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The game developers has a special treat prepared for Apex Legends players, perfectly timed for festive season. Enthusiasts of the battle royale's highly fluid movement can rejoice to learn that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when the Amped season goes live on Nov. 4.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by the developers, this feature provides gamers a burst of forward momentum when scaling obstacles. According to lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting has unofficially been a feature of the game for quite a while, usually referred to as "mantle jumping." But it's challenging for the average player, and is mainly used by competitive players in Ranked Mode or tournaments. In this update, the team is making it easier for everyone to execute these tricky movement boosts.

"Mantle Boosts existed in Apex for a while, but executing it isn't easy to perform and a player might not realize it's possible without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "We're adding a visual cue so players can clearly identify when and how to activate the high-octane movement ability, making accessible the mechanic and introducing new ways to compete for more players."

Why Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

What's the reason for making a previously obscure technique available to all players? Lead Legend designer Josh Mohan explains developers aims for players to experience empowerment — including ones who are new.

"Our community is doing other crazy stuff like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we looked around at other games, looked at what the community are doing, and we said, 'What if we extend these capabilities to a broader audience?'" the designer clarifies. "Since currently, certain techniques are somewhat awkward to use — it requires to remap your keybinds and hit precise timings. So we said, 'What if we create a polished version?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is primarily the name of the game in this season, with Legends the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and the aerial combatant all getting enhancements to help keep them mobile. Recovery time on her tactical ability is shorter, and this skill will propel users upward much quicker than before. Her defensive walls feature overhead protection and the ability to provide movement bonuses to those nearby. But it's aerial Valkyrie receiving significant improvements this season, with multiple tweaks applied to make her more potent, faster, and more lethal.

"In my opinion many agree that her moment is here," says character developer the designer. "Certainly she was dominant previously, but with the introduction of new Legends, mobility perks, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she fell behind in today's Apex. It was an ideal chance for the team to reexamine a bunch of aspects [of her kit] and sort of restore her to former prominence."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To restore her competitive status in the game's meta, Holstead says the team assessed all her skills and implemented significant changes. Her VTOL Jets received improvements, boosting her speed while airborne, and the jets themselves now recharge three times faster, allowing her to spend more time in the air. Now she won't be harmed from her ultimate ability, which was enhanced to tag enemies who take damage from it. Her squad redeploy ability — which lifts her entire squad into the air for redeployment or retreat — requires much less time to activate. She's also getting recently added perk choices that players can choose to reduce fuel consumption, widen the area of her rockets, or further speed up her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

"Her jet pack now delivers on that jet-fighter fantasy," he says.

Olympus Improvements

Additionally, the only floating arena, this location, is getting a mobility-focused overhaul, with an extensive redesign that expands bottlenecks and makes claiming the high ground more manageable. Respawn says the game Season 27 is all about giving players the tools required to compete in matches.

"Essentially, we examined the game's core identity as a movement shooter," says lead Legend designer the lead.

Apex Legends Season 27: Amped launches November 4th at the specified times.