When will Icebox and Skye be allowed in Valorant tournaments?

Olivia Richman Published 22/10/2020

With so many Valorant tournaments on the way, players are wondering when Act 3’s new map and agent will be available in competitive events.

Icebox was released early, coming out when Valorant Act 3 dropped. While fans were excited to learn more about the map Valorant was teasing for weeks, it’s become quite a controversial addition to the tactical FPS. Many critiqued the map for having too many corners, making it difficult to approach certain areas comfortably. Others felt it was too focused on forced firefights, leaving many agents’ utility abilities worthless. More importantly, there isn’t an easy way to pick the new map, making it tough for people to learn the ins and outs of Icebox’s unique layout.

Valorant also announced a new agent, Skye, who will drop next week. Players are itching to try Skye out, but the last agent, Killjoy, was immediately banned from competitive tournaments over balance concerns.

Now, fans are wondering when Icebox and Skye will be available in upcoming tournaments, including the Riot-organized First Strike.

Riot decided to answer the Valorant community’s questions in short order. On Twitter, the developers stated that new agents will be available in ranked queue two weeks after their initial release. New maps will be available four weeks after release.

This means Skye will be available in competitive play on November 9, followed by Icebox on November 24.

We’ve heard questions on when new agents & maps would be esports ready (e.g. First Strike). As we’ve communicated to teams and players: new agents will be available after two weeks in ranked queue, and new maps four weeks in ranked queue. This means…
— VALORANT (@PlayVALORANT) October 21, 2020

“This means, barring any major issues, our new agent, Skye will be eligible for use in the First Strike Qualifiers starting November 9 and Icebox will enter the official tournament rotation on November 24,” Riot stated.

First Strike’s open qualifier tournament, which has 128 teams, begins on October 26. Because of this, neither Skye nor Icebox will be available for the entire First Strike tournament cycle with the first set of open qualifiers awkwardly missing out. The second open qualifier begins November 11, meaning Skye will likely make her debut in that tournament.

Olivia Richman

About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

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