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The game developers have a special treat in store for the popular battle royale gamers, arriving just in time for the holidays. Enthusiasts of this game's highly fluid movement will be pleased to learn that a new movement mechanic is being implemented when Season 27: Amped goes live on Nov. 4.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Named "Momentum Boosting" by Respawn, this feature gives players a burst of propulsion when scaling ledges and walls. As explained lead battle royale designer the design lead, Mantle Boosting was previously been a feature of the game for quite a while, often called as "ledge boosting." But it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and is mainly used by competitive players in Ranked Mode or tournaments. This season, Respawn simplifies the process for players of all skill levels to execute these tricky speed-boosts.

"This technique have been in Apex 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," the designer explains. "Now including a visual cue so players can easily see the timing to activate the high-octane traversal skill, making accessible the feature and adding fresh strategies to compete for a much wider base."

The Reasoning Behind Make It Accessible

What's the reason for making a previously obscure technique available to everyone? Lead Legend designer the development lead explains developers aims for players to feel powerful — including ones who are inexperienced.

"[The playerbase] performs other crazy stuff like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we looked around at other games, observed what the community execute, and we said, 'What if we extend these capabilities to more players?'" the designer explains. "Because right now, certain techniques are kind of janky to access — you need to remap your keybinds and execute within precise timings. We proposed, 'How about we make a more official implementation?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Mobility is primarily the name of the game in this season, with Legends Horizon, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie receiving buffs to maintain them mobile. The cooldown period on her tactical ability has been decreased, and this skill will propel players upward faster than it used to. Rampart's Amped Cover feature overhead protection and capability to grant speed boosts to those nearby. However it's the high-flying this Legend receiving the most attention this season, with multiple tweaks applied to enhance her as stronger, faster, and more lethal.

"In my opinion many agree that Valkyrie's time is here," says character developer Ian Holstead. "There's no doubt she was dominant in the past, but due to the addition of other characters, mobility perks, and redeployment tools, it seemed like she's not very relevant in today's the game. This presented an ideal chance for us to reexamine a bunch of aspects in her abilities and sort of restore her to former prominence."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To restore Valkyrie's relevance in current strategies, Holstead notes the team assessed all her skills and introduced some powerful changes. Her VTOL Jets have been upgraded, boosting velocity while airborne, and the jets themselves regenerates three times faster, enabling her to remain longer aloft. Now she won't be harmed from her own Missile Swarm, which was enhanced to tag enemies who are hit from the missiles. Her Skyward Dive skill — which launches teammates into the air for repositioning or retreat — now takes reduced delay to activate. Additionally, she gains some new Legend Upgrades that users can choose to reduce fuel consumption, expand the spread of her Missile Swarm, or accelerate her ultimate activation.

"Valkyrie's equipment now delivers on the pilot experience," Holstead comments.

Map Changes

Additionally, the lone airborne map, this location, is getting a mobility-focused facelift, with an extensive redesign that expands bottlenecks and makes securing elevated positions more manageable. The developers state the game this update focuses on giving players the resources they need to compete in matches.

"Essentially, we were looking at the game's fundamental nature as a fast-paced FPS," explains principal designer the lead.

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