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The game developers has an exciting surprise prepared for the popular battle royale players, arriving just in time for the holidays. Fans of this game's super-slick traversal will be pleased to learn that a new movement mechanic will be introduced when Season 27: Amped goes live on Nov. 4.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Momentum Boosting" by the developers, this ability provides gamers a surge of forward momentum when scaling ledges and walls. As explained lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, this technique has unofficially been a feature of the game for quite a while, often called as "mantle jumping." However it's no easy feat for the average player, and typically employed by pro gamers in Ranked Mode or tournaments. In this update, the team is making it easier for everyone to successfully perform these tricky speed-boosts.

"Mantle Boosts existed in the game for some time, but the movement isn't easy to pull off and a player might not realize it [is in the game] without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "Now including a Mantle Boost indicator so players can clearly identify when and how to activate the fast-paced traversal skill, opening up the feature and introducing new ways to play for a much wider base."

Why Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

Why make a once niche technique accessible to everyone? Principal designer the development lead says developers aims for gamers to feel powerful — even those who are inexperienced.

"Our community is doing advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafing, and we examined at our competition, observed what the community execute, and we wondered, 'What if we extend some of this power to a broader audience?'" Mohan explains. "Because right now, certain techniques are somewhat awkward to use — it requires to change controls and hit one-frame windows. So we said, 'How about we make a polished implementation?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Mobility is largely the name of the game in this season, with Legends the gravity mage, Rampart, and the aerial combatant all getting buffs to help keep them mobile. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift has been decreased, and this skill will boost users upward faster than it used to. Her defensive walls now include overhead protection and capability to grant speed boosts to those nearby. But it's the high-flying this Legend receiving the most attention this season, with various adjustments applied to make her more potent, faster, and deadlier.

"I think many agree that her moment is here," says character developer Ian Holstead. "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 today's the game. This presented a really great opportunity for us to reexamine multiple elements [of her kit] and sort of bring her back to her glory days."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To restore her competitive status in the game's meta, the developer says Respawn assessed each of her abilities and implemented significant modifications. Her VTOL Jets have been upgraded, increasing her speed while airborne, and the jets themselves now recharge three times faster, allowing the player to remain longer in the air. She can no longer be harmed from her own Missile Swarm, which has also been upgraded to mark enemies who take damage from the missiles. Her Skyward Dive skill — which launches her entire squad skyward for repositioning or escape — requires much less time to activate. Additionally, she gains some new perk choices that users can select to conserve resources, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her ultimate activation.

"Her jet pack fulfills that jet-fighter fantasy," Holstead says.

Olympus Improvements

Additionally, the lone airborne map, this location, is getting a mobility-focused overhaul, with an extensive redesign that expands choke points and renders securing elevated positions more manageable. Respawn says the game this update focuses on providing gamers the resources required to compete in matches.

"Really, we examined Apex's core identity as a fast-paced FPS," explains principal designer the lead.

Apex Legends the Amped season releases November 4th at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.