Riot Games has just revealed the detailed patch notes of the Valorant 12.00 update, and there’s a whole lot of exciting changes to unpack.

The first Valorant patch of 2026 brings with it a ton of changes to the competitive shooter, including a brand-new addition to the arsenal, a rework to one of the most hated maps in the game, alongside a series of Agent changes that are likely to impact the ranked meta.

In this article, we’ll take a look at all the changes that the upcoming Valorant Season 2026 Act 1 update will introduce to the Riot Games title.

Valorant 12.00 Update Release Date

Before we delve deeper into the patch notes, it’s important to know when the Valorant 12.00 patch will hit the live servers.

As already confirmed by the devs, the Valorant Season 2026 Act 1 update will be officially added to the game on January 8, 2026.

Valorant 12.00 Patch Notes Revealed

Below, we’ve listed the full patch notes of the Valorant Season 2026 Act 1 update, as revealed by Riot:

ALL PLATFORMS

GENERAL UPDATES

• Replays
  • Replays are now available for Custom Swiftplay and Standard matches. Party leaders can opt in to a Custom game being recorded in the Custom lobby settings.

COMPETITIVE UPDATES

• Hidden MMR Update
  • We’ve made changes to our hidden MMR calculation that should improve match quality and help bring more consistent experiences match-to-match.
• MFA for EU
  • Starting in 12.01, accounts detected for sharing in EU and all Ascendant+ players must enable Riot Mobile multi-factor authentication (MFA) to access Competitive queue. Other modes will remain unaffected.
    • You can check out this article for more information on why we’re making this change, or get yourself set up with MFA now using this how-to guide.

AGENTS UPDATES

• Breach
  • Breach has been underperforming in high level play so we are adding power back that we’re hoping will better reward precision and coordination.
  • Flashpoint
    • Projectile speed increased 20% from 2000 >>> 2400
  • Fault Line
    • Width increased from 7.5m >>> 8m
• Brimstone
  • Tactical map on the on Sky Smoke and Orbital Strike have been updated for better readability

• Harbor
  • Harbor’s new abilities haven’t made the splash we had hoped for, so we’re increasing the windows of advantage when enemies are hit by his new aggressive abilities.
  • Storm Surge
    • Explosion no longer requires line of sight to nearsight and slow players
    • Explosion windup decreased from 0.8s >>> 0.6s
    • Slow duration increased from 0.6s >>> 2s
  • Reckoning
    • Slow duration increased from 0.6s >>> 2s
• Sage
  • We have updated Sage targeting to make it more accurate to Agent models. Players can now heal targeted allies if the mid and lower sections of their models are blocked by geometry.
  • Healing Orb
    • Updated targeting
• Tejo
  • We’ve been confident in Tejo’s unique slot in the roster as our primary flushing Initiator, but wanted to add a bit of power to the abilities that are supporting Guided Salvos, round over round. Adding damage to Special Delivery should help provide an additional way to disrupt defensive utility in ways players are already able to do with Guided Salvos, while changes to Stealth Drone are aimed at helping with making the call to actions clearer for knowing where to place Guided Salvos or when playing alongside a Tejo.
  • Special Delivery
    • Concuss duration decreased from 4 seconds >>> 2.5 seconds
    • Added damage on the explosion
      • Maximum damage of 35 at center, with minimum damage of 20
  • Stealth Drone
    • Reveal type has been changed from Snapshot reveal to being fully Revealed
    • Pulse radius decreased from 30m >>> 16m
• Vyse
  • Vyse has been slightly underperforming after recent changes, so we’re giving back some area to Steel Garden to compensate. This should make site takes and defensive holds more reliable.
  • Steel Garden
    • Radius increased from 26m >>> 28m

