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The game developers have an exciting surprise prepared for Apex Legends gamers, perfectly timed for the holidays. Enthusiasts of this game's highly fluid traversal can rejoice to discover that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when Season 27: Amped goes live on Nov. 4.

Unveiling Mantle Boosting

Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this feature gives players a burst of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. As explained key developer Eric Canavese, this technique was previously existed of Apex Legends for quite a while, usually referred to as "mantle jumping." However it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and is mainly used by pro gamers in competitive play or esports competitions. In this update, the team simplifies the process for everyone to execute these tricky speed-boosts.

"Mantle Boosts have been in Apex for a while, but the movement isn't easy to perform and gamers would never know it [is in the game] without external guides," Canavese explains. "Now including a Mantle Boost indicator so users can easily see when and how to trigger the fast-paced traversal skill, making accessible the feature and introducing new ways to play for more players."

The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

What's the reason for making a once niche movement quirk accessible to all players? Principal designer Josh Mohan says the team aims for players to feel powerful — including ones who are new.

"Our community performs advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we examined at our competition, looked at what our players execute, and we said, 'How can we extend some of this power to a broader audience?'" the designer clarifies. "Because currently, some of these advanced [movement] mechanics 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?'"

The Amped Update Movement Focus

Mobility is largely the central theme in this season, with characters Horizon, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie all getting enhancements to help keep them mobile. 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 now include a roof and capability to provide movement bonuses to allies in range. However the spotlight is on aerial Valkyrie receiving the most attention now, with multiple tweaks applied to enhance her as stronger, faster, and more lethal.

"In my opinion many agree that her moment has arrived," states Legend designer the designer. "There's no doubt that she's been dominant previously, but with the introduction of new Legends, movement[-based] passives, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she's not very relevant in today's Apex. This presented an ideal chance for the team to revisit a bunch of aspects [of her kit] and essentially restore her to former prominence."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To reclaim her competitive status in the game's meta, the developer notes Respawn evaluated all her skills and implemented significant modifications. Her VTOL Jets received improvements, boosting velocity during flight, and this equipment regenerates three times faster, allowing her to spend more time in the air. She can no longer be harmed from her ultimate ability, which has also been upgraded to tag opponents who are hit from it. Her squad redeploy skill — which lifts her entire squad skyward for repositioning or escape — now takes reduced delay to activate. Additionally, she gains recently added perk choices that players can select to reduce fuel consumption, widen the area of her rockets, or accelerate her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

"Valkyrie's equipment fulfills the pilot experience," he comments.

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 says Apex Legends this update focuses on giving players the resources required to keep up with matches.

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

The battle royale Season 27: Amped launches November 4th at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.