🔗 Share this article

Respawn Entertainment have an exciting surprise in store for Apex Legends gamers, perfectly timed for festive season. Enthusiasts of the battle royale's super-slick traversal will be pleased to discover that an innovative traversal feature will be introduced when Season 27: Amped goes live on Nov. 4.

Unveiling Mantle Boosting

Named "Momentum Boosting" by the developers, this ability provides gamers a surge of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. According to lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, this technique was previously been a feature of Apex Legends for quite a while, often called as "ledge boosting." But it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and typically employed by pro gamers in Ranked Mode or esports competitions. In this update, Respawn simplifies the process for everyone to successfully perform these advanced speed-boosts.

"Mantle Boosts existed in Apex for a while, but the movement requires skill to perform and a player would never know it's possible without external guides," the designer explains. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so players can clearly identify when and how to activate the fast-paced traversal skill, opening up the feature and adding new ways to compete for a much wider base."

Why Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

Why make a once niche technique accessible to everyone? Lead Legend designer the development lead says the team wants gamers to experience empowerment — including ones who are inexperienced.

"Our community performs advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we looked around at our competition, observed what our players execute, and we said, 'How can we provide these capabilities to more players?'" the designer clarifies. "Since currently, some of these techniques are kind of janky to use — it requires to remap your keybinds and hit one-frame windows. So we said, 'How about we make a more official version?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Mobility is primarily the central theme in Season 27, with characters the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie receiving enhancements to help keep them in motion. The cooldown period on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and this skill will propel users into the air much quicker than it used to. Rampart's Amped Cover feature a roof and capability to provide speed boosts to those nearby. However the spotlight is on aerial this Legend receiving significant improvements now, with multiple tweaks implemented to enhance her as stronger, quicker, and more lethal.

"In my opinion many agree that Valkyrie's time is here," says Legend designer the designer. "Certainly that she's been dominant in the past, but with the introduction of other characters, mobility perks, and redeployment tools, it felt like she fell behind in current the game. It was a really great opportunity for the team to revisit a bunch of aspects [of her kit] and essentially bring her back 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 modifications. Her jetpack have been upgraded, increasing her speed while airborne, and the jets themselves regenerates much quicker, enabling her to remain longer aloft. She can no longer be harmed from her own Missile Swarm, which has also been upgraded to tag enemies who are hit from it. Her squad redeploy ability — which lifts her entire squad into the air for redeployment or escape — requires much less time to fire up. She's also getting recently added perk choices that users can select to reduce fuel consumption, widen the area of her rockets, or accelerate her ultimate takeoff time.

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

Map Changes

Even the game's lone airborne map, Olympus, receives a movement-friendly facelift, with an extensive redesign that opens up choke points and renders claiming the high ground more manageable. The developers says Apex Legends this update is all about providing gamers the resources they need to keep up with the competition.

"Essentially, we examined Apex's fundamental nature as a fast-paced FPS," says principal designer Josh Mohan.

Apex Legends the Amped season launches November 4th at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.