29 August 2023 , 18:00
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Valorant is getting a hefty update later today and as is always the case with live service titles, it's going offline so patch 7.04 can be implemented.
Valorant Episode 7 Act 2 goes live later today, after patch 7.04 rolls out. The update is set to nerf a handful of Agents including Skye and Jett, as well as introducing the new Sunset map which is available in Swiftplay mode for one week, before going into the Competitive and Unrated map rotation in Valorant patch 7.05. Breeze has also had some modifications which are all listed in the patch notes along with everything else that's on the way.
Valorant servers will go offline at 9pm BST ahead of update 7.04 (Jasmine Mannan)The Episode 7 Act 2 start time is set for today at around 10pm BST / 5pm EDT / 2pm PDT and will be preceded by an hour or two of scheduled downtime. The details of start time and downtime seemingly haven't been shared by Riot in a blog post or tweet, but the in-game Act Rank tab does let players know when servers are going offline. So you can expect to get kicked out of Valorant in the runup to 9pm BST / 4pm EDT / 1pm PDT.
Next episode
Once you dive back into Valorant, Episode 7 Act 2 will be live, and aside from the new Sunset map, the biggest changes are the Agent balances that will see a number of characters nerfed. Skye is currently ruling the meta, so it'll be interesting to see how that changes one the new act is live. Described as 'lacking clear weaknesses' she's primed for a nerf and patch 7.04 will see a reduction in the distance that Guiding Light can provide information, as well as reducing the amount of time opponents will need to worry about her flash when she flies it at a great distance without activating. Sky's Trailblazer and Seekers' health have also been reduced.
Elsewhere, nerfs to Jett are intended to align her overall power level place in Valorant's tactical cycle of 'intel, plan, execute', and to that end Tailwind, Cloudburst, and Updraft have had their respective dash window, duration, and charges decreased. Her Blade Storm Ultimate points have been increased, making it the same cost of comparable weapon ults like Tour De Force and Showstopper.
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