As VALORANT players prepare to return to some familiar locales in Episode Eight, Riot Games has also shared some big news at the start of the new year for those getting ready for the ranked climb.
The developers confirmed today that Icebox is returning to the competitive map pool and it will be getting some updates to its current state before release. Lotus will also be getting some updates to its build alongside Icebox since it is remaining in the rotation for 2024.
Heading into the new year, the full active competitive map rotation will feature Icebox, Lotus, Sunset, Breeze, Ascent, Bind, and Split, with Haven being removed temporarily. Every mode in the game will also be running the same map pool as competitive, except for custom games and Team Deathmatch, which runs a completely different pool to the base game.
Icebox was last seen in the competitive map pool almost nine months ago, back when it was rotated out by Riot in April. This time around, however, players are ready to see what kind of changes are in store for a map that has divided the community with its multiple sight lines and angles, especially when rushing onto a site on attack.
There could, however, be some significant changes being made to the map that could alleviate some of the player base’s concerns, in a similar way to how Breeze was overhauled before it returned to the active map pool. With some pathways blocked, new pathways created, and playstyles being shifted, Icebox could become a popular locale with the right adjustments.
VALORANT Episode Eight is scheduled to hit the live servers next week on Tuesday, Jan. 9, along with a supposed new weapon being added to the game for the first time, the Outlaw sniper rifle.
