Valorant
Valorant
Fan creates 3D version of the most expensive knife in Valorant
Fariha Bhatti
The Spectrum knife, also known as Waveform, is one-of-a-kind collector’s piece. It’s so costly that a player has decided to make his own. Riot Games has rolled out over 30 skin bundles, but nothing comes close to the greatness of the Spectrum collection. Riot Games’ collaboration with Zedd was a wild moment in Valorant’s history, resulting in the most expensive bundle to date. The sky-high price tag of this collection …
Valorant
This lineup lets Fade hang a whole team from a ceiling on Haven
Fariha Bhatti
Fade’s kit may appear deadly, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be funny sometimes. This new Fade lineup on Haven leaves enemies swinging off the ground on any attempted C push. The latest recruit to the Valorant roster is fierce, heartless, and has scary powers. The initiator can be a menace to dodge as her cats are all-seeing while the Terror Trails follow enemies across the map. It’s safe to …
Valorant
The complete guide to playing Sage in Valorant
Fariha Bhatti
The sole revivor in Valorant, Sage, is the go-to agent for elementary players. But, she has much more to offer. Learn how to use Sage to win more competitive games in Valorant. All 19 agents in Valorant have extraordinary powers that set them apart. However, these characters share some special abilities that are the nucleus of any FPS game. Smokes, molotovs, and flashes have generously been distributed among all agents …
Valorant
Here’s how to manually customize your crosshair in Valorant
Fariha Bhatti
Are you looking to customize your crosshair? Valorant’s advanced crosshair settings can be a tad confusing. Here’s how to easily tune and customize your crosshair in Valorant. Copying crosshair codes of professional Valorant players is usually the easiest way to get a good crosshair. But some players may not be satisfied with the cookie-cutter approach of copying codes. Fortunately, existing crosshairs can be tweaked to your personal liking if you …
Valorant
Riot announces VCT Masters will be Valorant’s first live audience event
Fariha Bhatti
Riot Games has dropped huge news for fans of Valorant’s growing esports scene. The VCT Masters stage 2 event in Copenhagen will allow a live audience for the first time. Valorant was released in the first half of 2020, which was the worst time for live esports events. With significant tournaments being shelved worldwide, players could only daydream of watching Valorant in a crowd, cheering for their favorite teams in …
Valorant
Bugged Icebox A site spot gives wallhacks to the enemy team
Fariha Bhatti
This magical wall on Icebox may be providing attackers with a wallhack. Is this particular spot on Icebox bugged? Valorant has multiple agents that bring wallhack-like powers into the game. Sova and Fade can expose enemies behind solid objects, and Cypher casts an all-seeing gaze. Despite these powers, players still want to know more. Valorant’s strict anti-cheat has successfully kept serial cheaters at bay, but its own bugs may be …
Valorant
Ranking all the best pistols in Valorant and when to use them
Fariha Bhatti
Competitive players sometimes don’t care as much about eco rounds and play them carelessly. But you should remember that it’s always possible to win these rounds by picking the best pistols in Valorant. Economy management is crucial to winning a game in Valorant. Making the call to save or buy can help your team to stay competitive even after losing a round. But knowing when to make these decisions isn’t …
Valorant
This Valorant strategy app gives you in-game tips in real-time
Fariha Bhatti
Have you learned tons of Valorant lineups only to blank out during a competitive game? It’s a common problem, but a new Valorant strategy app called Tip Genius can help. Valorant has 19 agents, and each brings a different set of abilities into the fray. Learning how to use each character is no picnic. So it’s entirely normal to be confused in a ranked game, especially for players who constantly …
Night. Market returns for Valorant Episode 4 Act 3
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Valorant’s popular Night. Market is returning for thrifters and skin collectors alike. Extravagant skins are officially going on sale for a limited period of time. Valorant’s shiny skins are a sweet dream for many, but not everyone can afford them. The guns can cost an arm and a leg, setting players back potentially hundreds of dollars. Skin enthusiasts don’t think twice before pressing the buy button, but competitive players often …
New eco-punk Titanmail skin collection leaked for Valorant
William Davis
Valorant
VP burning a hole in your pocket? The upcoming Titanmail Valorant skin collection is the perfect way to spend it. Reputable Valorant leaker ValorLeaks has revealed a new skin collection currently in the works at Riot Games. The Titanmail skin collection is a black and green skin set accented with crystals. It’s not clear if the bundle will include any special animations or alternate colors. Even without these extras, Titanmail …
These tricky Cypher camera lineups can win your games on Split
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Split is Cypher’s home turf as he shines the most on the Japanese battleground. And these camera lineups can help make Split a cakewalk. Smaller Valorant locations are tough to tackle due to excessive chokepoints and tight alleyways. Few agents can effectively handle the challenge of shining on Split the way Cypher does. The Morrocan spy is equipped with trailblazing tech that helps him hide his utility in plain sight. …
Chamber hit with big nerfs in Valorant 4.09, here’s what changed
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Valorant’s card shark and ace trickster Chamber has been owning enemies across all ranks but Riot Games has taken notice, and is nerfing one of his best skills. New agents in Valorant often struggle to find their footing in the first few months. Chamber was not among them, becoming an instant hit thanks to his golden guns. The sleek and stylish sentinel quickly became a player favorite and an effective …
Here’s every Classic skin in Valorant and how much they cost
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
The cheap and tiny Classic can be deadly in the hands of the right agent. With the perfect skin, the first-round pistol warrants a kill in style. Riot Games has rolled out dozens of skins for the Valorant arsenal since the game’s release in 2020. The assortment of cosmetics and their rarity keep players hooked to the top shooter of 2022. While some enjoy Valorant for its cut-throat competitive vibe, …
KovaaK 3.0 update makes the best aim training game even better
William Davis
Counter-Strike
