One of the more controversial changes of the recent Apex Legends Update 1.2 was the removal of bunny-hop healing. The exploit – or technique, some would argue – was supposedly completely patched out of the game. As one Apex player found out, however, that’s not exactly the case.
What is b-hop healing, and why Respawn tried to remove it
Normally in Apex Legends, players move significantly slower while healing. Respawn’s design philosophy for the game is to reward good timing and give players opportunities for recovery and counter-play. Healing in Apex is very fast, but it temporarily puts the player at increased risk.
Or, at least, it’s supposed to. Immediately after Apex Legends’ release, veteran FPS players discovered that bunny-hopping is possible in the game’s modified Source engine. More importantly, doing this completely nullifies the speed penalty while healing. This lets players make a swift escape while recovering their health and shields.
Much like other exploits, bunny-hop healing was in Respawn’s crosshairs early on and the studio promised to patch it out. In the recent Update 1.2, they followed up and removed the exploit from the game. Bunny-hop healing was gone.
For almost a week, anyway.
You can still b-hop heal with the right legends
Not all in the Apex Legends community were happy with the move. One plucky player, in particular, took on the task of figuring out what Respawn did to fix the exploit. He discovered not only that but also what to do to circumvent their fix.
YouTuber and streamer QuakeV discovered that, in order to curb the exploit, Respawn introduced a slowdown debuff which comes into effect when players begin to bunny-hop. That works in almost all situations. Except, Respawn’s own design for three particular legends allows them to still bunny-hop after the patch.
Bloodhound, Bangalore, and Octane are your go-tos now if you really must bunny-hop heal. Their abilities grant them immunity to slowdown effects, which lets them use the exploit. Until Respawn catches on, these three can still pull it off almost as effectively as before. And since there are three of them, you can have your whole squad joyfully b-hopping away from danger!
Stay tuned to Daily Esports for more Apex Legends news as we gear up for Season 2!
