“ | It's hard to be scared when you're prepared.
— Crypto
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” |
Tae Joon Park, also known as Crypto, is a playable Legend in Apex Legends. Framed for corporate espionage and murder, he was forced to abandon his life and identity, becoming Crypto and competes in the Apex Games while trying to clear his name.
Biography[]
Surveillance Expert[]
Crypto specializes in secrets. A brilliant hacker and encryption expert, he uses aerial drones to spy on his opponents in the Apex Arena without being seen. He also has a secret of his own: his name is Tae Joon Park, and he joined the Apex Games to find the people who framed him for murder.
An orphan abandoned at a young age, Tae Joon escaped a life of squalor by becoming a computer engineer for the Mercenary Syndicate, along with his foster sister, Mila Alexander. One day, Tae Joon and Mila stumbled upon an algorithm that could predict the result of any Apex Games match, hidden away in the Games’ own computer systems. That caught the attention of the wrong people - the next day, Mila disappeared, and Tae Joon was forced into into hiding after he was framed for her murder. He’s now joined the Games to clear his name - because sometimes the spotlight is the best place to hide.
Origins[]
Tae Joon Park was born on Gaea, and was orphaned on the streets of Suotamo. One night, Katerina Tikacek Nox, despairing at the death of her husband and apparent death of her son, sat on the ledge of a bridge in the city. This bothered a twelve-year-old Park, who angrily shouted in Korean that he was trying to sleep. Mystik adopted Park, and his foster sister, Mila Alexander. In 2727, Park met with Bangalore, who was looking for information regarding her brother, Jackson. Acting as an informant, he gave her a flash drive and directed her to Singh Labs on the island of Kings Canyon. To escape a squalid life, Park became a computer engineer and completed various cyber-related tasks for The Syndicate, working alongside Mila. He additionally invented the drone cameras used to broadcast the Apex Games.
Forever Family[]
On November 25, 2731, Tae Joon Park and Mila received a work order from a Syndicate representative with the initials Q.W., who asked for work on the Apex Games’ broadcast system. While working on one of its security protocols, the pair uncovered a prediction algorithm for the Apex Games. Mila placed a drive in Park’s computer, wishing to copy the algorithm and use it to find a fresh start for her and her step-brother by blackmailing The Syndicate. However, Park refused, wary of what would happen if The Syndicate found out. The next morning, he awoke to news of Mila’s abduction and apparent murder, and Syndicate agents at his door. Purging the data on his computer and grabbing a jacket, a family picture, and his camera drone, he fled through his window. He eventually escaped the agents in a chase through Suotamo City. He shed his old identity, adopting a new style and a device to modify the shape of his face. Equipped with his new identity, Park dropped off the grid and swearing revenge on the Syndicate for framing him for his sister’s killing. Not long after this, Mystik was taken into custody in connection with the disappearance but was quickly released. Furthermore, the algorithm was found to be in use by Syndicate members by the Year 2734.
Season 2[]
In his first act of revenge against The Syndicate, Crypto hacked into and detonated an EMP inside the Repulsor Tower on Kings Canyon, allowing local wildlife such as Prowlers and Leviathans to enter and disrupt the arena. The Apex Games were put on hold during this incursion, and were later relocated to a new arena on Talos, a town known as World's Edge. Crypto could later be seen hacking into the computer systems of Singh Labs. Crypto later silently inserted himself into the Apex Games under the alias “Hyeon Kim.” His false persona cleared all background checks, but those within The Syndicate were suspicious that someone like “Kim,” with an entirely clean record, would be entering a bloodsport such as the Apex Games. He survived his first match however suffered some broken ribs.
Season 3[]
On the dropship en-route to a match, Mirage, happy for a change of scenery, jokes that he needs to “find whoever took the tower down and buy them a drink.” Gibraltar and Lifeline suggested that he ask Crypto, who “knows everything about everything.” As Mirage approaches, Crypto mistakes him as someone suspicious and grapples him. Crypto and Mirage are later placed on the same team for an Apex Games match, where the pair give each other the respective nicknames of “kid” and “old man.”
Season 5[]
After the collapse of Skull Town, various IMC bunkers were revealed across Kings Canyon, Crypto beagn investigating them and found encrypted messages from Mila. She revealed that she is alive, but in hiding. She was questioned by The Syndicate and placed in a secure location, but she was able to escape by overriding the doors’ security systems. She then warns Crypto that somebody is watching him from inside The Syndicate.
