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Respawn Entertainment has an exciting surprise prepared for Apex Legends players, arriving just in time for festive season. Fans of the battle royale's super-slick traversal can rejoice to discover that an innovative traversal feature will be introduced when the Amped season launches on Nov. 4.

Introducing The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this feature provides gamers a burst of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. According to key developer Eric Canavese, this technique was previously existed of the game for some time, often called as "ledge boosting." But it's challenging for casual gamers, and typically employed by competitive players in Ranked Mode or esports competitions. In this update, the team simplifies the process for players of all skill levels to successfully perform these tricky speed-boosts.

"Mantle Boosts have been in Apex for a while, but executing it isn't easy to perform and gamers would never know it's possible without external guides," Canavese states. "Now including a visual cue so players can easily see when and how to trigger the high-octane traversal skill, making accessible the mechanic and adding fresh strategies to compete for a much wider base."

The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

Why make a previously obscure technique available to all players? Lead Legend designer Josh Mohan explains the team wants gamers to feel powerful — even those who are new.

"Our community performs other crazy stuff like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we examined at our competition, observed what our players are doing, and we wondered, 'How can we provide these capabilities to a broader audience?'" the designer explains. "Since currently, some of these techniques are somewhat awkward to use — it requires to remap your keybinds and hit precise timings. So we said, 'How about we make a more official implementation?'"

The Amped Update Movement Focus

Movement is largely the central theme in this season, with characters the gravity mage, Rampart, and the aerial combatant all getting buffs to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on her tactical ability has been decreased, and this skill will propel players into the air much quicker than it used to. Her defensive walls feature a roof and capability to grant speed boosts to allies in range. But the spotlight is on the high-flying Valkyrie receiving significant improvements now, with various adjustments implemented to enhance her as stronger, faster, and more lethal.

"I think many agree that Valkyrie's time has arrived," says Legend designer the designer. "There's no doubt that she's been top-tier previously, but with the introduction of other characters, mobility perks, and redeployment tools, it seemed like she fell behind in today's Apex. It was an ideal chance for us to reexamine multiple elements [of her kit] and essentially restore her to former prominence."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To reclaim Valkyrie's relevance in current strategies, Holstead notes Respawn evaluated all her skills and introduced some powerful modifications. Her jetpack received improvements, increasing velocity while airborne, and this equipment regenerates three times faster, enabling the player to remain longer aloft. Now she won't take damage from her ultimate ability, which has also been upgraded to mark opponents who are hit from it. Her Skyward Dive ability — which lifts teammates into the air for redeployment or escape — now takes reduced delay to fire up. She's also getting recently added Legend Upgrades that users can select to conserve resources, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or accelerate her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

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

Olympus Improvements

Additionally, the lone airborne map, this location, receives a movement-friendly overhaul, with major changes that opens up choke points and renders claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. Respawn says Apex Legends this update is all about giving players the resources required to compete in the competition.

"Essentially, we examined Apex's fundamental nature as a fast-paced FPS," explains principal designer the lead.

The battle royale the Amped season launches November 4th at the specified times.