Since Valorant has been confirmed for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X | S, players all have one question: Will Valorant console have crossplay?
Valorant has been out on PC for four years. Over the past three years, the esports industry has burgeoned into a massive force, gaining global traction. Besides Riot’s consistent effort to boost Valorant esports in all regions, the game is inherently competitive. For this reason, it attracts players looking for serious competition.
So when Riot announced Valorant for console at Summer Game Fest 2024, it left players wondering if there would be crossplay.
No. Crossplay between Valorant PC and the console will not be available.
However, Xbox players will be able to face off against PlayStation players — but not against PC players.
Riot Games confirmed this on the game’s official X handle. This was confirmed alongside cross-progression and cross-inventory, two features that would help PC players gain an edge over new console players. If you own any PC skins, they will also be available to use in the Valorant console. The same goes for unlocked agents.
This funnel between Valorant PC and console concerned serious players who were never in favor of crossplay for mechanical reasons. Differences in gameplay can cause disruptions at higher levels of play. Since Valorant is a highly competitive game played internationally, crossplay would have caused some serious mechanical disparities.
A great example is Apex Legends, which supports crossplay across all platforms. This has sparked a lot of controversy between keyboard/mouse players and controller users, with the former accusing the latter of exploiting movement strategies. Since Valorant is as competitive as Apex Legends, if not more, these issues would be unavoidable had Riot allowed crossplay.
Fortunately, that is not the case. While players can share their cosmetic and battle pass progress across platforms, their ranks would be different for PC and console. Moreover, PC players will not be allowed to queue with their friends across any other platform in Valorant.
Valorant is expected to release on console by the end of 2024. A limited beta test goes live on July 14.
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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