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Respawn Entertainment have a special treat prepared for the popular battle royale gamers, perfectly timed for festive season. Enthusiasts of this game's highly fluid traversal will be pleased to discover that a new movement mechanic will be introduced when the Amped season goes live on Nov. 4.

Unveiling Mantle Boosting

Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this ability gives players a surge of propulsion when scaling obstacles. As explained lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting was previously been a feature of the game for quite a while, often called as "ledge boosting." But it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and typically employed by competitive players in competitive play or tournaments. This season, the team simplifies the process for everyone to execute these advanced speed-boosts.

"Mantle Boosts have been in the game for some time, but executing it requires skill to perform and gamers might not realize it [is in the game] without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so players can easily see the timing to trigger the high-octane movement ability, opening up the feature and introducing new ways to play for a much wider base."

Why Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

What's the reason for making a once niche technique available to everyone? Principal designer the development lead says the team aims for players to feel powerful — including ones who are new.

"Our community is doing advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we looked around at our competition, observed what our players execute, and we wondered, 'How can we provide these capabilities to a broader audience?'" the designer clarifies. "Because right now, certain techniques are kind of janky to use — it requires to change controls and hit one-frame windows. We proposed, 'How about we make a polished implementation?'"

Season 27 Movement Focus

Movement is primarily the name of the game in Season 27, with Legends the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and the aerial combatant receiving enhancements to help keep them mobile. The cooldown period on her tactical ability has been decreased, and the Gravity Lift will boost players upward much quicker than before. Rampart's Amped Cover feature a roof and capability to provide movement bonuses to those nearby. However it's aerial Valkyrie receiving significant improvements now, with multiple tweaks implemented to make her stronger, faster, and deadlier.

"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that her moment is here," says Legend designer the designer. "Certainly that she's been top-tier previously, but due to the addition of other characters, mobility perks, and redeployment tools, it seemed like she's not very relevant in current Apex. It was a really great opportunity for us to revisit multiple elements in her abilities and essentially bring her back to her glory days."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To restore Valkyrie's relevance in current strategies, the developer says Respawn evaluated each of her abilities and implemented some powerful changes. Her jetpack have been upgraded, increasing her speed during flight, and this equipment now recharge much quicker, enabling her to remain longer in the air. Now she won't take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which was enhanced to tag opponents who take damage from the missiles. Her Skyward Dive skill — which launches her entire squad skyward for repositioning or escape — requires much less time to fire up. Additionally, she gains some new perk choices 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 says.

Map Changes

Even the game's lone airborne map, Olympus, is getting a movement-friendly facelift, with major changes that opens up choke points and renders claiming the high ground more manageable. The developers state Apex Legends Season 27 focuses on providing gamers the resources they need to compete in matches.

"Essentially, we examined Apex's core identity as a movement shooter," explains principal designer the lead.

The battle royale the Amped season launches Nov. 4 at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.