Respawn has revealed what to expect from Season 27 of Apex Legends, including some big buffs for Valkyrie, Rampart, and Horizon. These characters have been a part of the roster for a long time, but the dev team is looking to bring them back into the spotlight in the upcoming seasonal update for Apex Legends.
Known as Amped, Season 27 launches on November 4 and adds lots of new content to freshen up the battle royale experience. Among the changes, Olympus is undergoing an overhaul, with four new POIs to alter the flow of matches and provide more cover for squads. In addition, the Double Tap Locked Hop Up gives the Alternator a buff, while Mantle Boost helps make Apex Legends’ movement feel even more dynamic. Beyond all the new content, Respawn has announced some big changes to a trio of Legends: Valkyrie, Rampart, and Horizon.
Apex Legends Releases New Update for October 2025
Respawn rolls out a new update for Apex Legends, potentially making some impactful changes to characters and the weapons meta.
Valkyrie's Aerial Movement is Getting Big Improvements
While Valkyrie's aerial-based kit made her one of the most popular picks in the battle royale following her Season 9 release, she has become less unique in recent years. For example, the introduction of Evac Towers in Apex Legends made her Ultimate not as valuable for rotating on a given map. The upcoming season looks to fix this by buffing all her abilities. Skyward Dive will get her team in the air faster, and the Super Sonic upgrade makes the ability even more evasive. According to Ian Holstead, Legend Designer, the goal is to make the Ultimate “viable in situations it never was before.”
Beyond a better Skyward Dive, Season 27 will improve Valkyrie’s VTOL Jets. This ability has always offered players a way to reposition and take the high ground, but sluggish movement and a slow recharge time have limited its effectiveness. The new season will address both of these issues, increasing the Passive’s speed and its recharge rate. A more maneuverable jetpack could make the Legend a more unpredictable target and offer more playmaking potential. Additionally, her Missile Swarm comes with some big buffs, such as scanning enemies that are hit by it and putting their movement Passives on cooldown. Furthermore, the Tactical no longer inflicts self-damage, and the height restriction has been removed, freeing up players to use the ability in more situations.
- Skyward Dive: Faster takeoff time, Super Sonic upgrade lets players get in the air even faster.
- VTOL Jets: Speed boost, recharge three times faster, upgrade to reduce fuel consumption and improve horizontal speed.
- Missile Swarm: No self-damage, height restriction removed, scans enemies when hit and puts movement Passives on cooldown.
Rampart's Amped Cover is Becoming More Versatile
While Rampart previously could be dangerous in certain situations, Respawn is looking to make her “less static and more dynamic” on the battlefield. Amped Cover now receives some significant alterations. Besides improved wall health with Evo upgrades, the Tactical will offer speed boosts to players. This could help squads capitalize on opportunities and close the gap to finish a fight. Amped Cover will also feature a roof, providing additional protection from the growing number of Legends with vertical movement abilities.
Rampart is also getting new upgrades to enhance her Amped Cover further. According to Respawn, these will give players infinite ammo and fast reloads when utilizing her barriers, making it easier to punish opponents who have poor positioning. Additionally, one upgrade will permit wall health regeneration. While Sheila will continue to play a part in being effective as Rampart in Apex Legends, these new upgrades and other changes to her Tactical should help teammates contribute during a fight.
Amped Cover: Walls gain health as Evo level increases, grant a speed boost, and now include a roof. Upgrades add fast reloads and infinite ammo when shooting behind wall and regenerate health out of combat.
Horizon's Gravity Lift is Getting Some Big Buffs
Horizon is also getting more deadly in the air, just like Valkyrie. Respawn is moving her back closer to the power level she initially had. The seasonal update will buff her Gravity Lift by decreasing the cooldown and allowing players to gain height faster when using it. Following her release in Season 7, the character became infamous for her verticality. Various Horizon nerfs in Apex Legends since then have reined in her effectiveness and reduced her pick rate. The developers believe that Season 27 will find a good balance for Horizon by giving her back some of that lost power.
Besides buffing Horizon's base Tactical ability, the Black Hole Ultimate will have increased health, making it more effective for starting a fight. One upgrade will also give Horizon the option to fast-fall while crouching in mid-air, while another lets the character get an extra Gravity Lift charge when knocking opponents. This allows the character to potentially function much like how other Skirmisher-class Legends did in the past; the Charged Knock perk previously granted players an ability charge after getting a knockdown. If used correctly, this upgrade could give Horizon the chance to use multiple Gravity Lifts to reposition in a late-game skirmish.
Black Hole: Increased health
Gravity Lift: Shorter cooldown, lift speed improvements, upgrade for bonus Tactical charge on knockdowns.
Movement Upgrades: Fast-fall by crouching in mid-air, glide out of gravity lifts
Apex Legends
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 81 /100 Critics Rec: 74%
- Released
- February 4, 2019
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Blood, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Respawn Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
WHERE TO PLAY
Conquer with character in Apex Legends, a free-to-play* Hero shooter where legendary characters with powerful abilities team up to battle for fame & fortune on the fringes of the Frontier.
Master an ever-growing roster of diverse legends, deep tactical squad play, and bold new innovations that go beyond the Battle Royale experience—all within a rugged world where anything goes. Welcome to the next evolution of Hero Shooter.
This game includes optional in-game purchases of virtual currency that can be used to acquire virtual in-game items, including a random selection of virtual in-game items.
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, PS4, Switch & Xbox One
- Cross Save
- Cross Progression lets you share your game progress across PC, PlayStation®, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- yes
- Genre(s)
- Battle Royale, First-Person Shooter
- Platform(s)
- PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC, iOS, Android, Switch
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
- X|S Optimized
- yes
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
