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Respawn Entertainment has a special treat prepared for the popular battle royale players, arriving just in time for festive season. Fans of the battle royale's super-slick traversal can rejoice to discover that a new movement mechanic is being implemented when Season 27: Amped goes live on Nov. 4.

Introducing The Mantle Boost

Named "Mantle Boosting" by the developers, this ability gives players a surge of forward momentum when scaling ledges and walls. According to key developer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting was previously been a feature of Apex Legends for quite a while, often called as "ledge boosting." But it's challenging for casual gamers, and is mainly used by competitive players in competitive play or esports competitions. This season, the team simplifies the process for players of all skill levels to successfully perform these tricky movement boosts.

"This technique existed in the game for a while, but executing it requires skill to pull off and gamers would never know it's possible without outside knowledge," Canavese states. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so users can easily see when and how to activate the high-octane movement ability, making accessible the feature and introducing fresh strategies to play for a much wider base."

The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

What's the reason for making a previously obscure movement quirk accessible to everyone? Lead Legend designer Josh Mohan explains developers wants players to experience empowerment — including ones who are new.

"[The playerbase] is doing other crazy stuff like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we looked around at other games, looked at what our players are doing, and we wondered, 'What if we provide these capabilities to a broader audience?'" the designer clarifies. "Because currently, certain techniques are kind of janky to use — you need to change controls and hit precise timings. So we said, 'How about we make a more official version?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Mobility is primarily the name of the game in Season 27, with Legends Horizon, the defensive specialist, and the aerial combatant all getting enhancements to help keep them in motion. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift has been decreased, and this skill will boost users upward much quicker than before. Rampart's Amped Cover now include overhead protection and capability to provide speed boosts to allies in range. But the spotlight is on the high-flying Valkyrie who's getting significant improvements now, with multiple tweaks implemented to enhance her as more potent, faster, and deadlier.

"I think many agree that Valkyrie's time is here," says character developer Ian Holstead. "Certainly that she's been dominant previously, but due to the addition of new Legends, movement[-based] passives, and redeployment tools, it seemed like she's not very relevant in today's Apex. It was a really great opportunity for the team to reexamine a bunch of aspects [of her kit] and sort of restore her to her glory days."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To reclaim Valkyrie's relevance in the game's meta, the developer notes Respawn assessed each of her abilities and implemented significant changes. Her jetpack have been upgraded, increasing velocity while airborne, and this equipment now recharge much quicker, allowing the player to remain longer in the air. Now she won't be harmed from her own Missile Swarm, which has also been upgraded to tag opponents who take damage from the missiles. Her squad redeploy skill — which lifts her entire squad into the air for repositioning or retreat — requires much less time to fire up. Additionally, she gains some new Legend Upgrades that users can choose to reduce fuel consumption, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her ultimate activation.

"Valkyrie's equipment fulfills that jet-fighter fantasy," he says.

Map Changes

Additionally, the lone airborne map, Olympus, is getting a movement-friendly overhaul, with major changes that opens up bottlenecks and makes claiming the high ground more manageable. Respawn state Apex Legends this update is all about providing gamers the tools they need to keep up with matches.

"Essentially, we examined the game's core identity as a fast-paced FPS," explains lead Legend designer the lead.

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