VALORANT Act 3 ranked changes and new map tease

Riot Games developers have detailed changes coming to the competitive VALORANT matchmaking as part of the Act 3 update.

VALORANT’s Game Director Joe Ziegler and Design Lead David Cole highlighted a few changes that players can expect in the upcoming patch update. These changes are targeted towards making the ranked ladder climb experience less frustrating for players.

Don't have time to watch the full video? Read up on the Act III competitive changes here: https://t.co/UByQkVfGRe https://t.co/TLmnwkmAgZ

— VALORANT (@PlayVALORANT) October 5, 2020

VALORANT Act 3 Changes

The developer update focuses on two things to improve player experiences in ranked.

Rank Spread

Act 3 will bring back more competitive integrity to VALORANT allowing players to focus on winning. The update will tighten the restrictions on rank disparity. Previously, VALORANT players could queue with players of up to six rank tiers away from their actual rank.  Riot will reduce this requirement to just three ranks, thereby tightening the rank gap between players in a server. This prevents groups at the top of one rank queueing with someone at the bottom of the previous rank.

Image credit to Riot Games.

Ranks above Immortal will now be purely impacted by wins and a player’s statistics in a game. Although, Riot hopes to use VALORANT Act 3 to gather information to further improve Episode 2 in January.

Act 3 Server Choice

VALORANT players can soon choose their preferred servers which should help remove some connection issues. Riot cannot guarantee a game on the chosen server, but there is a higher chance of players receiving game servers as per choice.

Top 500 public leaderboard. Image Credit to Riot Games.

The video also sheds light on Riot’s plans for Episode 2. Cole said Riot is working on region-based leaderboards which would make regional ranking statistics available to the public.

Besides that, Riot is considering limiting the queue-size to solo and duos at ranks above Immortal. Team-based matchmaking is something on the roadmap, although the video does not provide a timeline.

VALORANT Episode 2 Release Date

VALORANT Episode 2 could bring massive changes to the ranked experience. Players can expect Episode 2 to release early in 2021. However, the devs are moving cautiously with many of its planned changes to ensure the stability of the ranked experience. Riot recently nerfed Reyna, Jett and the Operator in VALORANT Patch 1.09.

The social media account also released a small teaser for an upcoming feature. Currently, fans believe this may tease the next map in the game.

Something’s dropping. pic.twitter.com/12JtcGr1ne

— VALORANT (@PlayVALORANT) October 5, 2020

VALORANT players are hoping for a new ice-themed map that could change the competitive landscape. The VALORANT Act 3 release date is scheduled on October 13, 2020.

Written by Rohan Samal

———————————————————————————————

If you’re interested in seeing more of Esportz Network, follow our social media at Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Anyone can also join our community on Discord and chat about your favorite games, esports, and more!