Valorant has recently kicked off Episode 2 Act 2, bringing about a new battle pass, a new competitive season, and a new Agent. All of these changes come courtesy of the game’s latest update, patch 2.04.
This patch marks the start of Competitive Episode 2: Act 2!
Placements have changed for the start of an Act. Now, if you have already placed this Episode, then:
Your rank will no longer be lowered at the start of an Act
You’re only required to play 1 placement match to display your rank
Players who have not previously placed in Competitive this Episode will still need to play 5 placement games to earn their initial rank.
Radiant will be more challenging to earn. You must achieve a certain level of RR before being able to ascend to Radiant. This is adjusted per region based on rank population size and RR distribution.
You can now queue with a wider group of friends and teammates if you are at the lower ranks
Quality of Life
Added Tactical Voice Over
Additionally, we’ve added an option to place Tactical VO messaging into the Chat window
Improved Client framerate by 3% on average for medium to high spec machines in 10-player games, by optimizing inventory management
One of the most notable changes in this patch is the reworking of the way competitive disparity works. Now players from Iron 1 up to Silver 3 can all play together, which Riot Games hopes will combat players’ smurfing in order to play with friends. Another neat addition is tactical callouts, where the Agents will be more descriptive when alerting others to an enemy or spotted spike. This will be helpful in situations where players aren’t very communicative, or if a player has to mute a teammate.