Apex Legend Petition Asks For Pathfinder To Use Mars Rover Last Words

Popular petitions can often be oddball or outright ridiculous, especially when it comes to video games (such as the “Add Shaggy to Mortal Kombat 11” petition), but there’s one going around the Apex Legends community that makes almost too much sense. In honor of NASA’s Opportunity rover on Mars which was recently lost, fans have asked if Apex Legends robotic combatant Pathfinder can have a voice line referencing Opportunity’s last communication: “My battery is low and it’s getting dark.”

The petition to give Pathfinder Opportunity’s last words was posted on the Apex Legends Reddit on February 15, 2019 by Reddit user Eli_Was_Here and quickly gained traction among fans. Among the general support of the idea, the discussion also generated the opinion that perhaps some sort of voice quips should be added for when players are downed, but not dead yet. Currently no such option or feature exists, but the community jumped right into coming up with a few more on top of the original post for other characters outside of Pathfinder.

NASA’s Opportunity Rover landed on Mars on January 25, 2004. In what was meant to be just a 3 month mission, It instead lasted for an incredible 15 years. Unfortunately, a severe dust storm engulfed Opportunity in June 2018, blocking sunlight from reaching the solar panels on the rover. Eventually, the final communication received by NASA from Opportunity was, “My battery is low and it’s getting dark.” NASA hoped that wind would clear the dust from the panels on the rover, but after 8 months without communication, the project was decidedly ended and Opportunity was announced lost.

The last message they received was basically, “My battery is low and it’s getting dark.” They hoped that the windy season would clear dust off the solar panels (if that was the problem). Since then they've been pinging her again and again, every way they knew… 3/

— Jacob Margolis (@JacobMargolis) February 12, 2019

Although it’s quite a bit unfortunate, players in the Apex Legends community enthusiastic about the science of the cosmic frontier (or perhaps enthused with the meme Opportunity’s last words have become) have happily jumped behind keeping the rover’s words alive in what is fast-becoming another beloved robot. Pathfinder is just the kind of quirky that such words would go well with. Although it’s not often we get to see video game petitions come to fruition, this one seems more than valid. If death or dying quips ever come to Apex Legends, it seems pretty harmless to let Pathfinder carry on the Opportunity’s memory.

Nobody could get to Opportunity on Mars to lend a hand and maybe your teammates have left you in the same spot when you’re down, but don’t feel helpless. There’s a way to revive yourself in Apex Legends when nobody else can. Make sure you know how.