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The game developers has an exciting surprise in store for Apex Legends gamers, arriving just in time for festive season. Enthusiasts of the battle royale's super-slick movement will be pleased to learn that a new movement mechanic is being implemented when Season 27: Amped goes live on November 4th.

Unveiling Mantle Boosting

Dubbed "Momentum Boosting" by Respawn, this ability gives players a surge of propulsion when scaling ledges and walls. As explained key developer the design lead, this technique was previously been a feature of Apex Legends for quite a while, usually referred to as "ledge boosting." But it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and typically employed by competitive players in Ranked Mode or tournaments. This season, Respawn simplifies the process for everyone to successfully perform these advanced speed-boosts.

"This technique have been in the game for some time, but the movement isn't easy to perform and gamers might not realize it [is in the game] without external guides," the designer states. "Now including a visual cue so users can easily see the timing to trigger the fast-paced movement ability, making accessible the mechanic and introducing new ways to compete for a much wider base."

The Reasoning Behind Make It Accessible

Why make a previously obscure movement quirk available to everyone? Principal designer Josh Mohan says the team wants gamers to experience empowerment — even those who are new.

"Our community is doing advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we examined at other games, observed what our players are doing, and we said, 'What if we provide these capabilities to more players?'" the designer clarifies. "Because right now, some of these techniques are kind of janky to access — it requires to remap your keybinds and execute within precise timings. So we said, 'What if we create a more official implementation?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is largely the central theme in Season 27, with characters Horizon, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie all getting enhancements to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on her tactical ability is shorter, and this skill will propel users into the air much quicker than it used to. Her defensive walls feature overhead protection and capability to provide speed boosts to those nearby. However the spotlight is on aerial this Legend who's getting the most attention now, with various adjustments implemented to make her stronger, faster, and deadlier.

"In my opinion many agree that her moment has arrived," says character developer the designer. "Certainly that she's been top-tier previously, but with the introduction of new Legends, mobility perks, and Evac Towers, it felt like she's not very relevant in current Apex. This presented an ideal chance for us to revisit a bunch of aspects [of her kit] and sort of bring her back to her glory days."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To reclaim her competitive status in the game's meta, Holstead notes Respawn evaluated each of her abilities and introduced some powerful changes. Her jetpack received improvements, increasing velocity while airborne, and this equipment now recharge much quicker, allowing her to remain longer in the air. She can no longer take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which was enhanced to mark opponents who take damage from it. Her Skyward Dive ability — which lifts teammates skyward for redeployment or retreat — requires much less time to activate. Additionally, she gains recently added Legend Upgrades that players can choose to conserve resources, expand the spread of her Missile Swarm, or accelerate her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

"Her jet pack fulfills that jet-fighter fantasy," he says.

Map Changes

Even the game's lone airborne map, Olympus, is getting a movement-friendly facelift, with an extensive redesign that opens up bottlenecks and renders securing elevated positions a bit less daunting. Respawn state the game this update is all about providing gamers the tools they need to keep up with matches.

"Really, we examined the game's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," says principal designer the lead.

The battle royale Season 27: Amped releases Nov. 4 at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.