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Respawn Entertainment have a special treat prepared for the popular battle royale players, perfectly timed for the holidays. Fans of the battle royale's super-slick movement can rejoice to discover that a new movement mechanic is being implemented when the Amped season launches on November 4th.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Momentum Boosting" by Respawn, this feature gives players a surge of forward momentum when climbing over ledges and walls. According to key developer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting has unofficially existed of Apex Legends for some time, often called as "ledge boosting." However it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and is mainly used by competitive players in competitive play or esports competitions. In this update, the team simplifies the process for everyone to successfully perform these advanced speed-boosts.

"Mantle Boosts have been in the game for a while, but the movement requires skill to perform and gamers might not realize it [is in the game] without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "We're adding a visual cue so users can clearly identify the timing to activate the high-octane movement ability, making accessible the feature and adding new ways to play for a much wider base."

Why Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

What's the reason for making a once niche technique accessible to all players? Lead Legend designer the development lead explains the team aims for gamers to feel powerful — including ones who are new.

"[The playerbase] performs advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we looked around at other games, looked at what our players execute, and we said, 'How can we provide these capabilities to a broader audience?'" Mohan explains. "Because currently, certain techniques are somewhat awkward to access — you need to change controls and hit one-frame windows. We proposed, 'How about we create a more official version?'"

The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is primarily the central theme in this season, with characters Horizon, Rampart, and Valkyrie all getting buffs to maintain them in motion. The cooldown period on Horizon's Gravity Lift has been decreased, and the Gravity Lift will boost players upward much quicker than before. Her defensive walls feature a roof and capability to grant movement bonuses to those nearby. But the spotlight is on aerial Valkyrie who's getting the most attention this season, with multiple tweaks implemented to enhance her as stronger, faster, and deadlier.

"In my opinion many agree that Valkyrie's time has arrived," states character developer the designer. "There's no doubt she was top-tier in the past, but due to the addition of new Legends, movement[-based] passives, and redeployment tools, it felt like she fell behind in today's Apex. This presented a really great opportunity for the team to revisit multiple elements in her abilities and sort of restore her to her glory days."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To restore her competitive status in current strategies, the developer says Respawn evaluated all her skills and implemented some powerful modifications. Her VTOL Jets have been upgraded, increasing her speed during flight, and this equipment regenerates three times faster, allowing her to remain longer aloft. She can no longer be harmed from her own Missile Swarm, which has also been upgraded to tag opponents who are hit from the missiles. Her Skyward Dive skill — which lifts her entire squad into the air for redeployment or retreat — now takes much less time to fire up. She's also getting recently added Legend Upgrades that players can select to conserve resources, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her ultimate takeoff time.

"Valkyrie's equipment now delivers on that jet-fighter fantasy," he says.

Olympus Improvements

Even the game's only floating arena, Olympus, receives a mobility-focused facelift, with an extensive redesign that expands choke points and renders claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. The developers state Apex Legends Season 27 focuses on providing gamers the resources required to keep up with matches.

"Essentially, we were looking at Apex's fundamental nature as a fast-paced FPS," explains lead Legend designer Josh Mohan.

Apex Legends Season 27: Amped launches November 4th at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.