Valorant
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Everything you need to know about FFA Deathmatch mode in Valorant
Fariha Bhatti
Riot Games’ tactical shooter is cut-throat and tough to master. Fortunately, Valorant has a free-for-all deathmatch mode which provides ideal settings for players to sharpen their mechanical skills. Released with Episode 1 Act 2, Valorant FFA Deathmatch mode helps serious players hone up their in-game skills. In FPS games, the aim is of utmost importance. Even if you’re laden with tons of utility, powers, and abilities, it all comes down …
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Here’s how to get Sage’s one-way wall on Bind right every time
Fariha Bhatti
The famous Sage one-way wall on Bind can be a game-changer if enemies continue to attack bomb point B in spite of it. And there’s an easy way to get your wall correctly every single time. Sage may not deal much damage with her abilities, but her seemingly innocuous kit can be deadly when used correctly. The agent is equipped with healing powers and a barrier orb that shields teammates …
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Raze among the highest picked agents in VCT Challengers 3, Jett places fourth
Fariha Bhatti
Eight teams have qualified for Valorant Champions Tour Europe Masters One, and these teams heavily utilized Omen, Sova, and Raze to secure a spot in Valorant’s biggest event to date. In high elo games, Reyna or Jett are statistically the best agents that players love to play. Duelists are often preferred for their belligerent powers and abilities that can annihilate enemies in seconds. However, in team games, agent lineups vary …
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TenZ returns to competitive Valorant as a stand-in for Sentinels
Fariha Bhatti
Cloud9’s streamer Tyson “TenZ” Ngo will be playing for Sentinels in the upcoming Valorant Champions Tour: North America Masters. Sentinels Valorant team was in dire straits after dropping its best player from the active roster ahead of VCT Masters One. Jay “Sinatraa” Won was accused of sexual and mental abuse by ex-girlfriend Cleo, who publicized voice recordings and screenshots from said events. Her statement prompted a community-wide backlash and an …
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sinatraa accused of mental, sexual abuse by ex-girlfriend Cleo
Olivia Richman
Sentinals’ star Valorant player Jay “sinatraa” Won has been accused of abuse by his ex-girlfriend. After sinatraa spent some time telling people that he had dumped his ex Cleo, she decided to tell the community her version of events. She revealed that she was the one who broke up with sinatraa after he had mocked her for not wanting to be ignored. It seemed that this was the final straw …
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Here’s why Valorant doesn’t have an infinite deathmatch mode
Fariha Bhatti
Valorant developers have finally acknowledged pleas for a 24/7 deathmatch server, and have revealed a reason behind the delay of its implementation. Riot Games’ tactical shooter currently doesn’t have a typical practice mode that you can spend seamless hours in without any end in sight. Valorant has various game modes, but they’re all based around the concept of losing or winning. That competition may make a game exciting, but many …
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Valorant’s BlastX skin bundle has bug that basically wallhacks
Fariha Bhatti
A new Valorant bug has been making the rounds lately, but this time it isn’t about a problematic agent or map. Valorant’s unique and vivid skin line BlastX is at the center of the new bug that provides opposing players with a free wallhack . The bright coloured nerf-gun inspired weapons can expose players through walls, revealing the location in ranked games. Riot Games has added tons of in-game cosmetics …
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Asuna dominates in Valorant Champions Tour, trends on Twitter
Nina Forneloza
100 Thieves’ Peter “Asuna” Mazuryk has been on fire lately. Even after a loss to FaZe Clan in the VCT Challengers 3 grand final, was still trending worldwide after his performance against Luminosity Gaming. The victory gave the team the 2-0 victory 100 Thieves needed to continue on to compete in the grand final against FaZe Clan. There were multiple points in the game where fans were clutching their chests with …
Here’s how to protect the spike on Bind with Killjoy
Fariha Bhatti
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Valorant’s efficient German Killjoy has a unique kit that can help you protect the spike on Bind. Nanoswarm is a lethal weapon. The sentinel’s molotov is valuable for jamming pushes and clearing out choke points, which is why they’re usually laid down at the beginning of the round. On the attacker side, Killjoy can utilize the molotovs by planting them on the spike to be deployed later on sound cue. …
Try these quick tips to fight lag and improve ping in Valorant
M Alzamora
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Valorant is a great game, but it’s not immune to the one thing that affects all multiplayer online games. Lag is a player’s worst enemy, slowing down the connections between computers and causing hitches, dropped frames, and other issues that can ruin a player’s experience. No one likes to have a bad ping. But there are some ways to control lag and its effects it can have on a player’s …
