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Respawn Entertainment has an exciting surprise prepared for the popular battle royale players, arriving just in time for festive season. Enthusiasts of the battle royale's super-slick traversal can rejoice to learn that a new movement mechanic is being implemented when the Amped season goes live on November 4th.

Introducing The Mantle Boost

Named "Momentum Boosting" by the developers, this feature gives players a surge of forward momentum when climbing over ledges and walls. As explained lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting was previously existed of Apex Legends for quite a while, often called as "ledge boosting." However it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and typically employed by competitive players in Ranked Mode or tournaments. In this update, the team simplifies the process for everyone to execute these advanced movement boosts.

"This technique existed in Apex for some time, but the movement requires skill to perform and a player would never know it [is in the game] without external guides," Canavese explains. "We're adding a visual cue so players can clearly identify when and how to activate the fast-paced traversal skill, 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 available to all players? Principal designer Josh Mohan says developers aims for players to feel powerful — even those who are new.

"[The playerbase] is doing other crazy stuff like super-gliding and tap-strafes, and we examined at other games, observed what our players execute, and we said, 'What if we provide these capabilities to more players?'" the designer clarifies. "Because right now, some of these advanced [movement] mechanics are kind of janky to access — it requires to change controls and execute within one-frame windows. We proposed, 'How about we make a polished version?'"

The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility

Mobility is primarily the central theme in this season, with characters the gravity mage, Rampart, and the aerial combatant receiving enhancements to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift has been decreased, and this skill will boost users upward much quicker than it used to. Her defensive walls feature overhead protection and capability to grant movement bonuses to allies in range. However it's the high-flying this Legend who's getting the most attention now, with various adjustments implemented to enhance her as more potent, faster, and deadlier.

"I think many agree that her moment has arrived," says character developer the designer. "There's no doubt she was dominant in the past, but with the introduction of other characters, mobility perks, and redeployment tools, it seemed like she's not very relevant in current Apex. This presented a really great opportunity for us to reexamine a bunch of aspects in her abilities and sort of restore her to former prominence."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To restore her competitive status in the game's meta, the developer says Respawn assessed each of her abilities and introduced significant changes. Her jetpack 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 has also been upgraded to mark opponents who are hit from the missiles. Her Skyward Dive ability — which launches her entire squad into the air for redeployment or retreat — requires much less time to fire up. She's also getting some new Legend Upgrades that users can choose to reduce fuel consumption, widen the area of her rockets, or accelerate her ultimate takeoff time.

"Her jet pack now delivers on the pilot experience," Holstead says.

Map Changes

Even the game's lone airborne map, this location, is getting a mobility-focused facelift, with an extensive redesign that opens up choke points and makes securing elevated positions more manageable. Respawn state the game this update focuses on providing gamers the resources they need to compete in matches.

"Essentially, we were looking at the game's core identity as a fast-paced FPS," explains lead Legend designer the lead.

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