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Respawn Entertainment has an exciting surprise prepared for the popular battle royale gamers, arriving just in time for the holidays. Enthusiasts of this game's super-slick traversal can rejoice to discover that a new movement mechanic will be introduced when the Amped season launches on November 4th.

Introducing Mantle Boosting

Dubbed "Momentum Boosting" by the developers, this feature provides gamers a burst of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. As explained lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, this technique has unofficially been a feature of the game for quite a while, usually referred to as "mantle jumping." However it's no easy feat for the average player, and typically employed by competitive players in competitive play or tournaments. This season, Respawn is making it easier for players of all skill levels to execute these advanced movement boosts.

"Mantle Boosts have been in the game for a while, but the movement requires skill to perform and a player might not realize it's possible without external guides," the designer explains. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so players can clearly identify the timing to activate the high-octane traversal skill, opening up the mechanic and introducing fresh strategies to play for a much wider base."

Why Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

What's the reason for making a once niche movement quirk accessible to everyone? Lead Legend designer the development lead explains developers wants players to experience empowerment — including ones who are inexperienced.

"[The playerbase] is doing other crazy stuff like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we looked around at our competition, looked at what the community are doing, and we said, 'What if we extend these capabilities to a broader audience?'" Mohan clarifies. "Since currently, certain techniques are somewhat awkward to access — it requires to remap your keybinds and execute within one-frame windows. So we said, 'What if we make a more official implementation?'"

Season 27 Movement Focus

Mobility is largely the name of the game in Season 27, with characters the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and the aerial combatant all getting buffs to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on her tactical ability has been decreased, and the Gravity Lift will boost players upward much quicker than before. Rampart's Amped Cover now include a roof and the ability to grant speed boosts to those nearby. But the spotlight is on aerial Valkyrie receiving significant improvements this season, with multiple tweaks applied to enhance her as stronger, faster, and more lethal.

"I think many agree that Valkyrie's time has arrived," states character developer the designer. "Certainly that she's been top-tier previously, but due to the addition of other characters, mobility perks, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she's not very relevant in today's the game. It was an ideal chance for the team to reexamine a bunch of aspects in her abilities and sort of restore her to her glory days."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To restore her competitive status in current strategies, the developer says the team assessed each of her abilities and implemented some powerful changes. Her VTOL Jets received improvements, boosting her speed during flight, and the jets themselves regenerates three times faster, enabling the player to spend more time in the air. Now she won't take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which was enhanced to tag opponents who are hit from it. Her Skyward Dive ability — which launches her entire squad skyward for redeployment or retreat — now takes reduced delay to fire up. Additionally, she gains recently added perk choices that users can choose to conserve resources, expand the spread of her rockets, or further speed up her ultimate activation.

"Valkyrie's equipment fulfills the pilot experience," Holstead says.

Olympus Improvements

Additionally, the only floating arena, Olympus, is getting a movement-friendly overhaul, with an extensive redesign that expands choke points and makes securing elevated positions more manageable. The developers says Apex Legends this update is all about providing gamers the tools required to keep up with the competition.

"Essentially, we were looking at Apex's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," explains lead Legend designer Josh Mohan.

Apex Legends the Amped season launches Nov. 4 at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.