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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 will be pleased to learn that an innovative traversal feature will be introduced when the Amped season goes live on November 4th.

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 has unofficially been a feature of the game for some time, usually referred to as "mantle jumping." However it's challenging for the average player, and is mainly used by pro gamers in competitive play or tournaments. This season, the team simplifies the process for everyone to execute these tricky movement boosts.

"Mantle Boosts existed in Apex for a while, but the movement requires skill to perform and gamers might not realize it's possible without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "We're adding a visual cue so users can easily see when and how to trigger the fast-paced movement ability, making accessible the feature and introducing fresh strategies to compete for a much wider base."

The Reasoning Behind Make It Accessible

Why make a previously obscure technique available to all players? Principal designer Josh Mohan explains developers aims for gamers to feel powerful — even those who are new.

"[The playerbase] is doing advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafing, and we looked around at our competition, looked at what the community execute, and we said, 'How can we provide some of this power to a broader audience?'" the designer explains. "Since right now, certain techniques are kind of janky to use — it requires to remap your keybinds and execute within precise timings. So we said, 'What if we create a more official version?'"

The Amped Update Movement Focus

Movement is primarily the name of the game in this season, with Legends Horizon, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie receiving enhancements to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on her tactical ability is shorter, and this skill will propel users upward faster than it used to. Her defensive walls now include a roof and capability to provide movement bonuses to those nearby. But the spotlight is on the high-flying Valkyrie receiving significant improvements now, with various adjustments implemented to make her stronger, quicker, and more lethal.

"I think many agree that her moment has arrived," says character developer Ian Holstead. "Certainly that she's been top-tier in the past, but with the introduction of new Legends, movement[-based] passives, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she fell behind in current the game. It was a really great opportunity for the team to reexamine multiple elements [of her kit] and essentially bring her back to her glory days."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To restore her competitive status in the game's meta, Holstead says Respawn evaluated each of her abilities and introduced some powerful modifications. Her VTOL Jets have been upgraded, boosting her speed during flight, and the jets themselves now recharge three times faster, allowing her to spend more time in the air. She can no longer be harmed from her ultimate ability, which was enhanced to tag opponents who take damage from the missiles. Her squad redeploy ability — which lifts her entire squad into the air for repositioning or retreat — now takes much less time to activate. Additionally, she gains recently added Legend Upgrades that users can select to conserve resources, expand the spread of her rockets, or accelerate her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

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

Olympus Improvements

Additionally, the only floating arena, this location, is getting a movement-friendly facelift, with major changes that opens up bottlenecks and makes claiming the high ground more manageable. The developers state Apex Legends this update is all about giving players the resources required to compete in the competition.

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

Apex Legends Season 27: Amped releases Nov. 4 at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.