Since the release of Riot Games’ latest FPS title, Valorant, the community have been lucky enough to receive regular updates from the developers. This recent update came this afternoon.
On the official Valorant twitter, a 5 minute video was posted. This video was from the Executive Producer, Anna Donlon (SuperCakes) checking in following the launch and offering us details regarding what is coming up next for Valorant. We’ve taken a look and broken down the key features.
Table of Contents
Reviewing the launch
Anna touched on how it was a difficult but brilliant experience launching the game remotely (from home) due to COVID. She went on to add that they were worried if the game was “complete” but they understood that there would be continual updates on a regular basis throughout the game’s life cycle.
Ranked Mode & Quality of Life
This is the first aspect of Valorant updates Anna touched on, and it’s probably the most relevant based on the nature of the community. Here are the quality of life improvements coming to the game in the upcoming months:
- Early surrender
- Ability to remake matches
- Timeouts
- Protection for streamers
- Made several UX improvements based on user feedback
- Regular updates for bugs and balance
Episodes & Acts
We can expect the next big content drop at the beginning of Act 2. Valorant Episodes are meant to last 6 months, with each act lasting roughly two months each. The developers have asked the community for some flexibility here depending on holidays etc.
New Agents will drop at the beginning of each Act. Anna stated that they plan to release about six agents per year. However, she did mention that this could change depending on community feedback.
Episodes and Acts will also be used to tell stories about the game. Some members of the community have already been piecing things together, and we can expect to see more layers of the story pulled back in the next Act.
As it’s a huge point of interest, there will be a unique battle pass for each month. So each battle pass that drops will last roughly two months. For those that love skins and in-game items, Riot Games plan to release these each week. Some of the bigger changes to the game will tend to occur at the beginning of a new Episode, this could include the likes of new Valorant maps.
Game Modes
You’ll be pleased to hear that Riot Games have accelerated their development to bring more Game Modes to Valorant in the near future. At the beginning, they planned to only launch with the core bomb mode. Following community feedback, they understood that a slower, more casual option helps to break things up and keep it fresh.
There is no clarification on when new modes will be regularly released. However, Anna did shed some light on the fact that we can expect a new game mode to be released before Act 2.
Player Behaviour
The final point Anna touched on for Valorant updates was player behaviour. She pointed out that there are some players out there dedicated to making the gameplay experience miserable for others.
Riot believe they have a good handle on cheaters and understand that this will be a constant battle. It was made clear that Riot Games understand they aren’t doing well with handling disruptive behaviour in Valorant right now. There is a team dedicated to working towards improving this. Anna requested players actively use the reporting system in Valorant when relevant, and they are working on ways to provide updates on reports you make.
Pay close attention to our dedicated Valorant news section, as we post regular updates to help keep you in the know.
