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Respawn Entertainment has a special treat prepared for the popular battle royale gamers, perfectly timed for festive season. Enthusiasts of this game's super-slick movement will be pleased to learn that a new movement mechanic is being implemented when the Amped season launches on November 4th.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by the developers, this feature provides gamers a burst of propulsion when scaling ledges and walls. As explained lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting has unofficially existed of the game for some time, often called as "mantle jumping." However it's challenging for the average player, and is mainly used by competitive players in competitive play or tournaments. In this update, Respawn simplifies the process for everyone to execute these tricky speed-boosts.

"This technique have been in the game for some time, but the movement isn't easy to pull off and gamers would never know it [is in the game] without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "Now including a Mantle Boost indicator so players can clearly identify the timing to activate the fast-paced traversal skill, opening up the feature and introducing fresh strategies to compete for more players."

The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

Why make a previously obscure movement quirk accessible to everyone? Principal designer Josh Mohan says the team aims for players to experience empowerment — including ones who are inexperienced.

"[The playerbase] performs advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we looked around at our competition, observed what the community are doing, and we said, 'How can we provide these capabilities to more players?'" Mohan explains. "Because currently, certain advanced [movement] mechanics are somewhat awkward to access — it requires to change controls and execute within precise timings. So we said, 'What if we make a more official implementation?'"

The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility

Mobility is largely the name of the game in Season 27, with characters Horizon, Rampart, and the aerial combatant receiving buffs to help keep them in motion. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and this skill will propel users into the air faster than before. Her defensive walls now include a roof and the ability to provide movement bonuses to allies in range. But the spotlight is on the high-flying this Legend receiving the most attention this season, with multiple tweaks applied to enhance her as stronger, faster, and more lethal.

"I think many agree that her moment has arrived," states character developer the designer. "There's no doubt she was top-tier in the past, but due to the addition of other characters, mobility perks, and redeployment tools, it seemed like she fell behind in current the game. This presented a really great opportunity for us to reexamine multiple elements [of her kit] and sort of restore her to former prominence."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To reclaim her competitive status in current strategies, the developer notes Respawn evaluated each of her abilities and introduced some powerful modifications. Her VTOL Jets have been upgraded, boosting velocity while airborne, and this equipment regenerates three times faster, allowing her to remain longer in the air. She can no longer be harmed from her ultimate ability, which has also been upgraded to tag enemies who take damage from it. Her Skyward Dive skill — which launches her entire squad into the air for redeployment or escape — now takes much less time to fire up. Additionally, she gains some new perk choices that players can choose to conserve resources, expand the spread of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her Skyward Dive activation.

"Her jet pack fulfills that jet-fighter fantasy," he comments.

Map Changes

Even the game's lone airborne map, Olympus, receives a movement-friendly facelift, with an extensive redesign that expands choke points and renders claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. Respawn says Apex Legends this update focuses on giving players the resources required to compete in matches.

"Essentially, we were looking at Apex's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," says principal designer the lead.

Apex Legends Season 27: Amped launches November 4th at the specified times.