[thisisonthetest]

Tons of games have ping systems that are comparable if not much more advanced. Dota 2 has had pinging since 2013 and expanded features like a chat wheel in 2017. Idk how patents work but it’s hard to believe EA gets to claim this as their thing when prior art exists

[gmueckl]

I think the claim here isn't the fact that you can ping, but that you can do it in context. I haven't played Apex, so I can only go on descriptions that I find online. It seems that the system allows players to convey a lot of information with the type of marker they set from a radial menu. And supposedly you can even even put markers on specific items in dead teammate's inventories to call dibs and stuff.

My interpretation is that the system was specifically developed to convey a significant portion of the information that is usually communicated verbally between teammates when in a match.