VCT Americas will be played on Patch 8.11: What can you expect

Valorant

June 21, 2024

Bryan Francis

VCT Masters Shanghai was a grand success overall for VALORANT Esports. Gen G officially became the first VCT Pacific team to win an international trophy. The tournament introduced all of them to the new map, Abyss. The one thing it didn’t get anyone prepared for was the upcoming update in patch 8.11. Currently, in VCT China and Pacific, Patch 8.10 is the update that all teams are playing on. VCT Americas just announced that the tournament will be played on Patch 8.11, but with certain conditions.

Will Patch 8.11 Change the VCT Americas Meta?

Image Credits: Riot Games

Since its launch on June 11th worldwide, Patch 8.11 has been quite the talked about update. Many have wondered about the impact of the update since its announcement during the VALORANT developer diaries. Surprisingly, the patch nerfed Clove’s specific abilities. According to the patch notes, Riot Games stated the following on the reason behind the nerfs:

“We’re excited with how Clove has been immediately relevant in Ranked and how much you’re enjoying playing them; their performance in ranked play is stronger than we’d like.”

Currently, in the VCT Leagues, Life from FPX was the only player who constantly picked Clove. Thanks to him, we saw Clove on the Icebox map during VCT Masters Madrid. Recently, a flashback from DRX used Clove on Icebox in their game against Zeta Division. Following the changes in Patch 8.11, it would be less likely to see the agent being used during the league. We could see the likes of Tenz use Clove if Sentinels had to play on the Icebox map.

Another aspect of the update to note is the new map pool. Haven is back in the competitive map pool for Patch 8.11, while Breeze has been removed again from the active competitive map pool. Once VCT Americas reaches the playoff stages, Abyss will also be added to the competitive map pool. This was done as Abyss went live on June 11. With playoffs slated to occur on July 17, it would give teams enough time to plan strategies.

Iso Will Be the Cover Star of VCT Americas

Image Credits: Riot Games

The significant change that is bound to happen is the addition of Iso and Neon to the VCT meta. Since the new update, Iso has had a massive boost in its pick rate in the VALORANT ranked Ladder. With changes made to his abilities, the agent is quite overpowered in the eyes of the fans.

The one agent everyone needs to worry about is Neon. With the changes made to her movement aim, the agent in the right hands is entirely busted. Due to her signature ability to refill 3x faster than before, players are much more mobile with the agent. With the map of Haven back in the competitive map pool, it will be interesting to notice the spike in Neon’s pick rate.