Valorant
Valorant
Valorant Gaia skin bundle leak reveals release date, animation
Fariha Bhatti
The new skin bundle for Valorant episode 4 Act 2 looks promising based on leaks. Gaia is an interesting blend of Ruination and Spline collection. Valorant Episode 4 Act 1 brought a brand new agent to the protocol and is now wrapping up. Players are gearing up to restart their ranked grind in the new act that kicks off on March 1. A clean Gaia bundle will help players climb …
Valorant
This is why Riot won’t add map selection to Valorant
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant map rotation RNG has been an issue since the game’s release. Even with seven maps now in the rotation, the game still doesn’t have a map select feature, and now we finally know Riot’s reasoning. Valorant was released with four locations and no map select feature. Initially, players complained about sometimes having to play one map as many as six times in a row. Riot Games offered that greater …
Valorant
This Kay/O incendiary trick on Ascent destroys Killjoy’s ultimate
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant’s war machine Kay/O hasn’t seen much playtime since the release, but this new Kay/O incendiary trick may change that. The Radiant killer has an antidote for Killjoy’s creations. Killjoy is a game-changer on Ascent. The detainer can lockdown large areas using her ultimate, creating a safe route for her teammates. Detecting and destroying her cage is crucial to gain back control, but it’s incredibly tricky to do so. This …
Valorant
Is Valorant streamer JasonR dodging games with women?
Olivia Richman
Streamer Jason “JasonR” Ruchelski is facing allegations of sexism after accusations of frequently ducking games where he has women on his team. JasonR has gained a sizable Twitch following since he started streaming in 2015. The former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro currently has 900,000 followers. Since 2018, JasonR has been accused of sexist behavior on multiple occasions. At that time, JasonR was accused of banning subscribers with usernames that indicated …
Valorant
Riot is making changes to Valorant deathmatch to fix spawns
Fariha Bhatti
Riot Games is making a significant change to Valorant deathmatch. The practice mode will no longer have 14 players tapping heads together, as the maximum player count for the mode is being reduced. Complaints about Valorant deathmatch have been plenty since the game’s release. The reservations grew with the number of players playing simultaneously to hone their aim in deathmatch. Dozens of players crammed in small maps is leading to …
Valorant
A huge Valorant bug lets teams pick the same agent twice
Fariha Bhatti
Players have seen absurd bugs in Valorant, but this new one takes the cake for being the most impactful. A glitch is allowing one team to pick the same Valorant agent twice. Valorant has its fair share of bugs that get fixed quickly but this brand new bug has left players shook as they witness the impossible. A screenshot shared by G2 Esports’ Jakub “Lothar” Szygulski shows two Astras in …
Valorant
Who is nitr0? Everything we know about Team Liquid’s IGL
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s in-game leader Nick “nitr0” Cannella is pegged as one of the best first-person shooter players ever. The American rifler has proved his mettle in both FPS games. CSGO and Valorant are arguably the two top shooters in the world from an esports perspective. nitr0 enjoyed esports success in both tites, and has remained at an elite level for years now. His versatility and leadership have earned …
Valorant
New Valorant skin bundle Undercity teases mystery character
Fariha Bhatti
A new Valorant skin bundle is here. Undercity is dazzling and colorful, with a zest of mystery. Valorant Episode 4 Act 2 is just around the corner, and players are hyped about new in-game cosmetics. The upcoming skin bundle has been leaked, but it’s not anything players expected. It bears a striking resemblance to the hit collection Glitchpop, with a twist that has the Valorant community at a loss. The …
Riot fixes Deathmatch spawn issues after player complaints
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Riot is looking to fix the Valorant deathmatch state following an abundance of player complaints regarding spawn placements. The new patch brings all the right ingredients for a perfect deathmatch experience. A few Valorant players use the in-game deathmatch to warm up their hands, which is a huge issue. Most deathmatch players are competitive, which defeats the point of the game mode. Ranked players have been complaining about how poor …
Brimstone finally gets a much-needed buff in Valorant Patch 4.03
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Riot Games is finally showing some love to the most overlooked controller, Brimstone. The pack leader will get significant buffs in patch 4.03. Brimstone doesn’t have the most viable kit for a smoker agent in Valorant. Especially after the release of Astra, the agent silently slipped into the background with his obsolete computer and single incendiary. In the end, it was a Viper buff and the Astra release that sent …
Vandal or Phantom? Valorant agent Viper has a preference
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
