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Apex Legends’ high-rank solo-queue experiment broke up premade stacks but spread the best players across more squads. That is the central finding in Respawn’s 30 September test report—and why forcing Diamond, Master and Predator players to queue alone did not become a permanent requirement.
The experiment is completed. It should not be confused with the later Seasons 31 and 32 Ranked roadmap, which sets out the next round of changes.
Breaking up a stack does not remove its players
Respawn describes a matchmaker that gathers 60 players of similar RP, sorts them by RP and divides the list into thirds. A squad receives one player from the top third, one from the middle and one from the bottom.
When high-ranked players could no longer form premades, they remained in the available population. Instead of concentrating in a few squads, they were distributed across more teams. A Diamond player could therefore encounter more teams containing a Master or Predator without the lobby gaining more of those players overall.
Respawn illustrates the distinction with two lobbies containing the same six Predators, 36 Masters and 18 Diamonds. The count is unchanged; how those players are grouped is what changes.
Why the lobby looked harder
The pre-match skill display added to that impression. In the system described by the report, a squad with one Master and a squad with three Predators appeared identical. Spreading top-tier players across more teams produced more red on the display, even though a lone high-ranked player and a full elite stack are different opponents.
Respawn said it would continue iterating on the display. The report does not establish that a redesigned display has already shipped.
Winning and returning were the decisive measures
Diamond match-result distributions barely changed. In Masters, the leading squads’ win rate dipped slightly, but the win-rate gap between the top ten and bottom ten teams stayed at 9%, as reported by Respawn.
The social cost was clearer: return rates were weakest among Diamond-and-above players who had previously played in duos or trios. Respawn rejected the trade-off because losing players from the queue works against tighter skill bands and shorter waits.
The report also explains why the experiment was worth trying. Across Ranked, squads made from a premade duo plus a solo fill won 19% more often than three-solo squads; full premade trios won 17% more often. Those are relative comparisons reported across Ranked, not 19- or 17-percentage-point absolute win rates, and not proof that a duo is inherently stronger than a trio.
The narrower restriction also fell short
A separate test allowed premades only within one rank tier rather than two. Diamond players faced about 8% fewer Diamond opponents and roughly 8% more Platinum opponents, while Platinum players saw more Diamonds. Other tiers changed little.
Respawn did not make that restriction permanent either. Its stated aim remained reducing encounters with fully coordinated top-tier squads without removing the ability to play Ranked with friends.