The KovaaK 3.0 update is bringing map-making tools, upgraded graphics, and more to what is looking like the best aim training game on the market. Aim training game KovaaK has released its highly-anticipated 3.0 update. The patch includes a new map editing system that allows any player to make complex training scenarios. It also comes with a complete graphical overhaul and a ton of performance improvements. The shiniest new toy …
Shroud’s new Fade lineup on Icebox is too OP
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Fade is not just your regular blackmailer. The Valorant agent is also an ace trickster who exposes enemies from their hiding points, as shown expertly by FPS pro Michael “shroud” Grzesiek. The latest Initiator Fade has turned out to be a meta-shaker. She has quickly found her footing in the intel-gatherer roster despite the master of Intel, Sova. Her fierce cats have allowed her to become a centerpiece in almost …
Fade can hang enemies from the ceiling with this Split lineup
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Fade is turning out to be a menace a few weeks after her release and this new lineup on the Split B site proves that she’s a force to be reckoned with. Valorant’s latest recruit she excels at pausing pushes. While she can be played without learning any lineups, players are finding some very effective ones for highly trafficked locations. The terrifying initiator has an edge over top intelligence gatherers …
Riot confirms Phoenix buffs are coming to Valorant
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
After months of player complaints, Riot Games has finally confirmed massive Phoenix buffs are coming in the future. It’s no secret that Riot Games plays a crucial role in shaping up Valorant’s cut-throat meta. The ever-evolving game takes a new form each time a new agent enters the roster. Players must be able to adapt to the changes and switch their playstyle to stay successful in new acts. But, these …
Try these 3 tricks to raise your FPS in Valorant
William Davis
Valorant
More FPS tricks lead to more spraydowns, more headshots, and more ranked match victories in Valorant. Whether they have a GTX 3090 or no graphics card at all, Valorant players are always looking to squeeze a little more performance out of their machines. In-game settings go a long way to help, but there are a few more tips and tricks to raising Valorant FPS. Here are three things to try …
Fade has insane win rate after launch, are nerfs coming?
William Davis
Valorant
New Valorant characters usually have a low win rate, but Fade is already showing signs of being overpowered. According to Valorant stat tracking website Valorbuff, Fade currently sports a win rate of 50.6%. That makes her the fourth-most winning character in the game. Such a high win rate so close to her release indicated that Fade could become a major problem once players get comfortable with her. Will Riot Games …
Riot is testing a huge nerf to Chamber in Valorant right now
William Davis
Valorant
Chamber is about to plummet down the win rate tables if a new nerf becomes official on live servers. The Valorant Public Beta Environment has revealed that Riot Games is currently testing a major nerf to Chamber. His Trademark ability, which is Chamber’s main defensive tool, could go from two charges to just one. This would have a major impact on his play style, especially for more defensive players. Here’s …
Riot Games has long looked to expand its footprint beyond the success of popular MOBA League of Legends, and one of its biggest successes to date in this regard is the tactical shooter, Valorant. Blending traditional first-person shooter elements with unique and flashy hero abilities, Valorant seeks to combine the best attributes of tactical shooters and hero shooters into one cohesive experience.
Based on player feedback, the game has largely succeeded in accomplishing those aims. It’s not an easy balance, and it’s one that is arguably still tenuous, but Riot Games seems to be doing as good a job of it as most fans have hoped for.
What type of game is Valorant?
Valorant is a first-person shooter that represents a unique blend of the tactical shooter and hero shooter subgenres. There are some games that represent similar gameplay elements, but not many that offer the exact experience that Valorant puts forward to players.
The tactical shooter genre is often considered to have been defined by the release of the original Counter-Strike, a multiplayer mod for famed single-player PC title Half-Life that later became a standalone game of its own. While most multiplayer FPS games to that point emphasized prolonged battles between opposing players zipping around the game at high speeds, Counter-Strike slowed things down significantly and made players much more susceptible to each other’s firepower, requiring players to take a more tactical approach to play.
That slower and more tactical approach, combined with the lightning-quick nature of action when it does occur, proved reliably popular. That popularity can still be seen today with the ongoing success enjoyed by the Counter-Strike franchise, and it’s this gameplay type that represents the core of Valorant. It’s no accident that former Counter-Strike developers were drafted by Riot Games to help create Valorant during the game’s formative stages.
What differentiates Valorant from CS and other tactical shooters it that each of the game’s characters, called agents, wield a number of unique abilities. Some are typical for tactical shooters, like flashbangs and smokes, while others are wildly different, such as an ability that transports two players to an isolated dueling arena for its duration.
These agent abilities are more reminiscent of hero shooters, a subgenre that arguably got its start with the Team Fortress games but has best been popularized by Blizzard title Overwatch. The abilities, combind with the tactical considerations that are at the core of Valorant, separate it from most any other FPS experience available for play.
How does Valorant esports work?
Like many other popular competitive shooters, Valorant does have a thriving esports scene. That scene is differentiated by the way it’s run and controlled by developer and publisher Riot Games. Riot uses a model based on the success of its League of Legends esports scene, which sees the globe’s competitive players and team’s separated by region. These regions play out their own competitions in their sections of the world before coming together at regular intervals for international tournaments featuring the best teams from each individual region.
While League of Legends once boasted a variety of regions and regional types, Riot sought to simplify that model when setting up esports for Valorant. The game has only a handful of major regions, and these regions are held as largely equitable, each sending their best teams to international events leading up to the year-end VALORANT Champions event.
