Heya @darthdeath627,
Private matches aren't available for everyone, you'll need to contact EA to apply for this.
You can find more information here:
https://www.ea.com/en-gb/games/apex-legends/community-tournament-guidelines
Hopefully that answers your question :P
If you're taking part in a tournament that got permission to make use of the system, then you can use a code to join the tournament lobby.
The one hosting tournament needs to have access to the system to send out such a code, regular players typically don't have a high chance of getting access to it.
Unless these regular players are going to host a tournament, I doubt they'll give out a code for players that just want to mess around with their friends as it does still take up server space.
You can apply by using the mail mentioned in this page: https://www.ea.com/en-gb/games/apex-legends/community-tournament-guidelines
([edit: email address removed])
Do note that for private usage (e.c for playing with friends) the chance is really low to get accepted.
No game is the same, especially Overwatch vs Apex.
They both have a different way of hosting servers, their engines are different and so forth.
Apex never was really intended to have custom matches whilst Overwatch pretty much was made with native support for it.
Apex only supports these lobbies for tournaments, for those you'll need a code.
Overwatch allows you to make actual custom games, not just lobbies for tournaments.
So it's pretty much the design choice that makes the difference here.
Community Manager
