legends’ Ranked mode permanently after losing a late-game clutch and missing crucial placement points to a self-revive.

The Bangalore warlord (this time on Valkyrie) popped off in his January 11 stream after a tense final circle came down to five teams. Going down after a valiant effort and near-clutch, Shiv noticed he didn’t place as high as he would have liked since the team he downed was still in the game.

Though all three members were knocked, the kills weren’t credited due to one player having a Gold Knockdown Shield. This meant less kill points, placement points, and overall less RP for the star streamer, leading to him ranting on stream.

“I played that sh*t so well and I won’t get rewarded for that,” he later said in the stream. “That is trash man. Respawn get it together, I swear.”

He doubled down on his stance on Twitter, asking Respawn to remove Gold Knockdown Shields from ranked like the developers did in pro play.

“[Respawn and EA], please remove Gold Knockdown Shield self [revive] from only Ranked,” he said. “Especially high level Ranked. Thank you. Just as you have done in comp Apex.”

The self-revive has been a hot topic for pros since Respawn made the switch for pro matches to maintain the competitive integrity of official competitive Apex Legends matches.

At the time, the developers saw the merit in removing them from pro games, and was met with immediate calls to remove them from Ranked as well.

Respawn responded to the waves of people asking for Gold Knockdowns to be taken out of Ranked, and even asked for suggestions on how the item could be reworked.

Even then, the devs firmly stood behind leaving the item in Ranked for the gameplay they provide, but top players would rather see them exclusive to casual matches.

About The Author

Alan is a former staff writer for Dexerto based in Southern California who covered esports, internet culture, and the broader games/streaming industry. He is a CSUF Alum with a B.A. in Journalism. He's reported on sports medicine, emerging technology, and local community issues. Got a tip or want to talk?