It had been a hot minute since Riot Games added a new map to its hit competitive FPS game, but Valorant Season 5 changed that with its eighth new map, Pearl.
Originally codenamed ‘Pitt’, Pearl feels very unique when it comes to both its layout and its aesthetic. So, if you’re looking to learn more about the FPS game‘s first underwater map (yes, you read that right), here’s everything you need to know.
Pearl release date
Valorant’s Pearl map released on Wednesday, June 22, 2022. This coincided with the launch of Episode 5 Act 1. While Episode 5’s new agent, Harbor, didn’t release until a few months later, the map’s underwater theme ties in with Harbor’s oceanic abilities.
As with all map releases, Pearl didn’t immediately enter the competitive map rotation for a couple of weeks. It became playable in ranked matches on July 12, 2022 with Valorant patch 5.01.
To give players time to warm up to the map before they took the plunge, Pearl received its own dedicated casual queue for its first couple of weeks in the game.
Pearl trailer
Below you can watch the original reveal trailer for Valorant’s Pearl map.
Pearl location and features
Pearl is set beneath the ocean waves off the coast of Portugal on Omega Earth.
In-keeping with its Portuguese roots, Pearl features murals from Portuguese muralists, and the map’s music is a piece of traditional Portuguese fado, produced by local artists.
When it comes to gameplay, there are no special mechanics or gimmicks like doors or teleporters on Pearl, just three simple lanes – one small mid lane (which has a few offshoot sub-lanes), and two long range lanes on the flanks. However, there is an element of verticality. Pearl isn’t flat, and Attackers have to descend into Defender territory on this two-site map.
Pearl layout and callouts
Valorant has released a handy top-down view of Pearl, fully labelled with suggested callouts. Learning these callouts will make it super easy to communicate with other players you team up with.
There you have it, a handy primer on Valorant’s Pearl map. Now make sure your best Valorant crosshair is set up properly so that you can line up those angles perfectly.