MAP UPDATES

• Breeze Rework
  • Breeze is back-and has received our biggest map rework yet! We’ve made significant changes across the entire map to reduce angle complexity, tighten open spaces, and improve rotation times for defenders. The sun’s still shining, but a lot of your old setups probably won’t work. Check out this video to take a look at the changes.
  • Breeze Rework Event: For the first 2 weeks of Competitive, Breeze RR losses are reduced by 50%, wins are still 100% (to also help you learn the map!)
• Haven and Corrode
  • Haven and Corrode are receiving targeted wall penetration updates. We’re addressing specific positions where teams could meaningfully influence rounds through firing at walls with high penetration weapons without much exposure.
    • Haven
      • Mid Window
        • Added a breakable element to prevent early round start kills through wall penetration

• Corrode
  • Some of Corrode’s wall materials have made certain positions too effective at denying space through penetration alone. We’re adjusting the wall materials in key areas so that holding these spots requires more commitment.
    • A Site
      • Adjusted wall material on a key surface

• B Site
  • Adjusted wall material on a key surface

• Map Pool Updates
  • BREEZE is IN the COMPETITIVE and DEATHMATCH queues.
  • SUNSET is OUT of the COMPETITIVE and DEATHMATCH queues.

MODES UPDATES

• New Limited Time Mode
  • Introducing All Random One Site-an all new fast-paced 5v5 limited-time mode. Your Agent changes every round, you fight for a single site, loadouts are free, and abilities recharge throughout the round while high-value Ultimate Orbs are scattered across the map-get ready for ultimate chaos!
    • Mode Details
      • Random Agents
        • You’re assigned a new random Agent every round-no duplicates per team
        • All Agents are available regardless of ownership
    • Single Site
      • Each round activates one bomb site with barriers blocking unused areas of the map
      • The active site randomizes each round
      • Active site is revealed during the buy phase
    • Available Maps
      • Abyss, Ascent, Breeze, Corrode, Pearl, Icebox, Sunset, Split
    • Abilities
      • Full ability charges granted each round at no cost
      • Abilities recharge throughout the round
    • Ultimate Orbs
      • Start each round at 0% ultimate charge
      • Ultimate Orbs are placed around the map and grant 50% ultimate charge when captured
      • Kills grant 50% ultimate charge
      • Killed players drop Ground Orbs containing their accumulated charge
    • Loadouts
      • No economy-select your loadout each round
      • Weapon offerings escalate through stages as the match progresses
  • Leaving Limited Time Mode
    • Snowball Fight is heading out. Thanks for playing!

PLAYER BEHAVIOR UPDATES

• Behavior Standing is Live!
  • You’ll see an indicator on the Social Panel if you have an active penalty or are at immediate risk of a future penalty. After expanding the indicator, you’ll see additional information related to your active and at-risk penalties.
• Riot Games Community Pact
  • Play to Win. Play Fair. Play with Respect. Or play something else.
  • When you log in for the first time after this patch you’ll see the Community Pact. The Community Pact is an evolution of the Community Code and covers our expectations for player behavior. However, unlike the Community Code, you should expect to see and recommit to it every year.
  • To better reflect these expectations in-game, we’ve updated the categories and descriptions on Report Player screens to align with these core principles.
• We’ve adjusted our systems for Chat and Inappropriate Name penalties.
  • Our systems will more reliably issue firmer penalties sooner for frequent or severe Voice and Text Chat offenses.
  • If you receive an Account Ban for having an Inappropriate Riot ID, you’ll be unable to change your Riot ID until the ban is over.

WEAPONS UPDATES

• Introducing the Bandit, a precision sidearm with 1-tap headshot power for those that want to steal some rounds on a budget. The Bandit lands right between the Ghost and Sheriff, offering more diversity in light rounds whether choosing to focus on Agent abilities or focus on gunplay.
  • Weapon Class: Sidearm
  • Price: 600 credits
  • Attachments: None
  • Bullets per Magazine: 8
  • Ammo Reserve: 24
  • Reload Timing: 1.5s
  • Equip Timing: .75s
  • Wall Penetration: Medium

