Riot Games has revealed the map pool for VALORANT‘s Episode 7 Act 3 competitive play and the players’ reaction has been nothing short of phenomenal. The community is cut in two, as if they were not telling each other anything at all. The new rotation is made up of Abyss, Bind, Corrode, Haven, Lotus, Pearl, Split, and Sunset. Moreover, the classic and popular maps of Ascent and Breeze are not part of the lineup this time around, which has certainly created a lot of feelings expressed through the comments.
What is the worry? The map rotations are completely critical for the competitive players. It will set the whole meta for the next couple of months including the choice of agents and the strategies you may think of. And removing the liked maps can mean a huge deal. The tweet from VALORANT Leaks was just an announcement of sorts, but the comments section got heated with discussions and disputes.
Ascent was the first map that many players missed. One user, Jayrajsinh Jadeja, made a simple statement “Compi without ascent ðŸ˜,” and obviously the single crying emoji says it all. Another player, JuuBerry, was even more direct: “Ascent leaving 😔 I don’t like Split and Corrode.” There is a common sentiment among players. Ascent has been a staple on the map pool with its mid-control and classic three-lane design that many players have found attractive. It is difficult to imagine the game without it.
It is not just Ascent. Breeze is gone, and at the same time players are split. The exit of Breeze has some players throw a party. A user who goes by the name Concursando tweeted, “Sem Breeze continuamos vencendo 🥳🥳,” which translates as, “Without Breeze we keep winning.”
The large open areas and the long sightlines for sure were not for everyone. Conversely, players like SkylineShow suggested “Breeze for Corrode and then it’s alright,” thus implying that one player’s trash is another player’s treasure. A player, lonely akuma, even expressed “I love breeze and want it back instead of corrode,” meaning there is no agreement on the matter.
Now comes the most contested map by the Radiant rank Corrode. The map has been dragged into controversy and now serves as a point of debate among players. Albertojnnz just said “remove corrode 🙃”. But on the other hand, you have V. de Vagabundo ranking it as their second-best map right after Split. It is this kind of extreme discrepancy in opinions that keeps VALORANT community characterized as active, and of course, loud.
For sure, you cannot disregard Pearl. What a pearl! The community’s feeling regarding the map is… not very positive. Fncthebest simply said “i hate pearl so much,” and Insane was even more explicit with “F U C K pearl.” Their standpoint is very evident. Another person, codes, pointed out the irony saying “u can tell the val com has brain damage since no one is pointing out pearl,” thus implying that its inclusion is a collective mistake.
The new map, Abyss is another one that is already starting to be considered controversial. A comment by _lxvqkiri_ labeled it “somehow x100 worse than corrode and breeze combined,” which is a pretty nasty first impression. New maps always have a hard time fitting in, especially when they come in as a replacement to community favorites.
There are players who have given up on this new map pool completely. Krisa_cs posted, “i aint touching val till next act,” while kaiga526 said, “Good time to stop playing.” This is for sure a dramatized response, but it shows the map preference that people have is passionate. Conversely, there are those who are happy with the change. Ganuwoahh called it “the best map pool ever,” and aFreeze24 was just joyful about “SPLIT IS BACK,” showing that for every player who hates a change, there is one who loves it.
In fact, the discussion even went to other languages, with one user named DrinkIceTea tweeting in Spanish, “Finalmente la peor rotación de mapas de la historia,” which translates to “Finally the worst map rotation in history.” And another, y de yan, complained in Portuguese, “nao aguento mais a merda dessa sunset e haven” (“I can’t take this sunset and haven crap anymore”). The annoyance seems to be universal.
It is amusing to observe the small discussions going on in the replies. One user, justin, who referred to Corrode as a “great map,” was then met with responses such as “said noone ever” from voidaddctd and “What are you smoking youngblood?” from ItsKenobi_. These minor interactions really add a whole lot of personality to the overall thread.
So what is the verdict? There isn’t one. This is the beauty as well as the chaos of a game like VALORANT that is competitive. Riot Games chooses the map pool hoping to bring about a balance and to shake up the meta, and the community reacts with a magnificent, unconstrained outburst of opinions, memes, and raw emotions.
Some will adapt, some will complain, and few might even take a break. But one thing is sure: the topic will remain lively until the next rotation comes out. The new act is on, and you can either love it or hate it, but the battle on these seven maps has already begun. Good luck, and don’t try to dodge Pearl! The developers at Riot also support PlayStation and Xbox platforms.
