What You Need to Know about the Astral Anomaly Event - FREE Rewards, Launch Royale, & More
Apex Legends has kept its place as one of the most popular battle royales for years now, and one of the primary reasons that it has retained its player-base is due to its platform of ever-evolving content. There are thousands of fans playing Apex Legends at any given moment, so the most recent event has made the first-person shooter even more populated.
RELATED: Huge Apex Legends Matchmaking Changes — Full Patch Notes
Astral Anomaly is the newest content drop for Apex. With it comes the return of Launch Royale, a game mode that allows you to go back in time to the first season, where the action began. Free rewards are also available for a limited time for your favorite operators like Loba, so it's a great time to be a battle royale fan.
When Does the Astral Anomaly Event Begin?
The Astral Anomaly event is already ready to go in Apex Legends. You can jump into the battle royale right now to experience a fresh take on a fan-favorite game mode and earn a plethora of shiny cosmetics. You'll be able to participate in this event until January 21st, so you have about two weeks to collect every reward before they disappear.
RELATED: Big Esports Tournaments of 2025
It's currently unknown if the cosmetics will come back in a future event, so it's best to get everything you want now in case you don't get a second chance. The Launch Royale mode will probably be reintroduced in future updates, though the newest iteration has a few unique mechanics that could be exclusive to the recent Astral Anomaly event.
A New Iteration of Launch Royale
Launch Royale was a game mode that released in November of 2024. It's still an action-packed battle royale, but there's a surprising twist that'll make longtime players jump for nostalgic joy. This experience takes you back to the first days of Apex Legends by reorganizing the loot pool to only include Season 1 content.
Unlike the previous release of Launch Royale, you can now explore the iconic loot pool on the more recent Apex maps. Available locations include Storm Point, District, Broken Moon, World's Edge, Kings Canyon, and even Olympus. With over five maps to explore, it's easy to be excited about the newest iteration of Launch Royale.
It's possible that the next release of Launch Royale will also come with a few updates for the fan-favorite mode, but only Respawn knows for sure. Launch Royale is available in Apex Legends until January 21st and likely won't return for at least two months if not more. However, Fortnite recently solidified its OG mode as a permanent addition so that Apex Legends could have something similar in store for players next season.
New Weapon Rotation
Another important update that was released with the Astral Anomaly event is weapon balancing. The gold weapon rotation includes guns like the G7 Scout, Nemesis Burst AR, CAR SMG, Prowler PDW, and the Charge Rifle. With a new arsenal of weapons to try, Apex Legends is as fresh as ever.
Though the guns are the main appeal of the newest loot pool, a few attachments have also been added for popular weapons. The Accelerator Stock is available for the CAR SMG, Nemesis Burst AR, and the G7 Scout. It increases ultimate charging and how much EVO you gain, so it's quite an upgrade.
Weapons and equipment often rotate between major updates, so it's unclear how long the current gold weapons will stick around. You can likely expect each gun to be available for at least two weeks to keep in-line with the Astral Anomaly event.
Free Rewards
The free rewards are the main appeal of any Apex Legends event, and it looks like Respawn has gone all out to make sure that every player can collect some galaxy-themed souvenirs. By finishing daily challenges, Apex will reward you with Bytes.
You can then take your handful of Bytes to the Reward Shop to exchange them for a variety of fun items. The cost of each cosmetic varies, but they reach up to 1,200 Bytes. More rewards may also be available mid-way through the Astral Anomaly festival. We've compiled each of the eight items you can purchase in the table below, including their price in Bytes.
Name | Price |
|---|---|
Cosmic Sunset Seer Skin | 1,200 Bytes |
Done And Dusted Holo | 300 Bytes |
Astral Panopticon | 600 Bytes |
Star Stepper Sticker | 300 Bytes |
Galactic Gate Charm | 250 Bytes |
One Battle Pass Star | 250 Bytes |
Astral Anomaly Badge | 100 Bytes |
Astral Anomaly Pack | 1,000 Bytes |
Milestone Rewards
Though the new Seer Skin in the Reward Shop is really unique, it's not the only major cosmetic you can unlock during this event. There are also milestone items you'll receive by opening the fun-filled Astral Anomaly Packs, which you can purchase without spending real money by trading in your Bytes via the Reward Shop.
RELATED: OG Apex Legends Update Mirrors Fortnite Remix
There are a few new legend skins to collect, such as the Dark Horizon outfit. In addition to the skins, there are also other cosmetics like holos and frames. You'll find a table below containing every item up for grabs in the Astral Anomaly Packs so that you don't miss out on any of the free rewards.
Name | Item Type |
|---|---|
Dark Horizon | Horizon Skin |
Anarchonaut | Alter Skin |
StarlightSpeed | Octane Skin |
Cosmic Pearl | Alternator Skin |
Scorpion's Kiss | Emote |
Big Bang | Wingman Skin |
Strange Fascination | Frame |
Hungry Heart | Frame |
Kick Rocks | Holo |
Seeing Stars | Holo |
Psychedelic Surge | Prowler Skin |
Darkstar | G7 Scout Skin |
Parallax Justice | Peacekeeper Skin |
Twilight Void | Wraith Skin |
Sartorial Supernova | Loba Skin |
New Store Tabs
The store has a few new cosmetic items that you can purchase for Apex Coins. There are four skins in total, which each cost 1,800 Coins to buy. However, there may be more Astral Anomaly items added to the shop in the coming weeks. According to the store, the skins listed below will be available until January 21st.
Name | Legend |
|---|---|
Cosmo Logical | Crypto |
Higher Lifeform | Seer |
StarlightSpeed | Octane |
Heat Death | Mad Maggie |
Michael Caruso is a journalist of five years who works to share his passion for gaming with the world. Throughout his career, Michael has written for various video game and news publications, focusing his writing on entertainment and the well-being of the environment. When Michael isn't writing, he can be found playing his guitar or immersed in a virtual world.