Apex Legends' Niche Movement Mechanics Are Going Mainstream This Season

The game developers has a special treat in store for Apex Legends gamers, perfectly timed for the holidays. Fans of this game's super-slick movement will be pleased to learn that a new movement mechanic is being implemented when Season 27: Amped launches on November 4th.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Named "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this ability gives players a surge of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. As explained lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting has unofficially existed of the game for quite a while, usually referred to as "ledge boosting." However it's challenging for casual gamers, and is mainly used by pro gamers in competitive play or esports competitions. In this update, the team is making it easier for players of all skill levels to successfully perform these tricky movement boosts.

"This technique have been in Apex for some time, but executing it isn't easy to perform and a player might not realize it [is in the game] without external guides," the designer explains. "Now including a Mantle Boost indicator so players can easily see when and how to trigger the fast-paced traversal skill, opening up the feature and adding fresh strategies to compete for more players."

Why Make It Accessible

Why make a previously obscure movement quirk available to everyone? Principal designer Josh Mohan explains developers aims for gamers to experience empowerment — including ones who are inexperienced.

"[The playerbase] performs advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we looked around at our competition, observed what the community are doing, and we wondered, 'What if we provide these capabilities to a broader audience?'" Mohan explains. "Because currently, some of these techniques are kind of janky to use — you need to remap your keybinds and hit one-frame windows. We proposed, 'How about we create a more official version?'"

Season 27 Emphasis on Mobility

Movement is primarily the central theme in this season, with Legends the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and the aerial combatant all getting enhancements to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift has been decreased, and this skill will propel players into the air much quicker than it used to. Rampart's Amped Cover feature overhead protection and capability to provide speed boosts to those nearby. But the spotlight is on the high-flying this Legend receiving the most attention this season, with multiple tweaks applied to enhance her as stronger, quicker, and more lethal.

"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that Valkyrie's time is here," states Legend designer the designer. "There's no doubt she was dominant previously, but with the introduction of new Legends, mobility perks, and Evac Towers, it felt like she fell behind in today's the game. This presented an ideal chance for the team to revisit a bunch of aspects [of her kit] and essentially bring her back to former prominence."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To reclaim Valkyrie's relevance in the game's meta, Holstead says Respawn assessed all her skills and introduced some powerful changes. Her jetpack have been upgraded, increasing her speed during flight, and this equipment now recharge three times faster, allowing her to spend more time aloft. Now she won't be harmed from her ultimate ability, which has also been upgraded to tag enemies who are hit from it. Her Skyward Dive skill — which launches her entire squad skyward for redeployment or escape — now takes much less time to activate. She's also getting some new perk choices that players can select to conserve resources, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or accelerate her Skyward Dive takeoff time.

"Valkyrie's equipment fulfills the pilot experience," he says.

Olympus Improvements

Additionally, the lone airborne map, this location, receives a mobility-focused overhaul, with an extensive redesign that opens up bottlenecks and makes claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. Respawn says the game Season 27 is all about providing gamers the tools they need to keep up with matches.

"Essentially, we were looking at the game's fundamental nature as a fast-paced FPS," explains principal designer Josh Mohan.

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