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Respawn Entertainment have an exciting surprise prepared for the popular battle royale players, arriving just in time for the holidays. Fans of this game's highly fluid movement will be pleased to discover that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when the Amped season goes live on November 4th.

Unveiling Mantle Boosting

Named "Momentum Boosting" by the developers, this feature provides gamers a burst of forward momentum when climbing over ledges and walls. According to key developer the design lead, this technique was previously existed of the game for some time, often called as "ledge boosting." However it's no easy feat for the average player, and typically employed by pro gamers in competitive play or esports competitions. This season, the team simplifies the process for everyone to execute these advanced movement boosts.

"This technique have been in the game for some time, but executing it isn't easy to perform and gamers might not realize it [is in the game] without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "Now including a Mantle Boost indicator so users can easily see the timing to activate the high-octane movement ability, opening up the mechanic and introducing new ways to play for more players."

The Reasoning Behind Make It Accessible

What's the reason for making a previously obscure movement quirk accessible to everyone? Principal designer Josh Mohan says the team aims for gamers to feel powerful — even those who are inexperienced.

"Our community is doing other crazy stuff like super-glides and tap-strafing, and we looked around at other games, looked at what our players execute, and we wondered, 'What if we provide some of this power to a broader audience?'" the designer explains. "Because right now, certain advanced [movement] mechanics are somewhat awkward to access — you need to remap your keybinds and hit one-frame windows. We proposed, 'What if we create a more official implementation?'"

Season 27 Movement Focus

Mobility is largely the name of the game in this season, with Legends the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie all getting enhancements to help keep them in motion. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and this skill will boost users into the air faster than before. Her defensive walls now include overhead protection and capability to provide speed boosts to those nearby. However it's the high-flying this Legend who's getting significant improvements now, with multiple tweaks applied to make her stronger, faster, and deadlier.

"I think there's quite a consensus that her moment has arrived," says Legend designer the designer. "Certainly that she's been dominant previously, but with the introduction of other characters, mobility perks, and Evac Towers, it felt like she's not very relevant in today's Apex. This presented an ideal chance for the team to revisit a bunch of aspects [of her kit] and essentially bring her back to her glory days."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To reclaim Valkyrie's relevance in current strategies, Holstead notes Respawn assessed all her skills and introduced some powerful modifications. Her jetpack have been upgraded, increasing her speed while airborne, and the jets themselves now recharge much quicker, allowing her to spend more time aloft. Now she won't take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which was enhanced to mark opponents who take damage from the missiles. Her Skyward Dive ability — which launches teammates into the air for repositioning or escape — now takes much less time to fire up. She's also getting some new Legend Upgrades that players can choose to reduce fuel consumption, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

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

Olympus Improvements

Even the game's lone airborne map, Olympus, receives a mobility-focused facelift, with an extensive redesign that expands choke points and makes claiming the high ground more manageable. Respawn says the game Season 27 focuses on providing gamers the tools required to keep up with matches.

"Really, we were looking at the game's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," explains lead Legend designer Josh Mohan.

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