Valorant
Valorant
What ranks can play together in Valorant? We have the answer
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant Episode 3 Act 3 begins with the new patch featuring changes to the game’s competitive ecosystem. The changes allow all Valorant ranks to play together, but there’s a catch. Riot Games has continued to make necessary changes to Valorant’s ranking and queue system since the game’s release in 2020. However, the new act changes everything. In order to combat smurfs, the developer has gone an extra mile, allowing five …
Valorant
Valorant terms and phrases that everyone should learn
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant, like any other first-person shooter game, has a loyal player base that communicates in a specific language. We have compiled a list of Valorant terms and phrases that everyone should learn. Riot Games’ dipped its toes in the FPS realm with animated shooter Valorant in 2020. Since then, the game has roped in a large chunk of players from competitor FPS and other genres, becoming one of the most …
Valorant
These are the best agents to play in Valorant Episode 3 Act 3
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant Episode 3 Act 3 has just rolled out with a bang, introducing a fresh new act to the agent roster. With Chamber in, we have a new list of the best agents to play in Valorant’s the new act. Riot Games has added a brand new agent to Valorant’s agent roster in Episode 3 Act 3, furthering the game’s appeal. Chamber brings cutting-edge weapons to Valorant, and players are …
Valorant
This new wallhack bug is helping players get kills on Fracture
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant players have discovered a strange glitch on Fracture that looks a lot like a wallhack. This new bug doesn’t require intel gatherers like Sova or Cypher’s help to expose enemies through a wall. Players can see a purple speck on Fracture that denotes the enemy’s location, providing them with a massive advantage. A player named JoelTommy shared a clip from a ranked game where an attacker Sova got exposed …
Valorant
Champions bundle brings new limited edition skins to Valorant
Steven Rondina
Riot Games is doing something special for Valorant players to celebrate the upcoming Valorant Champions 2021 event. The new Champions Bundle has been revealed in Valorant, commemorating the upcoming VCT event that will crown the first ever Valorant world champions. The skins are set to be true limited-edition options, with a run in the store from November 24 to December 12. Once December 13 hits, the skins will be gone …
Valorant
Riot Games releases VCT Champions song “Die For You”
Nicholas James
Riot Games is continuing its tradition of creating custom musical anthems and animated music videos ahead of their biggest competitive esports events with a new track, “Die For You” featuring Grabbitz. The video focuses on three agents, Sage, Brimstone, and Phoenix, as they try to defuse a spike. The gorgeous animated track takes clear inspiration from previous songs and videos for League of Legends’ World Championships. In the video, Brimstone …
Valorant
Valorant wins Esports Game of the Year at 2021 Esports Awards
Olivia Richman
Valorant has officially been named Esports Game of the Year at the 2021 Esports Awards. Valorant has been a big deal since it was first released in 2020. Riot’s tactical first-person shooter was immediately celebrated by competitive and casual players alike for its blend of shooting mechanics and ability-related strategies. It quickly became one of the most-viewed games on Twitch, and many veterans of such titles as Counter-Strike: Global Offensive …
Valorant
Omen almost received some ridiculously OP buffs in Valorant
Steven Rondina
Omen has historically been one of the best agents in Valorant yet Riot Games was actually looking to make him even stronger. Back in October, rumors swirled that some big buffs were incoming for Omen in the form of Paranoia no longer blinding teammates and his ultimate having the extra ability to blind enemies. Almost two months removed from those rumors nothing has been seen to suggest that this was …
Here’s what top Valorant pros think about new agent Chamber
William Davis
Valorant
Chamber is polarizing the Valorant player base. Here’s what pro players have to say about the agent. Chamber is Valorant’s 17th agent, and he’s already making a big splash in online play. Valorant fans always worry whenever a new agent comes out, as it can disrupt gameplay or throw balance out of whack. WIN.gg was able to connect with several Valorant pros through the Red Bull Home Grounds event to …
Linkin Park singer Mike Shinoda reveals his love of Valorant
Steven Rondina
Valorant
Riot Games rolled out the red carpet for the premier of its hit new show Arcane, and a number of celebrities answered the call. Among them was Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda. The singer and songwriter was caught by interviewer Ovilee May at the Arcane premier for an interview discussing his relationship with Riot Games and to share in the excitement around the show’s debut. During the interview, Shinoda touches upon …
Magepunk skin bundle returns to Valorant with unique melee and Operator
