Valorant patch 7.04 notes reveal Agent nerfs

29 August 2023 , 13:00

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Valorant patch 7.04 ushers in a slew of Agent nerfs, the new Sunset map, and changes to the existing Breeze map (Image: Riot Games)

Valorant patch 7.04 is rolling out later today ahead of Episode 7 Act 2 and it's a lengthy one with promised Agent nerfs making up the majority of it, the launch of Premier, the new Sunset map and Breeze getting a few tweaks of its own.

The newest Valorant Act goes live today – after the usual period of downtime – with the Episode 7 Act 2 start time set for 10pm BST / 5pm EDT / 2pm PDT today. The Valorant console version may still be MIA for the foreseeable future, but there's a couple of new things lined up for the game in Valorant patch 7.04.

First up is the new Sunset map, featuring three lanes and two sites. The Sunset only queue will be playable in Swiftplay mode for one week, before going into the Competitive and Unrated map rotation in Valorant patch 7.05. You can check out our Sunset map tour below. Breeze is rotating back into the Competitive and Unrated map pool, and the changes aim to "add more tradeoffs to A and B site slams that utilise post-plant utility to secure the round while adding more incentive for Attackers to control Mid to exert pressure throughout the map."

In terms of Valorant Agent nerfs, Skye and Jett have taken the brunt of them. Skye "lacked clear weaknesses" compared to the rest of the roster so Guiding Light, Trailblazer, and Seekers have all been nerfed. Jett's balance changes have been implemented to to hone her as "the aggressive, high precision Duelist" with the intent being to reduce her defensive power-holding angles, and ability to "undo tactical mistakes with her array of quickly cast abilities." To that end, her Tailwind, Cloudburst, and Updraft have all taken a hit.

These Valorant nerfs shouldn't come as too much of a shock given they were shared in Riot's preview patch notes last week. You can check out the full notes for Valorant patch 7.04 below.

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Valorant patch 7.04

Agent updates

Valorant asks you to make tough decisions when interacting with enemy utility—shooting, dodging, and timing your moment to take decisive action. We want everyone to come away from rounds feeling like they had the possibility of making a better play if only they were a little faster or smarter. The team has noticed that when faced with multiple pieces of utility or some of larger scale ultimates, your avenues for counterplay can sometimes be overloaded, leading you to feel unsure of what's happening or what you could do differently next time.

While Patch 7.04 includes changes to over half of the roster, the changes are sharply focused on increasing game state clarity by making the following adjustments:

Reducing the frequency of large area of effect of ultimates
Reducing the amount of time utility is active in the world
Reducing the HP of shootable utility

We also believe the Ultimate cost updates below better align large area, high-impact ults with the pressure they place on the enemy, creating both a better pacing of the round-defining abilities and a clearer choice competition between high and low cost ults.

Though many of these changes are subtle, We hope all together they improve gamestate clarity and the sense that you have even more opportunities for your skill to shine through.

Breach

Aftershock (C): Ticks reduced from 3 to 2
Aftershock (C): Damage increased from 60 per tick to 80
Rolling Thunder (X): Ultimate points increased 8>>> 9

Brimstone

Orbital Strike (X): Ultimate points increased 7>>>8

Fade

Prowler (C): Time to re-equip gun takes slightly longer after using the ability

Gekko

Mosh Pit (C): The impacted area does 10 damage per second before exploding
Wingman (Q): HP reduced 100>>>80
Thrash (X): Thrash’s explosion had a little makeover to make it easier to see and understand the area it has affected (on top of being beautiful)

Killjoy

Lockdown (X): Ultimate points increased 8>>> 9

Omen

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Paranoia (Q): No movement velocity imparted when casting

Skye

Skye has become a keystone of the current meta through her blend of recon and space taking utility. While we like that she can potentially unlock new comps through this combo, we think she has lacked clear weaknesses compared to her peers given the wide range of value she brings. These changes reduce the distance in which Guiding Light can provide info. Changes also helps reduce the amount of time enemies need to worry about her flash when she flies it a great distance without activating it. We’ve also reduced the health of Trailblazer and Seekers to make them slightly easier for enemies to deal with, Skye’s ultimate cost will increase to better reflect the high level of baseline value it provides.

We’ll be keeping a close eye on these updates to see if they push the choice competition between Skye and her peers into a healthy place, or if further updates are needed in either direction.

Guiding Light (E): Max duration while casting reduced 2.5s >>>2s
Trailblazer (Q: HP reduced 100>>>80
Seekers (X): Ultimate Points increased 7 >>>8
Seekers (X): Seeker Health decreased 150>>>120

Sova

Recon Bolt (E): Total number of scans reduced 3>>>2

Viper

Viper’s Pit (X): Ultimate points increased 8>>>9

Astra

We've noticed a large power disparity between Astra’s Gravity Well and Nova Pulse. Our goal is to create clearer use cases for both abilities: Gravity Well will be Astra’s tool for controlling space, and Nova Pulse for quickly affecting an area. At the same time, we hope to reduce some of the oppressive and long duration pressure Astra’s stars produce by providing enemies a chance to push past activated Gravity Well during its windup period if they act quickly.

