Apex Legends' Niche Movement Mechanics Are Going Mainstream During This Update
The game developers have a special treat prepared for the popular battle royale gamers, perfectly timed for the holidays. Fans of this game's super-slick movement can rejoice to discover that a new movement mechanic is being implemented when the Amped season goes live on Nov. 4.
Unveiling Mantle Boosting
Dubbed "Mantle Boosting" by the developers, this feature provides gamers a surge of propulsion when scaling ledges and walls. As explained lead battle royale designer Eric Canavese, this technique has unofficially existed of Apex Legends for some time, usually referred to as "mantle jumping." But it's challenging for the average player, and is mainly used by competitive players in Ranked Mode or tournaments. This season, the team simplifies the process for everyone to execute these advanced speed-boosts.
"This technique have been in Apex for a while, but the movement isn't easy to pull off and a player would never know it [is in the game] without outside knowledge," Canavese states. "We're adding a Mantle Boost indicator so players can clearly identify when and how to trigger the high-octane movement ability, opening up the mechanic and introducing fresh strategies to play for a much wider base."
Why Opening Up Advanced Mechanics
What's the reason for making a once niche movement quirk available to all players? Lead Legend designer Josh Mohan explains developers aims for players to experience empowerment — including ones who are inexperienced.
"Our community performs other crazy stuff like super-glides and tap-strafing, and we examined at other games, observed what the community are doing, and we said, 'What if we extend these capabilities to a broader audience?'" Mohan explains. "Since right now, certain advanced [movement] mechanics are somewhat awkward to access — you need to change controls and execute within one-frame windows. We proposed, 'What if we create a polished implementation?'"
The Amped Update Emphasis on Mobility
Movement is primarily the name of the game in this season, with Legends the gravity mage, Rampart, and the aerial combatant receiving buffs to maintain them mobile. Recovery time on Horizon's Gravity Lift is shorter, and this skill will propel players into the air much quicker than it used to. Rampart's Amped Cover now include overhead protection and the ability to provide movement bonuses to those nearby. However it's aerial Valkyrie receiving significant improvements now, with various adjustments implemented to enhance her as stronger, quicker, and more lethal.
"In my opinion many agree that her moment has arrived," states character developer Ian Holstead. "Certainly that she's been dominant in the past, but with the introduction of other characters, mobility perks, and Evac Towers, it felt like she's not very relevant in today's the game. This presented an ideal chance for the team to revisit a bunch of aspects in her abilities and essentially restore her to former prominence."
Valkyrie's Upgrades
To reclaim Valkyrie's relevance in current strategies, the developer notes Respawn assessed all her skills and implemented significant modifications. Her VTOL Jets have been upgraded, boosting her speed during flight, and this equipment now recharge much quicker, allowing her to spend more time aloft. She can no longer take damage from her own Missile Swarm, which has also been upgraded to mark enemies who take damage from it. Her Skyward Dive skill — which lifts her entire squad skyward for redeployment or retreat — requires much less time to fire up. She's also getting recently added perk choices that users can choose to reduce fuel consumption, expand the spread of her Missile Swarm, or further speed up her Skyward Dive activation.
"Valkyrie's equipment fulfills the pilot experience," Holstead comments.
Olympus Improvements
Even the game's lone airborne map, this location, is getting a mobility-focused overhaul, with major changes that expands bottlenecks and renders claiming the high ground a bit less daunting. Respawn state Apex Legends this update focuses on providing gamers the resources they need to compete in the competition.
"Really, we examined the game's core identity as a fast-paced FPS," says principal designer Josh Mohan.
The battle royale the Amped season launches November 4th at the specified times.
