VALORANT 12.03 PATCH NOTES

Written by: Wei

17/02/2026

HELLO everyone! It’s Joy, bringing you the latest with Patch 12.03.

This is a short one, so here’s the TL;DR:

Skirmish arrives as a queueable 2v2 mode
Pick’Ems are ready for Masters Santiago
MFA is rolling out in APAC
Loadouts have been updated in All Random One Site

ALL PLATFORMS

AGENT UPDATES

Viper

Added new voice lines, including conversation lines with Omen and Vyse.

Gekko
Since Patch 11.08, we’ve heard feedback that Gekko has felt substantially weaker compared to other Initiators, with fewer opportunities to play around his Reclaim. These changes aim to unify the ruleset across his abilities, increase flexibility in reclaiming Globules, and provide a slight overall power buff.

Globules

Reclaim timer increased: 15s → 20s

Mosh Pit

Now reclaimable

GENERAL UPDATES

Audio occlusion now responds to map doorways being opened, closed, or destroyed.
When watching replays, you now have a setting to skip spectating dead players.

COMPETITIVE UPDATES

In APAC, accounts flagged for sharing and all Ascendant+ players must enable Riot Mobile multi-factor authentication (MFA) to access the Competitive queue. Other modes remain unaffected.

You can read more about this change in the official article, or set up MFA now using the provided how-to guide.

ESPORTS FEATURES

Masters Santiago Pick’Ems

Pick’Ems return for Masters Santiago! Starting February 19 (PT), you can make your Swiss Stage predictions in-client or on the web.

For the Swiss Stage, you’ll predict which teams advance from the 8-team Swiss groups. For bonus points, try predicting a flawless 2-0 team.

Earn an exclusive title just for participating, with additional prizes based on your performance against other players.

VCT Player Stats
Player stats are now available on the Esports Hub Teams page. Check them out and see how you compare.

MODES UPDATES

NEW LIMITED-TIME MODE

Skirmish: 2v2
Skirmish enters matchmaking as a limited-time 2v2 queue. Expect compact maps, no abilities, and pure gunplay. Grab a partner and put your mechanics to the test.

Mode Details

2v2 matchmaking queue
Solo queue or bring a partner
First to 10 rounds wins

Gameplay

Abilities disabled
Full weapon selection each round (no economy)
No agent select — hop in and go next fast

Available Maps

Skirmish A
Skirmish B
Skirmish C

A map is randomly selected each match.

ALL RANDOM ONE SITE

Loadouts
We’ve taken another pass at Stages and Loadouts. While All Random One Site is chaotic by design, your loadout should still give you agency.

We’ve added weapons to several stages and buffed some niche options — jump in and see what’s new.

BUG FIXES

Modes

All Random One Site

Fixed an issue where Vyse could place infinite Razorvines during the Buy phase.

KNOWN ISSUES

Battlepass

Pressing ESC currently causes Battlepass elements to disappear/reappear instead of returning to the previous page. This will be resolved in Patch 12.04.
Scroll wheel navigation between tiers on the Battlepass or Event Pass currently does not work. A fix is coming soon.

Store

The accessories store background is currently missing. This will be fixed in Patch 12.04.
The Reaver Bandit is incorrectly labeled as a limited edition item. It is not limited edition and will be corrected in Patch 12.04.

PC ONLY

PROGRESSION UPDATES

Refreshed Event Pass & Battlepass

Updated layout and button visuals.
You can now navigate tiers using the mouse or arrow keys.