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The game developers has an exciting surprise in store for Apex Legends gamers, perfectly timed for the holidays. Fans of the battle royale's super-slick traversal can rejoice to discover that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when the Amped season launches on November 4th.

Unveiling The Mantle Boost

Dubbed "Momentum Boosting" by the developers, this feature gives players a burst of forward momentum when climbing over obstacles. As explained lead battle royale designer the design lead, this technique was previously existed of Apex Legends for some time, often called as "ledge boosting." But it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and typically employed by pro gamers in Ranked Mode or tournaments. This season, Respawn simplifies the process for players of all skill levels to execute these advanced movement boosts.

"This technique existed in the game for some time, but executing it isn't easy to perform and a player would never know it [is in the game] without external guides," the designer explains. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so players can clearly identify the timing to trigger the fast-paced movement ability, opening up the mechanic and adding new ways to play for more players."

Why Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

What's the reason for making a previously obscure movement quirk available to everyone? Lead Legend designer Josh Mohan explains developers wants players to experience empowerment — even those who are new.

"Our community performs advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we examined at our competition, observed what the community are doing, and we said, 'What if we extend these capabilities to a broader audience?'" Mohan clarifies. "Because currently, certain techniques are somewhat awkward to access — you need to change controls and hit precise timings. So we said, 'What if we create a polished implementation?'"

The Amped Update Movement Focus

Mobility is largely the central theme in this season, with characters the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and the aerial combatant receiving buffs to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and the Gravity Lift will boost players into the air much quicker than it used to. Her defensive walls feature overhead protection and capability to provide speed boosts to those nearby. But it's aerial Valkyrie receiving the most attention now, with various adjustments applied to make her more potent, faster, and more lethal.

"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that her moment has arrived," says Legend designer Ian Holstead. "There's no doubt she was dominant in the past, but due to the addition of other characters, mobility perks, and redeployment tools, it seemed like she's not very relevant in today's the game. This presented an ideal chance for us to revisit a bunch of aspects in her abilities and essentially bring her back to former prominence."

Valkyrie's Upgrades

To restore her competitive status in current strategies, Holstead notes the team assessed all her skills and introduced significant modifications. Her jetpack received improvements, increasing her speed while airborne, and the jets themselves regenerates much quicker, allowing her to spend more time aloft. Now she won't be harmed from her ultimate ability, which was enhanced to mark opponents who take damage from the missiles. Her squad redeploy ability — which launches teammates skyward for redeployment or escape — requires reduced delay to activate. Additionally, she gains recently added perk choices that players can select to conserve resources, expand the spread of her rockets, or further speed up her Skyward Dive activation.

"Her jet pack fulfills that jet-fighter fantasy," he comments.

Map Changes

Additionally, the lone airborne map, Olympus, receives a movement-friendly facelift, with an extensive redesign that expands choke points and renders securing elevated positions more manageable. The developers state the game this update is all about providing gamers the tools required to compete in the competition.

"Essentially, we examined the game's fundamental nature as a fast-paced FPS," explains lead Legend designer Josh Mohan.

Apex Legends the Amped season launches November 4th at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.