Icebox melts again and Valorant fans are not chill about it

Valorant Map Rotation: Icebox Out, Abyss Returns 

Icebox is out, and the players are ice cold

Just when you thought you got your frozen battlefield back for a nice long time, Riot puts Icebox on the bench again. With the release of Episode 9, Act 1, the fan-favorite map is out of the competitive and unrated pools again. Not even a month after being back in for a quick episode in Episode 8, Act 3.

If you’ve ever been the last one picked in gym class, you know the feeling. Icebox is getting invited to the party and then told to go home halfway through the music. This is not even funny anymore; it’s a meme.

This isn’t the first time Riot has cycled a map out. Icebox has always been a divisive map with its slippery angles and zipline chaos. But it got its groove back in recent acts. Players were vibing again, and some even said it was the most tactical map in the pool.

And then poof. Gone. No goodbye, no note, just swapped out.

Act 5 COMPETITIVE MAP ROTATION

Icebox is out, and Abyss is back pic.twitter.com/OPmeOR446r

— VALORANT (@VALORANT) July 21, 2025

Abyss is back, but not everyone is diving in

In place of Icebox, we get Abyss, a map that is basically Valorant on hard mode. No walls on the edges, weird vertical setups, and way too many opportunities to fall off. If you are clumsy or love to rush B without thinking, get ready to respawn a lot.

Abyss first came out in Episode 8, Act 3, and reactions were mixed. Some loved the chaos. Others just wanted a map where they didn’t have to worry about gravity as a third enemy. Despite the criticism, Riot decided to bring it back.

Their reasoning: “We want players to adapt and master new challenges,” they wrote in a blog post. Translation: Get good, kids.

Why this rotation system has players rolling their eyes

The 6-map rotation system was introduced to reduce queue times and prevent map fatigue. But let’s be real. When a map you love gets benched just as you are getting good at it, it feels more annoying than refreshing.

You load into a match, excited to play Icebox, and bam. It’s gone again. Back to Bind or Ascent for the millionth time. No shade to those maps, but it’s like listening to your favorite song on shuffle and it never plays.

Even streamers and pros are starting to speak out. “We just got Icebox back, and now it’s gone again?” one popular streamer posted on X. “Feels bad, man.”

Here’s what’s live

For Episode 9, Act 1, the current map pool is

• Abyss

• Ascent

• Bind

• Breeze

• Haven

 • Sunset

If you’re an Icebox preferential player, then it’s time to re-evaluate your strats or take a moment to catch your breath and touch grass, of course metaphorically.

So where do we go from here?

Icebox could be back in Act 2, or it could be in deep freeze for even longer. For now, Abyss is our reality, whether we like it or not. Who knows? We could warm up to it. Or we could all just keep slipping on the map and wish we were back in the cool comfort of Icebox.

Valorant is all about adaptation. But for now a lot of players just want Riot to stop making rotation a new trend.

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