Split Remains Unplayed in VALORANT VCT LOCK//IN Tournament
Split, one of the maps in the VALORANT rotation for competitive and unrated play, has yet to see any action in the VCT LOCK//IN tournament in São Paulo. It has been banned in every series so far, making it the only map to receive this unfortunate distinction.
Although it’s still early in the tournament and the sample size is small, Split has been consistently banned in the map pick/ban phase of all six series in VCT LOCK//IN. Fracture, another map, has also not been played yet across the six best-of-three series. However, in the Cloud9 vs. Paper Rex series, Fracture was technically picked as map three but the series ended in only two maps due to a clear win by Cloud9.
In contrast, the newly introduced Lotus map has been picked twice but both times resulted in losses for the teams that chose it. Paper Rex lost against Cloud9 and FunPlus Phoenix lost to Karmine Corp.
This hesitancy towards Split can be attributed to its absence from the active rotation for a long period of time. Players have had fewer opportunities to familiarize themselves with Split compared to other maps. On the other hand, when Lotus was released, players had the chance to play it exclusively in a Lotus-only queue.
Related: ‘I’ve killed pros doing it’: VALORANT coach explains why you should hold this ‘cheeky’ Split angle
Furthermore, it’s possible that some teams are intentionally holding back strategies and not revealing their full playbook. With the VCT league play beginning in a month, teams may be looking to maintain an element of surprise and avoid elimination from the tournament.
VALORANT, VCT LOCK//IN, Split map, competitive play, map pick/ban phase, Lotus map, hesitation, absence, ranked play, strategy, VCT league play.