🔗 Share this article

Respawn Entertainment has a special treat in store for Apex Legends gamers, arriving just in time for the holidays. Fans 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.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Named "Momentum Boosting" by Respawn, this ability provides gamers a surge of propulsion when scaling ledges and walls. As explained key developer the design lead, this technique was previously been a feature of Apex Legends for some time, often called as "ledge boosting." However it's no easy feat for the average player, and is mainly used by pro gamers in competitive play or esports competitions. This season, Respawn simplifies the process for everyone to successfully perform these advanced speed-boosts.

"Mantle Boosts have been in the game for some time, but the movement requires skill to pull off and a player might not realize it's possible without external guides," the designer explains. "We're adding a visual cue so players can clearly identify when and how to activate the fast-paced movement ability, making accessible the mechanic and introducing new ways to play for more players."

The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

Why make a previously obscure movement quirk accessible to everyone? Principal designer the development lead explains developers aims for gamers to feel powerful — even those who are new.

"Our community performs advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we examined at other games, looked at what the community are doing, and we wondered, 'What if we provide some of this power to a broader audience?'" Mohan explains. "Since currently, certain techniques are somewhat awkward to access — it requires to remap your keybinds and execute within precise timings. We proposed, 'What if we create a more official implementation?'"

The Amped Update Movement Focus

Mobility is largely the name of the game in Season 27, with characters the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and the aerial combatant receiving enhancements to help keep them in motion. The cooldown period on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and the Gravity Lift will propel players into the air faster than it used to. Rampart's Amped Cover now include overhead protection and capability to provide speed boosts to allies in range. But it's aerial this Legend who's getting significant improvements this season, with multiple tweaks implemented to enhance her as stronger, quicker, and more lethal.

"I think there's quite a consensus that Valkyrie's time has arrived," states character developer the designer. "Certainly she was dominant previously, but with the introduction of new Legends, movement[-based] passives, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she's not very relevant in today's Apex. It was an ideal chance for us to reexamine a bunch of aspects [of her kit] and essentially restore her to her glory days."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To restore her competitive status in current strategies, the developer says Respawn assessed all her skills and introduced significant modifications. Her jetpack have been upgraded, increasing her speed during flight, and this equipment now recharge three times faster, allowing her to remain longer in the air. Now she won't take damage from her ultimate ability, which has also been upgraded to mark enemies who take damage from it. Her Skyward Dive skill — which launches teammates into the air for redeployment or escape — now takes much less time to fire up. She's also getting recently added perk choices that players can select to reduce fuel consumption, expand the spread of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

"Valkyrie's equipment fulfills that jet-fighter fantasy," he comments.

Olympus Improvements

Even the game's lone airborne map, Olympus, is getting a mobility-focused facelift, with an extensive redesign that opens up bottlenecks and renders claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. Respawn state the game this update is all about giving players the resources they need to compete in matches.

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

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