A new Apex Legends update today, 1.70, has introduced a tweak to Valkyrie’s jetpack passive, the first nerf to the new Legend, albeit a minor one.

Most players would agree that Valkyrie has come out the gates well-balanced in Season 9, but Respawn identified one problem with her kit that they didn’t consider before.

In high-level competitive matches, Valk players ‘hovering’ for longer by holding down her tactical at the same time, which would consume fuel at only 10% of the normal rate.

Respawn didn’t want this to be abused at the ongoing ALGS Championship, and so are removing this tactical hover completely in patch 1.70.

Live balance designer John Larson explained: “Valk’s “tac hover” was designed to consume fuel at 10% of the normal rate. With ALGS ramping up, we figured we should remove this exception (we found Valks would often take coffee breaks above the final fight in scrims).”

Rather than nerfing the ability to simply consume slightly more fuel, Respawn has just removed it entirely, meaning holding Valkyrie’s tactical will not reduce how much fuel is used at all.

Apex Legends 1.70 update patch notes

• Switch fixes:
  • Fixed an issue with Switch users being kicked from the game due to system clock manipulation. Sorry Animal Crossing time travelers! Go get your bells.
  • Added a missing confirmation message after purchasing the Bloodhound x Lifeline edition
• Valkyrie adjustment:
  • Hovering while using Valk’s tactical now consumes the same amount of fuel compared to hovering while not using her tactical. This is a balance change meant to address Valkyrie players staying out of the fight for extended periods of time in late-game circles.
• Arenas:
  • Fixed the “Wins X rounds in Arenas” Challenges not tracking wins correctly
• Other:
  • Fixed a flickering issue caused by Legends with light effects in the lobby.
  • Miscellaneous stability fixes

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