The Broken Ghost[]
After Loba joined the Apex Games, she recruited the other Legends (sans Revenant) to hunt down pieces of an artefact on an alternate Kings Canyon, in the Shadowfall dimension. Crypto and Wattson were enlisted to assemble the artifact’s pieces. Eventually, Wattson is injured during a mission in the Shadowfall dimension. While she recovers, Revenant arrives to harass and threaten the Legends. After he leaves, Bangalore states her belief that someone is feeding him information. Crypto offhandedly accuses her of being mole, to which she dismissively brushes the comment off. Crypto and Wattson continue to reconstruct the artefact while the latter recovers. During one of their sessions, Revenant returns, within the systems of Park’s (seemingly unhackable) drone. While frightening Wattson, Revenant reveals that there is in fact a mole among them. Blame is immediately placed on Crypto, as his drone was the current vessel for Revenant. Caustic offers his own argument to corroborate this accusation: as Crypto and Revenant both want revenge against The Syndicate, it would make sense for them to work together to bring it down. Crypto rebuts that Caustic must be the mole, as it was clear that the latter’s speech was prepared. During this fight, a distressed Wattson departs with Wraith, stating that she can’t trust someone she doesn’t know.
Overtime[]
One Saturday in 2733, Crypto and Mirage suffer an embarrassing loss during an Apex Games match on Kings Canyon and after this loss, Mirage invites him for a drink at the Paradise Lounge, hoping for some team-building. At the bar, Crypto meets with a Syndicate representative working under Boss Willis, seeking protection in exchange for information and a mysterious briefcase. The trio are then attacked by Revenant, who is under contract to take out Crypto and retrieve the briefcase. Crypto, Mirage, and Revenant fight through the streets of Solace City, eventually ending on a rooftop. There, Crypto is captured by Revenant, and Mirage escapes with the briefcase. Revenant then takes Crypto to his client, Boss Willis of the Mercenary Syndicate. As a taunt, Willis takes the briefcase, revealed to be an encrypted communications unit, and decrypts it, revealing Mila on the other end. Crypto and Mirage are taken aboard, where they fight Willis and his henchmen with the help of Wraith. As a result of this, the vessel crashes into the local hospital, levelling it. After Willis is defeated and the hospital’s patients are safely rescued, Revenant gives the now-damaged briefcase to Crypto.
Season 7[]
After a long period of mistrust, Crypto invites Wattson to a meeting, expressing his wishes to tell her something while the two are at Epicenter on World's Edge. Referencing her statement about trusting someone she doesn’t know, he reveals his true identity to her, as well as the fact that somebody within The Syndicate is after him. Despite Wattson’s confusion about him revealing this knowing her heavy involvement with The Syndicate, the two make up. She promises to keep his secret, but often slips up and calls Crypto by his real name in public. He eventually asked for her help in repairing the damaged briefcase. Around this time, Mirage pranked Crypto by gluing his face to the ground.
Season 9[]
The Legacy Antigen[]
After the outbreak of the Medusa epidemic, the Legends met to discuss a search for a cure. Caustic sadistically opposed, stating that he would not miss an opportunity to watch hundreds of people die. However, Crypto changed his mind with the revelation that Mystik, their mother, was recently admitted to a hospital with the condition. The Legends quickly departed for Gaea to hunt for Carthage spiders, which contain an agatoxin that could counteract the disease. Crypto and Caustic reluctantly band together during their hunt. During a discussion about how much Mystik misses her sons, Caustic reveals to Crypto that he hasn’t returned to her because he is afflicted with cancer, and he believes it should have killed him by then. Letting their guard down, the two are captured by a Carthage spider and ensnared in its den, alongside Valkyrie and Loba. Caustic breaks free and, despite his wish to leave him for dead, frees Crypto, as he needs someone to look after his mother after he dies. The four Legends return to their ship with the captured spiders in tow. Returning to Psamathe, the spiders are delivered and a cure is developed and administered. A doctor approaches Crypto and Caustic and reports that a recovering Mystik is to be transported to Gaea. Additionally, visitors are accepted, but they must only be from family. Crypto allows Caustic to go in his stead, allowing for a long-overdue family reunion. Later, Crypto and Wattson deliver a spider to Caustic so that he may use it to find a cure for his cancer.
Season 10[]
Crypto met with Horizon, giving her codes to break through Ash’s ego retention system and awaken her original personality.
Season 11[]
Trouble in Paradise[]
During an Apex Games match on Storm Point, Crypto is placed on a team with Horizon and Wattson. He and Wattson had been searching the arenas for IMC-produced parts in order to repair a communications unit. After finding a part, the two are suddenly ambushed by Ash, who interrogates them as to the meaning of their search for old technology. Wattson directs her to Wraith, as Ash is conducting a similar task. At some point after, Crypto met with Ash, beginning a partnership with the Simulacrum to find information to help him against The Syndicate.
