VALORANT Episode 9 Act III introduces Sunset Changes, Brings back Split and Pearl
Earlier today, VALORANT released the Dev Updates covering what the fans can expect from the rest of the year.
In the Dev Updates, Product Manager, Coleman Palm, and Game Designer and Balance Design Lead, Dan Hardison discussed the map pool rotation coming to the game for the upcoming Episode 9 Act III.
Split and Pearl Replace Icebox and Lotus
The biggest change coming with the final act of the episode is the map pool changes. With the VALORANT Patch 9.08 update, Icebox and Lotus will be leaving the pool. Despite the recent changes to the map, Icebox remained a monotonous map, not particularly enjoyed by the community.
Maps rotating out with VALORANT Patch 9.08 (credits: VALORANT // Riot Games)If Riot wishes to reintroduce the map, they will have to make changes to make the map play out much better than it does. The map’s mid has especially been under heavy criticism since it was reintroduced.
Lotus, on the other hand, was a well-received map. Riot made early changes to the map to improve balance, and it was the most played map at VALORANT Champions 2024.Replacing the maps will be Split and Pearl.
Maps rotating in with VALORANT Patch 9.08 (credits: VALORANT // Riot Games)Split will see a return to the pool after three months, while Pearl will return after a year outside. The map was originally removed in Patch 7.04.
The duo also addressed the missing Fracture and explained how they are working on the map but aren’t confident about it yet. Unfortunately, there were no talks about Ascent, the only map that hasn’t rotated out despite its beta release.
Sunset Changes
The upcoming episode will also introduce changes to Sunset B site and small changes to mid. The changes aim to make the map offer more options for defense on the site.
Changes to Sunset B site (credits: VALORANT// Riot Games)The changes also aim to reduce the effectiveness of the post-plant meta. The mid change, though negligible, adds options to play around mid, giving cover to the defenders to explore mid safely. These changes help balance the map and will be interesting to explore in-game once the patch is live.
Changes to Sunset B main and mid (credits: VALORANT// Riot Games)Lastly, the duo discussed the changing approach to map rotations. They commented on the current cadence and how they will be looking to change it in the future, ensuring a fresh map pool for the community to enjoy.
The Dev Updates also discussed upcoming agent changes, an anti-cheat update, behavior updates, and a rank reset update. Check out our article highlighting the major takeaways of the VALORANT Dev Updates.
Featured Image Credits: VALORANT // Riot Games
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VALORANT // Dev Updates September 2024: Agent Changes, Map rotation, Ranked rollback and more