Apex Legends' Niche Movement Mechanics Are Going Mainstream During This Update

Respawn Entertainment has a special treat in store for the popular battle royale gamers, arriving just in time for the holidays. Enthusiasts of this game's super-slick movement can rejoice to discover that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when the Amped season launches on November 4th.

Introducing Mantle Boosting

Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this ability provides gamers a burst of propulsion when scaling obstacles. According to lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, Mantle Boosting was previously been a feature of the game for quite a while, often called as "mantle jumping." However it's challenging for casual gamers, and typically employed by competitive players in competitive play or tournaments. This season, the team is making it easier for everyone to execute these advanced movement boosts.

"Mantle Boosts have been in Apex for a while, but executing it requires skill to pull off and gamers would never know it's possible without external guides," the designer states. "Now including a Mantle Boost indicator so users can clearly identify when and how to trigger the fast-paced movement ability, making accessible the feature and introducing new ways to play for a much wider base."

The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics

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

"Our community is doing advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafing, and we examined at other games, looked at what our players are doing, and we wondered, 'What if we provide some of this power to more players?'" Mohan clarifies. "Because right now, some of these techniques are kind of janky to access — you need to change controls and execute within one-frame windows. So we said, 'What if we make a more official version?'"

The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility

Mobility is largely the name of the game in this season, with Legends the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie receiving enhancements to maintain them mobile. The cooldown period on her tactical ability has been decreased, and the Gravity Lift will propel users into the air faster than it used to. Her defensive walls feature overhead protection and the ability to grant movement bonuses to allies in range. But the spotlight is on the high-flying this Legend receiving the most attention now, with various adjustments implemented to make her more potent, faster, and deadlier.

"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that her moment has arrived," states character developer Ian Holstead. "Certainly that she's been top-tier previously, 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 essentially bring her back to former prominence."

Enhancements to the Aerial Legend

To restore her competitive status in the game's meta, the developer notes the team evaluated each of her abilities and implemented some powerful changes. Her VTOL Jets received improvements, boosting her speed during flight, and this equipment regenerates much quicker, allowing her to remain longer aloft. Now she won't take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which has also been upgraded to tag opponents who are hit from it. Her squad redeploy skill — which lifts teammates into the air for redeployment or retreat — requires reduced delay to fire up. Additionally, she gains some new Legend Upgrades that users can choose to conserve resources, widen the area of her rockets, or further speed up her ultimate takeoff time.

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

Olympus Improvements

Additionally, the lone airborne map, this location, receives a mobility-focused overhaul, with an extensive redesign that opens up choke points and makes claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. Respawn says Apex Legends this update focuses on providing gamers the resources they need to compete in matches.

"Essentially, we were looking at the game's fundamental nature as a movement shooter," says principal designer Josh Mohan.

Apex Legends Season 27: Amped releases November 4th at the specified times.