Are we about to see Vertigo removed from the competitive map pool? Could Train finally make its long-awaited return this season?
Speculation is running high, especially following the news of Train’s return in November, but definitive answers remain out of reach. For now, the only ones who know are Valve themselves.
“Do it ASAP”
While it’s still unclear whether the competitive map pool will see any updates, one thing is certain: if changes are coming, they need to be announced immediately.
This sentiment was brought to the forefront by Counter-Strike expert and caster Chad “SPUNJ” Burchill.
In a recent post on X, SPUNJ made a public appeal to Valve, emphasizing the importance of avoiding a fragmented start to the 2025 season caused by mid-season map pool changes.
SPUNJ’s appeal reads as follows:
– Hello Valve, the Aussie starts off.
– I hope you are enjoying your festivities this time of year. Today I would like to make an appeal that if you are planning to update the competitive map pool, you please do it ASAP. The first tournament of the year starts in 12 days and it would be nice to have the first season of 2025 not fractured by a map pool change mid-season. I hope this message reaches you well and you can see the sense in making such change. Thank you.
Look away now, SPUNJ
But what does Valve’s track record say about the timing of these decisions? Unfortunately for SPUNJ, past announcements have rarely favored the off-season.
In April 2024, Valve replaced Overpass with Dust2 mid-season. Similarly, Anubis entered the pool in November 2022, also mid-season.
With the first tournament of the year, BLAST Bounty, set to start in just ten days, time is running out for an announcement.
