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Respawn Entertainment have a special treat in store for Apex Legends players, perfectly timed for the holidays. Enthusiasts of this game's super-slick traversal can rejoice to learn that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when Season 27: Amped launches on Nov. 4.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Momentum Boosting" by Respawn, this ability gives players a burst of propulsion when climbing over obstacles. According to key developer the design lead, this technique has unofficially existed of Apex Legends for some time, usually referred to as "ledge boosting." However it's challenging for the average player, and is mainly used by competitive players in competitive play or esports competitions. This season, Respawn simplifies the process for everyone to execute these tricky speed-boosts.

"This technique existed in the game for some time, but executing it isn't easy to perform and gamers might not realize it's possible without external guides," Canavese explains. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so players can clearly identify the timing to activate the fast-paced traversal skill, opening up the mechanic and introducing new ways to compete for more players."

The Reasoning Behind Make It Accessible

Why make a once niche technique accessible to everyone? Principal designer Josh Mohan explains developers wants players to feel powerful — even those who are inexperienced.

"Our community is doing advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we looked around at other games, looked at what the community are doing, and we said, 'How can we extend these capabilities to a broader audience?'" Mohan clarifies. "Since currently, some of these advanced [movement] mechanics are somewhat awkward to use — you need to remap your keybinds and hit precise timings. So we said, 'How about we create a more official implementation?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is largely the central theme in this season, with characters Horizon, Rampart, and the aerial combatant receiving enhancements to help keep them in motion. The cooldown period on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and this skill will propel users upward much quicker than it used to. Her defensive walls feature a roof and capability to provide movement bonuses to those nearby. But the spotlight is on aerial Valkyrie who's getting the most attention now, with various adjustments implemented to enhance her as more potent, faster, and deadlier.

"I think there's quite a consensus that her moment is here," states Legend designer Ian Holstead. "Certainly she was top-tier previously, but due to the addition of other characters, movement[-based] passives, and redeployment tools, it felt like she fell behind in today's Apex. This presented an ideal chance for us to revisit multiple elements in her abilities and sort of bring her back to her glory days."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To reclaim her competitive status in the game's meta, Holstead notes Respawn assessed all her skills and introduced significant changes. Her jetpack received improvements, boosting her speed during flight, and the jets themselves now recharge three times faster, allowing her to remain longer aloft. She can no longer be harmed from her ultimate ability, which has also been upgraded to mark opponents who are hit from it. Her squad redeploy ability — which launches teammates skyward for redeployment or escape — now takes much less time to fire up. Additionally, she gains recently added Legend Upgrades that users can select to conserve resources, widen the area of her rockets, or further speed up her Skyward Dive activation.

"Her jet pack now delivers on that jet-fighter fantasy," he says.

Map Changes

Even the game's only floating arena, Olympus, is getting a mobility-focused overhaul, with major changes that opens up choke points and makes securing elevated positions a bit less daunting. The developers state the game Season 27 focuses on giving players the resources required to keep up with the competition.

"Really, we were looking at Apex's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," explains principal designer Josh Mohan.

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