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Patch 3.10 brings exciting updates to Guardian users. Valorant’s steampunk-style bundle Magepunk has returned, and it features fan-favorite weapons. Riot Games has excellent news for steampunk fans who are still hooked on the Magepunk’s tiny tubes of glow. The brand new patch has rolled in with Magepunk 2.0, which features a much better melee weapon this time around. https://twitter.com/PlayVALORANT/status/1460638829149229056 Along with a fresh new face of Chamber, patch 3.10 has …
Leak suggests agent profiles with custom keys for Valorant
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Valorant players will soon be able to create agent profiles with specific keybinds, leaks suggest. Dedicated Valorant players find it hard to juggle between numerous agents due to variations of abilities. The upcoming update will make switching agents easier with a brand new agent-specific keybind feature, according to ValorMike. https://twitter.com/ValorLeaks/status/1459307757073584135 Valorant has a total of 17 agents, including brand new sentinel Chamber. Each agent has a unique power kit with …
All of the settings for TenZ, Valorant’s best player in 2021
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Climbing the ranks in Valorant is no easy feat, but tweaking in-game settings can help to make the journey smoother. Valorant has a strict ranking system, but those shifting from other first-person shooters will likely find easy in the games. Sentinels’ Tyson “TenZ” Ngo is also among many players who switched from Counter-Strike: Global Offensive to raise Valorant’s skill ceiling to a whole new level. The pro player is currently …
How to win Valorant games with Astra
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Valorant’s celestial controller Astra is tough to master, but she’s extremely rewarding when used appropriately. In high ELO games, Astra can be the difference-maker when all else fails. Astra has been part of Valorant protocol for months now, but she’s still rarely seen in ranked games. Her high learning curve makes her a rare pick in low ELO games, but professional players like to run the controller. Her kit is …
What is Valorant PBE, and how do you apply for it?
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Valorant PBE, short for Public Beta Environment, is a testing sandbox for new features, agents, and bug fixes that are being developed for Valorant. Players can become a part of this program to help Riot better the game. Riot Games has rolled out regular patch updates for Valorant since the game’s release in 2020. The developer has been keen on ensuring the best FPS experience for its players. The PBE …
How to get RiotX Arcane gun buddies in Valorant
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Valorant has dozens of unique gun buddies, but Arcane themed cosmetics are rare. Players can grab still grab the tiny charms to partake in Arcane celebrations across various Riot titles. Riot Games recently announced another crossover between sister games League of Legends and Valorant to commemorate the release of the animated Netflix series Arcane. Valorant players received a brand new bundle that included a Sheriff skin and other goodies. However, …
Valorant devs explain how rank points work
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Riot Games has implied that there is a transparent ranking system, but players still find it confusing when they score fewer points upon losing. A developer has finally clarified how Valorant calculates rank rating. Ranking up in Valorant is no easy feat. The skill ceiling continues to go up as the game gets older, making ranking even more challenging. However, the developer has made it clear why players often score …
shroud wishes Valorant had custom maps and modes like CSGO
Olivia Richman
Valorant
Michael “shroud” Grzesiek is a big Valorant fan, but he isn’t afraid to speak his mind about where Riot Games’ first-person shooter could still improve. shroud has become a top streamer on Twitch not only due to his incredible skills but also his honest opinions. The former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro recently discussed why Reyna is a must-pick in Valorant even after her recent nerf. Now, shroud is thinking of …
Riot issues Valorant ban wave to combat smurfs
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Players should observe a change in their ranked games. Riot Games has wiped out tons of smurfs in a new ban wave. Players have long complained about smurfs in Valorant, and Riot Games has finally decided to tackle the problem. In a recent tweet, the developer revealed that smurfs had been wiped out from its first-person shooter. According to the tweet, the developer targeted compromised accounts that violated the game’s …
Is the Classic still overpowered after its nerf? Pros say yes
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant
Valorant’s Classic recently got nerfed, but professional players still think it’s overpowered. Riot Games has continued to rework Valorant weapons after considering community feedback. Recently, players started complaining about the starting pistol being overpowered when compared to the game’s pricier sidearms. The developer nerfed the Classic right-click to better suit the current meta, but it doesn’t seem to do much. The firing error for Classic was changed from .05 to …
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.
