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Respawn Entertainment have a special treat prepared for the popular battle royale players, perfectly timed for the holidays. Enthusiasts of this game's super-slick movement can rejoice to discover that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when the Amped season goes live on Nov. 4.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Momentum Boosting" by Respawn, this feature gives players a burst of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. According to lead battle royale designer the design lead, this technique was previously existed of Apex Legends for some time, usually referred to as "ledge boosting." But it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and is mainly used by competitive players in Ranked Mode or esports competitions. This season, the team simplifies the process for players of all skill levels to execute these advanced speed-boosts.

"Mantle Boosts existed in the game for a while, but the movement isn't easy to pull off and a player would never know it [is in the game] without external guides," Canavese states. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so users can easily see when and how to trigger the fast-paced movement ability, opening up the feature and introducing fresh strategies to play for a much wider base."

Why Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

Why make a once niche technique accessible to everyone? Principal designer the development lead says developers aims for gamers to experience empowerment — including ones who are inexperienced.

"[The playerbase] performs other crazy stuff like super-gliding and tap-strafing, and we examined at our competition, observed what our players execute, and we wondered, 'What if we extend some of this power to a broader audience?'" Mohan explains. "Because currently, some of these techniques are somewhat awkward to access — you need to remap your keybinds and hit precise timings. We proposed, 'What if we create a more official version?'"

The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is largely the central theme in Season 27, with characters the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie receiving enhancements to maintain them in motion. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift has been decreased, and this skill will propel players into the air much quicker than it used to. Rampart's Amped Cover feature overhead protection and capability to grant movement bonuses to allies in range. However the spotlight is on the high-flying this Legend who's getting significant improvements this season, with various adjustments implemented to enhance her as stronger, faster, and more lethal.

"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that her moment is here," states Legend designer Ian Holstead. "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 fell behind in current Apex. It was a really great opportunity for us to reexamine a bunch of aspects in her abilities and sort of bring her back to former prominence."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To restore her competitive status in current strategies, the developer notes the team evaluated each of her abilities and implemented some powerful modifications. Her jetpack received improvements, boosting velocity during flight, and the jets themselves now recharge much quicker, allowing her to remain longer aloft. She can no longer take damage from her ultimate ability, which was enhanced to tag opponents who are hit from it. Her squad redeploy ability — which lifts her entire squad skyward for redeployment or escape — now takes much less time to fire up. She's also getting recently added Legend Upgrades that users can select to reduce fuel consumption, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or accelerate her ultimate takeoff time.

"Valkyrie's equipment now delivers on the pilot experience," he comments.

Olympus Improvements

Even the game's only floating arena, this location, is getting a movement-friendly overhaul, with an extensive redesign that opens up bottlenecks and renders claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. The developers state the game Season 27 focuses on giving players the resources they need to keep up with matches.

"Essentially, we were looking at the game's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," explains principal designer the lead.

The battle royale Season 27: Amped releases Nov. 4 at the specified times.