After the success of League of Legends worldwide, Riot Games debuted their free-to-play first-person shooter (FPS) game Valorant on June 2, a leeway from the multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) genre and the League of Legends lore.
Valorant features a near-future setting adopting the mechanics of the Counter-Strike franchise, Rainbow Six; Siege, and Overwatch, where players go head-to-head to fulfill their team’s objectives. The game has two teams composed of five players, the Attackers and the Defenders.
The Attackers’ main goal is to plant the bomb-type device called “Spike” in the designated plant sites, while the Defenders secure the plant sites and defuse the planted Spike. Attackers are given a 100-second round timer to fulfill their objective, and once the Spike is planted, a 45-second time window is given for the Defenders to defuse it.
The standard game mode follows a 25-round system and in order to win the game, the team must win 13 rounds either by a successful Spike plant, a successful Spike defuse, or by eliminating all five players of the opponent team. A team switch takes place wherein the Attackers will become the Defenders occuring during the 12th round.
Meanwhile, the fast-paced Spike Rush is another game mode that follows a seven-round system having the same objectives but having random loadouts per round with the goal of the team to win first by four rounds.
A breakthrough from other FPS titles
What separates the game from other shooter games is that Valorant offers a unique gameplay with its agents that are classified within four classes: the Initiator, Duelist, Sentinel, and Controller. Each character is equipped with a different set of skills that can be utilized to win the game. Agents get a free signature ability at the start of every round, while other abilities are available for purchase. Unlike Overwatch which offers a character switch during respawn time, the agents cannot be changed once locked in.
Valorant currently has a small lineup of 17 weapon loadouts such as pistols, semi-machine guns, shotguns, and many more. The game also introduced Contracts where in-game challenges for the specific agents can be completed to unlock additional contents like player cards, title cards and weapon skins. A premium Battle Pass is available as an in-game purchase which gives players exclusive rewards while free rewards are given to players without the premium Battle Pass.
Familiar but with a twist
Despite having a different theme and gameplay, FPS gamers will have little to no adjustments in terms of game fundamentals but will have to take time to use them effectively with its additional abilities. In-game maps are laid out closely to Counter-Strike maps however, some maps may lack open areas with its tight alleys and corners. Locations are labeled properly in the minimap display and are supplemental to team communications and an additional plant site can change how the teams strategize every game.
Unfortunately, maps are randomly selected in each game which hinders the players to choose a map they prefer to play in. Furthermore, the movements have a huge impact in firing accuracy especially when equipped with certain weapons. Unlike other shooter games which players can fire accurately while running or moving sideways, players would have to walk or stop when firing in order to achieve accurate firing.
Weapon skins are also available in-game and can be purchased with Valorant Points or Radianite Points that require actual money. Weapon skins are purchased individually and are priced hefty considering the purchase rates of Valorant Points.
Room for improvement
With Valorant being a new game, it offers limited features for the time being with only two game modes, four playable maps, 11 available agents, and 17 weapons and it still lacks features like a surrender option for teams with several players disconnected from the game. After the game has rolled out to the public, a concern has been raised among players due to the game’s anti-cheat system, Vanguard which causes several errors like the blue screen of death due to its kernel-level software. The software has unrestricted access to the entire computer and once compromised, hackers can crash the entire system or access user files and exploit its data.
Overall, Valorant exceeded the expectations of pro and casual gamers despite its limited features prior to its release. It breaks away from the traditional shooter games with its theme and installment of unique player abilities.
Considering the success of Riot Games’ League of Legends in the esports scene, Valorant has a potential to dominate the esports scene in the first person shooter genre due to its massive promotions, good compatibility enabling low-end computers to run the game establishing a large ecosystem of players, and the developers’ knowledge in the competitive esports scene. Players expect Riot Games to bring out new contents and game balance in the future updates of the game.
Rating: 4/5
