The Battle Royale's Niche Traversal Techniques Become Widely Accessible During This Update
The game developers has an exciting surprise prepared for the popular battle royale gamers, perfectly timed for the holidays. Enthusiasts of this game's highly fluid movement can rejoice to discover that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when Season 27: Amped launches on Nov. 4.
Introducing The Mantle Boost
Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by the developers, this feature provides gamers a burst of propulsion when scaling obstacles. As explained key developer Eric Canavese, this technique has unofficially been a feature of Apex Legends for quite a while, often called as "ledge boosting." However it's challenging for casual gamers, and is mainly used by pro gamers in Ranked Mode or tournaments. In this update, the team simplifies the process for players of all skill levels to successfully perform these tricky movement boosts.
"Mantle Boosts have been in Apex for a while, but the movement requires skill to pull off and gamers might not realize it's possible without outside knowledge," the designer states. "Now including a visual cue so players can clearly identify when and how to activate the fast-paced traversal skill, opening up the feature and adding fresh strategies to play for more players."
Why Make It Accessible
Why make a previously obscure movement quirk accessible to all players? Principal designer the development lead says the team aims for players to experience empowerment — even those who are inexperienced.
"Our community performs advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we examined at other games, observed what the community are doing, and we said, 'What if we extend some of this power to a broader audience?'" the designer explains. "Because currently, certain advanced [movement] mechanics are somewhat awkward to access — it requires to remap your keybinds and execute within one-frame windows. We proposed, 'What if we create a polished implementation?'"
The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility
Movement is largely the name of the game in Season 27, with characters the gravity mage, Rampart, and the aerial combatant receiving buffs to help keep them mobile. Recovery time on her tactical ability is shorter, and the Gravity Lift will boost users upward much quicker than before. Her defensive walls now include a roof and capability to provide speed boosts to allies in range. But it's the high-flying Valkyrie who's getting significant improvements now, with various adjustments implemented to enhance her as more potent, quicker, and more lethal.
"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that her moment is here," states Legend designer the designer. "There's no doubt she was top-tier in the past, but due to the addition of other characters, mobility perks, and Evac Towers, it seemed like she fell behind in current Apex. This presented a really great opportunity for us to reexamine multiple elements in her abilities and sort of restore her to former prominence."
Valkyrie's Upgrades
To reclaim Valkyrie's relevance in current strategies, the developer notes the team evaluated all her skills and implemented some powerful changes. Her VTOL Jets received improvements, boosting her speed during flight, and the jets themselves now recharge much quicker, allowing her to spend more time aloft. She can no longer take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which was enhanced to mark enemies who take damage from it. Her squad redeploy ability — which launches teammates skyward for repositioning or retreat — requires much less time to activate. Additionally, she gains some new perk choices that players can select to conserve resources, widen the area of her Missile Swarm, or accelerate her ultimate activation.
"Her jet pack fulfills the pilot experience," Holstead says.
Map Changes
Even the game's lone airborne map, Olympus, is getting a movement-friendly overhaul, with an extensive redesign that opens up choke points and makes securing elevated positions a bit less daunting. Respawn says the game this update focuses on providing gamers the resources required to compete in the competition.
"Really, we were looking at the game's core identity as a fast-paced FPS," says principal designer the lead.
The battle royale the Amped season launches Nov. 4 at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.
