The Battle Royale's Niche Movement Mechanics Become Widely Accessible During This Update
The game developers have an exciting surprise in store for Apex Legends players, perfectly timed for festive season. Fans of the battle royale's super-slick traversal will be pleased to discover that a new movement mechanic will be introduced when Season 27: Amped launches on November 4th.
Unveiling Mantle Boosting
Named "Momentum Boosting" by the developers, this feature provides gamers a surge of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. As explained key developer Eric Canavese, this technique was previously existed of the game for quite a while, usually referred to as "mantle jumping." But it's challenging for casual gamers, and is mainly used by pro gamers in competitive play or esports competitions. This season, Respawn is making it easier for players of all skill levels to execute these tricky movement boosts.
"This technique existed in Apex for some time, but executing it requires skill to pull off and a player would never know it's possible without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so users can clearly identify when and how to trigger the fast-paced traversal skill, making accessible the feature and introducing new ways to play for more players."
The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics
What's the reason for making a previously obscure movement quirk available to everyone? Lead Legend designer the development lead says the team aims for gamers to experience empowerment — even those who are inexperienced.
"[The playerbase] performs other crazy stuff like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we examined at our competition, looked at what the community execute, and we wondered, 'What if we provide some of this power to a broader audience?'" Mohan clarifies. "Because right now, some of these advanced [movement] mechanics are kind of janky to access — it requires to remap your keybinds and execute within precise timings. So we said, 'How about we make a polished version?'"
Season 27 Movement Focus
Mobility is largely the name of the game in Season 27, with characters the gravity mage, Rampart, and Valkyrie receiving buffs to maintain them in motion. Recovery time on her tactical ability has been decreased, and this skill will boost users into the air much quicker than before. Rampart's Amped Cover feature overhead protection and the ability to provide speed boosts to those nearby. But the spotlight is on aerial this Legend who's getting significant improvements now, with multiple tweaks implemented to enhance her as stronger, quicker, and more lethal.
"I think many agree that her moment is here," states Legend designer Ian Holstead. "Certainly she was top-tier in the past, but due to the addition of other characters, movement[-based] passives, and redeployment tools, it felt like she fell behind in today's the game. This presented an ideal chance for the team to revisit multiple elements [of her kit] and sort of restore her to her glory days."
Enhancements to the Aerial Legend
To restore Valkyrie's relevance in current strategies, Holstead notes the team 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, enabling her to spend more time in the air. She can no longer take damage from her ultimate ability, which was enhanced to tag opponents who take damage from the missiles. Her squad redeploy ability — which launches teammates skyward for repositioning or retreat — now takes much less time to activate. Additionally, she gains some new perk choices that players can select to conserve resources, widen the area of her rockets, or further speed up her Skyward Dive activation.
"Her jet pack fulfills the pilot experience," Holstead comments.
Olympus Improvements
Additionally, the only floating arena, Olympus, receives a movement-friendly facelift, with an extensive redesign that opens up bottlenecks and renders claiming the high ground more manageable. The developers says the game this update focuses on providing gamers the tools they need to compete in the competition.
"Essentially, we examined the game's fundamental nature as a fast-paced FPS," says lead Legend designer Josh Mohan.
Apex Legends Season 27: Amped launches November 4th at the specified times.