We're updating Cosmic Divide to help clarify the overall game state by eliminating uncertainty around whether you or your enemies are close enough to the wall to be heard. We also think this gives Astra’s wall a clearer power profile for her and her allies to play around.

Gravity Well (C): Startup time increased .6>>>1.25
Gravity Well (C): Gravity time duration decreased 2.75>>>2.0
Nova Pulse (Q): Startup time decreased from 1.25>>>1.0
Cosmic Divide (X): Audio now is blocked completely by the wall rather than muffled

Jett

Since the last time we released changes to Jett, she has continued to be a mainstay of both competitive and professional play. We like that the dash changes in 4.08 pushed her to be more deliberate and tactical, but still feel that Jett is often given more reliable power windows and generous tuning than other Duelists and Agents in general.

Our goal with these changes is further sharpening Jett as the aggressive, high precision Duelist by increasing the intentionality of her ability usage and power windows. We want to maintain her unique ability to break through chokes and dash onto site, while reducing her defensive power-holding angles and her ability to reactively undo tactical mistakes with her array of quickly cast abilities.

We believe these changes align Jett’s overall power level and place in the Tactical Cycle with our other Agents, while maintaining Jett’s unique role and fantasy on the VALORANT roster. To help explain our thought process, we’ve provided context on how each change aims to support these goals, and we’ll be keeping a close eye on how these changes land at all levels of play.

Tailwind (E): Dash window decreased 12s>>>7.5s.
Tailwind (E): Activation windup increased 0.75s>>>1s.
Cloudburst (C): Duration decreased 4.5s>>>2.5s
Cloudburst (C): Time to re-equip gun takes slightly longer after using the ability
Updraft (Q): Charges decreased 2>>>1
Blade Storm (X): Ultimate points increased 7>>>8.

Valorant Map updates

Map rotation

Breeze will be rotating back into the Competitive and Unrated map pool.
Please note that Fracture and Pearl have been rotated out of the Competitive and Unrated map rotation.

New map: Sunset

Sunset, our newest map, features three lanes and two sites.
Please note that the Sunset only queue will only be playable in Swiftplay mode for one week and then goes into the Competitive and Unrated map rotation in Patch 7.05.

Breeze

Breeze’s scale and size are core to the map’s design but we wanted to address rotation times by simplifying where threats could be to make retaking less dangerous. This set of changes aims to add more tradeoffs to A and B site slams that utilize post-plant utility to secure the round while adding more incentive for Attackers to control Mid to exert pressure throughout the map.

Adjusted Mid Pillar

We closed off one side of Mid Pillar and tightened up Mid Cubby. As a result, Mid should be more comfortable to rotate through with more predictable threats.

Mid Pillar

One side has been closed off and boxes have been added.

Mid Cubby

One side of the pillar has been closed off.

Adjusted B Site

We’ve adjusted B Site to make enemy positioning more predictable. This should make retake scenarios more manageable.

B Site: Boxes have been added and parts of the wall around B Site have been removed and added.
B Back: Boxes have been added and the stairs have been removed and walled off

Blocked off A Hall

Halls required a lot of attention from Defenders often forcing them to spread thin. By blocking it off we hope this allows Defenders to better focus on where threats will come from while allowing both teams to invest more resources across the rest of the map.

A Hall: Part of the hall has been walled off with a fence.

Adjusted Mid Doors

We expect there to be more fights in Mid and around Doors so we’ve adjusted this area to be more spacious and added a new stack of boxes as additional cover.

Mid Wood Doors: Boxes have been added and door has been opened fully.

Closed A Cave and adjusted A Shop

Cave added a lot of pressure to post plant situations and the split approach to A made it difficult for Defenders to confidently contest the space. These changes aim to make the main approach to A feel more neutral and less strong for post-plant.

A Cave: Interior has been widened and boxes have been added.
A Shop: Entrance and interior have been widened.

Adjusted A Pyramids and added signage for callouts

We added a small platform at the bottom of each pyramid to make utility a bit easier to land around them. Also, we added signage to help differentiate callouts for the two pyramids.

A Site: Pyramids have been made taller

Player behaviour updates

Report UI Improvements

We’ve increased readability by adding icons and showing detailed text descriptions when hovering over each of the newly added icons.
We categorized the list of post-game reports into groups to help break down decision making from high level category to subcategories.
We’ve added reportee info in order to reduce false reporting.

Valorant Premier updates

Premier has officially launched!

If you played in Premier’s Ignition Stage, your team and match history will carry over.
Enrollment runs until September 7. The exact time for the end of Enrollment varies by Zone—make sure to check the schedule in the client for more information so you don’t miss it.
Weekly matches will feature the full competitive map pool across seven weeks. Each week will still have one dedicated map and a maximum of two matches on said map. Matches start on September 7 and run through October 21, with Playoffs on October 22.
Earn a Premier Score of at least 675 to qualify and to have a chance to be crowned one of the best teams in your Division.
Performance will now be tracked from Stage to Stage. You will receive a Division crest at the end of each Stage.
Divisions will be split into five tiers: Open, Intermediate, Advanced, Elite, and Contender.
Check out our for all the details, and good luck on your games!