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Respawn Entertainment has a special treat in store for Apex Legends gamers, perfectly timed for festive season. Fans of the battle royale's super-slick traversal can rejoice to discover that a new movement mechanic is being implemented when the Amped season launches on November 4th.

Introducing The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this feature provides gamers a burst of propulsion when climbing over obstacles. As explained lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting has unofficially been a feature of the game for some time, usually referred to as "ledge boosting." But it's challenging for casual gamers, and typically employed by pro gamers in competitive play or esports competitions. In this update, the team simplifies the process for everyone to successfully perform these tricky speed-boosts.

"This technique existed in Apex for a while, but executing it isn't easy to pull off and gamers might not realize it [is in the game] without external guides," the designer explains. "Now including a visual cue so users can clearly identify when and how to trigger the fast-paced traversal skill, opening up the feature and introducing fresh strategies to play for more players."

Why Make It Accessible

What's the reason for making a once niche movement quirk available to all players? Principal designer the development lead says the team wants players to experience empowerment — even those who are new.

"Our community performs advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we examined at our competition, observed what our players are doing, and we wondered, 'What if we provide these capabilities to more players?'" the designer clarifies. "Because right now, certain advanced [movement] mechanics are somewhat awkward to access — you need to change controls and hit one-frame windows. We proposed, 'What if we make a more official version?'"

The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility

Mobility is largely the name of the game in Season 27, with Legends Horizon, Rampart, and the aerial combatant all getting buffs to help keep them in motion. The cooldown period on Horizon's Gravity Lift has been decreased, and the Gravity Lift will boost users into the air much quicker than before. Her defensive walls now include overhead protection and capability to grant speed boosts to allies in range. However the spotlight is on aerial this Legend who's getting significant improvements this season, with multiple tweaks applied to make her stronger, quicker, and more lethal.

"I think there's quite a consensus that Valkyrie's time has arrived," states character developer the designer. "Certainly that she's been dominant in the past, but due to the addition of new Legends, movement[-based] passives, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she's not very relevant in today's Apex. This presented an ideal chance for the team to reexamine a bunch of aspects [of her kit] and sort of restore her to her glory days."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To restore Valkyrie's relevance in the game's meta, Holstead says the team assessed all her skills and introduced some powerful changes. Her jetpack received improvements, increasing velocity while airborne, and this equipment regenerates much quicker, allowing her to remain longer aloft. Now she won't take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which was enhanced to tag opponents who are hit from it. Her squad redeploy skill — which launches her entire squad skyward for redeployment or escape — now takes reduced delay to activate. She's also getting some new perk choices that players can select to reduce fuel consumption, expand the spread of her Missile Swarm, or accelerate her ultimate takeoff time.

"Her jet pack now delivers on the pilot experience," Holstead comments.

Olympus Improvements

Even the game's lone airborne map, this location, is getting a movement-friendly overhaul, with major changes that expands choke points and renders securing elevated positions a bit less daunting. The developers says Apex Legends Season 27 is all about providing gamers the resources required to keep up with matches.

"Really, we examined Apex's core identity as a fast-paced FPS," says lead Legend designer the lead.

The battle royale the Amped season releases Nov. 4 at the specified times.