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The game developers has a special treat in store for Apex Legends players, arriving just in time for the holidays. Enthusiasts of the battle royale's super-slick traversal will be pleased to discover that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when Season 27: Amped goes live on Nov. 4.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Named "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this ability gives players a surge of propulsion when climbing over obstacles. As explained lead battle royale designer the design lead, Mantle Boosting has unofficially been a feature of the game for some time, often called as "mantle jumping." But it's challenging for casual gamers, and is mainly used by competitive players in Ranked Mode or esports competitions. This season, Respawn is making it easier for everyone to execute these tricky movement boosts.

"This technique have been in Apex for some time, but executing it requires skill to pull off and gamers might not realize it [is in the game] without external guides," Canavese states. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so users can clearly identify the timing to trigger the fast-paced traversal skill, making accessible the feature and introducing fresh strategies to play for a much wider base."

Why Make It Accessible

Why make a previously obscure technique available to everyone? Principal designer the development lead explains the team aims for players to feel powerful — even those who are inexperienced.

"[The playerbase] is doing advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafing, and we looked around at other games, observed what the community are doing, and we said, 'How can we extend some of this power to more players?'" the designer clarifies. "Because currently, some of these advanced [movement] mechanics are somewhat awkward to access — you need to change controls and hit precise timings. So we said, 'What if we make a more official implementation?'"

The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is largely the name of the game in this season, with characters the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie all getting buffs to maintain them in motion. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and the Gravity Lift will boost players upward faster than it used to. Rampart's Amped Cover now include a roof and capability to grant movement bonuses to allies in range. However the spotlight is on the high-flying Valkyrie receiving the most attention now, with various adjustments applied to enhance her as more potent, faster, and more lethal.

"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that Valkyrie's time is here," says Legend designer the designer. "There's no doubt she was top-tier in the past, but due to the addition of other characters, movement[-based] passives, and redeployment tools, it felt like she's not very relevant in current the game. This presented a really great opportunity for the team to reexamine multiple elements in her abilities and essentially restore her to her glory days."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To reclaim her competitive status in the game's meta, Holstead says the team evaluated all her skills and introduced some powerful changes. Her jetpack have been upgraded, increasing velocity while airborne, and the jets themselves now recharge three times faster, enabling the player to remain longer aloft. She can no longer be harmed from her own Missile Swarm, which has also been upgraded to mark enemies who are hit from it. Her Skyward Dive ability — which launches teammates skyward for repositioning or retreat — requires reduced delay to activate. She's also getting some new Legend Upgrades that users can select to reduce fuel consumption, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or accelerate her ultimate activation.

"Her jet pack fulfills the pilot experience," he comments.

Olympus Improvements

Even the game's lone airborne map, Olympus, is getting a movement-friendly overhaul, with an extensive redesign that opens up bottlenecks and renders claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. Respawn says the game this update is all about providing gamers the tools they need to keep up with the competition.

"Essentially, we examined Apex's core identity as a fast-paced FPS," explains principal designer Josh Mohan.

Apex Legends Season 27: Amped releases November 4th at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.