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Valorant Episode 8 is all set to go live next week on 10th January 2024 and will be bringing with it the first major update of the year.
This will include an updated map pool with a few new additions, a couple of maps undergoing changes, and some selected game modes that will follow this map rotation.
On top of all this, another battle pass will also be released for players to purchase, featuring new cosmetics and items, including three weapon collections, sprays, player cards, gun buddies, and much more.
New Map Pool and Potential Map Changes for Valorant Episode 8
In 2022, Riot Games made it clear that it wants to operate with a total of seven maps in Valorant due to tournaments featuring best-of-five series during grand finals. A seven-map kit would allow teams to ban one map each without any repeat picks.
After working with the in-house esports team, surveying players, and talking to professional organizations, Riot decided to maintain a seven-map pool and it continues to be the norm to date.
However, the maps within this pool are changed every few months, generally before the start of a new season. Here is the complete map rotation for the upcoming Valorant Episode 8.
Valorant Episode 8: Map Pool Rotation
Earlier today on 2nd January 2024, Valorant officially revealed the seven map pool for the upcoming season.
Icebox
Lotus
Sunset
Breeze
Ascent
Bind
Split
Haven is the map that has witnessed its departure from the current map pool. The first three-site map to feature in Valorant has been replaced by Icebox, which was pulled out of active map rotation in April 2023 and will be making a comeback after nine months.
However, the map will not be the same undergoing some changes in its time away from the server.
Valorant Episode 8: Map Changes
Icebox will not be the only map to change before making its return with Valorant Episode 8. Lotus, another three-site map, will also undergo some tweaks before continuing its run as part of the seven-map pool.
The exact changes that have been made to these maps have not been revealed at this point but will hopefully be revealed soon with barely a week remaining before the next major update goes live.
In addition to the slightly tweaked map pool and the changes that will be introduced to the two maps along with Valorant Episode 8, the developers also announced that all game modes will now use the seven-map rotation, except for Team Death Match and Custom Games.
The reason behind taking this decision was to allow players to always play on the most relevant maps.
Unfortunately, this statement has received a mixed reaction from community members, with many thinking that other game modes like Swiftplay, Replication, Spike Rush, and more exist in Valorant for players to simply have fun.