BUG FIXES

• Agents
  • General Agents: Fixed a bug where ability cooldown bars would disappear for observers when switching between Agents.
  • General Agents: Fixed many bugs where throw animations would break if aiming straight down.
    • This applies to Clove’s Meddle, Cypher’s Cyber Cage, Deadlock’s Gravnet and Barrier Mesh, Fade’s Haunt and Seize, Gekko’s Mosh Pit, Iso’s Undercut, Jett’s Cloudburst, KAY/O’s FRAG/MENT, Pheonix’s Hot Hands, Reyna’s Leer, and Viper’s Poison Cloud.
  • Astra:
    • Fixed a bug where Astra’s Nebula created by Dissipate did not have an icon on the minimap.
  • Breach:
    • Fixed a bug where Breach’s Rolling Thunder was launching people at inconsistent heights if Breach was on different elevation.
  • Clove:
    • Fixed a bug where their total health pool was displaying 151 instead of 150 when overhealed with Pick Me Up.
  • Cypher:
    • Fixed a bug where a placed Trapwire could be heard being placed again as the barrier drops.
  • Deadlock:
    • Fixed a bug where Annihilation would phase through certain parts of Breeze and leave captured enemies stuck against a wall.
  • Gekko:
    • Fixed a bug where Wingman could continue chasing players after they teleport away.
  • Sova:
    • Fixed a bug where switching to melee after fully charging Recon Dart or Shock Dart caused the lightning VFX to disappear for the rest of the game.
  • Veto:
    • Fixed a bug where Chokehold’s jump throw trajectory was inconsistent.
  • Yoru:
    • Fixed a bug where using Dimensional Drift while attaching to an ascender would cause Yoru to get stuck in an animation loop.
• Maps
  • Haven
    • Fixed unintended wall penetration between A Tower and A Site
    • Fixed unintended wall penetration between B Site and C Garage
  • Bind
    • Fixed unintended wall penetration between B Window and B Garden
• Competitive
  • Fixed an issue where V25A3 ranked gun buddies were shown in your collection with the incorrect name of “V25A6.”

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PC ONLY

CLIENT UPDATES

• Refreshed Home Screen Layout
  • The Home Screen has been revamped to utilize the top navigation of other screens
• Refreshed Lobby / Queue Select
  • Matchmade Lobby
    • Added a “Queue Select” screen, with new art and queue descriptions
    • Your currently selected queue is now more prominently displayed on the left side of the lobby screen
  • Custom Lobby
    • Updated layout for custom lobby
      • Mode and Map select are now located on the left and utilize selection screens with new art and descriptions
• Refreshed Social Panel
  • The Social Panel has been revamped with a fresh coat of paint and some quality of life improvements, including a new tab for managing friend requests!

PREMIER UPDATES

• Welcome to Stage V26A1! Matches start on January 14.
• If your team was in the Invite Division in Stage V25A6 and did not finish the Stage in the top 16 teams, your team has been demoted. You’ll see your new Provisional Division in the Premier hub.
  • Demoted teams seeded into the zone they originally promoted from. Your Team Owner can change your team’s zone in the Team Settings dropdown anytime before your team plays a match.
  • If your team cannot be placed into a zone, your Team Owner will be prompted to select a zone.

BUG FIXES

• Agent
  • Deadlock:
    • Fixed a bug where Barrier Mesh walls were sometimes invisible if placed when experiencing packet loss.
  • KAY/O:
    • Fixed a bug where KAY/O would make no sound upon dying while downed in NULL/cmd.

KNOWN ISSUES

• Client
  • Known Issue with Whispers
    • If whispering a friend doesn’t work, you can send them a message via Riot Client’s social panel first, join a party together, or re-add them as a friend.

CONSOLE ONLY

BUG FIXES

• Client
  • The queue timer now displays correctly when disconnecting and reconnecting with the timer active.
  • The queue can now be canceled after reconnecting with the timer active.
  • “Choose a mode” now properly displays as “Choose a Queue” on the queue select screen.
  • You can now start the queue after the party leader leaves or the party is disbanded.