100 Thieves’ Asuna gets prettiest ACE seen in Valorant so far
Fariha Bhatti
News
In a match against NRG Esports, 100 Thieves’ Peter “Asuna” Mazuryk gave a lesson on how a duelist should be played. In the VCT Challengers 3 North American division, NRG locked horns with 100 Thieves, one of the top teams in the region. The two teams put on a great show for fans, taking the best of three to a contentious decider. However, the entire series’s highlight was Asuna’s ruthless …
Valorant players dismiss instructions to avoid teabagging during VCT
Fariha Bhatti
News
During a Valorant Champions Tour match, European Valorant players were explicitly advised not to teabag or shoot the enemy’s corpse. The instructions were brushed aside as clips of teabagging surfaced after the G2 esports versus Team Dfuse game. In professional matches, there are a strict set of rules that must be followed during the game. For example, cheating, hacking is prohibited to ensure fair play. But some other rules exist …
Riot makes changes after complaints over Prime 2.0 karambit knife
Olivia Richman
News
The melee weapon in Valorant’s Prime//2.0 skin line was not a hit with the game’s community. Valorant developers have continuously dropped creative weapon skin lines that not only change the appearance of the game’s weapons, but have unique animations and sound effects. Players can even “level up” most skins by using Radianite, Valorant’s in-game currency. This upgrades the weapon’s visuals and sounds, creating a customizable and monetizable experience. The Prime//2.0 …
Valorant’s new agent Astra can pull campers out of Bind’s teleporters
Fariha Bhatti
News
Astra swished in Valorant with tons of new skills, but her ability to root out campers tops the list. The fourth controller and 15th agent is a breath of fresh air in Valorant’s current meta, which was dominated by the five aggressive duelists. Yoru’s recruitment in the roster only bolstered the duelist roster, leaving the ability aspect of Riot’s shooter in the shade. The addition of a versatile controller balances …
How to break open Icebox’s A site as Viper without teammates
Fariha Bhatti
News
Entering the lion’s den that is Icebox’s A bombsite is tough, but Viper can help make it easy. Viper can single-handedly push to the site. Valorant controllers are expected to support aggressive duelists but Viper’s utility can help her teammates execute a lethal execute at bomb point A that will force defenders but back off. Viper is equipped with smokes, two molotovs, and a thin-but-deadly curtain. Using all of her …
Watch shroud get 3 clutch kills with 5 bullets in Valorant
M Alzamora
News
Former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive star Michael “shroud” Grzesiek might have returned to his streaming roots after retiring from pro play, but he still has the skills that made him a legend. Valorant’s abilities often take center stage in Riot’s shooter, especially with the release of the game’s latest agent, Astra. But while playing out a match on Icebox, shroud showed that just because a game has powerful abilities doesn’t mean …
Viper, Yoru buffs are coming to Valorant, but not for a while
Fariha Bhatti
News
Valorant patch 2.04 is out, but one of the most notable things about the patch was the lack of buffs to Yoru and Viper. Many were surprised by this, but Valorant’s developers addressed the reason behind the delay. Since the game’s official release, Riot Games has introduced 15 agents into the game, divided into four categories. Most agents are viable, but a few others are still struggling to find a …
Use these Sova shock dart lineups to protect the Spike on Icebox
Fariha Bhatti
News
Valorant hunter Sova may seem like a passive gatherer of intelligence to some, but his arrows can be deadly when properly used on the attacking side. Valorant’s newest map, Icebox, is finally becoming less vexing as players are adapting to its cool scenery and tight choke points. With Icebox becoming more popular, players’ schemes around the map are also developing. Icebox is turning into a competitive location that calls for …
New Valorant agent Astra uses her stars to create one-way chokes
Fariha Bhatti
News
There’s no need to mug up tactical one-way smokes anymore if you have an Astra on your team. Riot Games’ newest agent Astra is already under the Valorant specialists’ microscope for being too powerful. The agent manipulates space and stars to get control of the map, but there’s more that she’s capable of. Unlike Viper and Brimstone, Astra doesn’t deal damage. The new star exploit changes that. Team Liquid’s streamer …
New agent Astra and ranked changes coming in new Valorant patch
Fariha Bhatti
News
The wait’s over. Valorant’s much-anticipated patch 2.04 is out and it features the galactic agent Astra, extended queues, ranked changes, and a new skin line. The first extension to the controller roster had players hyped for Valorant patch 2.04. Apart from Astra, Episode 2, Act 2 addresses some restricted lobby issues. After patch 1.10, players could only match up against opponents with three tiers rank gap. The latest update changes …
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.
