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The game developers have an exciting surprise in store for Apex Legends players, perfectly timed for festive season. Fans of the battle royale's highly fluid traversal will be pleased to learn that a new movement mechanic will be introduced when Season 27: Amped launches on November 4th.

Introducing The Mantle Boost

Named "Momentum Boosting" by the developers, this feature provides gamers a surge of forward momentum when scaling obstacles. According to key developer the design lead, this technique has unofficially existed of Apex Legends for some time, often called as "ledge boosting." But it's challenging for the average player, and typically employed by pro gamers in competitive play or esports competitions. This season, the team simplifies the process for everyone to successfully perform these advanced movement boosts.

"Mantle Boosts have been in the game for a while, but executing it isn't easy to perform and gamers would never know it [is in the game] without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "Now including a Mantle Boost indicator so users can clearly identify when and how to trigger the fast-paced movement ability, opening up the mechanic and adding new ways to play for more players."

The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

What's the reason for making a previously obscure movement quirk available to everyone? Lead Legend designer the development lead says developers aims for players to feel powerful — including ones who are inexperienced.

"Our community performs advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafing, and we examined at our competition, observed what our players are doing, and we said, 'What if we provide these capabilities to more players?'" the designer clarifies. "Since currently, some of these techniques are kind of janky to use — you need to remap your keybinds and execute within precise timings. We proposed, 'How about we make a polished implementation?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is largely the central theme in this season, with characters Horizon, the defensive specialist, and the aerial combatant receiving enhancements to help keep them mobile. Recovery time on her tactical ability has been decreased, and the Gravity Lift will boost users into the air faster than before. Rampart's Amped Cover feature overhead protection and capability to provide movement bonuses to allies in range. However the spotlight is on aerial this Legend who's getting significant improvements now, with multiple tweaks applied to make her stronger, faster, and more lethal.

"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that her moment is here," says character developer Ian Holstead. "There's no doubt she was top-tier in the past, but due to the addition of other characters, mobility perks, and redeployment tools, it felt like she's not very relevant in current Apex. This presented an ideal chance for the team to revisit multiple elements in her abilities and essentially restore her to former prominence."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To reclaim Valkyrie's relevance in the game's meta, the developer notes Respawn evaluated each of her abilities and implemented significant changes. Her VTOL Jets have been upgraded, increasing velocity while airborne, and this equipment regenerates three times faster, enabling her to remain longer aloft. Now she won't take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which has also been upgraded to mark opponents who take damage from it. Her squad redeploy skill — which launches teammates skyward for redeployment or retreat — requires reduced delay to fire up. Additionally, she gains some new Legend Upgrades that players can select to conserve resources, widen the area of her rockets, or accelerate her ultimate activation.

"Her jet pack fulfills the pilot experience," Holstead says.

Map Changes

Additionally, the only floating arena, Olympus, receives a mobility-focused facelift, with major changes that opens up choke points and makes claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. Respawn state the game Season 27 focuses on providing gamers the resources they need to keep up with the competition.

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

The battle royale the Amped season launches November 4th at the specified times.