Valorant is a 5v5 tactical, character-based shooter that’s took the PC gaming arena by storm.
The competitive shooter gained some serious traction thanks toexposure on Twitchin beta form before launch but has since gone on to be one of the most popular shooters around.
It’s also an easy game to get into that’s not only free-to-play but also heavily optimised to perform well on all manner ofPC gaming machines. We managed nearly 200 FPS on a mid-range gaming laptop during some play sessions, which shows how well it works.
But what is Valorant? How do you play? And more importantly, how do you win? Stick with us to find out.
What is Valorant?
Valorant feels like a cross between CS:Go andOverwatch. A competitive shooter that pitches two small teams against one another.
Your team is either set to attack or defend, with the attackers planting a “spike” (essentially a bomb) that the other team need to then defuse or, preferably, prevent you from planting in the first place.
The attacking team can win by either eliminating the defenders or by planting the spike then protecting it from being defused until the timer runs out. The defenders similarly can win by destroying the attackers before they get a chance to plant their spike or defusing the spike after it has been planted.
Each team of five gets to play as both attackers and defenders during a game. Each match has 25 rounds total, with the first team to win 13 rounds being declared the victor.
Even with this many rounds, games can last for as little as eight minutes. Especially if both teams are aggressive.
It’s a fairly simple premise and one that Counter-Strike players will be used to. In fact, anyone that’s played CS:Go will notice a lot of similarities between that and this game.
As well as bomb planting and small teams, Valorant also has a similar weapon purchasing system and gun mechanics too. Some guns won’t allow you to aim down the sight, which is a familiar feeling. The game also involves a lot of stalking and skulking in corners and choke points.
What sets Valorant apart is the hero classes. Each character has different abilities that let them unleash special moves after a certain time. That includes simple things like the ability to heal or revive fallen teammates or a special that lets one character have a “do over” when they get shot by teleporting them back to a different place in the map.
Valorant is free-to-play, so anyone can download it and get gaming. Assuming you have access to a gaming PC.
To get started,head over to the official siteand click “Play FREE” you’ll then be asked to sign in to your Riot account orcreate one.
Do that and you can download the launcher and install the game. Don’t worry, it’s not a massive game so you won’t have to wait days like you would for Call of Duty.
What are the minimum specs for Valorant?
Valorant is designed to be as optimised as possible and run on a multitude of machines. The minimum specifications are:
To get 144 FPS or higher Riot Games recommends an Intel Core i5-4460 and a GTX 1050 Ti or higher.
As you can see, even with anaffordable PCorgaming laptopyou can get a great experience from Valorant.
Will Valorant come to console?
When asked this question, Anna Donlon, the Executive Producer of Valorant said “The team looks forward to starting our decades-long commitment to servicing the global Volarant community. This is just the beginning of our journey together.”
She also said “While we are exploring other platforms like console and mobile, right now the team is working hard to deliver a top-notch experience on PC.”
We’d fully expect to see Riot develop the game for console in the near future, especially with its current popularity.
Is Valorant free-to-play?
Yes. Valorant is free to download and free-to-play as well. Though there is a battlepass system.
How does Valorant’s Battlepass work?
Like other Battlepass systems, Valorant’s Battlepass essentially rewards players with cosmetic items. It’s a premium reward system that you need to pay for in order to access, but it’s not intended to be pay-to-win.
Valorant’s Battlepass system is broken into acts. Each act lasts two months and so does the Battlepass.
The Battlepass has 50 tiers with both free and Premium paths available. You progress along those paths based on the experience points (XP) you earn from completing missions and playing matches.
The Valorant Battlepass consists of 10 chapters and you can play through it for free, but you won’t get the items in the Premium tier by doing so.
The sorts of things you may unlock by playing include weapon skins, player cards, sprays, gun buddies and more. You’ll unlock more items by paying for the Premium Battlepass but won’t get any extra edge over the enemy.
Find out Battlepass here.
How to play Valorant
We’ve already discussed the basics of how to play Valorant in terms of eliminating the enemy team and/or planting or defusing the spike, but there’s much more to the game than the basic premise.
When a round starts you enter an initial “buy” phase. Where you can purchase weapons to use in that round. The first round of a game invariably starts with everyone using pistols as no one has earnt any cash yet.
Money is earnt by winning and losing, so in the next round you’re able to choose froma wider range of weaponsincluding shotguns, sniper rifles, assault rifles, SMGs and more.
You can also buy armour and boosts for your abilities here. Gunplay is the main crux of the game as you need to shoot the enemy (for the most part) to win or avoid being shot yourself. So it’s worth practising to see what guns you get on with.
Cash is not carried over to the next game, so be sure to spend what you earn to win.
The basics of any tactical FPS game apply here. Aim when you can, fire in bursts and use cover as much as you can.
Then use your agent’s ability to gain the upper hand, help your team or prevent the enemy from gaining the advantage.
Valorant’s characters
Valorant has a number of heroes to choose from. These are so-called “Agents” with special abilities that make for different playstyles.
Choosing between heroes, meanwhile, is tactical but not as massive as the differences in something like Overwatch.
All of Valorant’s agents have the same health and hitboxes, making it all about their abilities. These include powers that can blind opponents, or block out an area with fire for a time, or use radar to see if enemies are nearby.
Each ability is assigned to a different (Q, E, C and X) and require charging. Some you can purchase at the buy stage, others you have to earn enough points to use.
A character’s ultimate ability is activated by pressing X by default. This special move is the most effective but also requires kills or orbs (you’ll find these around the map) to power up so it takes a while to earn.
Here are some of the Valorant agents you can play with:
Jett is a duelist. She’s more agile than other agents and has an ability that lets her jump great heights fast that others. She can also use this ability to rush towards enemies.
Jett’s advantage comes in getting the height advantage on opponents and dealing out damage with her blade storm ultimate ability.
Jett’s special abilities are:
Phoenix is another duelist and one that hails from sunny ol' Blighty. Phoenix is all about style and fighting on his own terms.
Viper is all about the poison. Her abilities are designed to both poison the enemy and block their vision while she gets the upper hand. Viper doesn’t take damage from her own poisons either.
Viper’s abilities use fuel, so you need to keep an eye on that but can reuse your gas bomb if you’re careful.
Raze comes from Brazil and comes equipped to blow things up. Blaze can also use her abilities to get to high ground in the same way as Jett.