Season 13[]
Crypto helped with fighting the beast that came ashore on Storm Point.
Season 14[]
Friends Like These[]
Park seemingly skipped a party hosted by Mirage. However, as Mirage had simply forgotten to deliver the invitations, he later followed Vantage to the Paradise Lounge to finally attend.
Season 16[]
Near the anniversary of the Apex Games, Lifeline recruited Park for an operation against the Mercenary Syndicate. During the operation, which took place at a gala held at the Silva estate, Park waited in the restroom while Lifeline planted a drive on Torres Silva's computer. Through this, he was able to uncover records of a planned off-the-books operation to Salvo by the Syndicate Corps.
Weekend Warriors[]
Soon after the operation at the Silva estate, Park competed in a match on Olympus, where he struck Ash and Pathfinder with an EMP, eliminating them.
Season 17[]
Kill Code Part 2[]
After a raid at an armored facility on Salvo, Park received an encrypted drive from Lifeline containing data extracted from the facility. With Loba present, Park began working to decrypt the data, but quickly met resistance, which he interpreted as someone locking him out of the drive. However, he was quickly able to restore access (albeit with incomplete data), but he felt that it suddenly became too easy. After completing the drive, Loba presented an eye taken from a Revenant head, asking Park to extract any meaningful information from it. Park's efforts reactivated the eye, allowing Revenant to watch the Legends in their hideout. After Loba, Lifeline, Valkyrie, and Mad Maggie departed, Revenant broke in and attacked Park, demanding to know what was happening to him.
Personality and traits[]
Tae Joon Park is depicted as a brilliant hacker and mechanical engineer, designing and operating the Apex Games drone cameras as well as his own drones. However when adopting the alias of Crypto, he acts tougher and serious throughout the games. However he does portray a more goofy and playful side when with Wattson and when his element with engineering tasks.
Physical appearance[]
Tae Joon Park is portrayed as tall, dark-haired and wearing glasses. However he sheds these glasses, changes his hairstyle and dons a device to alter his jawline when he adopts the Crypto persona.
Relationships[]
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Crypto stated his first thoughts on Caustic in a letter to Mystik, his foster mother: "There are two others here who are BIG guys. Like your son. Very intimidating. I’m sure one’s a sociopath." Crypto has had a fairly negative relationship with Caustic since the events of The Broken Ghost. Following the seemingly growing friendship between Crypto and Wattson, Caustic framed Crypto for being a spy in the group under Revenant in an attempt to distance the two and keep Wattson devoted to scientific studies he deemed more important. Many of they're in-game voice lines between each other are filled with insults and minor bickering. However the two did begin to repair their relationship after the events of The Legacy Antigen due to Crypto allowing Caustic to visit Mystik first as well as providing him with a spider to cure his cancer. This is also furthered by Pathfinder revealing that they are step-brothers.
Crypto started to grow a friendship with Natalie during the events of Broken Ghost, as the two bonded over their shared interests in robotics and similar senses of humour (Crypto admitted that one of Wattson's puns was the first thing to make him smile in the months he'd been a fugitive). Their bonding was cut short after Caustic framed Crypto for being a mole to Revenant. Even after Makoa Gibraltar revealed to her Caustic's deception, Wattson realized Crypto tended to treat everyone like a potential enemy and always wanted to keep his intentions and background secret, causing them to remain distant to one another. Several months later, Crypto, desperately wanting someone to trust and confide with after being in hiding for so long, asked Wattson to his home to talk where he revealed his identity and situation with the Syndicate to her. Wattson in turn saw how much he trusted her, and helped him realize how his humanity and self was still present even though he had to remain as Crypto, with the two officially forming a friendship.
Crypto sees Mirage as little more than an annoying idiot. After leaving a very bad first impression on him in during preparation for the Game's first match on World's Edge, the two have had a minor competitive rivalry, commonly trading witty insults and competing in score with each other. However he has come to see Mirage as a friend.
Crypto reveals to Mystik in message that he has respect for Makoa Gibraltar as he is a Legend with strong morals. This is possibly relating to Gibraltar knowing that Crypto was not the mole during the Broken Ghost quest due to Caustic's confession to Gibraltar.
