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What Is VALORANT?

VALORANT is a fresh approach to the shooter genre. Developed by RIOT, the game sets itself apart from titles... Fabio | 15. September 2020

VALORANT is a fresh approach to the shooter genre. Developed by RIOT, the game sets itself apart from titles like Counter-Strike or Overwatch, while still managing to excite the fans of these games. We’ve taken a closer look at VALORANT and explain how the game works.

A ROUND-BASED BATTLE FOR POINTS

Similarly to Counter-Strike, the game basically revolves around round-based combat. The teams, each consisting of five players, face each other on opposite sides. The defenders are tasked with protecting a number of spots and sites. The attackers have to enter one of these sites and place a so called “spike”. Should the attackers manage to plant the spike and then survive the 45 seconds that it takes to detonate, they have won the round. Conversely, should the defenders manage to either eliminate them before setting the spike or defuse it within the 45 seconds, then the defenders get a round win on the board.

This format is played consecutively for 12 rounds, after which the two teams switch sides. Either there will be another 12 rounds played out, or a team reaches 13 points. At this point, the opposing team is plainly unable to achieve a higher score within those 24 rounds total. In the special case that the teams tie at 12-12, there is also an overtime. The teams take turns on each side and as long as they always trade the rounds 1-1, the overtime continues. But if a team manages to win on both sides within one set of rounds, the game is ended.

This concept bears striking resemblance to Counter-Strike and obviously it is inspired by this iconic title. But in CS:GO, the teams play 15-round halves. The biggest difference, however, lies in the characters of the game.

DIFFERENT CHARACTERS, DIFFERENT ABILITIES

The characters, called “agents”, bring a lot of dynamic action to the game. In Counter-Strike, all players are equal in the sense that they start with the same amount of money and can theoretically buy the same weapons and gear. Obviously, there are different roles within a team, but they’re not “hard-coded” into the characters themselves. Instead, players can decide what they want to do for each and every round. If you want to play as the sniper of the team, you just buy and AWP and set yourself up accordingly.

In VALORANT, you can still do this. But each and every agent carries along specific abilities that make them noticeably different from others. So some agents are better suited for certain tasks than the rest. For instance, Phoenix has abilities that help him with securing space. With his flash, he can blind opponents standing around corners and he can set up walls to cut certain positions off. It would simply be impractical to have another agent do this work if they are much less suited for the task.

So before the start of the match, the players make a conscious decision and a commitment to a specific role or task within the game. Obviously, this makes the picking phase a crucial part of the entire match. A team shouldn’t consist of 5 entry players or 5 supports.

So how do you construct a team in VALORANT? It’s really important to decide on a composition that works on both sides. A group full of brutal attackers won’t help you win any rounds on defense. So there has to be some sort of middle ground. We’ve got such an example for you here.

THE TEAM COMP MAKES THE DIFFERENCE

At the moment, Sage still remains a core part of virtually every team. Her healing capabilities are incredibly helpful and with her ultimate ability, she can revive a fallen teammate. On defense, she can quickly cut off entryways with her wall and slow down her opponents’ rotations with her orb.

Here, Cypher places a tripwire to secure a specific pathway.

Cypher can secure flanks on the attack. With his camera and tripwires, he can make sure that no enemy can just sneak up from behind. For the defense, he is just as important. On Haven, for instance, players often have to thin out in order to protect all 3 spots. With a Cypher on board, the C spot can be secured in a way that doesn’t require any player to actively sit on site. As soon as Cypher sees a player on the camera or someone activates his tripwire, the team can react accordingly.

Breach can open up lots of space. He can blind enemies, force them off of positions, and use his ultimate from great distance. For instance, he can use it to stop an opponent from defusing the spike. So Breach is useful on the defense and the offense.

In this example, Brimstone basically seals off an entire spot, giving his team access to the site without having to deal with heaven or CT players.

Brimstone can use his smoke grenades almost like you’re used to seeing in Counter-Strike. Opponents will think twice before running through the smoke – because there could be a crosshair waiting for them on the other side. This way, he can stop attackers from pushing in or keep defenders from re-entering the site in a post-plant scenario.

Lastly, Raze deals the damage. With her abilities, she can force enemy players out of hiding as well. But she’s best utilized as a duelist, which is to say in direct combat with other players.

WHAT PLACE DOES VALORANT HAVE IN ESPORTS?

The game is still young, but already there is a lively esports scene surrounding it. With Team Liquid, FunPlus Phoenix, G2 Esports, TSM, SK Telecom T1 and countless more organizations, a bunch of wealthy sponsors have already entered the game. There have been more than a dozen big tournaments hosted in recent months. Already, some teams are starting to dominate their regional competition. G2 Esports, for instance, have won all RIOT-sanctioned European tournaments so far. Of course, VALORANT can’t contend with the big esports scenes just yet. But if there’s one thing that we have learned from RIOT and League of Legends, it’s that they know how to make a game into a real esport.