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Respawn Entertainment have a special treat prepared for Apex Legends players, arriving just in time for the holidays. Enthusiasts of the battle royale's super-slick movement will be pleased to learn that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when Season 27: Amped goes live on November 4th.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this ability provides gamers a surge of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. According to key developer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting was previously existed of the game for quite a while, often called as "ledge boosting." However it's no easy feat for the average player, and typically employed by competitive players in Ranked Mode or tournaments. This season, Respawn is making it easier for everyone to successfully perform these advanced speed-boosts.

"Mantle Boosts have been in the game for a while, but the movement isn't easy to perform and a player might not realize it [is in the game] without outside knowledge," Canavese states. "We're adding a visual cue so players can clearly identify when and how to activate the high-octane movement ability, opening up the mechanic and adding new ways to play for more players."

Why Make It Accessible

Why make a previously obscure movement quirk accessible to everyone? Lead Legend designer Josh Mohan explains the team wants players to feel powerful — even those who are inexperienced.

"Our community is doing other crazy stuff like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we examined at other games, observed what the community are doing, and we wondered, 'How can we provide these capabilities to a broader audience?'" the designer clarifies. "Since currently, certain advanced [movement] mechanics are kind of janky to access — you need to change controls and hit precise timings. We proposed, 'What if we create a more official implementation?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is largely the name of the game in Season 27, with characters Horizon, Rampart, and the aerial combatant all getting enhancements to maintain them mobile. The cooldown period on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and this skill will boost players into the air much quicker than before. Her defensive walls now include overhead protection and the ability to provide movement bonuses to those nearby. But it's aerial Valkyrie who's getting the most attention this season, with various adjustments applied to enhance her as stronger, quicker, and deadlier.

"I think there's quite a consensus that Valkyrie's time is here," says Legend designer Ian Holstead. "Certainly she was top-tier previously, but due to the addition of other characters, mobility perks, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she's not very relevant in today's Apex. It was an ideal chance for us to reexamine multiple elements [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 evaluated all her skills and implemented significant changes. Her jetpack received improvements, boosting her speed during flight, and the jets themselves now recharge three times faster, enabling her to spend more time aloft. Now she won't take damage from her ultimate ability, which was enhanced to mark enemies who are hit from the missiles. Her Skyward Dive skill — which launches teammates skyward for redeployment or retreat — now takes much less time to fire up. She's also getting recently added perk choices that users can select to conserve resources, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her ultimate activation.

"Valkyrie's equipment fulfills the pilot experience," he says.

Olympus Improvements

Additionally, the lone airborne map, Olympus, receives a movement-friendly overhaul, with major changes that expands choke points and makes claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. The developers says Apex Legends Season 27 is all about giving players the tools they need to compete in matches.

"Essentially, we examined Apex's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," says principal designer Josh Mohan.

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