After analyzing the new shooter of Riot Games within our specific preview, we had the opportunity to play the Closed Beta di Valuing. This can be enjoyed by users through the Twitch platform, since it is only necessary to follow the live to be able to receive it on your account. Thanks to the aforementioned initiative, the project is finally testable before the release, considering however that the Beta period will extend until the work is officially published, in the confirmed launch window for this summer. The game is currently more than usable and was able to show itself fully even in this very first phase, let's see together what Valorant is ready to demonstrate!
The identity of Valorant
Let's make it clear: Valorant is not a Counter Strike: Global Offensive clone, and it is possible to consider it as such only if you have not yet tasted it. Impossible to deny it, the entire concept was certainly well absorbed by the well-known Valve title, together with many mechanics protagonists of the matches. Calling the game a copy, however, is decidedly inaccurate and disrespectful to the work done by Riot Games, who tried to reinvent a brand with modern mechanics and ideas, succeeding in many respects.
In the game you are not in fact called to impersonate simple terrorists or soldiers, but real heroes with peculiarities and characters. The character design is simply exceptional, given how much it manages to render despite the technical needs more than affordable, even if the personalities of the fighters were not particularly accentuated. However, we are dealing with one differentiation that in terms of gameplay is more than marked and functional, which will make the games completely different based on the soldier we decide to impersonate among the 10 currently available.
Valorant manages to modernize Valve's patented formula with interesting well-balanced mechanics
It is good to note that already from the selection of your character the mechanics from MOBA show themselves in great style, since it will be necessary to use our alter-ego for the entire course of the game, which always stands over 30 minutes. What makes Valorant decidedly more particular - compared to other competitive but more antiquated works - are precisely these mechanics that surround the extremely technical shooting and audio system, easy to understand in the base but extremely difficult to master at best to compete.
A new progenitor of the competitive
Although it is a work of the "new guard", which concerns current titles generally less aimed at the competitive extreme, Valorant manages to show more possibilities in this area than Counter Strike: Global Offensive. The skills are in fact not easy to use, and do not guarantee a turn in your favor in the game. With almost zero time-to-kill, in some cases you have to use your moves with extreme tactics and management, which adds further variables to the shape of the shooter initially patented by Valve. It is necessary to form certain team comps, also to know the possibilities of the opponents, and to learn when it is appropriate to invest money in the early stages of the game to buy uses of skills, also considering that, if not calibrated, these can damage themselves and the own team. The purchase of weapons is also weighted according to the peculiarities of your team, as the ability to aim is essential with some characters. In short, a series of fun and learnable variables with simple hours of play, which make everything at the same time more varied and competitive, at least much less stale.
With the peculiarities added in Valorant, the experience acquires many variables that make it fresher and more competitive
What makes this evolution of the game concept successful - which although inspired by other titles to provide completely original sensations shining with its own light - is the fundamental importance of weapons. The skills do not in any way replace the guns, but are an accompaniment that allows you to create useful situations to open dances, block enemies or identify them, like many other very varied effects that in no way do they put aside the ever essential skill of the player mouse and keyboard in hand. These are also essential to reduce the phenomenon of camping in the decidedly rather large and convoluted maps. The doubts born after the announcement of the game concerned the addition of the skills, which if not managed at best would have made the experience extremely similar to the concept of Overwatch, but the care taken by the developer managed to provide us with a different work that unpublished shows from a new perspective.
Bullet hit
In conclusion we can confirm that the game system designed for Valorant managed to hit the mark. Although the title has several similarities with other progenitors of the competitive shooter genre, it manages to be original and well balanced, as well as fun to play. Moving from the economy to the shooting system, the already known mechanics have been revised and implemented together with new and often amazing features. The technical sector has already shown itself in the really surprising beta, as all the matches manage to be well balanced on every occasion.
The graphics are pleasant to observe and the frame drops are completely absent, everything is designed to put the players on the same level, from hardware to in-game mechanics. The quitters are in fact compensated by gold awards for those who remain in the game, which allows a comeback in any case. Also noteworthy is the absence of pay to win, given that the economy system is linked only to aesthetic elements and to the unlocking of additional characters, however obtainable by grinding hours of play. The only doubt that currently remains is related to the post-launch support of the game, and the addition of new content such as the necessary ranked modes, new maps and characters. Further changes in the game could also please, such as the addition of friendly fire and a speed up of the early phase already made dynamic enough by the possibility of positioning during purchases.
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