The Battle Royale's Niche Movement Mechanics Become Widely Accessible This Season
The game developers has an exciting surprise prepared for Apex Legends gamers, perfectly timed for festive season. Enthusiasts of the battle royale's super-slick traversal will be pleased to learn that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when Season 27: Amped goes live on November 4th.
Introducing The Mantle Boost
Named "Momentum Boosting" by Respawn, this feature provides gamers a burst of forward momentum when scaling ledges and walls. As explained key developer Eric Canavese, this technique has unofficially been a feature of Apex Legends for some time, usually referred to as "ledge boosting." However it's challenging for the average player, and is mainly used by competitive players in competitive play or esports competitions. This season, Respawn is making it easier for players of all skill levels to execute these tricky speed-boosts.
"Mantle Boosts existed in Apex for a while, but the movement requires skill to perform and a player would never know it [is in the game] without external guides," Canavese states. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so players can clearly identify when and how to trigger the fast-paced traversal skill, making accessible the feature and introducing fresh strategies to compete for more players."
Why Make It Accessible
What's the reason for making a previously obscure movement quirk available to all players? Lead Legend designer the development lead says developers wants gamers to experience empowerment — including ones who are inexperienced.
"Our community is doing advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we examined at other games, looked at what the community are doing, and we said, 'What if we provide some of this power to a broader audience?'" the designer explains. "Because currently, certain techniques are somewhat awkward to use — it requires to change controls and execute within one-frame windows. We proposed, 'What if we make a polished version?'"
Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility
Movement is primarily the central theme in Season 27, with Legends Horizon, Rampart, and Valkyrie all getting enhancements to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift has been decreased, and the Gravity Lift will propel users into the air faster than before. Rampart's Amped Cover now include a roof and capability to grant movement bonuses to allies in range. However it's the high-flying this Legend receiving significant improvements now, with multiple tweaks applied to make her more potent, faster, and more lethal.
"I think many agree that Valkyrie's time has arrived," says character developer Ian Holstead. "There's no doubt she was dominant previously, but due to the addition of new Legends, movement[-based] passives, and Evac Towers, it felt like she fell behind in today's Apex. This presented a really great opportunity for us to revisit a bunch of aspects in her abilities and sort of restore her to her glory days."
Enhancements to the Aerial Legend
To restore her competitive status in current strategies, the developer notes Respawn evaluated each of her abilities and introduced some powerful modifications. Her VTOL Jets received improvements, boosting velocity while airborne, and the jets themselves regenerates three times faster, allowing her to remain longer in the air. She can no longer be harmed from her ultimate ability, which was enhanced to mark opponents who are hit from it. Her Skyward Dive ability — which lifts teammates skyward for redeployment or escape — now takes much less time to activate. She's also getting some new Legend Upgrades that players can choose to conserve resources, expand the spread of her rockets, or further speed up her ultimate activation.
"Valkyrie's equipment fulfills the pilot experience," he says.
Map Changes
Additionally, the lone airborne map, this location, receives a movement-friendly overhaul, with an extensive redesign that opens up choke points and makes securing elevated positions more manageable. The developers state the game Season 27 is all about giving players the tools required to compete in the competition.
"Essentially, we examined Apex's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," says lead Legend designer the lead.
The battle royale Season 27: Amped launches November 4th at the specified times.