XDefiant dev shoots down rumor of major movement changes in upcoming update

Rumors alleged that XDefiant movement mechanics could be hindered in Season 1, but Ubisoft’s Mark Rubin quickly stepped in and put those claims to bed.

Landon Apollo claimed that mid-air directional movement and strafing would be removed from XDefiant Season 1, along with a nerf to bunny hopping. Rubin responded, “I’m pretty sure that’s not true. And I know a guy on the inside.”

That isn’t to say there won’t aren’t any movement changes coming down the pipeline. XDefiant developer ACHES confirmed that the team intends to punish players for repeated jumps and crouches by adding aiming sway. Ubisoft doesn’t want to restrict players from using any of the free-to-play shooters’ mechanics, but ACHES argued that there is a sweet spot between intended use and spam. As for when this update will go live, On May 25, the XDefiant developer reassured fans that the update would be added in soon.

If players had a chance to play the XDefiant close beta in 2023, they would have had an opportunity to see the aim sway penalty in action. If a player jumped consecutively too many times in a row, their weapon would shake back and forth, making it hard to quickly line up a shot on an enemy. So even though there won’t be any substantial movement changes coming, players will have to readjust their plans once this patch goes out. Currently, most players like to use their momentum from a slide into a jump to catch an enemy off guard. Once jumping gets nerfed, players will have to be more cautious about the movement feature and pick their spots with more intent.

Movement speed is always a contentious topic in FPS titles, and there will inevitably be a frustrated segment of the player base, regardless of how much of a difference this impending change makes. But if you are sick of getting killed by enemies jumping around you, there is at least a little bit of relief coming, even if it isn’t wide-sweeping.