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Valorant Maps Ranked From Worst to Best (Pearl is last)

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Have you ever thought that all Valorant maps are equally unique and fun to play? Neither did we. Even though all maps are pretty and designed with passion, some are ultimately better than others.

When ranking we’ve considered a few things: how diverse the gameplay can be (including agent meta), how balanced the map is, and how easy the overall layout is with a pinch of bias. As always, these opinions are subjective and you may have your own take on this.

Note: We did not include Breeze and Bind in the list because they are not in a Competitive playlist for now.

7. Pearl

Pearl loading screen

At the very bottom of the list is surprisingly not Fracture (Fracture is next), but Pearl. Pearl’s setting and design are great. An underwater city, deep in the ocean. Deep enough that you can occasionally hear swimming leviathans and get Subnautica flashbacks. The map itself technically is not bad, but the more games you play on it, the more boring it becomes.

As an attacker, you have to take mid-control as that is usually your only chance to win a round. If you go A on attack, you get smoked and mollied, and if you make a single noise on B two smokes will pop and Sage will build her wall. And as a defender, all you will do is popping those smokes and walls.

If you manage to control mid or if your opponents are not playing by the book, the round will get interesting and actually have fun.

You can play a variety of agents which is nice but the overall playstyle tends to be the same. Just like it used to be on Breeze’s A site. The map looks great but it’s simply not fun to play.

6. Fracture

Fracture loading screen

A deal between Chambers created a really unique map (it’s a lore thing in case you didn’t know) with one half being in grass and the other in san with a big reactor in the middle.

If Pearl limits attackers in terms of options, Fracture does the complete opposite. With the help of zip lines, they can hit the site from any side they want in any numbers they want. This obviously makes the defender’s life much more difficult as getting pinched can become a common thing.

Imagine you are playing Chamber on A site and are peeking A Main. Your Reyna decided to peek Dish for early info and dies to one (maybe more?) enemy. Now you can either fall back to the site and play off the trademark that you conveniently placed in Dish or try to escape to play retake.

Fracture scenario plan with Chamber and Reyna
Fracture defense scenario

As you can see, your chance of survival is slim which is why you need to play a lot of utility-heavy agents like Killjoy, Viper, Raze, or Breach which slightly limits your pick options. Because otherwise, your life as a defender on Fracture will be very miserable.

5. Lotus

Lotus loading screen

Lotus is the latest addition to the Valorant’s map pool. This time we are traveling to the lush region of India that is filled with mysteries, waterfalls, and giant flowers.

Just like Haven, Lotus has three bomb sites to play around and that instantly means that rotation times are longer than usual. Does that mean Lotus is an attacker’s sided map? Not necessarily. Even though the defender’s reinforcements will come late, each site offers a ton of angles to play from.

Let’s take A site for example. You can be playing Drop, Top, Stairs, inside the Hull, Site, or Tree. That goes without mentioning that you can smoke A Main and push up if you are playing eco round or just going for an aggressive play.

Defense positions on A site on Lotus
A site on Lotus

The final touch on the map is the new feature: rotational doors. There are two of them on opposite sides of the map and all they do is provide rotation or a temporary peeking angle.

We’d love to touch on agents, but the map’s been out just for a few weeks and we’ll have to wait to give a solid opinion.

4. Icebox

Icebox loading screen

In spot number 4 we go to the freezing docks of Icebox. And just like some people like cold and some don’t, some players love Icebox while others not so much.

Icebox takes the standard 2 site map and adds a level of complexity to it making Icebox quite difficult to learn. But once you do, you will get the freedom of playing whichever agent you like and bending the map to your advantage.

You can play Chamber, Jett, or Omen to take advantage of multiple aggressive off-angles and elevation points, play for lineups on Viper or Sova, or fast execute with Neon or Raze.

While the opportunities are endless a lot of pressure will be put on your Controllers and your Sage (if you have one). Particularly Sage, as her walls are more often a key to a successful plant before defenders start swarming from the back site.

3. Ascent

Ascent loading screen

A while back we’d probably say something like “Ascent is too defender-sided, you can’t enter into sites, blah blah blah…” and throw it at the end of the list. Yet here we are at number three.

Don’t get us wrong. Ascent does favor defenders a bit more, that is no doubt, true. Trying to enter from either A or B Main alone is incredibly challenging especially if you get greeted by Paintshell + Seize combo.

This is why mid becomes such an important part of the map. And unlike most mids, this one is much easier to access as an attacker thanks to the B Link. With the help of accurate smokes on either Catwalk or Arch, you are free to walk back and forth without much aggression from the defensive side.

The agent meta on Ascent is alright. The picks usually revolve around a strong sentinel like Killjoy and a controller like Omen or Brimstone. Sage is also a reliable pick on Ascent while duelists and initiators almost all are equally good on Ascent.

2. Haven

Haven loading screen

The very first 3 site map with pretty trees, buildings, and aesthetics of Bhutan (except for the A site that is on fire). Haven is one of the most linear, simple, yet fun maps to play in Valorant.

The layout of the map allows you to be flexible with your picks and team composition. The only agents that are completely useless here are Viper and Harbor, but every other agent has something going for them on Haven.

You have your sightlines for Operators, a few off angles, not too many corners to check, and a lot (and we mean a LOT) of wallbangable areas. If you want to be a complete nerd, take Sova with an Odin and make your opponent’s life a nightmare.

Still, 3 sites are a lot, and you need to plan your rotations accordingly. One of the most common scenarios on Haven is when your defense overrotates and allows attackers to plant without a fight.

1. Split

Split loading screen

It’s great to see Split back. Are we a little bit biased because we liked it before and now Split is back after 6 months out of the Competitive queue? Maybe. But the updated Split truly has the potential to be the #1 map in Valorant.

The problem with Split before was similar to the one on Ascent – getting in on sites was extremely difficult thanks to tight chokepoints. And mid-control may not always help you to turn the tide. So how is it better now?

Let’s go one by one starting with the A execute. A lobby now has two elevation points to throw the enemy crosshair off guard. If you get a pick, you can advance through Main and Ramps with lots of space to work with. A lurk on Mid to Vents will help you in that too.

Going B through B Main is a bit more difficult despite the map changes under Rafters. This is where Mid comes into play. Going from Mid to Tower is much easier than contesting Vents and now you have all the angles you need to secure a site.

With that, Split becomes a more balanced map than before. There is still a defender advantage, we’ll give you that. But what makes up for that is the variety of agents you can play. There are no obvious must-picks so you can go all out on your favorite agent.

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AUTHOR

Based in the UK, Edward is a Guides Editor at Gamezo. He's all about esports and gaming and plays a little bit of everything. But his favorite game of all time is Destiny 2.