The infamous Vandal vs. Phantom debate may have died down for a bit, but Viper’s Valorant takeover has reignited it yet again. A whole year after the game’s release, players still can’t seem to find common ground for primary rifles. Valorant’s arsenal features two rifles, and both have their own fanbase. A new official poll proves that despite a well-developed meta, players are still torn between the two weapons. Riot …
We now have proof that Valorant may come to consoles soon
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
A mobile version for Valorant is already in the pipeline, but Riot Games has bigger plans than that. A new job posting from Riot Games shows that Valorant may soon be coming to consoles. Valorant is easily 2022’s most popular shooter. Players have quickly taken a liking to the game’s lively characters equipped with death-dealing powers. Within a year, Riot’s shooter has attracted millions of new players. It’s safe to …
Here’s how to get the free Dance of Luck Buddy through Prime Gaming
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Another Prime Gaming reward is coming to Valorant soon, and it is likely hinting towards a popular skin bundle. Here’s how to claim your Dance of Luck Buddy. Extravagant Valorant skins aren’t affordable for everyone. Riot Games’ regular free rewards help all players enjoy Valorant’s in-game cosmetics. These free skins may not be as lavish as the exclusive items, but they sure add some color to inventory. Valorant developers recently …
Here’s how to get access to the Valorant Mobile beta
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Valorant players will soon be able to dash away with Jett on their mobile devices. A beta version of Valorant Mobile will go live soon, but only a few will get the opportunity to try it out early. Valorant has quickly become one of the top PC shooters in 2022, but Riot Games isn’t stopping there. The developer plans to roll out a mobile version for players that like to …
Riot testing email-based reports to fight Valorant toxicity
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Toxicity complaints in Valorant have increased tremendously in the past few months and Riot Games is experimenting with a new program called Alarmbot to target trolls. The number of trolls in Valorant is growing with the game’s popularity. Despite Riot’s effort to minimize toxicity, player complaints are through the roof. The developer has encouraged players to report malicious actors so that an automated system can deal with them. However, it’s …
This creepy Omen bug teleports the agent outside the map
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Omen has likely taken offense to players refusing to pick him in ranked games. The agent is now teleporting out of bounds in an insanely game-breaking bug. The shadow-lurker Omen was easily the top-pick of players in the first few acts of Valorant. Riot Games’ gradual tweaks immensely nerfed his kick, making him one of the least player agents. While a buff from Riot is still out of sight, Omen …
Are you playing the wrong agent? Learn about roles in Valorant
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Have you been pushing sites as Killjoy? You probably don’t understand all the roles in Valorant and may want to switch your agent. Riot Games took a page out of the hero shooter playbook by adding clear roles for characters to fill. Valorant players understand their responsibility in a team, which ultimately leads to a better gaming experience. However, toxicity still persists in Valorant as some players fail to understand …
Valorant map bind was recreated in Minecraft, and it’s amazing
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Remember when a player recreated Ascent in Fortnite? Valorant has now reached Minecraft, and it’s an amazing sight to see. Within a year of its release, tactical shooter Valorant has garnered a loyal count of around 14 million players. Unlike some other shooters, Valorant’s player base includes fans of a broad variety of games including Overwatch, Fortnite, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and even Minecraft. This variety has bolstered Valorant’s popularity in …
Riot reveals new Yoru rework and it could be OP
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Riot Games has fulfilled its promise of making Yoru a master of deception. The first teaser of his rework shows that he’s cloned himself into a flash. Something strange happened to Yoru during his weak Dimensional Drift. The agent has come out with a clone of himself that baits enemies into flashing themselves. The new Yoru rework looks tremendous as it brings a unique blind to the game. Valorant’s most-anticipated …
Here’s how to use Viper’s ultimate perfectly on every map
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
When we talk about the most powerful ultimates in Valorant, Viper tops the list. Despite its viability, many players don’t know how to use Viper’s ultimate in Valorant. The venomous agent carries a tanker full of toxic gas. She uses her toxins to kill enemies slowly, but she really lets loose when she has her ultimate. Her lethal gas emits in a large area, affecting all enemies that come into …
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.
