Bind is finally back in Competitive and Unrated.

Patch 6.08 is live, and its arrival marks the return of the fan-favorite map Bind into the Competitive and Unrated map pool. Other changes include Gekko sound updates, Killjoy ability changes, and visual changes to select Shorty skins, to name a few.
In this quick guide, we have outlined everything you need to know about VALORANT Patch 6.08.
What’s new for Patch 6.08 in VALORANT?
With Patch 6.08, Riot Games brings important balance changes to Gekko and Killjoy. The former gets a slight nerf to her abilities and how they interact in various situations, while the latter gets updated sound cues for Wingman’s plant and defuses audio cues. In the new patch, Brimstone and Omen will also get minor targeting updates for their smoke abilities.
Map rotation changes also headline Patch 6.08 with the return of the updated Bind to the Competitive and Unrated map pool. Icebox is removed to make room for Bind.
Minor cosmetic updates to some Shorty Skins have also been added in Patch 6.08. Riot Games says these are mostly art updates meant to bring Shorty’s visuals up to par with the rest of the weapons in-game.
To round things off, a slew of bug fixes and social updates have also been completed for Patch 6.08.
Let’s start with Gekko and his minor improvements to Wingman’s audio cues.
Gekko Updates
- Wingman gets improved audio for planting and defusing. The audio cue should stand out more, even in hectic situations.
- Gekko finally gets his HD portrait.
Killjoy Updates

- Nanoswarm’s reveal radius has been increased from 350 to 525. Hidden Nanoswarms will now be visible sooner to enemies.
- Nanoswarm’s ‘buzz’ audio loop will turn off whenever Killjoy is suppressed or killed.
- Improved feedback for destroying Nanoswarm.
- Nanoswarm will now be visible when Killjoy is suppressed or killed.
- Updated destroyed animation for Killjoy’s Lockdown.
- Yellow warning UI Indicator for enemy team’s Killjoy Lockdown.
- Updated audio for disabled Turret and Alarmbot to make them more distinct.
Improved Brimstone and Omen Smoke Targeting

- Updated targeting visuals to help players make more precise smoke placements.
Shorty Cosmetic Updates
The following Shorty skins have been given a visual update to bring visual quality in line with the remaining guns in the game.

- Default Shorty
- Wunderkind Shorty
- Sidekick Shorty
- Karabasan Shorty
- Prism II Shorty
- Doodle Buds Shorty
Map Rotation Updates

- Bind is back in the Competitive and Unrated map pool.
- Icebox is removed from the Competitive and Unrated map rotation.
Bug Fixes and Social Updates
- “Kick ally off” visual bug while defusing the Spike has been fixed.
- Spike progress bar bug has been fixed.
- Yoru weapon drop bug while using Dimensional Drift has been fixed.
- Fixed party invite bugs where invalid invites persist.
- The bug where the Team and All chat logs for the entire match would be wiped out after the match had been fixed.
- Fixed punctuation marks bugs when using Thai as an in-game language.
You can read the full VALORANT Patch Notes 6.08 here.