So I see you guys are still playing this..

I tend to get on most days and run the daily challenges + silver & gold Apex missions (double earnings, A.Points & credits). If I set up the game parameters and pick "join" the game nearly always makes me host. So, I'll often start solo, and people almost always show up wave 1,2, or 3. Don't do that for platinum, though, since unlikely to get platinum level teammates. Gameplay-wise, they made some good fixes & buffs over the past year, though not as extensively as I would like.

PS4 here.