Smite's Season 4 update introduces the Celtic pantheon, map updates, voice chat and more

Hi-Rez have announced the next wave of major changes to Smite at Hi-Rez Expo in Atlanta. Leading the charge is a new pantheon of gods, the Celts, and their first champion—The Morrigan. She's a mobile mage with the ability to create a decoy of herself and a crazy ultimate ability. When activated, she can pick any god currently in pay and transform into them for a short duration of time, gaining access to all of their abilities—including their ultimate. Whether that means creating a copy of your team's loaded-up hunter to boost your damage at a crucial moment or borrowing the enemy's best teamfight ultimate, she should make a big impact.

SWC 2017

The Smite World Championship concludes at HRX 2017 this weekend. For more on the event, click here.

Alongside a slew of updates to gods and items, relics are reworked and a new, powerful and expensive form of consumable called rituals are being introduced. The Conquest map—Smite's traditional three-lane mode—is also getting some new map objectives. Oracles near the Gold Harpy will spawn a ward in the area for the team that kills them, while defeating an elemental near the Fire Giant creates a one-way portal from your base to the objective for a limited time.
There's a new version of the two-lane Clash map coming, a total overhaul that gives the mode an Egyptian theme and adds a new central boss, the serpent Apophis.

They're also revamping ranked play, switching to seasons similar to the Smite Pro League and kicking off with a total MMR reset. There'll also be new god-specific leaderboards, an improved qualification process, UI updates, and an end to promotion matches. To help you build positive and mutually respectful relationships with your fellow players, Smite is also getting integrated voice chat for the first time. At least, I'm pretty sure that's how it's going to work.

There's a load more, including queuing for multiple game modes at once, a new collaboration with FaceIt for online leagues, new events, and a launch event for the Celtic pantheon that you can access for free if you have a Twitch Prime membership. For more information, check out the game's official site. For more from HRX 2017, keep an eye on PC Gamer Pro.

Joining in 2011, Chris made his start with PC Gamer turning beautiful trees into magazines, first as a writer and later as deputy editor. Once PCG's reluctant MMO champion , his discovery of Dota 2 in 2012 led him to much darker, stranger places. In 2015, Chris became the editor of PC Gamer Pro, overseeing our online coverage of competitive gaming and esports. He left in 2017, and can be now found making games and recording the Crate & Crowbar podcast.