State of the Agents - December 2021

Hey all!

With 2021 wrapping ( ;_; where did the year go?) I wanted to send out one more update and give some insight into next year. But first, thank you to everyone who has played VALORANT over this past year. It’s been a wild ride, the fan art, cosplay, memes, hype af plays—all have been more than we could have ever imagined.

I mean we hoped for it, but to actually have it happen blew us away. Hopping into a match and getting to frag out with y’all has been a blast, it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity and we’re looking forward to making more dope stuff next year.

AGENTS YEAR IN REVIEW

Consider this: Within one hour of launching an Agent, they get more total hours of play than all the months of internal playtesting combined.

Yoru tore his way into games, but for some of you, he fell flat on his promise (catch up on those plans in our Yoru article!). Astra map control saw heavy presence in coordinated play. KAY/O suppressed everyone in his path, while at the same time the Patch 3.0 econ changes shook up who and what was played across the board. Viper created some sharp meta shifts, giving her a more prominent home on maps like Icebox and Breeze. Currently, Breach is seeing refreshed life on Fracture as well.

Chamber appeared to close out the year, holding down sites with extreme precision. We have seen many players from different playstyles pick him up, and stick with him. He’s currently settling into his own spot within the roster, and we're excited to see how he evolves and shakes up pro play in the coming year.

Y’all are adapting in new and amazing ways and it’s what keeps VALORANT evolving. We can’t wait to see how you use what we have planned for you in 2022 :)

Speaking of which...

EARLY 2022 BALANCE

Since Patch 3.0, we know things on the Agent balance side have been lighter than our previous Episodes, and going into 2022, we’re looking to change that. We spent a lot of time towards the end of 2021 looking at how we work, restructuring some of the team, re prioritizing work, and welcoming many new members to the team.

What does all of this mean to you? Throughout 2022 you should see a bigger focus on Agent balance. Y’all should be seeing updates to various Agents across the board throughout the first six months of the year, additionally we will be focusing more on addressing emergent balance issues faster than we did in 2021. As those updates are locked down, we will share that information with y’all before they go live. Keep your eyes peeled throughout the year!

THE NEXT AGENT

Mga kaibigan ko,

I’m not sure if this is tradition at this point, but I know many of you immediately scroll to the bottom just to see what is on the horizon. Hopefully all of us are going into next year with renewed energy, ready to take on new and unexpected challenges. Kicking off next year is an Agent who can outpace the rest of the roster, shocking the competition, and sliding straight into the fight.

Before they arrive, we are going to take our usual winter break, recharge, and amp ourselves up for next year.

Maraming salamat!