With Act III dropping on October 13 and 14 (depending on the region), this week’s Valorant patch 1.10 introduces many changes to the game. One change that has not been mentioned prior, is the reshaped Valorant deathmatch mode that may have added all the more reason for you to play it now.

More Enemies, Longer, and More Rewarding

Valorant’s deathmatch mode has been the desire of a large chunk of the community. It provides a legitimate way to warmup before a proper ranked match. The ability-free mode allows players to focus solely on their aim, making it the best tool we have for a warmup. These are the new changes introduced to deathmatch in Act III:

Increased player count 10 >>> 14 players

Updated spawning algorithm to encourage safer spawns

Removed periodic location pulse, and you’ll now only receive a pulse right when you respawn

Increased match length, first to 40 kills (was 30), time limit upped to 9 minutes (was 6)

Kill Reloads: On every kill, players get an automatic, immediate full reload of their active weapon (Ares & Odin get 30 bullets back)

XP gain increased from 500 to 900 XP

The new Valorant deathmatch mode has more players, does not aid in viewing where the enemies are after the initial pulse, grants you a free reload after each kill, lasts longer, and gives a higher experience reward. In our eyes, those changes are fantastic. The removal of periodic location pulse is especially great as OP campers will have a harder time in getting kills. This change also encourages using your auditory senses more, which can be a fantastic tool in a real competitive match.

Patch 1.10 Expected Changes

The update contains many competitive changes announced prior to patch 1.10 dropping. Probably the most groundbreaking being the tightening of rank disparity while matchmaking, which has been decreased from 6 to 3. To that, the new map, Icebox, Valorant’s fifth map in the pool, is making its grand debut.

Check out the full patch notes over on the official Valorant blog.

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