Riot disables competitive Valorant to fix secret Raze nerf

Fariha Bhatti Published 24/03/2022

Valorant competitive queues have been disabled for the day to patch game-breaking bugs in Spike and Raze’s kit.

Patch 4.05 brought several quality upgrades and a Brimstone nerf, but some secret bugs also tagged along. The latest update has glitched the Valorant system across all maps to the point that developers were forced to disable queues. Players will have to wait at least a day before entering competitive lobbies.

Raze is at the center of the new issue causing equipment issues among the players. Riot initially assured a quick fix, but the problem seems to require an entire day.

https://twitter.com/PlayVALORANT/status/1506830739643412485

“These bugs turned out to be trickier than we thought, so we’re making the call to disable Competitive queues for now until we can get a fix in, hopefully by tomorrow,” Riot Games said.

What is the secret Raze nerf in Valorant?

The secret Raze nerf came along with the “prioritize strongest weapon” feature in patch 4.05. The new upgrade isn’t acting as intended for Raze’s kit, delaying shoot time and strange satchels.

Raze’s selling point is her satchel, allowing players to hop across the map and quickly shoot down enemies. However, after the new patch, the agent can’t equip her weapon as she could before. There’s an extra delay due to a slow animation. This secret Raze nerf is dangerous, putting players in a risky spot. Many have complained of malfunctioning in her ultimate, where players can’t cancel it mid-animation.

https://twitter.com/LadiffYT/status/1506581312693485570

Another bug added fuel to Raze mains’ frustrations. The Spike defuse sound wasn’t consistently audible in the game, which is considered game-breaking in a game so reliant on sound cues. Players complained of losing many rounds and games due to the bugged audio, as this particular sound cue is often used to eliminate the defuser. The developer warranted a two-hour fix earlier, but the patch 4.05 glitches go deeper.

The secret Raze nerf and weird Spike glitch that muted the defuse sound has caused the developer to turn off the queues. Valorant players will have to wait before they can continue their ranked grind. Raze is one of the most used agents in Valorant, so it’s no surprise that developers are attempting to make a quick fix.

How long does it take to plant the Spike in Valorant?

The Spike takes approximately four seconds to be activated, which triggers an explosion countdown. After the four-second timer, it becomes impossible for the defenders to play around the Spike to win the round. One of the easiest ways to win a game as the attacker is to stall the plant and run down the timer.

Fariha Bhatti

About Fariha Bhatti

Fariha Bhatti is a long-time gaming writer who loves competitive FPS games and slots with particularly fun themes. She got her start playing classic games developed by SNK, from legendary fighting game series The King of Fighters to challenging platform franchise Metal Slug. She now spends most of her time playing Valorant and Counter-Strike 2 while working her way through new slot releases to find her next favorite. Fariha has been published at PCGamesN, TalkEsport and ONE Esports.

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