Upcoming Apex Legends update nerfs Valkyrie's jetpack

In preparation for the Apex Legends Global Series (ALGS), developer Respawn Entertainment has taken a second look at Valkyrie. It will be making significant changes to how her passive ability works.

As is customary with almost every new addition to the Legend roster, changes are made to ensure competitive balance and viability. While Valkyrie's Tactical Hover nerf is specific to certain endgame scenarios, it does provide a fair endgame for other players.

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Valkyrie's "Tactical Hover" nerfed in preparation for Apex Legends Global Series

With Valkyrie's three weeks in the game, the developers noticed that players were abusing the intended "Tactical Hover" ability that consumes jetpack fuel at 10% the normal rate in endgame scenarios to hover over the action and cheese out victories. In response to this, they have taken away the reduced fuel consumption rate.

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).This will go live on Thursday.

— John Larson | JayBiebs (@RSPN_JayBiebs) May 25, 2021

The "Tac Hover" is when players hold down Valkyrie's tactical ability button in the air that allows them to hover slower, consume less fuel and aim their rockets more precisely.

After observing some scrims, however, the developers have decided to take this out of Apex Legends entirely as they noticed players "taking coffee breaks" during the final battle by hovering over everyone else.

While the move does ground Valkyrie in a certain sense, it may not be all that effective, as Valkyrie's Tactical Hover slowed her movement so much that shooting her out of the sky was not a challenge.

However, with how professional players play scrims and with the high stakes at ALGS, the move is a precautionary one that could pay off in the long run.

The update is set to drop on Thursday, May 27th, 2021. The exact time and update size haven't been shared yet.