Valorant players question Riot as Patch 9.08 brings odd map pool changes
Valorant players have been left confused by Patch 9.08’s map pool changes as Pearl and Split return with zero changes while Ascent still remains in the pool.
When it comes toValorant’s map pool, it has always been a contentious topic as certain fan-favorite maps get removed while others are seemingly never coming back or never leaving.
Announced on July 30, the devs are now bringing Split and Pearl back into the fold, however, with zero changes. In their place, Icebox and Lotus will be going away, to the confusion of many players.
#VALORANTPatch 9.08 (~ October Release)Competitive Map RotationsReturning – Pearl and SplitLeaving – Icebox and LotusB Site Map Changes will be made to Sunsetpic.twitter.com/t4VZPNn7Mm
The first thing players questioned was why Ascent is still in the pool. Now that Lotus has been removed, that makes Ascent the only map to have never been removed from the map pool.
Ascent has always been acontroversial mapas the meta has long been established, with a comp of; Killjoy, Sova, Jett, Omen, and KAY/O being used often, to the point many have called it “boring”.
“I’m beginning to think Ascent is just hard-coded into the game… Maybe it can’t be removed?”questionedVCT analyst Sean Gares on the upcoming map pool.
“The last remaining logical conclusion is that Riot actually wants us to hate Ascent. The whole point of a map rotation is to keep things fresh and exciting, not leave the quantifiably stalest map in the game in rotation for three years,”saidFnatic’s Strategic coach sarcastically.
The last remaining logical conclusion is that Riot actually wants us to hate Ascent. The whole point of a map rotation is to keep things fresh and exciting, not leave the quantifiably stalest map in the game in rotation for 3 years. 🙃https://t.co/LY9XHxvVkB
Othersquestionedwhere Fracture was. The last we saw of Fracture was before Patch 7.04 on June 10, 2025. And with Pearl coming back, it makes this the longest time we’ve seen a map out of the rotation.
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“Split back for some reason instead of Fracture, Ascent survives another map rotation while consistently having the most boring meta… yup this is epic,”saidDarkZero’s Wedid of the changes.
Patch 9.08 is slated to release sometime in October, which means we will be seeing the current map pool for one last time atValorant Champions 2024.
