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The game developers have a special treat prepared for the popular battle royale players, perfectly timed for festive season. Enthusiasts of the battle royale's super-slick movement can rejoice to learn that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when the Amped season launches on Nov. 4.

Unveiling Mantle Boosting

Named "Momentum Boosting" by Respawn, this feature gives players a surge of forward momentum when scaling obstacles. According to key developer Eric Canavese, this technique was previously been a feature of Apex Legends for some time, usually referred to as "ledge boosting." But it's no easy feat for the average player, and is mainly used by competitive players in competitive play or esports competitions. In this update, Respawn simplifies the process for everyone to successfully perform these tricky movement boosts.

"This technique have been in the game for some time, but executing it requires skill to pull off and a player would never know it's possible without outside knowledge," Canavese states. "Now including a visual cue so players can easily see the timing to trigger the high-octane traversal skill, opening up the mechanic and adding fresh strategies to compete for more players."

The Reasoning Behind Make It Accessible

What's the reason for making a previously obscure movement quirk available to all players? Principal designer Josh Mohan says the team wants gamers to experience empowerment — even those who are inexperienced.

"Our community is doing advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we looked around at other games, observed what the community execute, and we wondered, 'How can we provide some of this power to more players?'" the designer clarifies. "Because currently, some of these advanced [movement] mechanics are kind of janky to use — it requires to change controls and hit precise timings. So we said, 'What if we create a polished version?'"

Season 27 Movement Focus

Mobility is primarily the central theme in this season, with Legends the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and the aerial combatant receiving enhancements to help keep them in motion. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift has been decreased, and this skill will propel users into the air faster than it used to. Rampart's Amped Cover now include overhead protection and capability to grant movement bonuses to those nearby. But the spotlight is on aerial Valkyrie who's getting the most attention now, with multiple tweaks implemented to make her more potent, faster, and deadlier.

"I think many agree that Valkyrie's time has arrived," states Legend designer Ian Holstead. "Certainly that she's been dominant previously, but with the introduction of new Legends, movement[-based] passives, and redeployment tools, it felt like she's not very relevant in today's the game. It was an ideal chance for us to revisit multiple elements in her abilities and essentially restore her to her glory days."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To reclaim Valkyrie's relevance in current strategies, the developer says the team assessed all her skills and introduced significant modifications. Her jetpack received improvements, boosting velocity while airborne, and the jets themselves now recharge much quicker, allowing the player to spend more time aloft. She can no longer be harmed from her ultimate ability, which was enhanced to mark opponents who are hit from it. Her squad redeploy ability — which launches teammates skyward for redeployment or escape — requires reduced delay to fire up. Additionally, she gains recently added Legend Upgrades that players can choose to conserve resources, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

"Her jet pack fulfills that jet-fighter fantasy," Holstead comments.

Olympus Improvements

Additionally, the only floating arena, Olympus, receives a mobility-focused facelift, with major changes that opens up bottlenecks and renders claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. Respawn says Apex Legends Season 27 is all about giving players the resources they need to compete in the competition.

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

The battle royale the Amped season launches November 4th at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.