Apex Legends' Specialized Traversal Techniques Become Widely Accessible During This Update
Respawn Entertainment have an exciting surprise prepared for Apex Legends gamers, perfectly timed for festive season. Fans of the battle royale's highly fluid traversal can rejoice to learn that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when the Amped season goes live on Nov. 4.
Introducing The Mantle Boost
Named "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this feature provides gamers a surge of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. According to lead battle royale designer the design lead, this technique has unofficially existed of the game for quite a while, often called as "mantle jumping." However it's challenging for casual gamers, and is mainly used by competitive players in competitive play or esports competitions. In this update, Respawn simplifies the process for everyone to execute these advanced movement boosts.
"Mantle Boosts existed in Apex for a while, but the movement isn't easy to perform and gamers might not realize it's possible without outside knowledge," Canavese explains. "We're adding a visual cue so users can easily see the timing to trigger the fast-paced traversal skill, making accessible the feature and introducing fresh strategies to play for more players."
The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics
Why make a once niche technique available to all players? Lead Legend designer the development lead explains the team aims for gamers to feel powerful — even those who are inexperienced.
"[The playerbase] is doing advanced techniques like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we examined at our competition, looked at what our players are doing, and we wondered, 'What if we extend these capabilities to a broader audience?'" Mohan explains. "Because currently, some of these techniques are kind of janky to access — you need to remap your keybinds and execute within one-frame windows. So we said, 'How about we make a more official implementation?'"
The Amped Update Movement Focus
Mobility is largely the central theme in Season 27, with characters Horizon, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie receiving buffs to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on her tactical ability is shorter, and the Gravity Lift will boost users upward faster than before. Rampart's Amped Cover feature overhead protection and capability to grant movement bonuses to allies in range. However the spotlight is on the high-flying this Legend who's getting the most attention this season, with various adjustments implemented to enhance her as more potent, quicker, and deadlier.
"I think there's quite a consensus that her moment has arrived," states character developer Ian Holstead. "Certainly she was dominant in the past, but with the introduction of other characters, movement[-based] passives, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she's not very relevant in today's Apex. It was a really great opportunity for us to revisit a bunch of aspects in her abilities and sort of bring her back to former prominence."
Enhancements to the Aerial Legend
To restore Valkyrie's relevance in the game's meta, Holstead notes the team assessed each of her abilities and implemented significant changes. Her VTOL Jets received improvements, boosting her speed during flight, and the jets themselves regenerates much quicker, allowing the player to remain longer aloft. She can no longer take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which was enhanced to mark enemies who are hit from the missiles. Her Skyward Dive ability — which launches her entire squad into the air for redeployment or escape — now takes much less time to fire up. Additionally, she gains some new perk choices that players can choose to reduce fuel consumption, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her ultimate activation.
"Her jet pack fulfills that jet-fighter fantasy," he comments.
Map Changes
Even the game's only floating arena, Olympus, is getting a mobility-focused overhaul, with major changes that opens up choke points and makes securing elevated positions more manageable. The developers state the game Season 27 focuses on providing gamers the tools they need to keep up with matches.
"Really, we were looking at Apex's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," says lead Legend designer Josh Mohan.
Apex Legends the Amped season releases Nov. 4 at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.