Apex Legends' Specialized Movement Mechanics Are Going Mainstream This Season
Respawn Entertainment have an exciting surprise in store for Apex Legends gamers, perfectly timed for the holidays. Enthusiasts of this game's highly fluid movement will be pleased to learn that an innovative traversal feature is being implemented when Season 27: Amped launches on November 4th.
Unveiling The Mantle Boost
Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by Respawn, this ability gives players a surge of propulsion when climbing over ledges and walls. As explained key developer the design lead, this technique has unofficially been a feature of the game for some time, often called as "ledge boosting." However it's no easy feat for casual gamers, and is mainly used by competitive players in competitive play or esports competitions. In this update, the team is making it easier for players of all skill levels to successfully perform these advanced movement boosts.
"This technique existed in Apex for a while, but the movement requires skill to pull off and gamers would never know it [is in the game] without external guides," Canavese states. "We're adding a visual cue so users can clearly identify when and how to trigger the high-octane movement ability, opening up the feature and adding new ways to compete for a much wider base."
The Reasoning Behind Opening Up Advanced Mechanics
What's the reason for making a previously obscure technique accessible to all players? Lead Legend designer the development lead says developers wants players to experience empowerment — including ones who are new.
"[The playerbase] performs advanced techniques like super-glides and tap-strafes, and we examined at our competition, looked at what our players are doing, and we wondered, 'How can we extend some of this power to more players?'" Mohan clarifies. "Because right now, some of these techniques are kind of janky to use — it requires to remap your keybinds and execute within one-frame windows. So we said, 'What if we make a more official version?'"
The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility
Movement is largely the name of the game in Season 27, with Legends the gravity mage, the defensive specialist, and Valkyrie receiving enhancements to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and this skill will boost users upward faster than before. Rampart's Amped Cover now include a roof and capability to provide speed boosts to those nearby. However the spotlight is on the high-flying this Legend receiving significant improvements this season, with multiple tweaks applied to make her more potent, faster, and more lethal.
"In my opinion there's quite a consensus that Valkyrie's time has arrived," says Legend designer the designer. "There's no doubt that she's been dominant previously, but due to the addition of new Legends, mobility perks, and Evac Towers, it felt like she fell behind in today's Apex. This presented a really great opportunity for us to reexamine multiple elements in her abilities and essentially bring her back to her glory days."
Valkyrie's Upgrades
To restore her competitive status in current strategies, Holstead says the team assessed each of her abilities and introduced significant modifications. Her VTOL Jets have been upgraded, boosting her speed while airborne, and this equipment now recharge three times faster, allowing the player to remain longer in the air. She can no longer be harmed from her own Missile Swarm, which was enhanced to tag enemies who take damage from the missiles. Her squad redeploy ability — which lifts her entire squad into the air for redeployment or retreat — now takes reduced delay to fire up. Additionally, she gains some new perk choices that users can choose to conserve resources, expand the spread of her rockets, or further speed up her ultimate activation.
"Valkyrie's equipment fulfills the pilot experience," he comments.
Map Changes
Even the game's only floating arena, Olympus, is getting a movement-friendly facelift, with an extensive redesign that opens up bottlenecks and makes claiming the high ground more manageable. The developers says Apex Legends Season 27 is all about giving players the resources required to compete in matches.
"Essentially, we examined the game's fundamental nature as a fast-paced FPS," explains principal designer the lead.
Apex Legends Season 27: Amped launches Nov. 4 at 10 a.m. PST/1 p.m. EST.