Olivia R. April 17, 2020
Ranked mode is coming to Valorant and closed beta participants are panicking about the game's potential exploits.
One of the most recent movement tricks in the game is the use of ropes on Split. There are a few ropes throughout the map that players can hook onto in order to reach high ground more rapidly. While attached to the ropes, players found out they could still fire their weapons. Because of this, players started to come forward with concerns over the ropes. Some even questioned if it gave people an unfair advantage, especially since it appeared that weapon accuracy is not lost lost while sliding on the ropes.
"Is rope accuracy here to stay? It seems a bit overpowered with the extra movement speed you get," one Reddit user said on a thread that has since gone viral. The accompanying video shows him sliding up and down the rope while approaching enemies on the top floor. He is able to expertly avoid their shots by gliding quickly back down the rope. He was able simultaneously to land headshots while quickly climbing back up the rope and into view.
To those in the thread's surprise, Valorant developer Pearl "ManWolfAxeBoss" Hogbash chimed in that the ropes were actually working as intended. In fact, he went on to say that the ropes do affect accuracy.
"Accuracy on ascenders is a bit worse than walking state. These are nice shots, but also some luck involved. We're keeping an eye on how it plays and will tune as needed," ManWolfAxeBoss said.
ManWolfAxeBoss went on to say that there's no movement speed bonus while on the ropes. People sliding up and down ropes move at the same speed as running with an Operator. It most likely just seems faster because people are used to walking around the maps to avoid detection.
Valorant beta players debate rope usage
If the ropes actually worsen your accuracy and don't offer increased mobility, should people even be using them?
According to ManWolfAxeBoss, climbing ropes allows players to accelerate a bit more quickly. That may be what closed beta participants are noticing.
"One of the big differences is the ascenders don't have the same acceleration as normal movement, so you hit max speed almost instantly. That and verticality, like you mentioned, makes them feel pretty quick," he wrote.
This comment made some Valorant players continue to question the fairness of the map's ropes. One Redditor responded that hitting full speed faster makes it "easier to jiggle up and down," which still adds increased mobility over someone who is standing.
Others agreed that it's still "unbalanced." Some even called them "broken." Since the game relies so much on accuracy, similar to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the risks of taking shots while bobbing up and down is "quite low." This has made many call for the accuracy to be nerfed while on the ropes.
But it doesn't seem like Riot's developer team is seeing it that way for the time being.
While the ropes are working as intended, ManWolfAxeBoss did notice one thing in the video that wasn't. At one point OP was able to stand on top of a door, shooting down at the unsuspecting players below him. According to the Valorant developer, this is not intended and the team is currently fixing it.