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Respawn Entertainment has a special treat in store for the popular battle royale players, arriving just in time for the holidays. Fans of the battle royale's highly fluid traversal can rejoice to learn that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when the Amped season launches on November 4th.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Momentum Boosting" by the developers, this feature provides gamers a burst of forward momentum when scaling obstacles. As explained lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting was previously existed of Apex Legends for some time, usually referred to as "ledge boosting." However it's challenging for casual gamers, and is mainly used by pro gamers in Ranked Mode or esports competitions. This season, the team simplifies the process for everyone to execute these tricky movement boosts.

"Mantle Boosts existed in the game for a while, but the movement requires skill to perform and a player would never know it's possible without external guides," the designer states. "Now including a visual cue so players can clearly identify the timing to trigger the fast-paced traversal skill, making accessible the mechanic and introducing fresh strategies to compete for more players."

The Reasoning Behind Make It Accessible

Why make a previously obscure technique accessible to all players? Lead Legend designer the development lead says the team wants players to experience empowerment — even those who are inexperienced.

"[The playerbase] is doing other crazy stuff like super-gliding and tap-strafing, and we looked around at our competition, observed what our players are doing, and we wondered, 'What if we extend some of this power to a broader audience?'" Mohan explains. "Since right now, some of these techniques are kind of janky to use — you need to change controls and hit one-frame windows. So we said, 'What if we make a more official implementation?'"

The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is primarily the name of the game in this season, with Legends the gravity mage, Rampart, and Valkyrie receiving enhancements to help keep them mobile. The cooldown period on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and this skill will boost users into the air much quicker than before. Rampart's Amped Cover now include a roof and capability to grant movement bonuses to allies in range. But it's the high-flying Valkyrie receiving the most attention this season, with various adjustments applied to enhance her as more potent, faster, and deadlier.

"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that her moment is here," says Legend designer the designer. "There's no doubt that she's been top-tier in the past, but due to the addition of new Legends, movement[-based] passives, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she fell behind in current the game. It was an ideal chance for us to reexamine multiple elements [of her kit] and essentially bring her back to former prominence."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To restore Valkyrie's relevance in current strategies, the developer says Respawn assessed all her skills and introduced some powerful changes. Her VTOL Jets have been upgraded, increasing her speed while airborne, and this equipment now recharge much quicker, allowing the player to spend more time aloft. Now she won't take damage from her ultimate ability, which has also been upgraded to mark enemies who take damage from the missiles. Her squad redeploy skill — which lifts her entire squad into the air for repositioning or retreat — now takes much less time to fire up. Additionally, she gains recently added perk choices that users can select to conserve resources, expand the spread of her rockets, or further speed up her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

"Her jet pack fulfills the pilot experience," Holstead says.

Map Changes

Additionally, the only floating arena, this location, receives a mobility-focused overhaul, with major changes that opens up choke points and makes claiming the high ground more manageable. Respawn state the game Season 27 focuses on giving players the tools they need to keep up with the competition.

"Essentially, we were looking at Apex's core identity as a fast-paced FPS," says principal designer the lead.

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