Apex Legends[]
Abilities[]
Customization[]
- Main article: Tae Joon "Crypto" Park/Customization
Quotes[]
- Main article: Tae Joon "Crypto" Park/Quotes
- The Art of Apex Legends
- Apex Legends
- Quests
- Trailers
- Apex Legends Launch Trailer
- Season 2 Launch Trailer
- Season 3 Launch Trailer
- Season 7 Launch Trailer
- Season 8 Launch Trailer
- Season 9 Launch Trailer
- Season 10 Launch Trailer
- Season 12 Launch Trailer
- Season 13 Launch Trailer
- Stories from the Outlands
- Forever Family
- Side stories
- The Truth
- Apex Legends Mobile
- Apex Legends: Pathfinder's Quest
- Apex Legends: Overtime
- Issue 1
- Issue 2
- Issue 3
- Issue 4
Update history[]
Gallery[]
Images[]
Videos[]
[]
Trivia[]
- Crypto was leaked in a GameStop buyers conference, alongside the Charge Rifle. Prior to this, fans had already found references to Crypto by datamining the game's files.[1][2]
- Crypto was teased for an entire season before his official reveal:
- Crypto's first appearance was in the trailer for Season 2, where he was responsible for destroying the Repulsor tower.
- Crypto's logo appears in "Voidwalker" when an alternate Wraith hacks into an abandoned IMC base.
- Crypto was the source of several "glitches" in Kings Canyon, including distorted lines from the announcer and hacked banner displays showing his attempts to get login information.
- Crypto appeared in an inaccessible room behind glass in Singh Labs, getting info on the space elevator at World's Edge. When a player got near, he and his drone would flee.
- Crypto's drone is named "Hack."
- The inscription, "0's & 1's 4 Lif3" along with Crypto's logo is found within "Hack". The logo and inscription can be seen if "Hack" is deployed or when Crypto is selected in the beginning of the match.
- Crypto's drone remote has the word "susukekki" on it which means "riddle" in Korean.
- Crypto's Legendary cosmetic skin "Hype Beast" has been confirmed by writer Tom Casiello to be "his innermost desires come to life. He wants to scream his identity to all within earshot. Because that would mean this nightmare is over."
- Crypto is responsible for destroying the Repulsor tower in King's Canyon, a device that emits high frequencies used by the IMC in order to keep potentially dangerous wildlife away. Local leviathans and flyers from the outskirts of the island moved in upon its destruction, causing a great deal of damage to many of the Island's well-known structures used for the Apex Games.
- Crypto's voice actor, Johnny Young, is an active streamer on Twitch, where he is known to do custom voice lines after the character he plays.
- Crypto owns and is shown with a data knife in his banner pose "pre-kill", a tool commonly owned by Pilots with the Combat Certification.
- Crypto's "Rising Phoenix" and "Masked Dancer" Legendary cosmetic skins are tactical interpretations of outfits used in the Korean (both North and South) Lion Dance, meant to rid a location of evil spirits.
- Crypto previously frequently referred to Mirage as "Old Man" (after Mirage had mockingly referred to him as kid upon their first encounter in Apex's Legend's season 3 trailer). After it was revealed that Crypto is supposedly older than Mirage, the former now refers to Crypto as "old man" and vice versa.
- Only two other legends (Caustic and Wattson) currently know Tae Joon's true identity, with Wattson being the only legend Crypto has willingly revealed it to.
- Crypto's foster mother Mystik is fond of Mirage, despite Tae Joon's annoyance with him.
- Crypto is from Gaea, one of the few planets in the Outlands with a dominant police force. He fled his home world in order to avoid arrest after being framed for the supposed kidnapping and murder of Mila Alexander. He currently lives in an apartment on planet Solace.
- Crypto is canonically terrible at naming things. (For example, the drone is named "Hack," his Town Takeover on King's Canyon in called "Map Room," and his security system was literally called "security" before Wattson named it "Lassie," after a guard dog from Earth.
- Mystik is both Caustic's biological mother and Crypto's adoptive mother. This technically makes the two step-brothers.
- Crypto is likely not 31 as his official character biography states, as it his been noted by members of the community that his age during adoption does not match up with the founding of the orphanage (based off of information in Caustic's death certificate). Based off of the timeline, his true age is likely between 21-22.
- Crypto and Mila are the creators of the camera drones used to broadcast the Apex Games.
References[]
Legends Ash • Bangalore • Ballistic • Bloodhound •Catalyst •Caustic • Conduit • Crypto • Fade • Fuse • Gibraltar • Horizon • Loba • Lifeline • Mad Maggie • Mirage • Newcastle • Octane • Pathfinder • Rampart • Revenant • Rhapsody •Seer • Valkyrie•Vantage • Wattson • Wraith