Riot Games is the developer behind one of the biggest MOBAs in the world, that beingLeague of Legends. As such, the company seems to know what it is doing in putting together a well-crafted and team-oriented online experience. So when it announced a closed beta forValorant, a single-life first-person shooter, many were excited to see what Riot Games would come up with. Thus far,Valoranthasn’t disappointed, as the game seems to be a wonderful mix of multiple other shooters, while still being its own unique game.
Players all over the world are extremely interested in the brand new shooter, asValorantis routinely the number one watched game on Twitch and other game streaming platforms. That could be because the only way toget into the closedValorantbeta is by watching Twitch streams, but many battle royale enthusiasts, military shooter fans, and even MOBA mavens are trying outValorantand loving every second of it.
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How Valorant is Similar to Other Games
The first game that many will compareValorantto isCounter-Strike: Global Offensive, a game that recentlybeat outDOTA 2for peak concurrent players on Steam.CS:GOwas released in 2012 by Valve. TheCounterstrikeseries was originally a modification fromHalf-lifeandCS:GOis the fourth game in the series.
InCS:GO,there are are two teams of five pitted against each other, this is identical toValorant.One team defends a bombsite while the other tries to plant and blow it up, again this is the goal inValorant. Even the shooting mechanics inValorantare very similar toCS:GO.In both games, the shooting patterns of the guns take time to master but can be memorized over time. Movement is slow-paced, unlike a game likeCall of Duty,as accuracy decreases the more a player fires their weapon. Players ofCS:GOoften whip out a knife to move faster, and this same trick applies inValorant, althoughsome characters like Jett have added speed.
In between each round ofValorant,players can purchase a primary, a sidearm, and shield. The weapons that are available can easily be compared toCS:GO.For example, the “Frenzy” inValorantlooks just like the “CZ-75” fromCS:GO. The “Phantom” looks like an “AK-47.” And so on and so forth. Some may say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, others would say that Valve uses variations of real-life weapons, and Riot Games just uses those same guns, but spruces them up with a bit of and fantasy and imagination.
The second game that comes to mind, when comparingValorantto any other video game, isOverwatch. Riot Games' brand new shooter doesn’t shareOverwatch’s gameplay mechanics or gunplay, as it does withCounter-strike: Global Offensive,but theValorantandOverwatchhave some things in common.
The big similarity between Blizzard’sOverwatchand Riot Games’Valorantis that both titles use heroes or agents, and this is truly what setsValorantapart fromCS:GOas well. Just asOverwatchadded MOBA-like elements to the shooter genre, which has then since been copied by the likes of the Call of Dutyseries,Paladins, and more,Valorantis now continuing that trend by adding it into the single life-team-oriented shooter.
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Each Agent inValorant has unique abilitiesthat set themselves apart. There are four different types of Agents in the game: duelist, initiator, sentinel, and controller. However, since there are 5 players on a team, there will be at least one type that will be doubled up. In a game likeOverwatch, abilities are used nonstop and often to get kills, as lives don’t really matter and the objective is to do as much damage as possible to attempt to move forward with the goal. InValorant, however, gunplay still comes first, and the Agent abilities are really used as a complementary piece.
Overwatchis also one of the titles to universalize loot boxes in games.Riot Games has confirmed that it won’t be selling loot boxes inValorant,which is assuredly something that will delight many fans.
Valorantis revolutionary in many ways for a lot of gamers, but one other title has combined a lot ofOverwatch’s hero abilities in an FPS withCounterstrike’s one life bomb planting and defending gameplay.Rainbow Six Siegeisone of the best shooters of the past decadeand is still going strong after five-plus years. While the game doesn’t at all have over the top hero abilities likeOverwatchor evenValorant, each operator has its own unique set of skills, like being able to bash through walls with a hammer or plant explosive traps on doors, to get the job done and players have one single life to plant and defuse a bomb.
How Valorant is its Own Game
Even with all the comparisons,Valorantis absolutely still its own unique game, one that players have to experience for themselves to truly enjoy. The closed beta is starting to open up more over time, which is great news as additional players are able to enjoy the game together.Riot Games has confirmed thatValorantmay come to consoles and mobile, which would also already set the title apart fromCS:GO.
Valorant’s tick-rate is an impressive 128hz,which is doubleCS:GOandOverwatch, and way more thanApex Legends(20HZ),Fortnite(3ohz), orCall of Duty: Modern Warfare(12). Many players, especially professional gamers, appreciate the smooth and responsive feel of a high tick rate, and a 128hz will allow for games to feel fair and lacking in the “how did that guy just hit me when I’m behind the wall” type moments.
In between each round players are able to take a few moments to strategize and think about the round. This is different from some of the games in the direct genre as well. One could argue that this is something that is taken fromOverwatchorPaladins, but it allows for planning and communicating between teammates that is definitely helpful.
Valorantalso feels like a perfect esports game. While a game likeCS:GOhas had success, perhaps its simplicity has held it back. There’s something about the “pop” ofValorantthat makes it so exciting to watch, as evenESPN has announced an upcomingValorantinvitational. It’s a hyper-competitive game that gives players the one-more-round feel and is ultra-colorful, exciting, and unique.
Valorantabsolutely shares the DNA of games from before it. But that is something that can be said about darn-near every game pre-1985ish. Doom inspired so much of the FPS genre. Grand Theft Auto III set the tone for the sand-box era. Super Mario 64 showed developers how to make platformers in 3D. Many say thatUnchartedcopied off ofTomb Raider, and thenTomb Raidercopied off ofUnchartedagain.Valorantmay be refining a sub-genre and making it its own right in front of the eyes of millions of gamers, and that’s a splendid thing to behold, because it means that a fun video game is being played by a lot of people.
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