Right now we will talk about the freshest game created by the Riot Games’ – Valorant. We don’t know why, but some people think that this game is similar to Call of Duty, which is a big mistake. Valorant is a tactical shooter, just like CS: GO. So, it means that all the game is about teamwork and tactics, where each shot is vital. If you want to recognize why Valorant isn’t like any other shooter game, or have never played this genre before, we are going to give you a guide containing few tips for the play.
Basic game rules of Valorant
Only two teams can play the match (each team has 5 agents). Before the start of the game, you have to choose an agent you want to play for. By the way, each character has special skills more info about skills you can find at Valorant Tracker. There cannot be two same agents in the same team. The match has from 13 to 25 rounds, so the first team that reaches 13 victories – wins the match.
Teams will take two different sides – attack and defense, and after playing 12 rounds, teams will switch sides. Their goals are pretty simple and clear: the team in the attack has to plant a bomb (called Spike here) on one of many special spots on the map. Another team’s role is in the protection of those spots, or deactivating the Spike, or prevent its installation. Except for the bomb there is, also, another way to win the round – kill all members of the opposite team.
Valorant has its in-game currency called Credits, which players get at the beginning of each round. It can be spent on weapons, armors, and special skills. How many Credits you will get, depends on what you have done on the previous round. Such things like installing the Spike, killings, winning\losing the game – all these actions will get you bonus Credits.
The 1st tip: More walk, less run!
Running (default movement speed) in that game is quite loud so your enemies can easily locate and kill you. You can see the noise area around you due to running on the minimap as a small circle. To avoid this issue just walk slowly (hold Shift while moving). Yes, you will be moving slower but with risen accurateness and making almost 0 noise, that will let you and your teammates sneak up to enemies’ block post or base.
You can run only in the next situations:
1) When you are sure that are no enemies nearby.
2) Enemies already know your location.
3) You are in a hurry.
In those cases better take a knife into your hands, so you will be running much faster than with the weapon.
The 2nd tip: Never shoot while running!
Why did we pay that much attention to the speed of your moving? Because in that game running and shooting don’t mix well. If you see somebody you need to kill, better stop and then shoot. The more you play in both styles run&shoot and stand&shoot, the more difference you will see. The aim will give you a hint on your accuracy.
You certainly will have to get used to that kind of play. The most widespread mistake all new Valorant players do – shooting during the run, so they can’t understand why bullets went the wrong way or why they got killed that easily.
Why just don’t not walk (holding Shift) and shoot? In that way, the first few shots will have a 100% accuracy, just like if you were standing. However, in a few seconds all next shots will be as bad as while running.
The 3rd tip: Don’t waste your Credits!
One more problem new players do – is an attempt to buy new weapons and skills before each round. Never do so. Better to save Credits to buy later the best weapon and armor. Also, never forget to check what weapons your team has, for example, when you have a rifle and all your teammates have pistols – isn’t the right situation. Games like that are not effective so you will probably lose. But if you and your team will spend 2-3 rounds saving money, for the next round all teammates will have nice weapons and armor, so this round is yours.
Bonus: if you stayed alive till the end of the round, in the next one you will have the same weapon you played with, so pick someone’s gun up before the end of the round. Although if you die you will have to buy a new weapon, regardless your team wins or not. If you survive till the round’s end, all skills that haven’t been used and armor will move to the next one.
Before starting the game you have to think of different possible rounds types. For communication with your team, you can use voice chat or buttons with default voice messages, such as “Save” or let them know about you being rich (when you have a lot of Credits).
Save Rounds
Many players don’t like to spend Credits for useless cheap stuff so that they have more money for the next round. That means they don’t buy anything or buy a pistol and 1 skill.
Full Buy Rounds
Everyone in the team has to buy a nice weapon, armor, and abilities he needs.
Force Buy Rounds
In this round you and your team don’t have enough Credits for Full Buy Round but still buying the best weapons and armors you can afford. There are few reasons for playing that round, such as:
– You want to surprise your enemies.
– You need a victory to come back.
– You don’t have time for waiting the moment you will get more Credits.
Partial Buy Rounds
Only 2 team members buy a better weapon (rifle, shotgun, etc) but others stay with pistols. The entire team makes sure that everyone will have enough money for turning the next round into the Full Buy Round.
The 4th tip: Never hesitate with armor!
Never be greedy for spending Credits on the armor, because without extra protection you will lose your 100 health points after 1-2 shots.
You should buy armor in each Full Buy Round. If you don’t have enough money and have to choose a gun either an armor, – pick armor. There are two kinds of it. The first one adds you 25 health points (the price: 400 Credits) and the second adds 50 health points (the price: 1000 Credits). Both decrease the damage you get by 70%.
The 5th tip: Keep the aim on the same height as the enemy’s head!
Players who moving the mouse less, usually aiming much faster and better. While walking try to keep the aim at the height of your enemies’ heads. Why? Because many players (not just in Valorant, but in many shooters) walk and keep their aim to the ground, which is a real problem if you faced the enemy.
Keep your reticle on the height of your teammates’ heads before the start of the round will be a nice training.
