Valorant is eradicating Split from the map pool

Valorant revealed quite a lot of recent details about what to anticipate from the upcoming Act 1 of Episode 5, which kicks off on June 22. Not solely did they reveal a brand new underwater map, PEARL, however additionally they introduced some adjustments to the map pool have been being made, and this contains the elimination of Split.

Via the PlayValorant blog, design lead for the maps crew, Joe “Pearl Hogbash” Lansford, defined the choice.

After the introduction of Fracture final 12 months, it seems the Valorant crew have been very excited to lastly have seven maps in rotation. Having seven maps would enable match best-of-5’s to have the ability to choose two map bans after which play out their tourney with out repeating any maps.

The introduction of PEARL implies that the map pool now consists of eight completely different maps. After working with their esports crew, surveying gamers, and dealing alongside different skilled organisations, Lansford shared that the crew have determined to maintain a seven map pool, and Split would be the first to be rotated out.

What’s the thought course of behind this? Why do we’d like seven maps? Well, Lansford delves into the fortunate quantity seven, “learning a new map can be one of the toughest parts of a tac shooter. Going from “learned” to “mastered” is even harder.”

“The team thinks seven is a nice sweet spot that offers both variety and mastery. You don’t have to spend all your time learning new angles, lineups, and strategies. New players will have an easier onboarding experience. And pro teams get to have deeper, more exciting playbooks. Win, win, win,” Lansford continues.

While Split will probably be faraway from Unrated and Competitive queues as of the launch of Episode 5 on June 22, this is not the whole finish of Split. The map will nonetheless seem in alternate sport modes resembling Spike Rush, and might be performed in Customs.

The resolution to take away Split comes after analysing a bunch of various elements. Lansford lists that “player sentiment, time since release, past and future planned updates, what the map brings in terms of strategic variance, as well as where PEARL fits into all of it,” are only a handful of causes as to why Split has been the primary map to be rotated out of the pool.

Finally, Lansford does share that they are positive the map will return in future. No doubt, instead of one other map, however at the very least this is not the whole finish of Split.