Inventory management is almost as important as the guns in a loot shooter and nowhere more so than Apex Legends. The game purposely gives you very limited space to store new stuff at the same time as giving you a wealth of loot to choose from. This tutorial is about inventory management, specifically how to prioritize loot and drop items in Apex Legends.
Inventory management is a key aspect in any shooter, PvP, battle royale or otherwise. It’s true for Fortnite, for PUBG and for Apex Legends. You have a lot of loot to choose from and not a lot of space to store it. Do you prioritize med kits and shield boosters or ammunition? Do you keep a mixture of ammo in case you find a different weapon or specialize and fill your pack with specific ammo?
Inventory management in Apex Legends
Even if you find a blue backpack, inventory space in Apex Legends is incredibly tight. There are fewer spaces than in many other games which brings its own challenge.
To see your inventory, hit Options on PS4, Menu on Xbox One and Tab on PC. A screen will appear with your items in the center. Hover over each item to get the details of each.
Loot is color coded to its level.
- Gray is common loot
- Blue is rare loot
- Purple is epic loot
- Gold is legendary loot
Ammo is also color coded but to its weapon type rather than tier.
- Orange for light rounds for pistols and SMG
- Red for shotgun shells
- Blue for heavy ammo for LMG
- Green for energy ammo for energy weapons
Managing loot in Apex Legends is the same as any other game with loot. You pick up whatever you can to begin with and gradually climb the tiers as you find better items. You would naturally drop gray items for blue and blue for purple. If you’re lucky enough to find a gold item, then you would most definitely want that!
It isn’t all about item tier though. The item itself must have the characteristics you’re looking for to be viable as a replacement. A short range purple scope for a sniper rifle isn’t going to be as useful as a blue long range scope. You’ll get to know all this stuff as you play, but have half an eye on the item itself rather than just the tier.
Drop items in Apex Legends
When it comes to trading up, you have two options. If you have an attachment fitted and find a better one, selecting it will upgrade without using your inventory. The same for weapons. If you find a Phoenix Shield or shield recharger and don’t have the space, you’ll need to drop something to make space.
To drop items, use the left mouse button on PC, X on PS4 and A on Xbox One.
If you drop a blue or purple item you think a teammate might want, drop it and then ping it. This will alert your team to the item and allow them to find it on the map and use it themselves. You should make this a habit as you play whether you find good loot you don’t want or drop loot you no longer need.
Ammo management in Apex Legends
Going back to the question of whether to carry a little of all ammo or lots of specific ammo, I would always suggest the latter. As you play you will naturally find you gravitate towards different guns like you would in any shooter. Some players prefer to snipe while others like to get personal with shotguns.
As you play, collect the ammo of the gun you have and then, if you have space, collect a little ammo for the gun you want to finish the game with. If you don’t find that gun, you can drop the ammo as you go in favor of medkits or shield boosters.
If you see a particular weapon in Apex Legends, you will usually find the corresponding ammo close by. Often it will be in a pile next to that weapon but sometimes it will be in the next room or container. There will usually be some lying around somewhere so you should rarely be without ammo for long.
Energy ammo seems to be more scarce than light or heavy so if you like the Havoc or Devotion, you should loot energy ammo wherever you see it.
Inventory management is as important a skill as being able to shoot straight in Apex Legends. You face a constant battle of managing finite space and having to choose between equally useful items and specific ammo in order to fit everything in and have the items you need when you need them. It’s a small but interesting aspect to the game and something we all have to master if we are to become champion.
Got any inventory management tips for Apex Legends? Tell us about them below if you do!
